In the Light

“The Resurrection of Jesus”

(Matthew 27:57-28:15, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, April 24, 2011)

Jesus Is Buried

27:57 When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who also was a disciple of Jesus. 58 He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him. 59 And Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen shroud 60 and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had cut in the rock. And he rolled a great stone to the entrance of the tomb and went away. 61 Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the tomb.

The Guard at the Tomb

62 The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate 63 and said, “Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise.’ 64 Therefore order the tomb to be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples go and steal him away and tell the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last fraud will be worse than the first.” 65 Pilate said to them, “You have a guard of soldiers. Go, make it as secure as you can.” 66 So they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and setting a guard.

The Resurrection

28:1 Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. 2 And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. 4 And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men. 5 But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you.” 8 So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 And behold, Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.”

The Report of the Guard

11 While they were going, behold, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests all that had taken place. 12 And when they had assembled with the elders and taken counsel, they gave a sufficient sum of money to the soldiers 13 and said, “Tell people, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ 14 And if this comes to the governor's ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story has been spread among the Jews to this day.

Jesus Is Buried

The tabernacle that God commanded Moses to make had two major sections separated by a very important curtain, or veil. The larger section, the first of the two, was called the Holy Place. In that section was the lampstand, among other things. Behind the veil was a room about half the size of the Holy Place called the Most Holy Place. In that smaller room was the Ark of the Covenant, containing the tablets of the Law, and the covering over that ark, which was called the mercy seat. There was no source of artificial light in that dangerous room protected by the veil and covered on the remaining three sides by multiple layers of covering draped over a special frame. What that means is that beyond that veil, the Most Holy Place was very dark, unless the Lord chose to brighten it up with the glory of His presence.

When Jesus died, the veil was torn from top to bottom. That would have brought light into the Most Holy Place. Hours after that moment of bringing light into a dark place, the body of the Lord Jesus Christ was taken down from the cross, and was placed in the darkest place on earth, the grave. One of the men in the Jewish ruling council, Joseph of Arimathea, went to Pilate to claim the body of Jesus so that he could give Him a respectful burial. Through the hands of others the body of our Lord was carried along and was placed in the darkest place man has ever known. What could ever bring light to a grave? If God will not send His glory there, there will be no light.

The Guard at the Tomb

Not only was a stone rolled into place over the mouth of that tomb. Pilate agreed to the request of the chief priests and the Pharisees that he permit a military escort, guards, soldiers, to remain there for three days in order to secure the location. They sealed the stone, insuring that no one could tamper with the grave without that being noticed. They set a guard at the entry.

In their interchange with Pilate, the enemies of Jesus, the chief priests and the Pharisees, gave testimony before Pilate that Jesus had made an amazing claim that had become known beyond His disciples. They said that Jesus had promised before His suffering, “After three days I will rise.” They agreed together to do everything they could to keep that tomb dark and silent.

The Resurrection

The 28^th chapter of Matthew's gospel records for future generations how vain these efforts were. The stone, the seal, and the guard could do nothing to keep the glory of God from shining forth in light from inside the tomb. As the women went to that garden area to see the place where the silent body of the Lord would be covered with the darkness of death, they found no such thing.

What glory caused the earth to quake? An angel of the Lord descended from heaven and rolled back the stone. That let light into the tomb, but the angel's announcement revealed another light. He said, “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.” This event of Christ's resurrection was the beginning of a new era. Ezekiel had received a pronouncement several centuries before about a day when God would bring His glory to a graveyard. In that case, glory came to a valley of very dry bones. A question was asked of the prophet: “Son of man, can these bones live?” God said, “I will open your graves and raise you from your graves, O my people.”

The resurrection of Jesus was the first fruit. His resurrection was the guarantee. This was the resurrection that opened the new era of resurrection. This was the one that brought the glory of heaven into the darkest place on earth, the grave. This was the resurrection that shined into the Book of Acts. This was the singular resurrection of a perfectly successful Messiah.

The angel said, “Do not be afraid.” It would take some time for the fear to subside, and for the good news to be received. It would help if we all had a job to do for the new era. “Go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead.” Jesus was going before them and us, not just to Galilee, but to heaven, and then back to earth again with complete resurrection victory. Jesus Himself gave them this Word in person. “Go and tell my brothers.” Tell them what? “They will see Me.” This is the news for you to receive and to pass on to others.

