Mathew 28 Lesson

THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS

Mathew 28 is the concluding chapter of Mathew’s Gospel.

It is one of the most important chapters of the Bible for two reasons:

1. It tells us that Jesus was resurrected, just as He said He would be,
2. It promises us that we can be resurrected also!

REACTIONS TO THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS

For Christians, Jesus' rising from the grave is the most significant event in the history of the world! 

Because of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection, we have the hope of spending eternity in Heaven with God, Jesus, and all the saints.

Mathew’s Gospel records how those closest to Jesus reacted when He appeared to them after His resurrection.

As you will see, not everybody reacted the same:

1. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary experienced both fear and joy when the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified.  He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying.  Go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead; and behold, He is going ahead of you into Galilee, there you will see Him; behold, I have told you.” – Mathew 28:5-7.  After hearing this, they did exactly what the angel told them to do and ran to report the wonderful news to Jesus’ disciples. 
2. The reaction of the soldiers that were standing guard over the tomb was one of intense fear.  Mathew writes in Mathew 28:4, “The guards shook for fear and became like dead men.”  They had just witnessed a severe earthquake and the appearance of an angel of the Lord who descended from Heaven, rolled away the stone, and sat upon it.
3. The reaction of the chief priests and elders was selfish in nature.  They immediately were concerned about protecting their own interests and fabricated a false story that Jesus had not risen but was carried away by His disciples.  They went as far as to bribe the soldiers with a large sum of money to confirm their lies.  The soldiers accepted the bribe and did as they were asked.    
4. The disciple’s reaction to the resurrection of Jesus was mixed.  Mathew writes in Mathew 28:17, “When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some were doubtful.” Luke’s Gospel gives us a little more insight into why the disciples may have reacted the way that they did.  He writes in Luke 24:16, “Their eyes were prevented from recognizing Him.”   A short while later, after breaking bread with the risen Jesus, “Their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him.” – Luke 24:31. Perhaps God intervened and did not allow the disciples to recognize Jesus right away for reasons only known to Him?
5. Peter had a strong reaction to Jesus’ resurrection.  Luke 24:12, “But Peter got up and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen wrappings only; and he went away to his home, marveling at what had happened.”  Why was Peter the only one to run to the tomb?  Maybe it had something to do with his emotional state after just recently denying Jesus three times and then seeing Him be crucified?  

Listed below are five different reactions that people had when they saw the resurrected Jesus:

1. Fear,
2. Joy,
3. Selfishness,
4. Excitement,
5. Reverence.

WHAT IS YOUR REACTION TO THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS?

Seeing how others reacted to the resurrection of Jesus is interesting, but what is really important is how we react.

When it comes to the resurrection of Jesus, we all need to ask ourselves two questions:

1. Do we believe that Jesus was resurrected?
2. How does that affect the way that we live our lives? 

The Apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the Romans:

Romans 10:9 says:

• “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.” - Romans 10:9.

This scripture lists two things that we must do to be saved:

1. Confess with our mouths that Jesus is Lord,
2. Believe in our hearts that God raised Him from the dead.

But there are other matters of salvation that we need to be aware of.

In fact, the Bible lists five matters of salvation that we will discuss in the next section of our lesson.

FIVE MATTERS OF SALVATION

1. Believe in Jesus. “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved.” – Acts 16:31, 
2. Confess our belief in Him. “For with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.” – Romans 10:10, 
3. Repent (turn away from) of our sins. “Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.” – Luke 13:3, 
4. Be baptized. “Baptism now saves you—not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience—through the resurrection of Jesus Christ .” – 1 Peter 3:21 and “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” – Mark 16:16, 
5. Obey God’s commandments. “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.” – Mathew 7:21. 

CONCLUSION

The resurrection of Jesus is the greatest event in the history of the world and the cornerstone of our Christian faith!

Knowing that Jesus rose from the dead gives us hopethat we can do the same.   It should also change our perspective on life.

Instead of living for ourselves, and our own selfish lusts or ambitions, Christians are to follow the example of Jesus and live their lives to:

1. Glorify God,
2. Serve others. 

We will conclude today’s lesson with the following scripture:

• The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified. He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said.” – Mathew 28:5-6.​​​