In the Church calendar, there are two very important days we celebrate. The first is the Christmas season, with all of it's festivities of gift giving and families getting together, it is a time to celebrate the extravagant gift of God to mankind. God has moved to take care of the problem of our sinfulness.
The second great celebration of the church is Easter Sunday. It is the celebration of Jesus' resurrection from the dead. God has moved to take care of the penalty for sin - DEATH!
In spite of God's intervention in human history; in spite of the certain victory God has won over sin, death, and Satan; the enemy continued to work at stopping the followers of Jesus. In fact, more than 2000 years later Satan is still at it. He provides resistance against us while we are on our Christian Journey.
Matthew 28:1-10 (NASB)
[1] Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave.
[2] And behold, a severe earthquake had occurred, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled away the stone and sat upon it.
[3] And his appearance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow.
[4] The guards shook for fear of him and became like dead men.
[5] The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified.
[6] He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying.
[7] "Go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead; and behold, He is going ahead of you into Galilee, there you will see Him; behold, I have told you."
[8] And they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy and ran to report it to His disciples.
[9] And behold, Jesus met them and greeted them. And they came up and took hold of His feet and worshiped Him.
[10] Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid; go and take word to My brethren to leave for Galilee, and there they will see Me."
Every year, some time during Passion Week, I take time to watch THE PASSION, by Mel Gibson. It gives a very vivid presentation on the suffering that Jesus went through for all of mankind. Being so far removed from that pain in the twenty-first century, we need a reminder of what Jesus did for us.
To celebrate the resurrection is to celebrate the end of the suffering and pain that Jesus went through for us. It is a celebration of the victory that God has won over His enemy, Satan. It is a celebration of the final victory the followers of Jesus will one day have over sin, suffering, death, and mortality.
While this is a great time of celebration for the Church, it is a celebration that looks into the future. However, in the here and now, we must continue to deal with the enemy. Temptation, suffering, death, and mortality are real issues in our every day lives.
Because Christ has defeated Satan, the resistance we encounter on our Christian Journey is only a temporary resistance. One day, we will have the same eternal victory that Jesus has won for us.
Satan worked hard during Passion Week and the days that followed. He was hard at the task of discrediting the events that surrounded the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. There are several interesting things that happened.
One thing that Satan did to defeat Christ and His followers was to have Jesus put to death. In anyone's mind, the torture and death of a charismatic leader like Jesus would certainly devastate any following He had.
Matthew 27:45-50 (NASB)
[45] Now from the sixth hour darkness fell upon all the land until the ninth hour.
[46] About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "ELI, ELI, LAMA SABACHTHANI?" that is, "MY GOD, MY GOD, WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME?"
[47] And some of those who were standing there, when they heard it, began saying, "This man is calling for Elijah."
[48] Immediately one of them ran, and taking a sponge, he filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and gave Him a drink.
[49] But the rest of them said, "Let us see whether Elijah will come to save Him."
[50] And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.
Jesus is dead and it would seem to the people, that the religious leaders had won a decisive victory. Because we know what happened after that, we know that it was only a temporary victory. Satan knew better and continued to fight and resist God's plan of salvation.
Matthew 27:51-54 (NASB)
[51] And behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth shook and the rocks were split.
"The first hint that this was only a temporary victory came when the veil in the temple was torn in two. This exposed the inner sanctuary or the Holy place where the annual sacrifice for sin was brought before God in behalf of the people. When Jesus came out of the grave there was no longer a need for the sacrificial system. In less than 50 years the entire temple would be destroyed and the sacrificial system abandoned." (dgb)
[52] The tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised;
[53] and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection they entered the holy city and appeared to many.
[54] Now the centurion, and those who were with him keeping guard over Jesus, when they saw the earthquake and the things that were happening, became very frightened and said, "Truly this was the Son of God!"
If you are like me, you hate to have your established perception of how things are, challenged or changed. I hate it when that happens because it takes a lot of work to change my mind. That happened to me in my study this week. It did not change my belief or theology in any way; it only changed my perspective a bit.
Now I want to propose to you a different view of this passage. I think it might be possible that when Matthew finished recording the moment of Jesus' death in verse 50, his mind drifted to the events of the resurrection of Jesus. It is possible that verses 51-56 refer to events that happened on the morning Jesus came out of the grave.
It is here at the grave of Jesus, that Satan must win. You see, if Jesus does not stay in the grave, and turn to dust like everyone who has died before Him, then Satan is defeated.
Satan did not give up when Jesus lost His last breath on the cross. He did all he could to make sure Jesus body stayed in the grave.
Matthew 27:62-66 (NASB)
[62] Now on the next day, the day after the preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered together with Pilate,
[63] and said, "Sir, we remember that when He was still alive that deceiver said, 'After three days I am to rise again.'
[64] "Therefore, give orders for the grave to be made secure until the third day, otherwise His disciples may come and steal Him away and say to the people, 'He has risen from the dead,' and the last deception will be worse than the first."
[65] Pilate said to them, "You have a guard; go, make it as secure as you know how."
[66] And they went and made the grave secure, and along with the guard they set a seal on the stone.
Every precaution has been taken. Jesus is dead and no one is going to do anything to convince the world otherwise.
