- We often preach about the amazing things that accompanied Jesus’ resurrection from the death. The scene on Easter morning certainly deserves attention from us.
- It’s not just the resurrection of Jesus that had miracles though. The death of Jesus also was accompanied by miracles as well.
- These miracles are not random – they serve as signs for us.
GIVE ME A SIGN: A sign usually both has an immediate point and points to a larger truth.
- Let’s look back at Matthew 20:29-34 for an example.
- Jesus is leaving Jericho when a pair of blind men ask Him to give them sight. He touches their eyes and they are healed.
- This is clearly a sign.
- The immediate point is that Jesus has power over physical sickness. He can literally make the blind see. This is extraordinary and points people toward believing that Jesus is the Son of God, as He claims.
- There is also a larger truth. Jesus is healing someone’s physical blindness. He wants people to be able to see. Throughout the gospels we see many people (especially religious leaders) who claim to have spiritual insight but whom Jesus declares to be clueless. They are spiritually blind. The ability of Jesus to restore physical sight is an impressive miracle and sign but also points us toward a larger truth that He has come to give spiritual sight. He wants us to understand God clearly and see Him as He is.
THE IMMEDIATE POINT FOR THE FOUR MIRACLES SURROUNDING JESUS' DEATH: This was no ordinary death.
- Matthew 27:54.
- We’re going to dig into all four of the miracles here in a moment, but for now let’s ask what the immediate point was in these four miracles at Jesus’ death. The point was to affirm that this was no ordinary death. They were present to make abundantly clear that there was something unusual going on here.
- It has its intended effect. We read in verse 54 that when the centurions saw what all was happening, they were terrified and proclaimed that Jesus was the Son of God. Remember that these are men who had no reservation just a few hours before about nailing Jesus to the cross. They were certainly a hard crowd to convince, but the miracles (as well as Jesus’ behavior on the cross) had thoroughly convinced them. It all added up to the intended immediate point: this was a death unlike any other.
THE LARGER POINTS TO THE FOUR MIRACLES:
1. The physical darkness was symbolic of the darkest moral moment in human history.
- Matthew 27:45; Mark 15:33; Luke 23:44-45.
- Isaiah 53:4, 5, 12; Matthew 8:17; Romans 5:6; 1 Corinthians 15:3; Galatians 1:4; Galatians 3:13; Ephesians 5:2; Hebrews 2:9; Hebrews 9:28; 1 Peter 2:21-24; 1 Peter 3:18; 1 John 3:5.
- Verse 45 tells us that darkness came over the land for three hours. This happened from noon until 3 p.m.
- Now, because this story is familiar to us, it’s common for us to read right past this as though it’s nothing. It was dark for three hours in the middle of the day! Talk about an unavoidable sign!
- We’ve all had moments when we walked outside and because of unusual weather the lighting is all wrong. It’s doesn’t look like it normally does and that immediately gets our attention. “What’s going on?” we wonder and begin to look for an explanation for the change. This was much more profound than that – it wasn’t merely unusual lighting, it was darkness.
- And it didn’t just happen for a minute – it lasted for 180 minutes. The final three hours that Jesus was on the cross were engulfed in darkness. It’s not until His death (Matthew 27:46-50) that the darkness lifts.
- So what’s the larger point? I think the physical darkness was symbolic of the spiritual darkness.
- This was the darkest moment in human history. Why do we say that? Because in those moments the perfect, sinless Son of God had all of the sins of humanity laid upon Him.
- Isaiah 53:4, 5, 12; Matthew 8:17; Romans 5:6; 1 Corinthians 15:3; Galatians 1:4; Galatians 3:13; Ephesians 5:2; Hebrews 2:9; Hebrews 9:28; 1 Peter 2:21-24; 1 Peter 3:18; 1 John 3:5.
- Look back with me at Isaiah 53 for some key verses. Look at verses 4, 5, and 12.
- Verse 12 is particularly telling. It speaks of Him bearing our sins. It means that every single sin that had ever been committed by every single human in all of the time that humanity had and would spend on earth was laid on Him at the cross.
- Think of the sense of spiritual darkness that can settle on you when you’ve done one sin that deeply bothers you. Now multiply that by all of the sins that have ever been committed. Such darkness!
- We often focus on the physical suffering of Christ. It is a worthy subject. But I think we would do well to focus more on the spiritual suffering of Christ. What a toll it must have caused on Him to have to take that on. What spiritual darkness.
2. The physical veil tearing was symbolic of the newfound access to God.
- Matthew 27:51; Mark 15:38; Luke 23:45.
- Exodus 26:31-33; Exodus 36:35; 2 Chronicles 3:14; Hebrews 4:16; Hebrews 6:19-20; Hebrews 10:19-22.
- This would not have been immediately apparent to those who were at the crucifixion site. That’s because the veil they are referring to was deep inside the Temple. This detail was added because after all was said and done, it was clear what an incredible sign this was to have happen at the moment of Jesus’ death.
