The Resurrection

This is a very special time of year for everyone, whether you celebrate it or not.  It is a war memorial of the battle of all ages:  the combined forces of earth and hell raged against one man:  the God-man, Jesus, the Christ.  It was the time when God the Son yielded Himself to the power of darkness:  allowed Himself to be taken, misjudged, unjustly condemned, abused, and tortured to death.

Jesus explained to His followers why they hated Him:  “If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin:  but now they have no cloke for their sin.  He that hateth me hateth my Father also.  If I had not done among them the works which none other man did, they had not had sin:  but now have they both seen and hated both me and my Father.”  John 15:22-25

He, the Holy One, had set the perfect example and preached the righteousness of God, and they hated Him for it.  They who thought themselves righteous had been exposed before all.  They, who expected Christ to pat them on the back and dance to their tune, found themselves rebuked—even whipped out of the temple.  They were desperate to hold onto their power, and this King, with His meek ways but bold truth, had exposed them before all.

“We will not have this man to reign over us!”  They first tried to discredit Him before all the people.  Make Him look bad, so they can look good.  When that did not work, they connived a more sinister plot.  They took all of their fury out on Him.  Silence Him!  Kill Him!  Destroy Him!

There He hung on a Roman cross in shame, bearing the wrath of man against Him for His holiness.

Christ, though, was also experiencing wrath from another source.  He had taken upon Himself the sin of the world (II Corinthians 5:12), and God the Father poured out His fury on Christ.  There, suspended on that cruel Roman cross, Christ bore the wrath of all earth, hell, and heaven.

“About the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?  that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” Matthew 27:46

“Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost.” Matthew 27:50

John tells us what it was that He shouted with His dying breath:  “It is finished!” John 19:30  The price had been paid.  The law had been fulfilled in every jot and tittle.  Christ had obeyed the Father in every detail.

“And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit:  and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.” Luke.23:46

Jesus explained:  “I lay down my life, that I might take it again.  No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself.  I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again." John 10:17,18

Although He had told them all of this beforehand, this was not the outcome His followers expected.  Those who loved Him were sure that the kingdom of God was just around the corner.  Some had left all to follow Him and help Him.  To them, all seemed lost.  They despaired of life.  They had given all, and they thought they had lost everything.

The forces of darkness had won!  They were jubilant!  The Son of God was dead!  The HOLY King of Israel would not take their power away from them.

Did they find it odd that He had called no angels to help Him? (Matthew 26:53)  Did they think for a moment about the time when they came in the dead of night to arrest Him and just a word from Him blew them off their feet? (John 18:5-8)  Why, then, did He allow them to take Him?  Did they wonder why He did not argue or defend Himself at the mockery of a trial (Matthew 26:62,63), where the prosecutors broke every rule and summoned false witnesses to get the result they wanted? (Matthew 26:59)  Did they breathe a sigh of relief and wonder that He did not defend Himself before Pilate? (Matthew 27:12; Mark 15:3-5)

Did they—who knew the scriptures and the words of the prophets—consider the words of Isaiah?  “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth:  he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.” Isaiah 53:7

None of that mattered now.  His enemies had won the fight.  It did not matter to them that they had broken just about every law to do it.

Yet, still they could not rest.  They were nervous.  His words began to rumble through their minds.

What was He doing down there?  He was depositing our sins where they belonged:  in hell.  The Lamb of God had taken away the sin of the world (John 1:29), for it was too heavy for us, the enemy too strong, the prison of death inescapable.

He was preaching to those who had rejected the warnings of Noah in his day.  I Peter 3:18,19

Some of them did not believe a body could rise from the dead.  They believed it just rotted in the grave.  In their minds, the only danger was that His loyal followers could stage a deception.

Some of them did believe in the resurrection, and if He did rise, what would He do to them?  Their cause would be lost for good!  Their knees began to knock.  They must do something fast!  

Both groups hurried to Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Judaea.

“’Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again.  Command therefore that the sepulchre be made sure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night, and steal him away, and say unto the people, He is risen from the dead:  so the last error shall be worse than the first.’ 

“Pilate said unto them, ‘Ye have a watch:  go your way, make it as sure as ye can.’  

"So they went, and made the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch.” Matthew 27:62-66

There!  Now no one can get in  ...or out.  Even if Jesus did rise from the dead, this stone will keep Him in, and the guards won’t let Him out.

Oh, how small their minds were!  Oh how deaf their ears!

“In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre.  And, behold, there was a great earthquake:  for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it.  His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow:  And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men.” Matthew 28:1-4

Did the angel roll away the stone to let Jesus out?  Absolutely not!  “The angel answered and said unto the women, ‘Fear not ye:  for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified.  He is not here:  for he is risen, as he said.  Come, see the place where the Lord lay.’” Matthew 28:5,6

The stone was rolled away so that all could see that He was already gone!

It was the greatest jailbreak of all time!  He had conquered the jailer—the old enemy, Satan—bruised his head and stole his keys (Revelation 1:18).  Now no one else must be locked into that prison ever again.  (Jesus Himself is now the new and only Jailer.)  Then He burst through the earth to be undeniably seen by those who would carry on His work.

“Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.  Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:  Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you:  and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.  Amen.”  Matthew 28:18-20

After that, they watched as He ascended back into heaven where He came from, and HE LIVES! even now.  He will never die again.  

"Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him." Romans 6:9

Oh, the power of the resurrection!  Christ’s work allows—yea, requires—each one of us to make a choice to lay our sins upon Him and rise with Him from the dead.  The death, burial, and resurrection of Christ is the only foundation that God accepts, the only way our sins can be atoned.  Those who refuse to part with their sin cannot be saved.  God will not accept them, for He hates their sin.  They will pay their own penalty.  The Old Testament prophet, Jonah, said, “They that observe lying vanities forsake their own mercy.”  Jonah 2:8

“With the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.  For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.  For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek:  for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.  For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”  Romans 10:10-13