The Evidence of the Resurrection (Matthew 28:1-15)

 The resurrection of Jesus Christ is unique there’s nothing quite like it in all the realm of nature or history. I suppose if there’s any place you would look for something similar it might be the whole area of religion but if you look at other religions there’s nothing like it, not even a hint of anything like the resurrection is contained in the claims of any previous or subsequent world religions. We note that even Abraham in a sense the founder of Judaism was the first person to be first called by the God of the Bible, and we know that Abraham died approximately 2000 years before Christ. Tradition and scripture both agree he was buried at Hebron. You can still visit the site at The Cave of Machpelah where he was buried all be it there is now a Mosque their covering the burial site. But the point I am making is there is not even a hint in Judaism that either Abraham or for that matter Moses rose from the dead 

Buddha was the founder of Buddhism and although we don’t have a lot of records about his life, but what records we do have talk about his death and there is no hint anywhere of any kind of a resurrection.

Mohammed died, we know the date, June the 8th 632AD and everyone knows where the tomb is, “The Hujra” (The Green Dome) and people often visit that tomb along with 6 other sites as aprt of their Hajj, pilgrimage, and again there’s no claim is made in Islam that Mohammed ever rose from the dead.

This idea of the death and resurrection of Christ we not only believe but we celebrate at Easter, it is unique to Christianity . It is Christianity’s clear claim that Jesus Christ died, and three days later came back from the dead. It seems to me that such a unique claim it requires at least some rational basis for belief.  Today I would ask, what is the evidence for Easter, what is the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ and a great part of the answer to that is found in Matthew chapter 28. Today we are going to look at some of the evidence for the resurrection of Christ contained in this passage. This is not the exhaustive biblical evidence, there are other things, and other passages that could be called upon to help us, but this passage covers what I believe are all the critical issues in the proof or evidence for the resurrection of Christ Jesus. The text we are going to cover today are the first 15 verses of the last chapter of Matthew, chapter 28.

This passage very naturally falls into three little parts. In the first part, we have the women visiting the tomb and discovering that Jesus has risen. In the second part of the passage Jesus appears to them and then finally we have this really interesting third part where the soldiers go back and tell the religious leaders and together, they concoct a scheme whereby they say we will tell everyone that while the guards were sleeping, the disciples stole the body. It seems to me that these three parts, give us three different bits of vital information and evidence for the resurrection.  So, let’s work through these three sections of verses and try pick up some of the details about the various evidences of the truth of the empty tomb and the resurrection. The first bit of evidence I submit to you is the empty tomb. 

1 Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. 2 And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone from the door and sat on it. 3 His countenance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow. 4 And the guards shook for fear of him and became like dead men. 5 But the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. 7 And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead, and indeed He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him. Behold, I have told you.”   (Matthew 28: 1-7)

It begins by telling after the Sabbath day as the next day dawned, so on the Sunday, that Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. We know from previous texts that they had followed the processional from the cross to the tomb and witnessed Jesus being interned and the Roman soldiers being posted as guards. More about that in a minute, but here we see them come back to the tomb the next morning.

Mark adds the additional information that they brought spices, and they were going to anoint the body. This was the usual custom, but because the burial had taken place so quickly and they had sealed the tomb they hadn’t been able to do that. So, at any rate the women come and then Matthew say that there was a earthquake and he seems to imply that it was caused by the Angel of the Lord descending from heaven and rolling back the stone from the door.  After which he sits on it. Archaeologists tell us tombs like the one described her were hewn out of solid rock and a very large round stone was rolled in front of the only opening to the tomb. We know from similar door boulders found today that such rocks weighed up to as much as 2 tons. One authority says it would normally have taken 15-20 men to roll it into place thus sealing the entrance. 

Matthew here describes the descent of the Angel and an earthquake and the stone is rolled away by one Angel who is now sat on rock by the entrance. One other thing I tell you what’s significant about this, not only was that stone huge, that stone had a seal put on it. On the edge of the tomb beside the door stone wax was poured and then a short length of rope crossed over to the door stone, and then again, some more wax was poured on the door stone itself with the rope contained within it. This was the imprint of the Roman authority, and nobody was allowed to break that seal. Keep in mind the sequence of events here, Jesus has been taken from the cross, placed in the tomb, people are watching, a guard has been posted the stone has been rolled in front of the door and a seal has been put on the only entrance. The only way out of that was through that door, but then an Angel comes and causes the stone to be rolled away. That’s the first time the door had been opened.

