Matthew 28:1-10

Good morning, my friends!  It is a great day to be alive and serving the King!  We are in the last chapter of Matthew.  It's exciting and sad at the same time.  To be honest, I am not sure where we will head after this, so be praying for me to have direction! 

I had a whole post prepared last night for today, but in the process of saving it, I accidentally deleted it.  It was a sign that I was trying to do too much at one time, so we will just have to try this again!  As I read through the passage this morning, some different aspects of the resurrection stood out to me.  Everything happens for a reason!☺ 

Go ahead and dive into Matthew 28:1-10 in your own Bible or read it HERE!!!

1 Corinthians 15:17 says, "And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins."  Because of the victorious resurrection of Jesus Christ we can be confident that the ransom has been FULLY paid!  Hallelujah!

The truths we read in this marvelous passage of Matthew is the foundation of Christianity.  It is clearly depicted in all four Gospels that Jesus not only suffered and died on the cross, but indeed, HE ROSE AGAIN!  The resurrection is the seal upon the work of redemption.  I am amazed at the wisdom of God that he understood His creation so well, and knew the nature of humans to be full of unbelief, that He provided many witnesses to testify they had seen the risen Savior.  Many people were (and still are) anxious to disprove that Jesus was the Messiah.   

We are told in scripture that there was a great earthquake and that the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone of the door of the sepulcher, and sat upon it.  Of course signs and wonders would accompany the Son of God as He gloriously and triumphantly rose from the dead as a conqueror because death could not hold Him!

In that moment, I picture the Roman soldiers and every enemy of Christ that was alive to be terrified.  The Bible says that at the sight of the angel the "guards shook and became as dead men!"  I bet they did.  In the last day, we will see this again when every knee bows, not just believers, and every tongue confesses that He is Lord!

There is something so comforting in the angel's words "Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified."  HE IS NOT HERE!  GLORIOUS DAY!  HE IS RISEN!  He defeated death, hell, and the grave!  Every word that was prophesied about the coming, death, and resurrection of Jesus had been fulfilled so every word that is the hope of salvation to believers can be fully trusted as well. 

One last note about this passage.  When the Risen Lord appeared to the women in person He tells them to "Go, tell my brethren."  He was not angry with the disciples for forsaking Him or fleeing, and He had not forgotten them.  Jesus looks at us through these same eyes of love and mercy.  He knows our weaknesses and failures, yet He does not cast us away.  We can trust Him without fear or reservation.  King Jesus invites us to reign in His Kingdom with Him forever!

If you can't view this video here, please go to YouTube and watch "Alive" by Natalie Grant!  It is a perfect ending to this study!