Why An Empty Tomb Matters.
My kids love playing the game Clue, and I share their passion for trying to be the first one to solve the murder mystery. We played the classic board game last night, and the final time we played, we all needed just one more clue to be the family’s greatest detective. My daughters took their chances and made educated guesses about what three cards resided in the envelope. To their dismay and my delight, they were wrong, and I was able to follow their error with the correct scenario. If you were wondering, Mr. Plum did it with the lead pipe in the hallway.
If you have played the game, you know very well that being able to win and solve the mystery hinges on one or two pieces of missing information near the end. As Easter approaches, believers worldwide will focus on the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. Of the three, all of Christianity, its beliefs, and hope hinges on the resurrection of Jesus is a historical fact. Having carefully investigated everything from the beginning (1:3), Luke writes his account of the resurrection in 24:1-12 in the gospel bearing his name.
But very early on Sunday morning the women went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. 2 They found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. 3 So they went in, but they didn’t find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 As they stood there puzzled, two men suddenly appeared to them, clothed in dazzling robes.
5 The women were terrified and bowed with their faces to the ground. Then the men asked, “Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive? 6 He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead! Remember what he told you back in Galilee, 7 that the Son of Man must be betrayed into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and that he would rise again on the third day.”
8 Then they remembered that he had said this. 9 So they rushed back from the tomb to tell his eleven disciples—and everyone else—what had happened. 10 It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and several other women who told the apostles what had happened. 11 But the story sounded like nonsense to the men, so they didn’t believe it. 12 However, Peter jumped up and ran to the tomb to look. Stooping, he peered in and saw the empty linen wrappings; then he went home again, wondering what had happened.
The women had risen early that Sunday morning to pay their respects to Jesus, but when they arrived at the tomb, they got the surprise of their lives: the tomb was empty! Two angels appeared to them while they were in the tomb. Their appearance scared the women, but who wouldn’t have been shaken? The angels asked the women why they were looking for someone alive among the dead. The angels reminded the women Jesus himself had said he would die and return to life. The women rushed to tell the other disciples what they had just experienced and discovered. The disciples thought it was nonsense, and again, who wouldn’t? However, Peter and John (see also John 20:1-10) ran to the tomb to check out the women’s story for themselves. Peter peered in and saw the empty grave clothes, puzzled; he left wondering what had happened. John went in and saw Jesus’ grave clothes and believed. In these passages, we see two accounts recording the event of Jesus’ resurrection.
I, billions of Christians worldwide, and maybe even yourself, hold these Scripture passages near our hearts. These sacred texts are essential because Jesus overcame death, hell, and the grave through His resurrection. An empty tomb is important because it means since the grave could not hold Jesus, and because it could not hold Him, it will not hold those of us in Him! This truth gives us encouragement for today and hope for tomorrow. But while the written records surrounding Jesus’ birth, life, death, burial, and resurrection bring assurance, peace, hope, and direction for many, these same accounts are scrutinized, doubted, spiritualized, or even rejected by many others.
Is Pursuing The Truth Behind The Empty Tomb Worth Our Time?
During this mini-series, we will be searching for clues as we examine the evidence to answer a few critical questions surrounding Jesus’ identity, the trustworthiness of the gospel writers’ reporting, and investigating whether or not the empty tomb that first Easter Sunday was the greatest hoax in human history or the most significant proof that Jesus was and is indeed the Son of God and all who believe in Him have life by the power of His name. But before traveling any further down this road together, we should consider whether or not this quest is worthy of our pursuit. Is the resurrection of Jesus being an actual historical event important? Paul explains why the resurrection of Jesus is essential in his letter to the Corinthians; see 1 Corinthians 15:12-19 below.
But tell me this—since we preach that Christ rose from the dead, why are some of you saying there will be no resurrection of the dead? 13 For if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised either. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless. 15 And we apostles would all be lying about God—for we have said that God raised Christ from the grave. But that can’t be true if there is no resurrection of the dead. 16 And if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins. 18 In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost! 19 And if our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more to be pitied than anyone in the world.
Paul reiterates that Christ’s resurrection is what our whole Christian faith hinges on. If Jesus didn’t rise from the dead, our preaching and faith would be useless. We would still be dead in our sin, deserving God’s wrath, and we are to be pitied more than anyone else in the world for believing such foolishness. However, if true, we have the greatest news ever given to the human race. The news is that we have forgiveness of sin, a relationship with God, and victory over death because those who believe in Jesus have an eternity in heaven.
The First Clue.
But did Jesus say that he would rise from the dead, and did he show proof that he had power over death while alive? To come back from the dead would mean that he would have to be more powerful than death, did this Jewish carpenter demonstrate such muscle? These are fair and logical questions.
Jesus did say he would live again after he died (Matthew 16:21; Luke 9:21-22, John 2:18-22) and promised the same for those who believe in him (John 3:16, 11:25); he also demonstrated his power over death during his lifetime; let’s look at one of those times now.
Jesus was with his disciples ministering in another town when word reached him that a dear friend, Lazarus, had died. When Jesus eventually arrived in Bethany, Martha, one of Lazarus’ sisters, left the house to meet Jesus. Lazarus had been dead for four days when Jesus arrived. Martha told Jesus that her brother would not have died if he had been there. Jesus said to her that Lazarus would rise again. Martha understood Jesus as talking about the end of time where all who have believed in him will rise from the dead, receive their glorified bodies, and eternally be with him as their King (John 11:23-24; Job 19:25-27; Psalm 16:10; Daniel 12:2). Let’s look at what Jesus said next in John 11:25-26.
Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. 26 Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?”
While Martha focused on the end of time, the One who is the resurrection and the life is not bound by time’s constraints. Jesus will indeed raise the dead on the last day (John 5:21, 26), but he was also able and going to resurrect her brother immediately. Our Lord was calling Martha to personally trust in him as the One alone who has power over death. His demonstration of domination over death in the present would validate the claims of Scripture declaring the dead would rise and Jesus’ claims that he would cause the dead to rise at the end of the age. His visible power over death in bringing Lazarus back to life shows that he could overcome death by accomplishing his resurrection, too (John 2:19). Jesus then asks Martha if she believed in him as the One who has power over death. Let’s look at her response in verse 27.
“Yes, Lord,” she told him. “I have always believed you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one who has come into the world from God.”
After Martha’s great confession of faith in Jesus, Jesus performed one of the more familiar miracles that we have recorded for us in the gospels. Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, demonstrating his power over death to all present and who would later hear or read about this miraculous feat (John 11:38-44) so that they might believe in him and, by believing in him, have eternal life (John 20:31).
What Will You Do With This Evidence?
Let’s look at John 11:25-26 again.
Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. 26 Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?”
One of the most immersive ways to read and engage with Scripture is by trying to imagine yourself as one of the people within the passage you are studying. Here, I ask you to imagine what you might feel or think if you were Martha. Ok, now that you’ve taken a moment or two to imagine what Martha had and was experiencing up to this pre-miracle point, consider Jesus’ claims in verses 25 and 26 if you were Martha. What feelings are you experiencing? Are there doubts? Do you now have more questions? Did his words bring comfort and hope? Is there frustration that he didn’t come sooner and heal your brother?
Whatever Jesus’ statements aroused in you, now ponder his question to his dear friend. “Do you believe this, Martha?” Now, reread 11:25-26 and replace “Martha” with your name. Consider Jesus’ claims again and imagine Jesus asking you, “Do you believe _______________?”
Do you believe that Jesus is the resurrection and the life? If so, or if you will, you will have eternal life. You can enjoy a friendship with God in Christ that is restored the second you believe in Jesus and lasts for all eternity, even after death!
Now, I don’t expect you to decide on just a couple of stories you may have heard for the first time. (But if you are ready to give your life to Jesus, watch this video and respond to its invitation!) You still may be wondering what the big deal about Jesus is anyway. Let’s be honest for a moment, after all there are over 8 billion people on planet earth now, not to mention all the people have lived before now so why make such a big deal about Jesus. I mean, Jesus could have been just another Jewish guy who was a good teacher, who did good things, and who died a horrible death on the cross. People die all the time so what’s the big deal about Jesus.
Here is the big deal: Jesus claimed to be the resurrection and the life. Jesus proclaimed to be the Messiah, the one who God sent to give his life a ransom for many so that they could have their sins forgiven and have a relationship with God now and for eternity (Mark 10:45). The Bible says that he performed miracles to back up his claims (John 20:31; Hebrews 2:4) and then, after dying by the most horrific torture device known to human history, performed the most incredible miracle by raising from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:20-22). This unmatchable feat secures our future resurrection, our future feat of conquering death when One who is the resurrection and the life gives us our glorified bodies (1 Corinthians 15:53-55) so that we can be with him and one another forever (John 14:3; Revelation 21:1-22:5).
Jesus’ resurrection, being a historical event, changes everything. His victory over death impacts not only the future but the present, like Martha discovered that surprising day when her brother stumbled out of the lifeless tomb that once held him. We, as believers and those skeptical, must consider the evidence surrounding Jesus’ supposed resurrection since so much hinges on it! Since his physical resurrection has to be a historical fact for Christianity’s claims to be valid, we can investigate the belief that Jesus rose from the dead or not. Someone can hold the opinion that Jesus rose or that his body decayed and that there is an alternative explanation for an empty tomb that Sunday morning. However, an opinion doesn’t matter if one view is proven true and the other false or unlikely.
If I were to ask you what you thought the best candy money could buy was, you might say Reese’s Peanut Butter cups. While I’d be obliged to agree, this is simply an opinion. But, if I had a jar full of candy and I asked you to guess how many pieces were in the jar you could make your best educated guess. After you guessed, I’d tell you how many pieces were in the jar. You made your guess, your opinion, but there is an actual number of pieces of candy in the jar.
How could you be sure that the number I have told you is the exact number of pieces of candy in the jar? In other words how do you know if this number is true? I know this seems elementary, but yes, you can take the time to count the pieces for yourself to see if what I am telling you is true or false. If the number I gave you matches what you counted (if we both counted correctly), then we know what I said is accurate. In the same way, we can investigate whether the facts about Jesus are authentic since we have evidence we can examine both inside and outside the Bible.
So what will you do? Will you go on this journey with me as we explore the most common questions or doubts surrounding Jesus himself and the claim of Christianity that Jesus rose from the dead? If you follow Jesus, I pray it strengthens your faith in him and equips you to help others know him. If you don’t know what to think about Jesus and the claims of him raising from the dead, I pray that you believe in him and, by believing in him, have eternal life by the time our adventure together through this mini-series ends.
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