The Resurrection of Our Lord:
Easter Day (A)
April 5, 2026
Text:
Matt. 28:1-10
Alleluia! Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! Alleluia!
“And behold, there was a great
earthquake...” (Matt. 28:2; ESV).
Well, that is actually an understatement! Yes, the shaking of the ground, but what
else is shaken in the dawning rays of the Son’s resurrection? Let’s closely examine our text.
First of all, how about the very
days of the week? The priority of the
Seventh Day, the Sabbath, giving way to the First Day of the Week, Sunday. Because now, all time is taken up in
something utterly new. Sabbath rest, no
longer temporal, but eternal. No longer
a day, but a Man. A Man who has
fulfilled the Sabbath as Law by His rest in the tomb, and given it again
as Gospel. And so, this Day,
Sunday, the First Day... but also, the eternal Eighth Day... will
be the Lord’s Day, from here on out... for on this Day, He
defeated death forever by His own bodily resurrection from the dead.
What else? The angel, visibly descending from heaven,
rolling back the stone, leaving a gaping hole in the tomb. Look at him, just sitting there... I’m
convinced, with his arms folded and a smirk of satisfaction, as well as playful
humor, on his face. (Okay, that’s just
my conjecture.) But we do know,
sitting triumphantly on our former prison, his appearance like lightening (can
you imagine it?), and his clothing as white as snow. He is there to preach.
First, Law to the
guards. Have you ever thought about
that? Those set to keep dead men dead
and sealed in the tomb... the angel doesn’t even have to say a
word. His mere appearance on the
scene preaches to them. And (as
the Law always does) it kills them.
In a manner of speaking, anyway.
They tremble (like the earth beneath them) and fall to the
ground... like dead men. And
they are a picture of our own captors: The devil, the world, and our
sinful flesh. The grave itself
(death!). Hell. Those enemies are conquered, now, because the
Lord Jesus has rattled the world... in fact, the universe... by
His victorious arising from death. The
enemies thought they had killed Him on the cross. And they did! But they couldn’t keep Him dead, this
Jesus, our Lord. And the joke’s on
them. His death was actually their
undoing, so that they lost all power, over Him, and us. And now, by His resurrection, He brings life
and immortality to light (2 Tim. 1:10).
Then... the women. Note how they approach the tomb, somewhat
timidly, and yet, with greater courage than any of the men, who ought
to have been there, but instead have locked themselves away for fear. What are they expecting to find? A sealed tomb with a corpse inside. Instead, they find the stone rolled away,
with that smirking angelic preacher there to greet them. That’ll shake ‘em up, needless to say. But to these women (as opposed to the guards),
the angel preaches pure Gospel. “Do
not be afraid...” (Matt. 28:5). Oh,
you know that preachment was necessary, lest the women fall down like
the guards. And then, the earthshaking
substance of the sermon. The angel
preaches the death and resurrection of Christ: “I know that you seek
Jesus who was crucified. He is not here,
for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay” (vv.
5-6). See, the tomb is empty. And, by the way, the angel didn’t roll back
the stone so Jesus could come out.
Stones and walls and other physical barriers are irrelevant to the risen
Jesus in His glorified body. Even the
space/time continuum can’t keep Him from going where He wants to go, and being
where He wants to be. No, the angel
rolls the stone away for our sake, and for these women, and the
disciples who will come later. So we
can look in, and see! There is no
dead body there. Just more angels and
folded up grave clothes (but, that’s the Gospel of John, so we’ll save it for
another sermon). Okay, so the tomb is
empty. And now, the angel points the
women back to the Lord’s Word.
Preachers... even angelic ones... must ever and only preach the Lord’s Word,
the things He said. Remember,
dear women, what He said. Well,
what did He say? “The Son of
Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him, and
he will be raised on the third day” (Matt. 17:22-23). He didn’t hide any of that. He taught it multiple times, clearly and
explicitly, throughout His ministry. So,
now, remember that. And believe
it. Because it has happened. He died.
For the sins of the world. And
now, He is risen from the dead, as He said.
Well, that turns the whole world
upside down. Death has been
reversed?! The women run from the
tomb... in fear, still (I mean, if you heard from an undeniably credible
source that someone you loved, and knew to have died... you saw the body... you
were at the burial... was now walking around, alive and well and better than
ever... you’d fear, too)... but now, fear mingled with joy. Giving way to joy. So much joy, that they do what the angel told
them to do. They run to the disciples,
and tell them they should unlock the doors, because the Lord is risen, as He
said! I personally love that
fact, by the way. That the women, the
Church, who should be the hearers, have to run and tell the
preachers to get over their grief and fear, because they have a risen Lord
Jesus on their hands. Sometimes you
have to remind your pastor that the tomb is still empty, and Jesus is, in fact,
risen from the dead. In any case, it is
a marvelous picture of what the Church... all of you... are given to do
with this Easter Gospel. Run and tell
it!
And, on their way, who should they
run into, but Jesus! Alive. Risen.
Greeting them, with love and joy and consolation. The Crucified One
lives! Earthshaking. And He’s here for them. He’s here for us! Tremendous! You know, that is how it will happen
for us, too. (It already happens
to us, every time we gather here for the Supper, where the risen Jesus greets
us with His body given, His blood shed, for us, for the forgiveness of all our
sins.) But, even as it happened,
visibly and tangibly, for the women, so it will happen for us. We’ll be running on our way, going about our business,
doing what we’re given to do, when suddenly... on a day known only to Him... there
He’ll be. (Remember Ellie? Laying there, reading her Bible, one minute,
and the next, there He is?!) In
other words, one day you’ll die. But you
won’t really die. Because you’ll be with
Him, who (as it turns out), was telling the truth when He said: “I am the
resurrection and the life. Whoever
believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and
believes in me shall never die” (John 11:25-26).
“And behold, there was a great
earthquake...” In your life,
too. There are many things in your life
that are painful and scary and sad.
There is no denying that. And
your sins. And all the places death
touches you and the people you love.
Jesus died for all of that. That
is the old and fallen creation, which is passing away. But there is another reality at play... a
greater reality than all of those things.
What is it? Jesus Christ is
risen from the dead. And He is the
firstfuits. More fruit to follow. Which is to say, you. The risen Jesus will raise you. Bodily, as He is risen. He will present you before His Father. And the Father Himself will wipe away every
tear from your eyes (Rev. 7:17; 21:4). And
give you eternal life in His Kingdom.
And see, that New Creation is already breaking through,
here and now, in the things of the risen Jesus.
Such that (to borrow a phrase from Tolkien), He is making every sad
thing, untrue. Or, in the Words
of Jesus Himself: “Behold, I am making all things new” (Rev. 21:5).
You can live in that confidence, right
now. You can live in that joy,
right now. Because the Lord’s
tomb is already empty. Soon, yours
will be, too. It’s earthshaking. And it’s true. Alleluia!
Christ is risen! He is risen,
indeed! Alleluia! In the Name of the Father, and of the Son X,
and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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