Bible Studies for Life: April 17

Jesus Lives and You Can Too • Matthew 28:1-10

By Lee Faler

The Christian faith rises and falls on the resurrection. If the resurrection is false then Christians are “of all people most to be pitied (1 Corinthians 15:19 ESV).” If the resurrection didn’t happen then there is no pleasure in this life that you should withhold from yourself, because this is as good as life gets.

We know, however, as followers of Christ that the resurrection did happen and we have reason to rejoice! I want to offer three challenges for followers of Christ in light of Resurrection Sunday.

We must trust fully in the Resurrected Lord. He is the God of the impossible and we clearly see that throughout the Bible, especially in this passage. Consider the challenges facing the two women as they journeyed to the tomb on Resurrection Sunday.

How would they roll away the giant stone guarding the entrance of the tomb? What would they tell the guards? Would they be met with kindness or hostility? These were very real problems, and God provided for each of them.

Upon arriving at the tomb they found the stone had been rolled away, the guards were no longer an issue, and the angel of the Lord sitting on the stone. He told them, “Do not be afraid,” because they were afraid! Their fear soon turned to joy, however, when they realized the One they were seeking and presumed to be dead was very much alive!

The resurrection of Jesus is sufficient to calm our fears and serve as an anchor for our faith, because it means our greatest enemies — sin, death, and hell — have been conquered once and for all by Jesus. All other problems we face in this lifetime fail in comparison to this and we can trust Him completely. The resurrection is the proof.

We must strive to defend the resurrection. The women apparently didn’t believe the words of the angel at first, so he invited them to, “Come see the place where he lay” (Matthew 28:6). In other words, he invited them to come and investigate the scene of the resurrection. The sight of the empty tomb would prove sufficient to fuel their mission and conquer their skepticism.

Friends, we must be reminded that there are many in our world today who are skeptical about the resurrection. They wonder if it’s even possible for a man to dead and then live again. It is important for us to remember today that while we receive the good news of the Gospel by faith, our faith is not blind.

We have plenty of reasons to believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ, such as the faith of the disciples after the resurrection that led them to die martyrs’ deaths, the explosion of Christianity through the early church, and eyewitnesses of the resurrection dating as late as the Apostle Paul. We have reason to confidently defend the resurrection, the question is, “Will we?”

We must share the good news of the resurrection. Jesus commands the two women to “go and tell my brothers” (Matthew 28:10). The command He has for us is no different (Matthew 28:18-20). We must go to a world that is hurting and in need of saving and tell them of the One who lived the life they are incapable of living, died the death they should have died, and conquered the grave on their behalf, so that if they would simply call on His name and believe in Him they would be saved.

It is not enough for us to simply live a good, moral life in front of a lost world; we must tell them the good news of Jesus! In a world inundated with all kinds of messages from media outlets, the Gospel is the only message that can bring eternal hope and we must share it!

The need has never been more urgent and, in my opinion, hearts have never been more open than they are now to hear the lifesaving message of Jesus Christ! Oh, friend let me ask you now these questions for application:

— Have you trusted in Jesus to save you from your sins? Is the Gospel the good news that you have personally embraced?

— Who do you know right now that needs to believe the Gospel? Pray for opportunities to share this message with them.

May you have a blessed Resurrection Sunday!

Faler is senior pastor of First Church, Terry.