He is Risen Indeed! Tell Everyone!

Matthew 28:1-20 

He Is Risen

1 Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came 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 from the door, and sat on it. 3 His countenance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow. 4 And the guards shook for fear of him, and became like dead men.

5 But the angel answered and 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 is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. 7 And 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. Behold, I have told you."

8 So they went out quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to bring His disciples word.

9 And as they went to tell His disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, "Rejoice!" So they came and held Him by the feet and worshiped Him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid. Go and tell My brethren to go to Galilee, and there they will see Me."

The Soldiers Are Bribed

11 Now while they were going, behold, some of the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests all the things that had happened. 12 When they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, 13 saying, "Tell them, 'His disciples came at night and stole Him away while we slept.' 14 And if this comes to the governor's ears, we will appease him and make you secure." 15 So they took the money and did as they were instructed; and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day.

The Great Commission

16 Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. 17 When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted.

18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 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, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.

Jesus is risen indeed and we also need to tell everyone and not hide the fact as the soldiers had done.  At dawn on the first day of the Jewish week, our Sunday, the two women named Mary went to the tomb where they had laid the body of their beloved Jesus whom they followed for nearly three years until His seemingly tragic death on a cruel cross.  There had been a great earthquake which was actually an angel of God come down to open the grave by rolling the massive stone cover away for Jesus to arise and walk out in the resurrected flesh as both man and Gods with the power over death itself.  The angel was to pronounce God’s glory and omnipotence, not because the Lord could not have moved it aside Himself.  That angel sat on the stone as white as the faces of the helpless paralyzed guards looking on in awe and great fear at the sight of God’s hand working this mighty thing.  This angel allowed the fear of the Romans to endure but he comforted the Marys with reassurance not to fear these events, but to let them know they would not find the crucified Jesus there; He was risen from death to life just as He had been trying to get them to understand as He told them more than once.  He showed them where the Lord had been laid in the empty sepulcher and then commanded them to go and tell His disciples that the Lord was no longer dead just as He had said!  They were further told that Jesus would meet them in Galilee and that they were to go there to see risen One for themselves joyfully saying, “He is risen from the dead!”  The women ran to tell the good news of the resurrection with great joy covering their trembling fear at all their eyes had seen and ears did hear.  Meanwhile the guards ran to the chief priests who had seen to end Jesus by having Him crucified that they might tell them what had happened.  They had failed to kill Jesus.  He arose from the dead, rebuilding the temple of His body in three days just as He said and for which they had mocked Him (Matthew 27:40).  Yes, these in the spirit of antichrist paid the guards to lie to deny the truth of the resurrection as others continue to do to this day, saying that the disciples of Jesus stole the body to fake the resurrection.  That lie continued in the days the gospel account of Matthew was written and is heard two thousand years later as well by those rejecting Him as the Messiah, the Anointed God come as a man (John 1:1, 14).  After these things the disciples met the Lord who called them to a nearby mountain in Galilee.  There they worshiped the Lord even as some had lingering doubts.  Jesus quelled the fears and doubts with His commission to them to continue proclaiming the kingdom of God now made fully manifest by His rising from death to life as proof of them good news they were to take to people across all nations until the whole world hears (Acts 1:8).  This message would be further explained by the apostles over the next generation as to the hope of glory promised long ago that was now revealed as Christ in us, the hope of glory (Colossians 1:26-27) and they were to tell others He is risen indeed as proof of our hope (1 Corinthians 15:3-4, 12-13, 19-22) and to teach them all these truths of the good news of the Kingdom (Colossians 1:28-29) as part of this great commission to tell others what they had seen and heard (1 John 1:1-2).  He is risen indeed!  Tell everyone!  Bear true witness to to the world of His saving grace according to His word and the change in you ushering His eternal presence into your life from your dead state (Ephesians 2:5-6) into the righteousness of Christ out of your condemnation of sin and death!  Amen and amen.