Read Matthew chapter 28
- The empty
tomb is the first great fact that substantiates the resurrection
a.
“‘Sir,’ they said, ‘we remember that
while he was still alive that deceiver said, “After three days I will rise
again.” So give the order for the tomb
to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and
steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead.
This last deception will be worse than the first.” (Matthew 27:62-64)
i.
By sealing the tomb and posting guards
to ensure that His body would not be stolen, they actually destroyed their own
claim they would later make that His body had been stolen!
ii.
“When the chief priests had met with
the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money,
telling them, ‘You are to say, “His
disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.”’”
(Matthew 28:12-13)
iii.
Soldiers were to be put to death for
falling asleep at their post yet they were told to say this. Besides, if they
really were asleep, how could they have known who stole the body?
b.
God ordained through Moses that all
Jewish men would come to Jerusalem three times a year
i.
“Three
times a year all the men are to appear before the Sovereign LORD.” (Exodus
23:17)
ii.
“Three
times a year all your men must appear before the LORD your God at the place
he will choose: at the Festival of
Unleavened Bread, the Festival of Weeks and the Festival of Tabernacles. No
one should appear before the LORD empty-handed” (Deuteronomy 16:16)
c.
On the Festival of Unleavened Bread (Passover),
Jerusalem was overflowing with people
i.
“Are
you the only one visiting Jerusalem who does not know the things that have
happened there in these days? ... In addition, some of our women amazed us.
They went to the tomb early this morning but didn’t find his body.” (Luke
24:18, 22-23)
ii.
“That
the Messiah would suffer and, as the first to rise from the dead, would
bring the message of light to his own people and to the Gentiles. ... The king
is familiar with these things, and I can speak freely to him. I am convinced
that none of this has escaped his notice, because it was not done in a corner.” (Acts 26:23, 26)
iii.
God ensured great multitudes of people
would be in Jerusalem during these days. More people adds credibility to the
events and makes the resurrection harder to deny.
d.
Just 50 days later on the Festival of
Weeks (Pentecost), again Jerusalem was filled with people
i.
“Fellow Israelites, I can tell you
confidently that the patriarch David
died and was buried, and his tomb is
here to this day.” (Acts 2:29). Everyone in Jerusalem knew that David’s
tomb was still occupied but Jesus’ tomb was not!
ii.
Jewish men were the best judges of the evidence—they
had everything to lose and nothing to gain, they knew the Scriptures, they
witnessed the events, they understood the implications—about 3,000 Jewish men
believed the resurrection in that place at that time
iii.
The preaching of the gospel message
about the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ began right after it
all happened and right where it all happened, in Jerusalem
iv.
If it couldn’t be legitimately denied
in that place at that time then it can’t be denied anywhere else at any other
time
- Eyewitness
testimony is the second great fact that substantiates the resurrection
a.
“One witness is not enough to convict
anyone accused of any crime or offense they may have committed. A matter must be established by the
testimony of two or three witnesses.” (Deuteronomy 19:15)
b.
“But you will receive power when the
Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will
be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends
of the earth.” (Acts 1:8); “God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of it.” (Acts
2:32); “You killed the author of life, but God
raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this.” (Acts 3:15); “And with
great power the apostles gave witness to
the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all.”
(Acts 4:33 NKJV); “The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead– whom you killed by hanging him on a
cross. … We are witnesses of these
things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey
him.” (Acts 5:30, 32); “But God raised
him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen. He was not
seen by all the people, but by witnesses
whom God had already chosen—by us who ate and drank with him after he rose
from the dead.” (Acts 10:40-41); “But God
raised him from the dead, and for many days he was seen by those who had
traveled with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. They are now his witnesses to our people.” (Acts 13:30-31), “You will be his witness to all people
of what you have seen and heard.” (Acts 22:15); “Now get up and stand on your
feet. I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen and will
see of me.” (Acts 26:16); “After that, he
appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same
time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.” (1
Corinthians 15:6)
c.
Not giving false witness or testimony
was one of the Ten Commandments—it was a serious sin
i.
“You
shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.” (Exodus 20:16)
ii.
“Do
not spread false reports. Do not help a guilty person by being a malicious witness.” (Exodus 23:1)
iii.
“The judges must make a thorough investigation, and if the witness proves to be a
liar, giving false testimony against a fellow Israelite, then do to the false witness as that witness
intended to do to the other party. You must purge the evil from among you.”
(Deuteronomy 19:18-19)
iv.
“There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are
detestable to him ... a false witness
who pours out lies …” (Proverbs 6:16, 19)
v.
“For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual
immorality, theft, false testimony,
slander.” (Matthew 15:19)
vi.