Our text for today, which records the events of the morning Jesus came out of the grave, indicates that there is one factor that the enemies of Jesus did not consider. Jesus was Messiah. God the Creator was His Father. Nothing they did could hold Jesus' body in the grave.
First, the text says that there is a severe earthquake. In chapter 27:51, Matthew talks about the earth shaking so severely the rocks are split and the veil in the temple is torn in two from top to bottom.
Second, the text says that the stone covering the entrance to Jesus' grave is rolled away. In chapter 27:52-53 Matthew says that tombs were opened and there was a great resurrection just after Jesus has been resurrected from the dead.
Third, the text says that the Roman soldiers guarding Jesus' grave became so fearful that they shook from fear and became like dead men. In chapter 27:54 Matthew says that the centurion and those who were guarding Jesus became very frightened when the earthquake happened. In fact they were so impressed with what was happening that they made the comment; "Truly this was the Son of God."
I don't think it was just the death of Jesus that brought these hard soldiers to make such a claim. It was probably people coming out of their graves and walking into town that caused this great fear, and brought the soldiers to declare that Jesus was the Son of God.
(To the women at the grave) The angel said, "Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified. He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying."
The grave was empty but Satan did not give up on trying to discourage Jesus' followers. There are several things that Satan did to try to defeat the early followers of Jesus.
Disbelief, doubt, and fear are some of the most effective tools Satan uses to try to defeat the Body of Christ. It was true in Jesus' day and it is still true today. There are accounts of moments when the disciples were flooded with disbelief and doubt.
Mark 16:9-11 (NASB)
[9] Now after He had risen early on the first day of the week, He first appeared to Mary Magdalene, from whom He had cast out seven demons.
[10] She went and reported to those who had been with Him, while they were mourning and weeping.
[11] When they heard that He was alive and had been seen by her, they refused to believe it.
Mark 16:14 (NASB)
[14] Afterward He appeared to the eleven themselves as they were reclining at the table; and He reproached them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who had seen Him after He had risen.
Luke 24:36-43 (NASB)
[36] While they were telling these things, He Himself stood in their midst and said to them, "Peace be to you."
[37] But they were startled and frightened and thought that they were seeing a spirit.
[38] And He said to them, "Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts?
[39] See My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself; touch Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have."
[40] And when He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet.
[41] While they still could not believe it because of their joy and amazement, He said to them, "Have you anything here to eat?"
[42] They gave Him a piece of a broiled fish;
[43] and He took it and ate it before them.
The enemy did not stop his harassment of the followers of Jesus when he could not win in the first few weeks after the resurrection.
Acts 6:8-12 (NASB)
[8] And Stephen, full of grace and power, was performing great wonders and signs among the people.
[9] But some men from what was called the Synagogue of the Freedmen, including both Cyrenians and Alexandrians, and some from Cilicia and Asia, rose up and argued with Stephen.
[10] But they were unable to cope with the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking.
[11] Then they secretly induced men to say, "We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and against God."
[12] And they stirred up the people, the elders and the scribes, and they came up to him and dragged him away and brought him before the Council.
In a short time, they had tried Stephen, condemned him, and stoned him to death. Satan is still at work to try to discourage and defeat the followers of Jesus.
Acts 7:58-60 (NASB)
[58] When they had driven him out of the city, they began stoning him; and the witnesses laid aside their robes at the feet of a young man named Saul.
[59] They went on stoning Stephen as he called on the Lord and said, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!"
[60] Then falling on his knees, he cried out with a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them!" Having said this, he fell asleep.
There is a significant witness at the stoning of Stephen; his name is Saul. Satan knew that having Stephen stoned would not be enough to stop the followers of Jesus. He would give this Saul, a taste for the blood of the followers of Jesus. Satan would use Saul's religious knowledge and zeal to convince him that these Christians needed to be eliminated to preserve religious purity among the Jews.
Then one day, on a dusty road that leads to Damascus, the resurrected Jesus confronts Saul and shows Him the truth. Saul is convinced that Jesus is Messiah.
With a new name and a new message, Paul becomes one of the greatest Christian missionaries that has ever lived.
The Body of Christ remains on earth today, alive, active, vibrant, and persistent in spreading the message of the resurrection of The Messiah. Satan's attempts to discourage and stop the original followers of Jesus were unsuccessful.
However, it is important to understand that Satan did not give up. Like a mad dog, he pursues those who have chosen to follow Jesus through the centuries. Even to this very hour, Satan will do anything he can to hinder, discourage, and defeat the followers of Jesus.
There is one thing however, that guarantees victory for sincere followers of Jesus; it is the Lamb of God who Satan put to death on the cross. Satan thought he had defeated the Lamb and His followers. But, the Lamb came out of the grave, ascended into heaven, and sent the Holy Spirit to be involved in the individual lives of His followers.
The sacrificial death of the Lamb eliminated the power of sin. The resurrection of the Lamb of God took care of the penalty of sin, the sting of death. The indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit guarantees power and help to each individual believer.
Satan has been defeated for all of eternity, and each of us can participate in that eternal victory.
(dgb) - Rev. David G. Bostick, Personal remarks and notes.
NASB - New American Standard Bible (NASB). Cedar Rapids: Laridian, 2002.
I want to thank my research assistants, Debi Peck and Robyn Harper (HARPER), who do hours of research to provide some of my study resources. I also want to thank Vonda Watson-Bostick and Robyn Harper, who help me with editing.