Mt. 28:1-15 - Resurrection 1, Matthew's Story

     The Resurrection of Jesus is one of the most glorious and meaningful events in all of Scripture, rivaled only by the Second Coming of Jesus and the final destruction of Satan and sin and securing of God’s Kingdom rule after the Millennium.
     While we look to the cross for assurance of sins forgiven and the re-assurance of God's love, the Resurrection uniquely establishes and validates what happened at Calvary.
     Over the next few days, we will look at the four gospel accounts of Jesus’ resurrection. Our first goal will be to see what the disciples and other participants experienced. Later we will try to understand the meaning of this great event.
     Matthew's report of the Resurrection is interesting because it is difficult at first to sort the elements of his story out. Like a person who has just witnessed a traumatic event, the Matthew’s description is jumbled, making the logic hard difficult to follow.
     Did the women actually see Jesus raised and the guards fall like dead men from fear? It sounds like it at first. Reading more carefully one realizes the Resurrection must have happened as the women were on their way to the tomb, not at it.
     Mary Magdalene and "the other Mary," probably "Mary the mother of Joses," or John, (Mark 15:47) and James (Mark 16:1) are the first to arrive at the tomb after Jesus is raised.
     Mary Magdalene's devotion, so deep and loyal because of how much Jesus had done for her, will shine out throughout the Resurrection story. James and John's commitment to Jesus is reflected in the devotion of their mother who left all to help care for Jesus' needs and now comes first to the tomb with Mary of Magdala.
     I love Matthew's description of the moment of Resurrection. A violent earthquake. An angel who's "appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow." The powerful Roman guards, trained to be tough as nails and fearless in battle, shaking with terror and becoming "like dead men."
     No one can stand when God decides to act. The effort of the priestly leaders and Roman governor to make the tomb secure only serve to spotlight the weakness of human authority when confronted by the power of God.
     It is the same angel who calls Jesus from His tomb who is still present when the women arrive. He considerately calms their fears at finding an empty tomb and reminds them of Jesus' promise: "He is not here; he has risen, just as He said." Then he invites them to examine the evidence of the empty tomb and sends them on their way to announce the resurrection to the disciples.
     Matthew says the women "hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy (Mt. 28:8)." I can imagine their confused thoughts and emotions at that moment. They had seen Jesus tortured and killed, and had watched as His dead body was taken from the cross and placed in the tomb. Jesus was dead, and over the Sabbath, they had tried to come to terms with their dashed hopes and dreams. Now, in an instant, a stranger reverses all this and tells them Jesus is alive. (Mark says the angel looked like a "young man dressed in white," so he had significantly dimmed his brilliance out of respect for the women. Mk 16:5). Still, who can blame them for being afraid?
     Then Matthew reports, "Suddenly Jesus met them. 'Greetings He said.' They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him." It is clear to them that Jesus is more than a man. He is God, and they worship Him.
     Throughout the Resurrection stories, Jesus appears to various people. It seems to me that He chooses who He goes to based on their level of need. Like a first responder at the scene of an accident, Jesus triages His grieving disciples and goes first to those who need Him most.
     So He appears first to Mary Magdalene and the other Mary because they are grieving so deeply; then to the two disciples on the Road to Emmaus. That is so like Jesus, isn't it, and it is reassuring to us. When we are in great need, He will come to us too. "The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit" (Ps. 34:18). "The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything" (Phil. 4:5, 6).
     The guards have finally recovered their senses, and trembling, they flee back to Jerusalem to report everything that had happened to the chief priests. I can imagine those priests’ faces turning white as they hear the guards' emotion-filled report. One more chance to repent, but instead they concoct a lie and promise to keep the guards out of trouble: Tell everyone that "His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep."
     Like most lies, this one didn't hold together. If the guards were asleep, how did they know it was the disciples who stole the body? And why weren't the guards disciplined, or even executed, as Roman military regulations required? How did the whole detachment fall asleep in the first place, knowing the penalties for doing so? It is highly unlikely that every last soldier would doze off. Matthew is clearly answering questions about the Resurrection that existed in his day when he reports, "And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day."

Pastor Michael Brownfield