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He Is Risen!

    Matthew 28:1-10

    The Resurrection

    28 Early on Sunday morning, as the new day was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went out to visit the tomb.

    2 Suddenly there was a great earthquake! For an angel of the Lord came down from heaven, rolled aside the stone, and sat on it. 3 His face shone like lightning, and his clothing was as white as snow. 4 The guards shook with fear when they saw him, and they fell into a dead faint.

    5 Then the angel spoke to the women. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen. Come, see where his body was lying. 7 And now, go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and he is going ahead of you to Galilee. You will see him there. Remember what I have told you.”

    8 The women ran quickly from the tomb. They were very frightened but also filled with great joy, and they rushed to give the disciples the angel’s message. 9 And as they went, Jesus met them and greeted them. And they ran to him, grasped his feet, and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t be afraid! Go tell my brothers to leave for Galilee, and they will see me there.”

    This event is also mentioned here:

    Mark 16:1-11

    Luke 24:1-12

    John 20:1-18

    A Step Further: Was It Really Three Days and Nights? And Why Did Jesus Need To Be Raised?

    Was it really three days and nights?

    The question about Jesus’ length of stay in the tomb is understandable, particularly for our current Western culture. Why? Because we count days differently than Jesus and first century Jewish culture. To us, days start at 12 a.m. and end at 11:59 p.m., constituting a full day. Jesus would have been in the tomb 72 hours for His prophesy to align with our time standards. However, the authors of the New Testament, who resided in a different time and culture, counted time differently. For them, sundown marked the end of a day and the start of another. They also counted part of a day as one whole day.

    With this new context in mind, we can add up Jesus’ days in the tomb like this:

    Day & night 1, Friday: Jesus died at 3 p.m. and was placed in the tomb shortly after. This is where it gets tricky for us: New Testament writers counted Friday as one day and one night because Jesus died before sundown.

    Day & night 2, Saturday: As soon as the sun went down on Friday, Saturday night began, making night two. Day two started when the sun came up Saturday morning.

    Day & night 3, Sunday: Sunday night began when the sun set on Saturday, making night three. Day three began as the sun rose. Jesus exited the tomb not long after the sun started rising.

    When we look at Jesus’ act of salvation and its timing through the cultural context it was originally written in, we realize that He truly was in the tomb three days and three nights. Jesus’ prophesy from Matthew 12:40, like all of His other words, came true.

     

    Why Did Jesus Need To Be Raised from the Dead?

    Sometimes it is easier to connect to why Jesus had to die than it is to understand why He had to be raised from the dead. His death on the cross was to pay for our sins, but why did He need to be raised to life? Jesus’ resurrection confirms that He is actually who He claimed to be. It proves that He is God (Romans 1:4), He has the power to forgive sin (1 Corinthians 15:17), He has power over death (Romans 6:9), and He has defeated the enemy. His resurrection also means that we are given new life the moment we believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior AND that we will forever be with Him in Heaven.

    Meet The Tour Guides
    John Lawhon

    There’s no pretense with John. He’s the real deal: a “girl dad,” pickleball champ, and he loves making the Bible easy and accessible. Listen to John weekdays on BRIGHT-FM Mornings with John & Tiffanie.

    BRIGHT-FM Mornings
    Meet The Tour Guides
    Pat Linnell

    It’s Pat’s 20+ years in pastoral ministry that sparked Grace Bomb: a movement of no-strings-attached acts of love inspired by Jesus (it’s as fun as it sounds!). As a pastor and author, he’s passionate about putting that kind of love into action.

    Learn about Grace Bomb

    Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

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