He is not here, for He has risen

He is not here, for He has risen

SCRIPTURE:

Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. ² And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. ³ His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. ⁴ And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men. ⁵ But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. ⁶ He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. ⁷ Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you.” ⁸ So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. ⁹ And behold, Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him.¹⁰ Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.” Matthew 28:1-10

OBSERVATION:

The garden is quiet as the two grieving women walk towards the tomb. They know it is futile as they had seen the tomb blocked by a large stone. Still, they go anyway, drawn to the body of their Lord who had been so precious to them in life. They bring spices with them for the Lord’s body, hoping that by some miracle, there may be a way to roll the stone away.  But suddenly they stop, astonished and afraid. Shockingly, the stone has been rolled aside but their attention now is not on the stone!  Rather, it is on the incredible figure sitting on the stone. His appearance is like lightning and his clothing white as snow. Before them certainly sits a holy one, an angel of God Himself. The guards nearby are ashen-faced like dead men out of sheer fear for they had felt the earthquake and saw the angelic being powerfully roll back the stone.

Gently, the powerful figure reassures them not to be afraid, but asks them to come and see the place where Jesus’s body had been laid, so that they can see with their own eyes that Jesus has risen. Then, the powerful angel bids them quickly return to tell the disciples the great news! And so they return!

A little later, Jesus meets them personally and the overjoyed women worship at His feet. The Lord bids them not to fear but to tell His disciples to go to Galilee, where He will meet them.

APPLICATION:

What can we learn from this passage? Firstly, it is an account of the Resurrection, which is together with the most Crucifixion, the important thing in our Christian faith. Because Jesus died for our sins, we have forgiveness from our sins. Because Jesus was raised back to life, we too will rise from the dead to eternal life.

Secondly, we see that the women were there first, before any of the men disciples, which shows us the depth of their devotion and passion for the Lord. In the church, we would do well to learn from the godly women who had such devotion and passion for the Lord. 

  

Thirdly, it was important for the women to see the burial place with their own eyes and verify that the body of Jesus was indeed no longer there. We must understand that the resurrection is a concrete fact of history and not a myth. The early disciples were so convinced of this that they willingly died for their faith. They knew for a fact that Jesus had indeed risen from the dead, and they had seen Him with their own eyes.

Fourth, we must never forget that God can deliver supernaturally at any time. With human eyes, a situation may seem impossible. Humanly, a tomb under guard covered by a large stone could never be opened by a bunch of discouraged disciples. However, God can easily send an earthquake and an angel. We need never be discouraged for God is able to deliver us from any situation. We need only to trust Him and not lose faith.

Finally, consider how the women worshipped at the feet of the resurrected Lord. This is a most appropriate way of worship for us, imagining ourselves worshipping at Jesus’ feet, for indeed our resurrected Lord deserves all the worship, all the honor, all the glory!

PRAYER:

We thank You and praise You, Lord Jesus, for You rose from the dead, firstborn of all who will inherit eternal life! The grave could not hold You! Death had no power over You, because of Your righteousness and holiness and power! Indeed, Father God, we praise You that Your have all power, and can do all things. Let us never be discouraged, let us always trust, for You created the whole earth, and hold all things by Your grace and power and wisdom. Teach us Lord to worship You, to be passionate and devoted to You, for indeed You deserve all praise and honor and glory! We worship at Your feet, Lord Jesus! In Jesus name, Amen.