Be Inspired By The Burial Of Jesus Christ Series

Be Inspired by the Burial of Jesus Christ

The Gospel of Matthew

Matthew 27:55-66; John 19:38-42

Sermon by Rick Crandall

(Prepared May 22, 2023)

MESSAGE:

*In today's Scripture God's Word tells us about the burial of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Usually when we think about Jesus, we think about the Christmas story, or the Lord's miracles, His wonderful teaching, His death on the cross, and His glorious resurrection on the first Easter Sunday.

*Think for a moment about that first Easter morning. What picture comes to mind? -- Probably the empty tomb with the stone rolled away. We almost never think about that heavy stone being rolled into place. We almost never think about the Lord's burial. But God has some inspirational lessons for us from the burial of Jesus Christ.

1. FIRST: BE INSPIRED BY THE WOMEN'S COMMITMENT TO JESUS.

*Verse 50 reports Jesus' death, and says, "Jesus, when He had cried out again with a loud voice, yielded up His spirit." And the devoted women who loved the Lord were there at the cross until the bitter end. Verses 55-56 tell us that "Many women who followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering to Him, were there looking on from afar, among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee's sons."

*Many women who loved the Lord were there when Jesus died on the cross. But the Holy Spirit led Matthew to name only three. The first was Mary Magdalene. In Mark 16:9 and Luke 8:2 we learn that Jesus had cast seven demons out of this Mary when she first started to follow the Lord. No wonder Mary Magdalene loved Jesus!

*Next, Matthew mentioned Mary the mother of James and Joses. This Mary was the Virgin Mary's sister. But the Holy Spirit also led Matthew to mention the mother of Zebedee's sons, the Apostles James, and his brother John. Mark 15:40 tells us that their mother's name was Salome. Every Apostle but John had already run away, but these women were committed enough to stay in sight of the cross. That's how much they loved Jesus. (1)

*Then in vs. 61, at least two of those women were there at the tomb when Jesus was buried. Verse 61 says, "And Mary Magdalene was there, and the other Mary, sitting opposite the tomb." Luke 23:55 says, "And the women who had come with Him from Galilee followed after, and they observed the tomb and how His body was laid."

*Why were the women there at the tomb? It wasn't because they expected Jesus to rise again. Yes Jesus had often told them about His sacrificial death on the cross. Jesus had also told them that He would rise again from the dead. For example, in Matthew 12:40 Jesus said, "As Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." And Matthew 16:21 says, From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day."

*Jesus had told them many times. But before Easter, the Lord's followers were never able to fully understand what He was telling them. That's why John 20:9 says, "For as yet they did not know the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead."

*The women were not at the cross and the grave for what Jesus was going to do. They were not there expecting Jesus to do something for them. No. They were there because of what Jesus had already done for them. And mainly those women were there, because they loved the Lord Jesus Christ.

*Too much of Christianity in America today (especially on TV), is man centered. It's centered on what the Lord can do for us. He can make us healthy, wealthy, and happy. Of course, all of those things are true. All good things are possible with God. But I'm sure you won't hear a lot of the health and wealth gospel preached today in Iran, Afghanistan, or Communist China.

*Our Christianity should not be centered on us. It should be centered on Him. It should be centered on Jesus Christ, and who He is. It should be centered on what Jesus has already done for us. Our Christianity should be centered on our love and worship for the Lord God Almighty. And it should be centered on our commitment to Him.

2. SO BE INSPIRED BY THE WOMEN'S COMMITMENT TO JESUS., AND BE INSPIRED BY THE RICH MAN'S COURAGE.

*The rich man mentioned here in Matthew 27 was Joseph of Arimathea. Verse 57 says, "Now when evening had come, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who himself had also become a disciple of Jesus."