The Report of the Guard

Some run away from the light of resurrection, rather than running toward it. Remember the guard of soldiers who were supposed to keep that tomb dark? They went into the city and told the chief priests all that had taken place. What had taken place? There was a great earthquake. A heavenly being descended from above. He looked like lightening with clothing as white as snow. He rolled back the stone, revealing an empty tomb! Jesus was gone! The soldiers trembled and became like dead men. The angel spoke to the women. That angel knew who they were looking for, Jesus. He knew that Jesus had been crucified. He pointed out to them that Jesus was not in that tomb, and he claimed that Jesus had risen from the dead, and that He would meet them in Galilee as He had promised. These shaken women had run off to tell the disciples, and the shocked soldiers went back to the authorities to find out what to do next.

They did not want the light of the risen Jesus. So they passed on a lie that had the logical problem of being an eyewitness account of a grave robbery from men who claimed that they had been sleeping at the time. There was money in telling that lie, and you got to keep your job and your life. Still wouldn't you rather admit the truth and find the Resurrection Man? Jesus is risen!

1. Do not grieve without hope. 2. Your labor in the Lord is not in vain. 3. Walk in the light.

OT Passage: Ezekiel 37:1-14

Bold servants of the great one...

“The Audacity of Christian Preaching”

(Acts 4:13-22, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, April 17, 2011)

13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.

14 But seeing the man who was healed standing beside them, they had nothing to say in opposition.

15 But when they had commanded them to leave the council, they conferred with one another, 16 saying, “What shall we do with these men? For that a notable sign has been performed through them is evident to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. 17 But in order that it may spread no further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to anyone in this name.” 18 So they called them and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.

19 But Peter and John answered them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, 20 for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.”

21 And when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way to punish them, because of the people, for all were praising God for what had happened. 22 For the man on whom this sign of healing was performed was more than forty years old.

Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John (13)

Peter's message to the powerful Sanhedrin, the ruling council in Jerusalem that had condemned Jesus and handed Him over to the Romans, was very plain and bold: 1. Jesus is the Messiah, 2. You crucified Him, 3. God raised Him from the dead, and 4, He is the reason that this man who was lame from birth is leaping for joy.

These men were speaking as citizens of heaven. They were still here on earth. You don't have to leave the earth to live as a citizen of heaven. You can even hold on to your passport here on earth. Paul did. He told others that he was a citizen of Rome on occasion. Yet he, Peter, John, and many Christians down to the present hour, live best on earth by breathing the air of heaven.

People who live only out of their citizenship on earth would have acted differently than Peter and John did that day. They would have found a way to leave Jesus out, to leave the cross out, to leave the resurrection out, and to just shrug their shoulders about the healing of the man. When they were asked by what name it was that this man had been healed, it would have been safer to say, “I don't exactly know.” Maybe they could have answered with a response or an inquiry that might deflect attention to a more safe topic of discussion.

Peter and John were bold, and they were addressing some of the most contentious spiritual issues of all time. Is Jesus the Messiah? Who is responsible for His death? Did He actually rise from the dead? How did He do it? What is salvation? They answered these questions simply and directly, as if they were sure of the answers. This was noticeable. They were uneducated, common men, so the way they spoke and their unearthly simplicity and boldness was astonishing.

The passage says something very striking about the disciples: The members of the council “recognized that they had been with Jesus.” You can take that as a plain statement of fact, or you can connect it with the first sentence: “When they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished.” This was the kind of reaction that the people in Nazareth had when a man that they thought was the local carpenter ended up being the Messiah. This was the reaction that these disciples even had when they saw that the wind and the waves responded when Jesus said, “Peace, be still.” Now the disciples, Peter and John, have this same Spirit of heaven in them that Jesus had.

But seeing the man who was healed... (14)

The natural inclination of the religious leaders would have been to show disrespect toward these common men. But there was a significant problem. The fact of divine healing was standing beside them. The church was displaying the reality of heaven before the eyes of men.

