HE IS RISEN.  MIRACLE OF CHRIST’S RESURRECTION.   MATTHEW 28

Matthew described the first day of a new week- more significantly, it was the first day of the age of grace, continuing until the Lord returns from heaven. Contrary to expectation, women rather than men first witnessed the risen Christ. First mentioned, Mary Magdalene had been liberated from 7 devils, yet selected by the Lord with ‘the other Mary’, mother of two of the Lord’s disciples, understandably chosen as the former choice seemed perplexing.  They met the resurrected Lord.  

Twice in three days, Jerusalem was shaken by great earthquakes: firstly with His death on Calvary, and now with His triumphant resurrection from the dead.  It pleased the Father and all heaven to register these noteworthy events, which would never be repeated.  Richter scale might record these major earth-quaking measures.   Although our Lord could have requested more than 12 legions of angels (81,000) to deliver Him from Calvary sufferings, He sent only one angel, who effortlessly rolled back the stone and sat on it. The high priest’s paralyzed guard proved futile.  

Understandably, ‘The guards shook (with uncontrollable shaking- Wuest) for fear of him, same as the earth quaked’ for the angel’s appearance resembled  lightning while his clothing was snow-white. All evidence of life had gone, ‘For the guards became as dead men.’ Motionless, eyes sealed in apparent death, breathing halted, colour drained from them-the powerful temple guards were corpses.  How daft to try and conceal the mighty miracle of the Lord rising from the dead. Equally dim-witted is the present-day denial of His glorious triumph over death. He lives!

The two women confided their concern and terror to the angel, for ‘He answered and said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid.  For I know you seek Jesus who was crucified.’ So the angel conversed in Aramaic that he knew of this shattering event of the crucifixion and the rising again of the Son of God.  Heaven is much closer to the Lord’s people than we consider. The angel had never witnessed crucifixion in heaven: for only earth, God’s chosen planet for HIS creatures and for His Son as our Redeemer, had witnessed the massacre of God’s cherished One.
‘HE is not here; He is risen, as HE said.  Come; see the place where the Lord lay.’
The angel recalled His promise of rising again from the cold rocky tomb.

The angel repeated the triumphant news. ‘HE is risen’, when he said, ‘Arise, go quickly and tell His disciples that HE is risen from the dead, and indeed, HE is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him.’  He adds his final word, ‘Behold I have told you.’ (v7) The job is done! How could an angel from glory know of Galilee, except that his Lord often visited it, for prayer and refreshment.
He had a message from the throne room, which he delivered.  Are we so faithful?
We presume that in a trice the angel left earth for heaven’s throne room.

During a visit to Gordon’s Calvary as a medical orderly in WW11, I asked my friends to leave me alone: which they did.  So, this is where the Lord’s body lay, I mused.  ‘I saved you home in your country town’, the Lord reminded me. ‘Get out.  I am with you always, for I have not changed.’
 
What memories flooded their minds as they left the empty tomb.  ‘So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to bring HIS disciples word. ‘Once jaded, now joyful:  fearful now fervent; defeated now decisive; oppressed, now obsessed.  The Lord of glory met them; ‘and as they went to tell His disciples , behold, Jesus met them with one word, ‘Rejoice,’ And they came and held HIM by the feet and worshipped HIM, whose feet had been scarred with nails.   Yes, HE was the ONE.  Sure proof.   Then Jesus lifted their paralyzing fear as HE said, ‘Do not be afraid,’ ‘Go and tell MY brethren to go to Galilee, and there they shall see ME. ’ Holy excitement: release of adrenaline:  spirits on fire for their Lord.

Some of the guard atrociously deceived the high priest, while presumably the others were still trembling and out of action, thus reporting to the chief priests all that had happened.  They bribed them handsomely to lie that ‘His disciples came at night and stole Him away as they slept.’ They would appease the governor; their sin had not been covered. Only the atoning, cleansing, redeeming, reconciling  death and all-conquering resurrection could wipe out the high priests’ and elders’ sin: and our’s. 

The eleven disciples hiked into Galilee to Mount Tabor or Hermon in Syria, where Jesus had appointed them.  They truly recognized their Messiah when they saw Him unmistakably and heard Him. Indeed, they worshipped Him, Wuest claiming they fell to the ground in doing so. Then the astonishing comment, ‘Some doubted.’  How could they possibly?  The word also means they wavered, understandably, having observed the gruesome death and now drinking in the glorified, risen Lord. 

Guest of honour, the risen Lord Jesus, spoke to them, ‘All authority has been given to me in heaven and earth.’  The Greek ‘exousia’ speaks of His unlimited power, unchallengeable authority, eternal right, unfettered liberty, sovereign jurisdiction and spiritual strength.  The risen Lord promised strong, enduring support to the 500 plus who saw their exalted Lord.  Such authority applied to Christ’s reign in heaven as well as on earth. In two thousand years of grace, His children continually drew on His power, followed by a thousand years of millennial reign. 

Then the multi-racial vision of the risen Lord, ‘Go therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and the glorious assurance, ‘Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the earth. Amen!.

Paul wrote, ‘That I might know Him and the power of his resurrection, the fellowship of His sufferings, being made conformable to his death.’  (Philippians 3:10)  The 500 plus followers knew their Lord in that unforgettable meeting, and spent the remainder of their lives entering into the fellowship of His sufferings
Have you truly met the risen Lord?   Have you participated in His sufferings?