- What’s so impressive about it?
- Some background is necessary since most people today don’t know much about the specifics of the Jewish first-century traditions. The Temple got progressively more limited in terms of who had access. The Gentiles and the women were limited to where they could go. And then there were areas limited only to the priests. The innermost sanctum was the Holy of Holies – a room only accessed once a year by the chosen priest. To be in this room was to be in the presence of God.
- The room had walls on three sides, but on the front side was a thick curtain (Exodus 26:31-33; Exodus 36:35; 2 Chronicles 3:14). It was about 60 feet high and, according to Josephus, was a thickness of about a handbreadth. So this was not something that was going to accidentally rip. It would be like trying to rip two thick phone books at the same time!
- So what’s the larger point? It has to do with our access to God.
- In the Temple system, coming into the presence of God in the Holy of Holies was a frightful and rare thing. The priest going in there annually would tie a rope to his leg in case he died in the room so they could drag him out.
- Now, through the death of Christ, there was a massive change in our access to God.
- Hebrews 6:19-20 says, “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our behalf.”
- Hebrews 10:19-22 says, “Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith . . . .”
- A door has swung wide open to us being able to come into the presence of God!
- That verse also brings up another analogy – that the tearing of Jesus’ body on the cross symbolically brought the tearing of the curtain. It is through the rending of Christ’s body that the rending of the veil happens.
- It is for these reasons that we can boldly obey Hebrews 4:16 – “Let us approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”
3. The physical earthquake was symbolic of the seismic spiritual shift.
- Matthew 27:51.
- Romans 8:1-4; Galatians 3:25.
- As Jesus dies there is an earthquake. We noted that the torn veil would not have been immediately known to all those at the site of the cross. The darkness that had lingered for three hours was obvious to them. Now, as Jesus’ head hangs down in His death, the ground beneath their feet begins to shake violently.
- The imagery is not subtle: something earthshaking just happened.
- I’ve (thankfully) never been in an earthquake, but I can imagine the terror of that moment. We presume day in and day out that, for all the other uncertainties in our lives, at least the ground beneath our feet provides a solid foundation. Then, in that moment, to have everything around you shaken to its core as the earth itself shifts back and forth – that would be something unforgettable.
- So what’s the larger point? That there was not just a seismic shift happening with the physical world, but that a seismic shift had happened in the spiritual world.
- I’ll just cite a couple examples.
- In Romans 8:1-4, Paul tells us about our new situation. In Romans 7 he speaks at length about the struggles with sin that we have with no hope of victory. Then in Romans 8 he explains that through Jesus a spiritual earthquake has occurred. Now I’m no longer under condemnation. Now the Holy Spirit has set me free. How? Through what Jesus did for us.
- In Galatians 3, Paul talks about all the limitations of the law. Then in Galatians 3:25 he declares, “Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.” The old system is gone and a new, better way has emerged through what Jesus has done for us.
- These are not incremental changes. These are not marginal differences. These are seismic shifts. These are earthquakes on the spiritual landscape.
4. The physical resurrection was a foreshadowing of the physical resurrection of Christ (and us).
- Matthew 27:52-53.
- 1 Corinthians 15: 17, 42-44; 1 John 4:2.
- The other three miracles were undoubtedly impressive, but this final one might have garnered the most attention. We find that there were a number of the saints of old who were raised to life and who spend some time wandering around and interacting with people.
- This raises all sorts of interesting questions: How many were raised to life? Were there heroes from the Bible that we would know the names of? How long were they around? Did they die again or just disappear?
- Unfortunately, we are not given answers to these uncertainties. All we’ve got is this fleeting mention.
- Now, we know that Jesus had raised a few dead people to life during His ministry, but no one who had been dead for longer than a few days. Here we have people who perhaps had been dead for centuries back to life. It was not too hard for God to do, even when all that was left of the person was dust and ashes. God was fully capable, despite the Sadducees’ denials, of physically resurrecting someone from the dead.
- Now, of course, at this moment those in Jerusalem don’t know that Jesus Himself will be resurrected on Sunday. But they will soon.
- So what’s the larger point? I think it’s directly about physical resurrection.
- Jesus didn’t just come to spiritually save our souls, though He did and we’re thankful for that. His death led to His resurrection, which is a forerunner to the physical resurrection that we will experience. 1 John 4:2 emphasizes the importance of Jesus coming in the flesh, saying that it’s a definitive test of whether someone is a spirit from God.
- And then 1 Corinthians 15 goes on at length about what His resurrection means for our resurrection. Verse 17 tells us that if Christ is not resurrected then our faith in futile. Verses 42-44 speaks to the imperishable, glorious, powerful, spiritual nature of the body.
- This, of course, goes against those who think that heaven is all about being a disembodied spirit. Unlike pretty much all other religions, Christianity speaks to a physical body throughout eternity.
- With that in mind, it makes sense that there were physically resurrected people accompanying the death of Christ. It was a foreshadowing of what He was accomplishing.
