Jesus' resurrection | Stephen Nielsen

But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared. 2 And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men suddenly stood near them in dazzling clothing; 5 and as the women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living One among the dead? 6 “He is not here, but He has risen. Remember how He spoke to you while He was still in Galilee, 7 saying that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.” 8 And they remembered His words, 9 and returned from the tomb and reported all these things to the eleven and to all the rest (Luke 24:1-9).

Five things the Bible says about the Resurrection

1 Jesus’ resurrection is prophetic (Psalm 16:10)

For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol;

Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.

2 Jesus’ resurrection is promised (John 2: 19-21)

Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” 20 The Jews then said, “It took forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?” 21 But He was speaking of the temple of His body.

3 Jesus resurrection is declared (Romans 1:3-4)

Concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh, 4 who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord.

4 Jesus resurrection is a priority (1 Corinthians 15:3-4)

For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.

5 Jesus’ resurrection is sobering (Acts 17:30-31)

“Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, 31 because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.”

Source: Sunday sermon at Revive Church

This is our sixth study on this topic. Please click HERE for an intro to this study.

Matthew 12:38-41
38 Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law said to him, “Teacher, we want to see a miraculous sign from you.”
39 He answered, “A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40 For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41 The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now one greater than Jonah is here.

Observations

In this text we see that the Pharisees wanted to see a sign from Jesus. They of course were already seeing miracles of healing, but they wanted something more spectacular. Evidently, they wanted more proof that He was who He said He was. They wanted a show. This reminds me of what the second end times beast will do, the one called “the false prophet.” In Revelation 13:13-15 it says that he will perform great signs, even make fire come down out of heaven; and he will “give breath to the image of the beast.” He will do these things obviously to win the people over and for an evil purpose.

Jesus knew their heart and would not give them what they wanted, because it would be evil and adulterous (a spiritual adultery, or idolatry). Instead, He gave them a sign from Scripture, the sign (or miracle) of the resurrection. This sign was given in the experience of Jonah: that “as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” This saying was a type of Christ’s interment and resurrection.

Applications

The message that Jesus gave the Pharisees was meant not just as a prophecy of His resurrection, but more as a rebuke for their wanting a sign. He rebuked the Pharisees (v. 14) by telling them that even the wicked people of Nineveh were better (more responsive to God) than they were because the people of Nineveh repented by the preaching of Jonah, but they refused to repent even though one greater than Jonah was there—Jesus Himself.