The Angel appears, and it says his face was like lightning in their clothing is white as snow. This is meant to underline for us that this was a spectacular supernatural stunning event. The woman are shocking to say the least, and even the guards shake with fear. They were terrified at what they were seen apparently, the women weren’t scared, which I find interesting, they were just awestruck. The Angel then speaks to the women and says, “Do not be afraid for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified, but he’s not here he has risen”. The angel then says to them all, “Come see the place where the Lord’s body lay”. The soldiers thought their life was in danger, but the angle says, “Don’t be afraid,  “Come and see, I want you to come and see where the Lord lay.” The woman, no doubt accompanied by the soldiers go into the tomb and there was nothing in it. We also know from the gospel of John that later Peter came to the tomb and he went in and looked, and it says he, in fact, saw the grave cloths still lying where Jesus had been placed, lying there undisturbed. There was no sign of a struggle the grave clothes were not in disarray even the napkin which had been wrapped around his face was folded carefully in place by itself.

Matthew doesn’t mention that, John does in John chapter 20, but the point of this extra detail I believe is meant to demonstrate that that Jesus did not sit up and unwrapped himself from all the grave clothes and walked out the door, he was resurrected right through the grave cloths and through the tomb leaving everything undisturbed. Let me just clarify, for a lot of people miss this point. The Angel didn’t come down to open the door to let Jesus out, he opened the door to let witnesses in, so they could see that the tomb was empty.  They could see the empty tomb and the grave clothes left undisturbed, and when they saw that they realized not only that he’s not here but that he is resurrected. The angel then speaks again and says, “Go quickly and tell the disciples that he is raised from risen from the dead and tell them he will go before them into Galilee, and they can see him there.” So, they woman run to bring the disciples back to see.

I would like to suggest is that this is the first bit of evidence of the resurrection. The fact that the tomb was opened and not just the women saw it, but later we will see that fact is confirmed for us by the guards agreed with what had happened and so in fact by their action the Jewish religious leaders also believe it, or they wouldn’t have taken the steps they did. The first people on the scene said he wasn’t there, some who were there when immediately after these events took place all say the same thing  tomb was opened said the same thing and even Peter who arrives a little later, rushes in and sees the grave clothes and he too testified he has risen. I simply submit to you that part of the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ is that the tomb was empty, and many witnessed that.

However, there’s a second bit of evidence. If Jesus Christ was really raised from the dead. So, the second bit of evidence is the eyewitnesses who saw him after the resurrection. 

8 So they went out quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy and ran to bring His disciple’s word.9 And as they went to tell His disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, “Rejoice!” So, they came and held Him by the feet and worshiped Him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell My brethren to go to Galilee, and there they will see Me.”  (Matthew 28: 8-10)

I think it’s really interesting the way this is said, listen carefully is says, Jesus met them on the way and it says they “worshipped him,” which simply means they bowed down to the ground, but note it also said they held his feet. That little bit of extra information about touching his feet is vital, why, because this was no ghost, it’s Matthew’s subtle way of saying he was physically raised from the dead. This was no phantom, this was no ghost, Jesus once again had a physical body, and they were able to grab him and hold on to him meaning he appeared to them in a physical form, and he says to them do not be afraid. That’s the second time he said that, and then he reminds them to go and tell his disciples in Galilee also reminding them to say that they too will see him soon. I submit to you this is further evidence of the resurrection of Jesus Chris. In that, he was seen in this case by several women who were at the tomb early that morning, but that’s only the beginning because others will see him. As a matter of fact, in first Corinthians chapter 15 Paul says a whole lot of people saw him, that he was seen by Peter, then he was seen by all the apostles as a group, and he was also seen by James and then Paul tells us in 1Corinthians that he was seen by over 515 people after his resurrection but before his ascension.

Now some have tried to write this off as is that as if they had a sort of group hallucination, that might make sense to me if it was just one person. It may be possible for one individual to be psychotic or delusional , but 500 all at once, that’s not even a thing. Even modern research show that there is no evidence of group any mass delusional episodes, they are on occasion evidence for something called group hysteria where a large body of people are panicked into reacting to a situation, but that is completely different from people sharing an identical psychotic delusional state. Even when there has been an evidence of group hysteria the normal pattern is for people very soon to come to their senses and all fragment and reach different conclusions as to what really happened, and that is not what happened here. 