But when they had commanded them to leave the council... (15-18)

The council dismissed Peter, John, and the man who had been healed, and they deliberated concerning this case. They acknowledged that the fact of the miracle was undeniable. All the inhabitants of Jerusalem knew that this man had been given an astounding gift.

What could these leaders do? They hoped to at least limit the damage that this report would cause for their anti-Jesus efforts. How could they stop this news from spreading? Of course there was no way to accomplish that goal. Any action they could take would only cause the news to spread more quickly. The man who had been healed was a notable fixture in Jerusalem. His remarkable healing and the arrest of Peter and John were surely fast-spreading news items at the point that this meeting was taking place. The best thing they could have done to limit the impact of this event would have been to ignore it.

Instead, they determined that they would warn Peter and John about speaking and teaching in the Name of Jesus. This instruction did not take into account the courage that God had given these men already. There is nothing that men can do to prevent the ultimate victory of God's kingdom.

But Peter and John answered them... (19-20)

The warnings of the council did not stop Peter and John. Their response continued in the way of men who are taking directions from heaven. They showed none of the fear, anger, resentment, or mean-spiritedness that is so prevalent in every age. “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.” Simple, respectful, determined, and Christ-like.

And when they had further threatened them... (21-22)

The council continued with their failing strategy; warnings and threats. The truth is that there is no way to effectively punish people who are walking through earth with their feet on heaven's path. They keep on going, though everything may seem to be falling apart all around them. The people noticed all of this. They were praising God about this astounding mercy that He had granted to a man who had been paralyzed for his entire life, more than forty years!

Powerful enemies of Christ and His gospel suppose that they are the highest authorities. They expect the church to act according to common expectations of life under the sun. Too often we give them what they expect. God will not go along with this. He entered into this fallen world for a purpose, and He aims to accomplish His goal. He continues to give generous indications that He is with us, not only in the power of answered prayer, but in the determination of His persecuted church to listen to Him, and to keep the faith. The church, though weak and unimpressive in the world's eyes, has this great fact on our side: We are the body of Christ. Our Head is God's Son. He has the power to heal and to keep. He blesses us with His Holy Spirit.

1. Why was the council shocked by Peter and John?

2. What do we learn from the deliberations and decision of the council?

3. How do Peter and John react to the council's determination?

4. How did the opinion of the people restrict the options of the council?

OT Passage: Jeremiah 38:14-23

The only name that matters...

“The Crime of Christian Preaching”

(Acts 4:5-12, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, April 10, 2011)

5 On the next day their rulers and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem, 6 with Annas the high priest and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family.

7 And when they had set them in the midst, they inquired, “By what power or by what name did you do this?”

8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders, 9 if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, 10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well.

11 This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone.

12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

On the next day their rulers... (5-6)

The Lord is the great Ruler over all the earth. He is the only one who can turn mortal enemies into brothers who truly love each other. He has the power and wisdom necessary to do this. He is also the one who appoints lesser rulers, kings and judges who have their own orbits of authority. But those rulers do not always use their power in ways that are lawful or good. What a strange perversion of righteousness when the enemies of God's Word try to use the authorities given by God to make the speaking of God's Word a crime!

There will be rulers and authorities in heaven under our King Jesus Christ, but none of them will be secret usurpers working against the King of kings. For instance, someone may be given charge of 5 cities, but He will not use that authority to attempt to stop the Word of God from having its full yield of fruitfulness in any of those cities. Now, here below, some religious and civil authorities actually use their God-given authority to imprison the Lord's own Word.

The rulers, elders, and legal authorities who were part of the Sanhedrin met together with the leading priests in Jerusalem to decide what they should do with Peter and John. These men had been used by God to work an astounding miracle. This was a fact that could not be denied. But they were proclaiming the name of Jesus of Nazareth, the man this same council had determined to be worthy of death. They had turned Jesus over to the Pilate and the Romans insisting that he be crucified. Would they have to go back to the Romans to try to make the case that the disciples of Jesus were also worthy of death?

And when they had set them in the midst, they inquired... (7)

The context of this interrogation was an amazing healing. A man who had been lame from birth was suddenly given enough strength in his feet and ankles, along with the necessary transformation of his mental capacities, that he was leaping for joy without any physical therapy. Someone was responsible for this. The formerly paralyzed man was obviously not an imposter. He was seen regularly at a prominent place. How did he suddenly get well?

