Unit 2: Liberating Gospels
Key Verse:
Matthew 28:10 NLT
10 Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t be afraid! Go tell my brothers to leave for Galilee, and they will see me there.”
Did you know that the words, “Fear not” occur 365 times in Scripture? Jesus’ words here convey the same sentiment. Are you a believer? Don’t be afraid. God is near.
What you need to know
Matthew 27:59-61 NLT
59 Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a long sheet of clean linen cloth. 60 He placed it in his own new tomb, which had been carved out of the rock. Then he rolled a great stone across the entrance and left. 61 Both Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting across from the tomb and watching.
Three days earlier, Jesus had been crucified. Before the onset of the evening, a rich man from Arimathea named Joseph, with the help of Nicodemus took Jesus’ body down from the cross, wrapped him in linen, and buried him in his (Joseph’s) own tomb. Once done, he (Joseph) rolled the stone over the entrance of the tomb and left. Of note is the fact that Mary Magdelene and Mary, the wife of Cleopas were watching everything that transpired, planning to come when able to complete the embalming of their beloved Rabbi.
Matthew 27:62-66 NLT
62 The next day, on the Sabbath,[n] the leading priests and Pharisees went to see Pilate. 63 They told him, “Sir, we remember what that deceiver once said while he was still alive: ‘After three days I will rise from the dead.’ 64 So we request that you seal the tomb until the third day. This will prevent his disciples from coming and stealing his body and then telling everyone he was raised from the dead! If that happens, we’ll be worse off than we were at first.”
65 Pilate replied, “Take guards and secure it the best you can.” 66 So they sealed the tomb and posted guards to protect it.
The Pharisees told Pilate that they feared that the disciples would steal Jesus’ body. That was what they told Pilate. The truth was something quite different. The Bible says they remembered His (Jesus’) words…. And they feared. They feared that what He had said, He would do. They feared that He would, indeed rise from the dead, which would prove beyond doubt that He was … the Messiah. And they feared, the eventual result, that a movement that had been birthed in a humble stable in Bethlehem would topple their corrupted religious order forever…
The Lesson
Matthew 28:1 NLT
1 Early on Sunday morning,[a] as the new day was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went out to visit the tomb.
Matthew identifies two of the women who were at the tomb on Sunday morning, before dawn; Mary Magdalene and Mary, the wife of Cleopas. Luke confirms their presence at the tomb. He adds Joanna as well, along with several other unnamed women. Mark identifies one of those other women as Salome, another of Jesus’ followers. Their timing could not have been better. Like the wise men, they came bearing gifts. God honored them by making them the very first witnesses of glory unveiled.
Matthew 28:2-3 NLT
2 Suddenly there was a great earthquake! For an angel of the Lord came down from heaven, rolled aside the stone, and sat on it. 3 His face shone like lightning, and his clothing was as white as snow.
Matthew’s rendering of this event is filled with the spectacular. The angel’s arrival on earth causes the ground to quake. The was not an earthquake, rather it was a spectacle from heaven that caused the earth to quake. This is significant. There had been a similar event three days earlier when, at the cross, Jesus gave up the Ghost. Now, here at the tomb, a similar, earth-shattering event occurred as the angel of the Lord descended from glory. The narrative continues. The angel, an intimidating figure of light and fire, upon descent, approached the tomb, rolled the stone away from the entrance of the tomb, and… sat… and waited…
Matthew 28:4 NLT
4 The guards shook with fear when they saw him, and they fell into a dead faint.
So staggeringly frightful were the events surrounding the opening of the tomb that the Roman soldiers that Pilate commanded to guard the tomb fainted, dead away at the sight of the angel and the power that had been unleashed from on high. Every knee must bow before the majesty of the risen Lord. Actually, this was exactly what the Pharisees feared.
Matthew 28:5a NLT
5a Then the angel spoke to the women. “Don’t be afraid!” he said.
“Don’t be afraid.” These are the first words spoken by the angel of the Lord. Full stop. Allow me to repeat myself. These are the first words spoken. The very first words from Heaven on the morning of the resurrection were, “Don’t be afraid.” Beloved, for just a moment, reflect on this fact. We are so loved by God that the first words from Heaven to earth after the resurrection were, “Don’t be afraid.” Those are words of affection and care, of concern and love. Words of tenderness and assurance, reassurance. We thank God for His great love shed upon us through the death and subsequent resurrection of His Son, and our Lord, Jesus Christ, the Messiah.
Matthew 28:5b NLT
5b …“I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.
The angel draws no further attention to himself. Rather, he immediately turns to the subject of everyone’s concern, Jesus. Jesus, who had been crucified just days prior. The angel leaves no doubt that that very Jesus whose death and burial these same women had witnessed was the very man of whom the angel spoke.
Matthew 28:6 NLT
6 He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen. Come, see where his body was lying.
And now, the angel of the Lord reveals the reason for his appearing. He has news. News for the ages. The angel is, quite simply, a herald. A herald of Heaven. He has come to bring news of the singularly most important event in the history of creation. The resurrection of the Messiah, the Savior of all of creation, from the dead. This single event heralds that there is no longer any enmity between God and man. God has declared peace for all of eternity that remains. A new beginning. A renewed creation. Redemption for all of mankind.
