Monthly Archives: August 2022

Matthew 28- Because He Lives

1 Reply

In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre. And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it. His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow: And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men. And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. Matthew 28:1-6

Jesus said “Destroy this temple in three days, and I will raise it up” (John 2:19)

Christ is Risen, He is Risen indeed, just as He said he would. Over and over again, Jesus prophesied about his death and resurrection, however still his disciples didn’t understand, even when he was standing right in front of them!  The stone has been rolled away! Jesus Christ rose from the dead, and walked out of that grave, defeating sin, death , and Satan forever! Amen!

The guards fell like dead men in the presence of The Lord, those who crucified Jesus and all the wicked will one day bow down to the Risen King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Because Christ is Risen, we will rise again one day also in the resurrection to live forever in God’s Kingdom. O death, where is your sting! O grave where is your victory!

The Tomb is still Empty today, Christ is Risen forevermore. No matter what is going on in the world, we have this Risen Hope because we have a Risen Savior, Glory to the Lamb of God!

And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead; and, behold, he goeth before you into Galilee; there shall ye see him: lo, I have told you. And they departed quickly from the sepulchre with fear and great joy; and did run to bring his disciples word. And as they went to tell his disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, All hail. And they came and held him by the feet, and worshipped him. Then said Jesus unto them, Be not afraid: go tell my brethren that they go into Galilee, and there shall they see me. Matthew 28:7-10

What did the disciples do? They worshiped Jesus Christ, why? Because Jesus is God in the flesh (Isaiah 9:6, John 1:14) and worthy of All praise! What was the instructions? “Tell my Brethren” share the good news of Jesus Christ! The Lord Is Risen, all victory belongs to Jesus as Christ crushed the head of Satan at the cross!

As the old Hymn says “Because He lives, I can face tomorrow”! Whatever trials you face today, we can face them because Jesus Is Risen, and has already overcome the world, Amen!

Matthew 27 – The Tomb is Sealed

1 Reply

Now the next day, that followed the day of the preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees came together unto Pilate, Saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again. Command therefore that the sepulchre be made sure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night, and steal him away, and say unto the people, He is risen from the dead: so the last error shall be worse than the first.Pilate said unto them, Ye have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as ye can. So they went, and made the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch. Matthew 27:62-66

People who are skeptics of the resurrection of Christ, they question the tomb. Let’s make it clear, the Tomb of Christ was sealed! If there is any question whether Jesus Christ died on the cross, look at all the historical references, especially in the gospels. It’s clear Christ died for our sins on the cross, and then his body was sealed in the Tomb. 

Now notice, the religious leaders were well aware that Jesus prophesied he would rise again in three days. If the religious leaders actually knew the Word of God, they would have understood Isaiah 53 and Psalm 22, however the religious leaders loved their religion and money more than they loved God. However remember not all the religious leaders rejected Christ either, as this tomb was given by Joseph of Arimathea. 

The religious leaders believed Jesus Christ was a great threat to their religion and lifestyle, so they had the Son of God crucified on the cross, which God used as the atonement of our sins, to pay the ransom for our sins. But now the religious leaders had a bigger problem, if Jesus rises from the dead, they just crucified the Son of God, and the blood will be on their hands. As Jesus identified himself to the religious leaders as the “Son of Man” prophesied in Daniel 7. Again if the religious leaders truly loved God and knew the scriptures, they never would have crucified the Messiah

The Romans and the religious leaders, plotted together to seal and guard the Tomb. No matter what happened, they were determined to keep their lies and deception intact. Even today, the world doesn’t want you to know that Christ is Risen from the Tomb! Why? Because as Jesus walked out of that grave, Christ defeated sin, death, and Satan forevermore! So Satan doesn’t want you to know the Tomb of Christ is empty, Jesus is Risen!

The Tomb was sealed, just as we are now sealed with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 1:13) because Christ died to pay the penalty of our sins and is Risen, Amen!

Matthew 27-Burial of Christ

2 Replies

When the even was come, there came a rich man of Arimathaea, named Joseph, who also himself was Jesus’ disciple: He went to Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded the body to be delivered. And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, And laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock: and he rolled a great stone to the door of the sepulchre, and departed. And there was Mary Magdalene, and the other Mary, sitting over against the sepulchre. Matthew 27:57-61

Jesus said “For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” (Matthew 12:40)

We all remember learning the story of Jonah and the whale in Sunday School class, but did you know Jonah was a foreshadow of Christ in the Tomb for 3 days! The burial of Christ is an essential doctrine of Christianity. There’s often debate about that was Jesus doing during this time or even debates about the actual timeline, but one thing is for certain, Jesus died for us so we can live forever for Him!