When the authorities brought in these two unlearned men, Peter and John, for questioning, they asked them a very important question: “By what power or by what name did you do this?” They emphasized the word “you.” It was obvious to the authorities that gathered together that day that Peter and John could not have done this amazing miracle by themselves. They must have had access to a power that was way beyond them.

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit... (8-10)

Peter was the one who answered, but just as Peter did not really do the miracle, Peter also did not give the answer. Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit. The words that he proclaimed with such boldness were not his own. His answer was humble and forthright. It was honest and true, not sarcastic or mean-spirited, but plain and bold.

1. The answer to your question is simple: It was by the name of Jesus of Nazareth, the Messiah.

2. You crucified Him.

3. But God raised Him from the dead.

4. This is why this man who was lame is standing before you well.

In days of great religious persecution, it is tempting to think that we need to hide our message. For what it is worth, that is not what Peter did that day. He was speaking before the very body of leaders who had judged that Jesus was worthy of death, and he told them the plain truth. You might think that it would have been better not to bring up controversial matters. For instance, was it necessary to bring up the topic of the death of Jesus, and to say that they were guilty of that death? Was it necessary to mention the resurrection? Remember that Peter was speaking as a man who had been filled with the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit said that Jesus of Nazareth, His death, His resurrection, and the connection of these central Christian truths to this miracle were four topics that could not be avoided, regardless of the consequences.

This Jesus is the stone... (11)

Peter then went on to ground this message in the Old Testament Scriptures. In a way that could not be missed, Peter quoted from the famous Passover Psalm, Psalm 118, saying that Jesus was the stone that the builders rejected. He said to the council that Jesus is the key stone in God's temple of the Holy Spirit, and you rulers of the Jews are the builders who rejected Him. Though He was rejected by men, He was chosen and precious to God.

If we can see these facts, we will not be intimidated by powerful people into making it seem like we reject Jesus as our only hope. Is Jesus your only hope? Psalm 118 says that this stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. The resurrection temple of God is a temple of people, and Jesus is the cornerstone of that temple. You can't have that eternal life temple of God without the one cornerstone.

And there is salvation in no one else... (12)

Therefore, it should be very obvious, that we must not turn away from Jesus. There is no other cornerstone, and without this one stone, there will be no eternal temple of God. To be in that great temple paradise of God is salvation. “There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

This is what Peter said that day to the very powerful people who had recently decided that Jesus was worthy of death. When the exclusive claims of Christ have become unpalatable to many, it is not a time for the church to try to be extra subtle. Our first goal is not to be acceptable to men, but to be faithful to God. We don't need to be sarcastic or rude, but we do need to be plain and true. Jesus, His sacrificial death, His resurrection, and the wholeness He brings, this is our message. We can give that message with appropriate confidence and personal humility.

1. Who were these authorities who met to examine Peter and John?

2. What was the content of Peter's testimony to this council?

3. Why is Jesus called “the stone?”

4. Why does Peter insist that salvation is only in the Name of Jesus Christ?

OT Passage: Jeremiah 38:7-13

You can't stop Jesus

“The Annoyance of Christian Preaching”

(Acts 4:1-4, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, April 3, 2011)

4:1 And as they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came upon them,

2 greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.

3 And they arrested them and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening.

4 But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about five thousand.

And as they were speaking... (1)

It has always been dangerous to speak for God. There are some in any era who are true “sons of the prophets.” They want to hear the Word of God. But there are also those who are the sons of those who murdered the prophets. In the days of Jesus' suffering, those authorities who wanted to see the prophetic Word in the Christian movement snuffed out, thought that they had achieved a decisive victory in the death of Jesus of Nazareth on the cross. But now here we are centuries later boasting in the cross of Christ. You be the judge. Who won that fight?

Some of the very same men that were against the Lord who died on that cross, were now expressing their dissatisfaction with Peter and John. It did not take centuries for the priests and those who were in charge of the temple, the Sadducees, to see that they had not achieved their goal in the death of Christ. The spread of the Christian movement in Jerusalem was notable, and now with the healing of a man who was lame from birth right within the temple precinct, it appeared that the followers of Jesus were about to experience another influx of hundreds of Jews who had changed their minds about Jesus.

