By Jim Mettenbrink
Last week, we saw that Jesus resurrected Lazarus after being dead for four days. He did so just shortly before His own death and resurrection. In short, Jesus revealed His Divine power over life and death. Some six decades later, the apostle John wrote that Jesus is “…the true God and eternal life” (1 John 5:20). In the same epistle he declared, “…God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son” (1 Jn 5:11). In short, Jesus is the source of eternal life to those who come to Him on His terms alone.
That He is the source of eternal life rests on one fact – Jesus is God. And since He was crucified and buried, He must by necessity rise from the grave, alive to certify His Deity!
Unlike all other religions, which depend upon what someone says, Christianity rests solely on what one person did – Jesus rose from the grave revealing who He is – God, the source of eternal life. He declared this in His three-year announcement that He is the promised and prophesied Messiah to offer salvation and thereby eternal life to mankind – “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand” (John 10:28; cf 3:16;). Again John wrote, “And this is the promise that He has promised us—eternal life” (1 Jn 2:25). But did He rise from the dead? Just what happened on that Sunday morning?
Since Jesus had prophesied He would rise on the third day after His burial (Matthew 27:63). That this was known and caused the Sanhedrin (Jewish supreme court) to demand a guard (from 4-16 soldiers) be posted at the tomb. The Jewish leadership reasoned that Jesus’ disciples would steal the body and claim He rose from the grave (Mat 27:62-66).
God used the force of nature – earthquake –to announce Jesus’ death (Matt 27:50-51) and again at the moment of His resurrection – “And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it” (Mat 18:2). And at that moment others rose from the grave and walked the streets of Jerusalem (Mat 27:52-53). But did anyone see Jesus rise? Where is the evidence?