Paul says let us that over 500 people saw Jesus Christ after he came back from the dead in different and varied situations. I want you to fully appreciate the impact of this, 500 people saw him, to put this into context. Think about it this way, if we were holding a trial to determine the facts concerning the resurrection and if we were called the witnesses and every eyewitness who personally encountered the resurrected of Jesus and we cross examined for just 15 minutes and if we went around the clock, 24 hours a day, without a break how long do you think we would be sitting here. This is 515 the first-hand witness testimonies. If we started the trial on a Saturday morning, we wouldn’t finish the basic 15-minute witness testimony until 3:00pm the following Friday.

There was a notable journalist who covered the trial of those who became known as the  Chicago 7,  and he said I’ve covered scores of criminal trials as illegal affairs journalist and I’ve never seen a case where anyone had near as many eyewitness testimonies were recorded than as too the resurrection of Jesus. Sometimes in a court of law we accept just one witness, sometimes one is OK, someone can be convicted by the eyewitness testimony of one reliable witness. But 2-3, that would be better, but 500 plus. Do you know who is considered to be the most successful defence lawyer there has ever been in the world, it was a man called Lionel Alfred Luckhoo. He passed away in 1997, but in terms of his success rate he has been ,measured was the most successful defence lawyer, ever, in the world.

Let me quote for you from that most famous authoritative source, The Guinness Book of Records, where it says, I quote. The most successful defence lawyer of all time was  Lionel Alfred Luckhoo, in terms of the highest ever percentage of acquittals and for the fact he that between 1954 and 1985 he succeeded in getting 245 consecutive murder charges acquitted in secession. That’s an absolutely astonishing feat, that nobody in the world has even come close to matching. 245 murder trials in a row either in one go before a jury, or on appeal.

What skill do you think he needed to raise to that kind of unprecedented level of courtroom success, certainly he must have been smart and savvy, he must have had tremendous analytical skills so that he could dissect what appeared to be on the surface and airtight case, he must also have be a world class expert on what constitutes persuasive evil. He was knighted twice by Queen Elizabeth II, and this is what he said. This here’s what this man who won more cases and the highest % of cases ever by any lawyer in the world, so he certainly knew what constituted evidence, I quote.

“I say unequivocally that the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ is so overwhelming that it compels acceptance by proof which leaves absolutely no doubt”.

I say to you, Jesus Christ arose from the dead and the evidence for that is the tomb was empty the grave clothes undisturbed and the hundreds of people who testified to having seen him post mortem. The evidence is overwhelming, but you know what, there’s one more bit of evidence and it’s most intriguing of all to me 

11 Now while they were going, behold, some of the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests all the things that had happened. 12 When they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, 13 saying, “Tell them, ‘His disciples came at night and stole Him away while we slept.’ 14 And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will appease him and make you secure.” 15 So they took the money and did as they were instructed; and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day.   (Matthew 28: 11-15)

It seems the Roman soldiers went and reported to the chief priest what had happened. The religious leaders heard what they said and quickly assembled the elders and consulted together and they gave a large sum of money to bribe the soldiers to say something else had happened. It only took thirty pieces of silver to buy Judas, it took a much larger sum to bribe these soldiers and they said tell everyone his disciples came at night and stole him away while they were asleep. They took the money, and they did as they instructed and we are told by Matthew that years later that rumour was still floating around. This is what I conclude from this. Did the religious leaders think somebody stole the body, did they think the body was hidden somewhere in Jerusalem. No, this passage implies that Jesus very own enemies believe he had been resurrected. Even they believe that he had been risen from the dead. That is why they felt they had to concoct some story, but frankly that boat won't float. Just look at this story and put these Roman guards’ testimony on trial for a minute. 

First you say, his disciples came at night and stole him away while you slept. If you were sleeping, how did you know it was the disciples who took the body, and who moved that stone,  were you so asleep that you didn’t see or hear up to 20 people coming and making a huge racket, by moving the stone away. How come it did not and wake you up? I mean frankly this is just stupidity there’s no way there is no way their story works, for the simple reason it doesn’t make sense even on the surface, and if they did indeed steal the body, and that was the rumour, they would have turned the Jerusalem upside down to try and find the body. I submit to you that the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ is an empty tomb, eyewitnesses ,and their enemies by their subsequent actions confirming in essence that the body isn’t there.

Ok, let me conclude by asking a couple of questions and make suggestion or two. 

Firstly, there’s more evidence of the resurrection of Jesus that there are of many other historical events we consider as factually true and  one of the great pieces of evidence. However, I would suggest, the main evidence is even above and beyond all this stuff I have already talked about, and that the most compelling evidence we can offer is the remarkable changes  to the lives of millions of people who believe it to be true, Starting with from that day to this. 