You may remember that this priestly party, the ones in charge of temple operations, known as the Sadducees, had sent people to Jesus during His ministry attempting to embarrass him. They were the ones who asked Christ the question about the woman who had been married to several brothers, each one dying and being replaced by the next brother in accord with the Law of Moses. Their question: “In the resurrection, whose wife will the woman be?” His answer: “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage, but those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage, for they cannot die anymore, because they are equal to angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection. But that the dead are raised, even Moses showed, in the passage about the bush, where he calls the Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living, for all live to him.”

Greatly annoyed... (2)

These same men who tried to make Jesus look foolish, were greatly annoyed by the fact of Christian preaching. It had to be annoying that these unlearned men, these two fishermen, Peter and John, were preaching at all. They may have been amused by the simple belief of these unsophisticated men in the doctrine of the resurrection of dead. But even their colleagues and co-belligerents among the competing party, the Pharisees, believed in a coming day of resurrection.

The Sadducees were not greatly annoyed just because Peter and John were preaching, or just because they held to the teaching of a coming resurrection from the dead. There was something else that was most especially annoying to them. The resurrection preaching of Peter and John was Messianic preaching, Christian preaching, and the specific Messiah or Christ that they were preaching was the man that the Sadducees thought they had defeated, Jesus of Nazareth. What greatly annoyed them was that these two men were proclaiming IN JESUS, the resurrection from the dead. It is this one man, Jesus, who makes Christian preaching greatly annoying to those who are against God's singular provision of a Substitute to take away the sins of the world.

Preaching in Jesus the resurrection draws attention to the cross of Christ and his empty tomb. It is in Him, in His death, and in His resurrection, that God has given true hope for all who call upon His Name. To have a theory of life after death is not particularly offensive. To believe that resurrection blessings are found in Jesus alone is a doctrine that some people are not willing to tolerate. The authorities among the Sadducees were unwilling to tolerate those who were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. They found this kind of Christian preaching very annoying, and they got worked up about it.

And they arrested them... (3)

What to do? They were not without weapons, since they were in charge, within limits, of the temple district. They arrested these men. But would this work?

It did not stop the Word of God from reaching His people in the days of Jeremiah and beyond when the prophet was lowered down into a muddy pit. More recently, the enemies of Jesus did not stop the progress of the gospel by turning Jesus over to the Romans to be killed on a cross. No one can stop the annoyance of Christian preaching by arresting the apostles or their followers. God has His ways of making His salvation known to the ends of the earth.

This is not a lesson that the proud easily embrace. The enemies of the Galilean Savior want to express their annoyance. They also want to believe, along with Pilate, that they have the ultimate authority over life and death in their time and place. But like Pilate, they should seriously consider these words: “You would have no authority over me at all unless it had been given you from above.” They would soon find out that there were severe limits to their ability to stop the progress of the Christian movement.

But many of those who had heard... (4)

They arrested two men. Maybe they thought that through those detentions they would show everyone who was in charge. But look at verse 4: “Many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about five thousand.” Two put out of the way... Many more raised up to take their places. Kill one martyr... How many more will hear and believe before the day is even over? And what happens to that one that intolerant oppressors kill? He is now reigning with Christ in heaven. What impact will he have there?

No weapon formed against the Lord and His people will prosper. Here is what the Lord says through Isaiah: “Behold, I have created the smith who blows the fire of coals and produces a weapon for its purpose. I have also created the ravager to destroy.” He is in charge of that. But hear this: “No weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall confute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord and their vindication from me, declares the Lord.”

Jesus shall reign. Christian preaching may be annoying, but it cannot be stopped. And no one can keep the Lord from returning to rescue His people in their hour of greatest need.

1. Who were the authorities who came against the apostles?

2. Why were they greatly annoyed by the teaching and preaching of Peter?

3. Was it reasonable to arrest Peter and John?

4. Was great annoyance the only reaction to Peter's preaching?

OT Passage: Jeremiah 38:1-6