“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. His countenance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow. And the guards shook for fear of him, and became like dead men (Mt 28:2-4).
Jesus did not need the angel to roll away the stone for him. He could walk through walls (John 20:19). The stone was rolled away for Jesus’ followers to have access to the empty tomb. He could have simply appeared to the disciples and declared his resurrection, but they might have thought he was only a spirit (Mt 14:26). Seeing the empty tomb was part of the proof of his physical resurrection.
Jesus is literally physically alive today (Acts 2:34; 5:31; 7:55; Hebrews 1:3).
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Avoiding the Truth
The Pharisees were not happy to have Jesus dead and let his reputation die with him. They wanted to make sure that no one could possibly say he had risen from the dead. So they went to Pilate and asked him to place a Roman guard around the tomb to keep his followers from stealing his body and saying he had risen from the dead (Mt 27:62-65).
What lengths are we willing to go to avoid the truth?
What lengths are we willing to go to avoid the truth?
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Joseph of Arimathea
There is a mysterious man in scripture named Joseph of Arimathea. The only time we see him is during the burial of Christ. We know he was secretly a disciple of Jesus and a wealthy man. He was a prominent member of the council and did not agree with the plans to murder Jesus. Since he was a prominent member, we can assume Pilate knew him, so when he asked permission to take down Jesus’ body, Pilate gave it to him (Mt 27:57; Mk 15:43; Lk 23:41; Jn 19:38). .
Joseph bought the necessary linen to wrap Jesus body for burial. His friend Nicodemus, also a member of the council, brought 100 pounds of a spice mixture made from myrrh and aloes. Together they prepared the body of Jesus and placed it in Joseph’s personal tomb (Mt 29:59).
Though this man was only written about once, and we never hear of him again, he had a part in the fulfillment of prophecy. Isaiah 53:9 prophesied about the Messiah, ”…they made his grave with the wicked—but with the rich in his death.” Jesus was crucified between two robbers yet buried in a rich man’s tomb.
When Joseph’s mother gave birth to him, I doubt she had any inkling that her son would fulfill an ancient prophesy. Neither do we know what God will accomplish through us. We are not required to know. We need only follow him and he will accomplish through us whatever he has planned.
Joseph bought the necessary linen to wrap Jesus body for burial. His friend Nicodemus, also a member of the council, brought 100 pounds of a spice mixture made from myrrh and aloes. Together they prepared the body of Jesus and placed it in Joseph’s personal tomb (Mt 29:59).
Though this man was only written about once, and we never hear of him again, he had a part in the fulfillment of prophecy. Isaiah 53:9 prophesied about the Messiah, ”…they made his grave with the wicked—but with the rich in his death.” Jesus was crucified between two robbers yet buried in a rich man’s tomb.
When Joseph’s mother gave birth to him, I doubt she had any inkling that her son would fulfill an ancient prophesy. Neither do we know what God will accomplish through us. We are not required to know. We need only follow him and he will accomplish through us whatever he has planned.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Our Resurrection
Mathew records an amazing event at Jesus’ resurrection, “And the graves were opened: and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the graves after his resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many (Mt 27:52-53). It was like a mini-rapture.
Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18 “For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.
“Therefore comfort one another with these words.”
It’s a good day to look for his coming.
Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18 “For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.
“Therefore comfort one another with these words.”
It’s a good day to look for his coming.
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