The Resurrection Hope

Matthew 27:57 – 28:10

  1. The resurrection of Jesus is God’s “Yes” to the cross and proves that Jesus’ death had achieved its God-intended purpose
  2. Believing the resurrection requires us to reconcile two seemingly contradictory but verifiable facts
    • Fact 1: Jesus died and was buried on Good Friday
    • Fact 2: Three days later the tomb was empty and many people saw Jesus alive again in plain sight repeatedly over a 40 day period.
  3. These two facts require explanation. Three possible explanations exist.
    1. The “stolen corpse” theory
    2. The “swoon” theory
    3. The resurrection really did happen

    Matthew backs the third explanation and backs it up by providing God’s own authoritative explanation of events delivered through His own angelic messenger.

  4. The angel delivered God’s explanation of the resurrection in three clear words:
    1. A word of comfort (Matt. 28:5) “Do not be afraid”
    2. A word of certainty (Matt. 28:5) “He is not here. He has risen”
    3. A word of commission (Matt. 28:7ff) “Go and Tell”