Jesus Rises From the Dead

Luke 24:1–12
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This final chapter of Luke records the experiences of several people who had first-hand experiences  with the risen Lord. In each case they were depressed because of Jesus’ death, but after meeting with Him they were joyful and praised God. The first people to learn of the resurrection of Jesus were the women who had been faithful in following Him. It was very early in the morning on the first day of the week when these women arrived at the tomb, bringing more spices for His burial (v.1). The women brought spices to the tomb as we would bring flowers, as a sign of love and respect. However, they did not find the body they were looking for (vv. 2-3). The stone was gone, the body was gone, the grave clothes were still intact and two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning were standing there. These  were obviously angelic beings (v. 4).

These women were afraid and bowed down their faces to the earth as they questioned these angelic beings where Jesus was (vv. 5-8). Then they ran to tell the apostles and others what they had seen (vv. 9-10), but they refused to believe the report (v.11). Then Peter ran to the tomb and found what the women had described was true (v. 12). It must have looked like an empty mummy shell. The resurrected body of Jesus had passed through the cloth wrappings, leaving them undisturbed.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is the central fact of Christian history. Keep in mind that the message of the Gospel rests upon the death of Jesus Christ and His resurrection (I Corinthians 15:1-8). The earthquake and the angel opened the tomb, not to let Jesus out but to  let the witnesses in (Matthew 28:2-4). “Come and see, go and tell!” is what it was all about and still is today. Without the resurrection there would be no Christian church today.

Application

What difference does the physical resurrection mean to me? I can use these verses to comfort those who have lost love ones.