Introduction: Easter Sunday. This is one of the best days ever! This is when we celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord from the dead. Because He died, we may have life, because He lives, we too can life forever!
But for those living on that first Easter Sunday, they may not have shared those same thoughts. When that day came to a close, though, they had a much different opinion! Let’s take a look:
1 There was no doubt Jesus was dead.
--He was crucified (John 19:18). The Romans knew precisely how to kill people, especially by crucifixion. Per Dr. Woodrow Kroll in a college lecture, “crucifixion” comes from the Latin words “cruci” and “figo”, meaning “I fasten (something) to a cross”. Over the years, they mastered the art and science of this method of execution. Nobody survived crucifixion.
--Not only was Jesus crucified, His body was pierced. A soldier did this in order to prove He was already dead. The soldiers had broken the legs of the men crucified with Him but they didn’t do this to Jesus (John 19:31-37). He was already dead.
--The body of Jesus was wrapped in linen cloths (John 19:38-40). One source explained that first, each finger, then each hand, and then the hands were bound to the body. After this, the entire body was wrapped in strips of linen. Had Jesus survived the crucifixion, He would have smothered due to the “napkin” or cloth over His face (John 20:7).
--The body of Jesus was sealed in a tomb hewn or carved out of solid rock (Matthew 27:60). After the body was placed in the tomb, the tomb was “sealed (Matthew 27:62-66)”. One commentator said “sealing” meant the stone was rolled over the entrance to the tomb, then a cord was strung on the outside, finally having an official stamp or seal proving the government didn’t want anybody having anything to do with that tomb or anything in it.
--The tomb was guarded by “keepers”, most likely soldiers who guarded this tomb. So even if Jesus survived the crucifixion, could wriggle Himself out of the linen wrappings, remove the cloth placed over His face, and could remove the stone, He would still have to get past the soldiers or guards.
--No doubt about it: He was dead!
2 But there was proof He was alive!
--The door (stone) to the tomb was rolled away! No human means could account for this (Matthew 28:1-10, Mark 16:1-8, Luke 24:1-12, John 20:1-9)
--The Lord’s body was gone, but the “grave-clothes” were still there (as mentioned in the above list of texts)!
--The “napkin” placed over His face was “wrapped together in a place by itself (John 20:7)” A local community newspaper had an article about this in an Easter-time issue some years back. The author observed that had the person using that napkin was done and going away, the napkin would have been basically wadded up and left where it was. The author also said that if the napkin was rolled up or wrapped up, it meant “I’m coming back!”
--The angels also mentioned Jesus was not in the tomb. Angels were seldom seen and were believed to bring God’s messages to people. If any angels had an assignment they could rejoice over, it had to be this one! They were allowed to tell people that JESUS WAS ALIVE!
3 And Jesus Himself proved He was alive by speaking to people!
--He met Mary Magdalene in the garden, close to the tomb (John 20:11-18). She held Jesus’ feet for dear life but He told her, in so many words, “Stop clinging to Me” or, perhaps, “Turn Me loose, Mary (free paraphrase)”. He and she both had things to do at the time.
--Jesus also met some of the other women who had come to anoint His body (Matthew 28:8-10). They too grabbed hold of His feet but He told them what to say to the Eleven disciples.
--Jesus appeared to Cleopas and another disciple as they all walked to Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. These three talked about various things, and Jesus gave them an in-depth literal “walk through the Bible” study as they traveled. See Luke 24:13-35 for the story.
--Later that evening, Jesus appeared to the group, the Eleven, probably Cleopas and the other disciple, and maybe more. He told them to “handle Him and see (for themselves)” that He was genuine and not a ghost (Luke 24:36-43)!
4 And there were other appearances, too:
--A week later, Jesus appeared to Thomas, who had not been with them on Resurrection Day. Thomas saw and heard the Risen Lord, and was one of the first to say to Jesus, “My Lord and my God (John 20:24-29).” Oh that many more would make that confession of faith!
--Saul of Tarsus saw Jesus as he traveled to Damascus (Acts 9). Saul not only saw, and believed, but became known as the Apostle Paul, whom God used greatly.
--I Corinthians 15 has a list of several times when various people saw Jesus after the Resurrection. Some, from a group of 500 who had seen the risen Jesus were still alive when Paul wrote this letter to believers in Corinth, some 30 years after the Resurrection.
Celebrate Jesus! HE IS RISEN! HE IS ALIVE!