Paul, a man who was murdering Christians met the resurrected Lord and all of a sudden, he became the great Apostle Paul. Also, the fact that Jesus came back to life answers the greatest questions about life for millions of people. I believe that any thoughtful person who really reflects on life for a minute knows there are some big questions out there that need answering.

Number one, where did we come from? 

The second great question of life is, why am I here?

Did you ever ask yourself what in the world am I doing with my life. I mean we get up; we get dressed, some go to work and sit in traffic, then they do the same thing on the way home.

We get home and we eat dinner and go to bed and we get up and do the same thing the next day. What in the world are you doing that for, what’s all this about. Millions of people are doing it now with out even the prospect of having a family.

There seems to me are the three great questions in life.

1.      Where did I come from.

2.      Where am I going in life.

3.      What does it all mean.

Hear me hear me well, if Jesus Christ the Son of God, came back from the dead then the empty tomb that answers all those questions for you. Because of it, I know where I came from, because it tells me I was made in the image of God, and I through faith I can have the forgiveness of sin and become a child of God, therefore  I know who I am. I also know why I’m here; I am to serve him,  I am to first of all trust in him, then to serve him and by doing to be transformed to be like him in spirt and in practice. Furthermore, I know where I’m going, I am going to be blessed in this life and I also can know where I am going when I die.

The most common thing I hear these days, I heard it so many times I’ve lost count, is that all that matters is you try and be a good person and don’t hurt anybody. But that really doesn’t cut it for me, that doesn’t answer the questions for me of, who am I. why I am here, and where am I going.

One of the greatest philosophers ever lived a man called Martin Heidegger  who actually had a hard time finding his way back to his house in the town he lived. As Canadian Psychologist Jordan Peterson, say, a whole generation is being told they should dismantle the whole world, economic social and political system, when they haven’t yet mastered the ability to tidy their rooms yet. (I paraphrase).Ever heard, “I think therefore I am”. This life is not a dream, but if Jesus Christ was indeed the son of God, and God the son,  then he died on the cross to pay for our sin and I now know exactly what this means. It means the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the crux of the Christian faith.

Anyone once could have stood up and said, I’m going to die for the sin of the world”, But Jesus said more than that he said, “I’m going to die and pay for all of your sin and three days later I’m going to come back from the dead”, and that was testable. There will have to be some evidence that happened, and there was, just as I have described today. The fact that Christians believe that because Jesus Christ came back from the dead it is that which proves his death was for sin, and God accepted it, and it makes possible for me to have a him, in an intercessory position, in my place, before God.

This is what the Book of Hebrews refers to as the high priestly ministry of Jesus Christ, in that Jesus Christ is now interceding for you and me before God. Most people think, even unbelievers even think, it is really nice to have someone praying for them, someone going to God on their behalf and what the Bible calls interceding for them, praying for them. But for Christians it is none less than Jesus himself who is praying and interceding on our behalf.

Don’t misunderstand me, I want you all to pray for me and this ministry, but I’d rather have him above everybody else on the planet praying and interceding for me, and that’s what the resurrection provided. We now have Jesus operating like a high priest on our behalf and the resurrection of Jesus proves that God has accepted his sacrifice for our sin and it makes it possible for him to intercede for us and provides us with grace and mercy and power in this life. Again, I said this last time, Hebrews 4: 16 says, because of the resurrection of Christ we can now, “Come boldly to the throne of grace to receive mercy there in our time of need”. The resurrection makes all of those things real. The resurrection makes it possible for you and I to have the forgiveness of sins and the resurrection makes it possible for you and I to have a intercessor before God on our behalf.

I’m nearly finished, but I’m not quite done yet. So, what do we do with this, if you look at this passage carefully it says two interesting things.

I believe it calls us all to come the tomb and look, to come and see, and then we you see and believe with you heart, then go and tell. If you discover the cure for cancer, would you keep it to yourself, but what about if you discovered the cure for all the ills of this world. If you discovered the cure for sin, would you keep that secret. We’ve got a living saviour, don’t hog it, let’s share it, let’s go tell everybody about this. The resurrection is real and true friends and we have got good solid evidence to back us up about it. 

Here is the bottom line, don’t be afraid to go and tell. We in a time again in history because of the lack or representation of the true gospel that most people have never had anybody tell them the real truth of how God loves them individually and how they can be forgiven for whatever they have done, by simply trusting in Jesus and Him alone. I believe that, and if you believe that then tell it to the rest of the world. Look and see the empty tomb, believe, and then go tell others.