The first revelation: The tomb is empty. Jesus isn’t there. He has already risen. The angel didn’t raise Him. God raised Him. The proof was there before them. Or rather, the ‘proof’ wasn’t there…anymore. The tomb was empty.
The second reveal here was that Jesus’ very words had come to pass. He had spoken many times of His impending death. He always spoke of it as a temporary occurrence, always adding that He would surely rise from the dead. He had proclaimed to Martha just a few days prior that He was the resurrection. His resurrection, early on Sunday morning, was confirmation of His spoken Word. All of His promises are Yea and Amen!
The angel then invites the women to come and inspect the empty tomb. See for themselves, as the first witnesses of this singular historical event, the proof of Jesus’ resurrection. What did they see?
Luke and John reveal that upon entry, the women saw that indeed, Jesus wasn’t there. Instead, they record that two angels were seen inside the tomb. John adds the detail that they were seated at either end of the place where Jesus’ body had lain. Thus, the angels provided us a picture of the true ‘Mercy Seat’ that had only, been typified in the Tabernacle, and later, the Temple at Jerusalem. In the tomb was the evidence of the true Mercy Seat, or rather, Mercy’s seat. Mercy had lain there. Mercy rose on that Sunday morning. Mercy granted mercy to all who would believe.
One other item that the empty tomb held was significant. John reported that Peter and the disciple whom Jesus loved both saw the napkin or face cloth, neatly folded and sitting separately from the grave clothes. The significance of this singular clue cannot be overlooked. According to Jewish custom, when the master of the house was finished dining, he would carelessly put his napkin on his plate. This signaled his servants that he was done eating. They could remove his plate and utensils accordingly. Conversely, if the master of the house folded his napkin and set it beside his plate, that signaled his servants that He fully intended to return to continue dinner (or whatever meal was being served). When the women saw the folded face cloth, they knew the Master, their beloved Rabbi would return.
Matthew 28:7 NLT
7 And now, go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and he is going ahead of you to Galilee. You will see him there. Remember what I have told you.”
And now that the women have completed their inspection of the tomb, the angel gave them clear instructions. Don’t go home. Don’t go back to business as usual. Go tell the disciples. Go tell them what you have seen and then give them this message, “Meet Him in Galilee.” On this Sunday morning, those women, named and unnamed, became the first preachers of the good news. The good news of a risen Savior! Notice the instructions of the angel were not exclusive to the disciples, but that they were inclusive of the women as well. He told them, “...He is going ahead of you to Galilee. You will see him there. Remember what I have told you.” As had been the case during Jesus’ earthly ministry, women would be an integral part of the spreading of the gospel throughout all the earth. Women preachers? Absolutely!
Matthew 28:8 NLT
8 The women ran quickly from the tomb. They were very frightened but also filled with great joy, and they rushed to give the disciples the angel’s message.
You know that funny feeling you get in your stomach when something is happening to you that you don’t quite understand? It’s a combination of fear and in this case, joy. We call it ‘butterflies’. It can evoke a range of emotions; fear, awe, dread, joy, happiness, elation, all of these, and more. The reason for this is that in that moment, your sense of time and space is temporarily suspended as your mind tries to come to grips with what is unfolding before you as a new and certain reality. These women were both ‘very frightened’, and ‘filled with great joy’. Beneath their feet, the ground was shifting as ‘old things’ were passing away and everything was ‘becoming new’.
Yet, in all of this, they did not faint. They ran! Like the Samaritan woman that Jesus encountered at Jacob’s well, these women turned to run to the disciples with news of the risen Savior. One more thing here. They had not yet seen Jesus, they had only heard that He had risen. Yet, they ran to deliver the message of angels, the message of Heaven. Selah.
Matthew 28:9 NLT
9 And as they went, Jesus met them and greeted them. And they ran to him, grasped his feet, and worshiped him.
Beloved, the reward of obedience is the manifestation of blessing. When Jesus healed the ten lepers, he told them to go and show themselves to the priests. As the nine turned and ran toward Jerusalem, they were healed. The one who turned and worshipped was made whole. When Naaman submerged himself in the Jordan at the word of the prophet Elisha, he was healed. God blesses obedience.
So it stands to reason that because the women turned to act on the intent of their hearts God granted them their greatest desire, to see their risen Lord! Not only were they the first to hear of His resurrection, but they were also first to see Him, caress His feet, and worship Him. Jesus granted them their greatest desire, to kneel in His Presence!
Matthew 28:10 NLT
10 Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t be afraid! Go tell my brothers to leave for Galilee, and they will see me there.”
After a moment (or few) Jesus reiterates the instructions given by the angel. Go tell the disciples. Jesus slightly modifies the instruction by replacing the word ‘disciple’ with ‘brothers’. In this way, He reveals a great truth. These men (and women) who at one time had been considered His disciples were now a part of His Heavenly family. As such, they were heirs with Him and in Him to all of the glory awaiting Him in eternity. So are we, Beloved. God has given us exceedingly great and precious promises. They all center around the singular historic event that occurred one Sunday Morning!
Selah,
wb
2 Peter 1:3-7 NLT
3 By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence. 4 And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.
5 In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, 6 and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, 7 and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone.
2 Peter 1:10-11 NLT
10 So, dear brothers and sisters,[c] work hard to prove that you really are among those God has called and chosen. Do these things, and you will never fall away. 11 Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
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