3For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, 5and that He was seen by [a]Cephas, then by the twelve. (1 Corinthians 15:3-6)

As the Apostle Paul stated in what many believe is the first Creed of Christinaity, the death and burial of Christ is a foundational doctrine of Christianity. We can’t overlook the importance of the Tomb, where Jesus defeated sin, death, and Satan forever , and rose the firstfruits, in a resurrected body, and all those who repent and put their faith in Christ will also be resurrected also

And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth. Isaiah 53:9

We see in the scriptures that Joseph of Arimathea was the man to give his tomb to Jesus Christ , which ultimately fulfilled the scriptures. It’s important to note that Joseph of Arimathea , was a religious leader and accepted Jesus as the Messiah, Son of God. Not all the religious leaders rejected Christ, including not all of Israel rejected Christ either. God still had his remnant that understand Jesus is The  Christ 

Another amazing detail is the accuracy of the scriptures, notice the prophecy in Isaiah 53:9, that the Messiah would be killed with the wicked, yet be rich in his burial. This was written 700 years before Christ was incarnated in the Virgin Birth (Isaiah 7:14) There should be no doubt, that the Bible is the Word of God, the possibilities of someone prophesying these intricate details is astronomical

Jesus Christ , as prophesied, spent 3 days in the Tomb, was resurrected defeating sin, death, and Satan forever! Glory to the Lamb of God, Amen!

Matthew 27- Jesus Died For Me

1 Reply

Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Some of them that stood there, when they heard that, said, This man calleth for Elias. And straightway one of them ran, and took a spunge, and filled it with vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink. The rest said, Let be, let us see whether Elias will come to save him. Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. Matthew 27:45-50

Charles Spurgeon once said “My Entire theology can be condensed in four words “Jesus died for me”

The death of Jesus Christ must be central to our faith and doctrine, anyone who denies the physical death of Christ, denies the true gospel. Jesus Christ, being fully God and fully Man (Philippians 2)  went to the cross to die for the penalty of our sins, we must understand that! And the only reason Christ went to the cross was because He loves us (Romans 5:8) The details of this event were amazingly prophesied by David through the Holy Spirit in Psalm 22. As Christ makes the statement “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?”

The penalty for the sin of the world was laid upon Christ on the cross (Isaiah 53, John 1:29) As it says in Isaiah “He (Christ)  was pierced for our transgressions (sins) , He (Christ) was crushed for our iniquities (sins) (Isaiah 53:5) and The LORD (Yahweh) laid upon Him (Christ) the iniquity (sins) of us ALL (Isaiah 53:6) The torment and torture Jesus Christ endured on the cross was to reconcile You back to your Heavenly Father!

And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many. Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God. And many women were there beholding afar off, which followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering unto him: Matthew 27:51-55

As the scripture tells us “The Veil of the Temple was Torn” when Christ fulfilled the requirements on the cross, Christ reconciled us back to our Heavenly Father, the New Covenant was instituted by the blood of Christ (Luke 22) The Veil used to separate us from God in the Old Covenant because of our sin, however now we are Born Again in Christ (John 3), the Holy Spirit lives inside of us, we are now the Temple of God (1 Corinthians 6) As Jesus said “Destroy this temple in 3 days , and I will raise it up “ (John 2:19) The Old Covenant is now obsolete (Hebrews 8) and we are in a New Covenant with Jesus Christ (Luke 22)

When we understand the depravity of our sin, and we understand the love of God through Jesus Christ, your heart will be made new , God will put the Holy Spirit inside of you (Ezekiel 36), to live forevermore Amen

Matthew 27- Crucifixion of Christ

1 Reply

And as they came out, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name: him they compelled to bear his cross. And when they were come unto a place called Golgotha, that is to say, a place of a skull, They gave him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when he had tasted thereof, he would not drink. And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots And sitting down they watched him there; And set up over his head his accusation written, THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS. Matthew 27:32-37

The darkest moment in human history became our victory! The hour has come for the Son of God to go to the cross to pay for the penalty of our sins, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. Satan and his children believed they have defeated Jesus, however what they didn’t realize is that Christ defeated Satan, Sin, Death, and Hell at the cross forever!

A man named Simon, was observing Christ carrying his cross all the way up the hill of Golgotha, when he was instructed to help Jesus carry that cross. Jesus told us “Deny yourself, Carry your cross, and follow me” (Matthew 16:24) Think of the spiritual application here, you are at that moment of the crucifixion, it’s time for you to carry your cross with Christ or deny Christ. Which way will you choose? The path to the cross , is not pleasurable, it’s miserable, its not prosperous but poverty, its not ego driven but about self denial. The path to the cross with Christ is the only way to eternal life

Notice the sign on the cross “Jesus The King”, even though the religious leaders tried to execute the Messiah, the truth and God reigns, Jesus is King of Kings and Lord of Lords, the sign on the cross was a reminder and evidence for all to know this!

Then were there two thieves crucified with him, one on the right hand, and another on the left. And they that passed by reviled him, wagging their heads, And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross. Likewise also the chief priests mocking him, with the scribes and elders, said, He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him. He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God The thieves also, which were crucified with him, cast the same in his teeth. Matthew 27:38-44

Jesus was crucified between two thieves, one even though he was hanging to his death, cursed Christ and blasphemed his name. The other thief recognized who Jesus is and asked him for mercy. The repentant thief said “Jesus Lord, remember me when you come into your Kingdom” (Luke 22:42) What was Christ response “Today you will be with me in Paradise” (Luke 22:43) Jesus didn’t say tomorrow or at the resurrection , you will be with me in Paradise, Christ said Today! To depart from the body is to be with The Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8)

The wicked kept yelling at Jesus to come down from the cross, what they didn’t understand is Christ went to the cross for us! The Lord willingly went to the cross to pay for the penalty of our sins. The darkest hour in human history is our victory in Jesus Christ, Amen!