He Is Not Here!

Matthew 28:5-8

If you asked many people what their favorite holiday is, a large percentage would say Christmas. Others would say Thanksgiving, but very few would say Easter. However, when you look back in history, "Christmas was not celebrated until over 300 years after Jesus died. On the other hand, the resurrection was celebrated immediately. So important was the resurrection that believers began worshiping on the first day of the week each week to commemorate it. Perhaps we have lost some perspective on the importance of the resurrection.

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But the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. 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.” So they went out quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to bring His disciples word.

Matthew 28:5–8

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The women wonder on the way to the tomb who will roll the stone away for them (Mark 16:3). When they arrived, the stone had been removed from the door. Matthew tells us that an angel rolled the stone away and then sat down on top of it. As the women arrive, he tells them to not be afraid. Why would they be afraid? The Roman soldiers were gone, the seal on the door had been broken, and the stone was rolled away. Even just arriving on the scene, there was obviously something strange going on.

The angel goes on to tell them that he knows they are looking for "Jesus who was crucified". The angel tells them that Jesus is not there; "for He is risen". While this sounds exciting to us, can you imagine how confusing it must have sounded to the women that morning? That is not a normal visit to the cemetery. The angel was both reminding and reassuring the women that Jesus had done exactly what he said he was going to do. He died, was buried, and rose again after three days.

Just in case they did not believe him, or perhaps were in shock at what was going on, the angel tells them to come look inside the tomb and see that He is indeed gone. When the women looked inside, they saw that the tomb was empty, but a proof that Jesus did rise from the dead was that His grave clothes were still there. The angel then gives the women instructions. They are to go to the disciples and tell them that Jesus is risen from the dead like He said He would. He is going to Galilee and they need to meet Him there. The angel's message to the disciples is that their mission is not over. While the disciples had put in some long hours with Jesus, their mission was really just about to begin.

For us, our encounter with the resurrected Christ is also where our mission begins. Paul tells us in Romans, "that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9). Our faith in salvation is in the resurrected Christ. Yes, Jesus died on the cross, but we believe in and serve a living God. Once we believe, like the disciples, Jesus has sent us into all the world to preach the gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15).

Father, we are so thankful to be a part of this story. We worship a risen Savior and who is interceding on our behalf. We would have never come up with this plan, but we are so thankful that You did!