April 17 – Resurrection Sunday, Just As He Said

“He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying.” Matthew 28:6 (NASB)

It’s today on Resurrection Day, or Easter that many observe this day. We remember the promise (John 16:16) Jesus gave to his disciples and also to us (John 17:20-21). The Bible records important messages which were delivered on the day Jesus arose from the dead.  Of these messages perhaps none are more important than this one in chapter 28:6. It is the message an angel gave to the two women who came looking for the body of Jesus. The angel, sent from heaven that morning, rolled away the stone so the tomb where Jesus had been buried would be open. We believe that the angel didn’t need to roll away the stone to let Jesus out. He was already gone. That was the news the angel told those women looking for Jesus. The stone was rolled away to let any seeking Jesus would see that He was gone, no longer in grave dead. What a wonderful message that is for us too.  The one who had died for us, was alive again and He is still living today as a part of our lives.  Jesus, the Son of God lives today, that’s a promise He made and keeps. 

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April 1 – Resurrection Sunday, Just As He Said

“He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.” Matthew 28:6 (NIV)

We have now come to Resurrection Day, or Easter as many observe this day. The Bible reports several important messages which were given on the day Jesus was raised from the dead.  None of these messages are more important than the one read today in the record by Matthew in chapter 28. It is the message given by an angel to the two women who came looking for the body of Jesus. The angel had come from heaven that morning and had rolled away the stone to open the tomb where Jesus had been buried.  We believe that the angel did not need to roll away the stone to let Jesus out. He was already gone and that was the message the angel would tell those who came to look for Jesus. What a wonderful message that is for us too.  The one who had died for us, lived again and He is still living today as a part of our lives.  Jesus, the Son of God lives today, that is a promise He made and keeps. 

March 31 - Holy Saturday, Sunday Is Coming

“So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.” Matthew 27:66 (NIV)

We have been considering how Jesus approached His death on the cross and how He died. Now, let us consider what happened after He died and after He was buried by Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus in a new tomb. His burial was quickly done on the same evening that Jesus died. What happened on Saturday? We are told that some of the women who had followed Jesus watched the burial that Friday evening, prepared spices and perfumes to anoint His body. But because Saturday was the Sabbath, the women decided to wait one more day. The interesting thing is that although the friends and disciples of Jesus were inactive on Saturday, some of his enemies were not. Matthew records how the enemies of Jesus remembered what he had said about rising again. They went on Saturday to request a special guard at the tomb where Jesus was buried. Today's verse describes what resulted from their request. Jesus had promised to rise again and nothing that his enemies did would stop what God would be doing on Sunday morning.