“He is not here: for He is risen; Come, see the place where the Lord lay.” Matthew 28:6
In the resurrection our Lord conquered devil, demon, death and secured for us a destiny in heaven for eternity. The Greek word for “resurrection” is anastasis,“a rising up.” The emphasis is that it was a bodily, literal coming forth of the body from the tomb. Christ came out of the tomb in victorious triumph. “Death could not hold its prey” because Jesus is Lord.
The founders of world religions are entombed in final resting places, subdued and held by the boney hands of death. Their followers may honor the lifeless founders only by flowers and tidying up around their mortal resting places.
The Christian, however, is different, for God's people have a living Savior. Jesus lives, for “Up from the grave He arose.” He is the Victor, not the victim. Robertson stated, “It will not do to say that Jesus arose in spirit and appeared alive though the body remained in the tomb. The empty tomb is the first great fact confronting the women and later the men. Various theories were offered then and now. But none of them satisfy the evidence and explain the survival of faith and hope in the disciples that do not rest upon the fact of the Risen Christ whose body was no longer in the tomb.”
John, the beloved disciple was banished to Patmos by the Roman Emperor Domitian for his testimony for the Lord (Rev. 1:9). John was alone, yet, not alone. The Lord Jesus appeared to John and said, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.” (Rev 1:17-18) Jesus was with John in his banished loneliness; the Lord is also with us in our troubles and trials to give assurance and blessings.
PERSON - “He” (Matt. 28:6)
It wasn't a spirit or phantom that came out of the tomb, but a Person, the Lord Jesus (Matt. 28:6). Resurrection has to do with a literal body being raised up from among the dead. The women and disciples saw a Person, the Lord, Redeemer and Savior. They heard Him speak; they recognized His voice as the same prior to the cross. No one could convince Jesus' followers otherwise. The followers of world religions do not claim their founders to be alive. To make such a claim, religious devotees would be laughed out of court for making such a foolish, unfounded boast.
Our Savior is alive, seated at the right hand of God in glory (Heb. 1:3), dwelling in and with us. Our heart is the Lord's home (John 14:23). Our Lord works through us to accomplish His will. He walks with us, talks with us, and reminds us we are His own. The resurrection was personal and presents to us the Person of our Lord . Let us live and walk in the marvelous sunshine of His grace, for He lives.
PRESENCE - “Is” (Matt. 28:6)
Jesus IS alive, it is not past tense or future. He is alive and present. This truth blesses us with joy, and directs our hearts in yielded obedience to worship and work for the glory of the Lord. “Risen” refers to the coming forth from the sealed sepulcher alive in grace and power. Our Lord isn't a lifeless corpse but a living Master with us in presence now and for all eternity! One the fundamental truths of Scripture is to believe in and accept the bodily resurrection of Christ.
One authority wrote: “Certain laws of evidence hold in the establishment of any historic event. Documentation of the event in question must be made by reliable witnesses.” There is more evidence that Jesus arose from the dead than there is Julius Caesar ever lived, or that Alexander the Great died at age thirty-three. It is strange that historians will accept thousands of facts for which they can produce only shreds of evidence. But in the face of overwhelming evidence of the resurrection of Christ, they cast s skeptical eye and hold intellectual doubts.
The Apostle Paul in the resurrection chapter of First Corinthians 15, told us that Christ is alive. “For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures. And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures” (I Cor. 15:3-4).
PROOF - “Empty Tomb” (Matt. 28:6) “He is not here. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.”
No more proof is needed than an empty tomb. The tomb became empty by the blast of a great earthquake (Matt. 28:2). The two Marys came early toward dawn to see the sepulcher (Matt. 28:1). Then Matthew tells us that an angel of the Lord rolled back the stone. He told the women to not be afraid and that Jesus was risen, the tomb was empty. He then urged them to go tell all these things to the disciples.
The Scriptures show clearly how the tomb became empty. The Biblical account is accurate and dependable. The Scriptures may be readily and reliably accepted, for they are infallible and inerrant. The two Marys also met Jesus in running to tell the disciples the good news of His resurrection (Matt. 28:9-10). The stone was rolled away not to let Jesus out but to let His disciples in.
Praise the Lord our Savior lives. He said, “Because I live, you shall live also” (John 14:19).