“And
if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your
faith. More than that, we are then found
to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he
raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are
not raised.” (1Co 15:14-15)
- Signs,
wonders, and miracles is the third great fact that substantiates the
resurrection
a.
The sign of tongues on the Day of
Pentecost about 50 days after Christ’s resurrection
i.
“Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. ...
That is why it was called Babel—because there the LORD confused the language of the whole world. From there the
LORD scattered them over the face of the
whole earth.” (Genesis 11:1, 9)
ii.
The same God that scattered all people
by confusing the languages is the same God that confirmed Christ’s resurrection
by giving instant fluency in languages
iii.
“Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native
language? Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea
and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of
Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism);
Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring
the wonders of God in our own tongues!” (Acts 2:8-11)
iv.
Jewish men from all over the world
speaking different native languages were in Jerusalem
b.
Jesus gave His disciples supernatural power
during His ministry and also after His resurrection
i.
“Jesus called his twelve disciples to
him and gave them authority to drive out
impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.” (Matthew 10:1)
ii.
“But
you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be
my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the
earth.” (Acts 1:8)
iii.
Giving them this power again
substantiates that He is alive and that it’s still His ministry
c.
Signs, wonders, and miracles was
confirmation from God of the gospel message they preached
i.
“And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working
with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs. Amen.” (Mark
16:20 NKJV)
ii.
“‘What are we going to do with these
men?’ they asked. ‘Everyone living in Jerusalem knows they have performed a notable sign, and we cannot deny it.’” (Acts
4:16)
iii.
“How shall we escape if we ignore so
great a salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. God
also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and by gifts
of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.” (Hebrews 2:3-4)
iv.
“I persevered in demonstrating among
you the marks of a true apostle,
including signs, wonders and miracles.” (2 Corinthians 12:12)
d.
Why would God confirm false witnesses with
miracles? God hates false witness!
- The spread
of Christianity is the fourth great fact that substantiates the
resurrection
a.
“But you will receive power when the
Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)
b.
The foundation of Christianity was in
Jerusalem with the sign of tongues given to the Jews
i.
“Very well then, with foreign lips and strange tongues God will speak to this people
... So this is what the Sovereign LORD says: ‘See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a
sure foundation; the one who relies on it will never be stricken with
panic.’” (Isaiah 28:11, 16)
ii.
The city of Jerusalem is Zion, “Zion—which
is the City of David.” (2 Samuel 5:7)
iii.
The Day of Pentecost with the sign of
tongues became the cornerstone of Christianity
c.
The same sign of tongues was also given
to Gentiles, confirming their salvation as well
i.
“The circumcised believers who had come
with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out
even on Gentiles. For they heard
them speaking in tongues and praising
God.” (Acts 10:45-46)
ii.
“‘So
if God gave them the same gift he gave us who believed in the Lord Jesus
Christ, who was I to think that I could stand in God’s way?’ When they
heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, ‘So then, even to Gentiles God has granted
repentance that leads to life.’” (Acts 11:17-18)
iii.
That Jews never wanted to accept
Gentiles shows just how strong this sign was to them
d.
“And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your
faith. ... And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.” (1 Corinthians
15:14, 17)
i.
If the resurrection did not happen then
Christianity is just another false religion
ii.
The extent and strength of Christianity
testifies to the believability of the resurrection
- What’s the
real reason people reject Christ and don’t become Christians?
a.
If the resurrection happened then
Christianity is true and all other religions are false
b.
The credibility of the resurrection is
so strong that it’s very suspicious when people deny it
i.
Maybe they haven’t done their homework
and just don’t have all the facts?
ii.
Maybe they’re not very intelligent and
it’s hard for them to understand?
iii.
Maybe the real reason is that they have
motives for denying it?
c.
“For God so loved the world that he
gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but
have eternal life. … This is the
verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.”
(John 3:16, 19)
i.
A verdict indicates a strong conclusion or a sound
judgment—the resurrection is a verdict leaving no excuses for denying it
ii.
Jesus left no gray area about the truth,
it’s the difference between light and darkness
iii.
If the resurrection is a verdict (light
in the darkness), and you’ve heard the evidence, and you’re an intelligent
person, yet you still deny it, then it indicates that you have motives
iv.
Jesus said that people reject light
because they love darkness—they love living in sin
d.
The paradox of Christianity is that
it’s easy to be saved, but it’s not easy to be saved!
i.
Jesus paid the price for our sins, but
we must pay a price in turning from our sins
ii.
We must strip away our pride, expose
our shame, turn from sin, and live for Christ
iii.
We must forsake everything and sell
ourselves into slavery of the Lord Jesus Christ
e.
What’s your reason for not becoming a
Christian?