The Triumphs of Christ

Matthew 28:8-15

When we come to the resurrection stories in the gospels we see the hope and joy of the conquest of Christ over death and sin. But we must keep in mind all that Christ was doing and teaching throughout his earthly ministry. Without the teaching of Christ, his death and resurrection would be void of any spiritual significance. Without his teaching, the work of Christ would have no bearing on our lives in everyday living. Without his teaching, our lives in his salvation would be void of any need for holiness and righteousness. Without his teaching, his death and resurrection would merely be a victorious event for the end of our life. It is in his teaching that we see we ourselves must be holy and righteous. It is in his teaching that we see the fact that our being born again must take place and that is made possible through his death. In our text today we see two victories or triumphs of Christ.

First we see that Christ’s resurrection was a bodily resurrection. There are some who would say that Christ’s resurrection was not bodily but spiritual. So, his body never left the tomb but his spirit did. If that is the case, then don’t worry what happens to your body because one day you won’t need it. If the resurrection is not a bodily resurrection then God messed up when he gave us a body. He created and gave us something that will not last nor is capable of being redeemed. If our bodies will not be raised on the day of Christ’s return then God was not capable of redeeming a part of his creation. The rest of creation will be redeemed, why not our bodies? If our bodies will not be raised on the last day, then as some would say, kill the body and free the soul. Your poor soul is trapped in that body that does not matter so get rid of it and free yourself. Well, thankfully, it is a bodily resurrection. Thankfully, God will redeem all of creation including our bodies. Thankfully, there is hope and value in living in this world now. In verse 6, the angel tells the women, He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. His body is gone and no longer in the tomb, but he is up walking around. The angel then invites them to come see where He was lying. I am not hiding anything from you so come see where they put him. The place is empty. The angel tells them to go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead. Go tell them and they will probably come see that he is gone. He is going ahead of you into Galilee. I am telling you where you can find him. He will not be hiding nor am I hiding his body, but this is where you can go and see him because this is where he is going right now. In verse 9 we see that the ladies actually see him and hold him and worship him.

1 Corinthians 15:16-19 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied. Because we have hoped in eternal life found in Christ alone and it was a lie. There is nothing to live for and we wasted our lives following a fantasy. Yet because the resurrection is real then we have much to hope for and in. Because the resurrection is real then we know that Christ conquered sin and death. Because he conquered sin and death then we know that we have reason to hope.

Second we see that the Truth of Christ will prevail. In verse 12, we are told that when the elders came together to discuss what to do, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers. Basically, they bribed the soldiers to be quiet about what had happened. They could not compete with the truth so they attempted to silence eye witnesses. Notice that this argument is used today in order to deny the resurrection of Jesus. This is an unfounded attempt to silence Christians and obstruct the truth. The argument is that the disciples of Jesus stole the body of Christ. Now, if that were the truth, the soldiers would have likely been executed for failing to fulfill their duty. Falling asleep on the job is always unacceptable especially for a Roman soldier guarding an important tomb. Also, how can you explain the disciples’ willingness to die for a body that they stole and hid? Yes, there might have been one or two who would be willing to die for a lie, but when most of them either were killed, tortured or sentenced to a labor prison camp that is not possible. How many of you would be willing to die for a lie? Then verse 15 says that this is what happened and that they propagated the lie to the day this book was written.

Those who oppose a movement often propagate lies in order to gain an advantage over the truth. How many times have we heard lies or mistruths from the anti-abortion group and also from the pro-abortion group? How many times in a presidential campaign do you hear lies and mistruths from both major candidates? Do you believe the resurrection as truth and fact? Do you believe that the resurrection has an impact and application to your life today?

· Are you willing to suffer in this life knowing that what you experience today impacts you for eternity?

· Are you willing to work and strive in order for the gospel to be spread to those who are without Christ?

· Are you willing to endure verbal persecution and even lies as you serve the Lord?