Just as He Said

My text for this afternoon comes from the last chapter of Matthew’s gospel. By this point in the narrative, the Romans had crucified Jesus, and a soldier stabbed through His heart just to make sure He was dead. Joseph and some other disciples took His corpse from the cross and laid it in a tomb cut out from a hillside. And, because it was the Sabbath, they all left the gravesite to observe the commandment of God. We now pick up the story in verse one of chapter 28:

 

“Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave. And behold, a severe earthquake had occurred, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled away the stone and sat upon it. And his appearance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow. The guards shook for fear of him and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid; for I know that you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified. He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said.” (Matthew 28:1-6a)

 

In retrospect, it might seem a little surprising that NO ONE expected this. NONE of His disciples expected the resurrection of their Lord – even though Jesus had often told them that He would die and then return to life. For example, here is Matthew 16:21 – “From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day.”

 

And also, in John 10:17-18 “For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life so that I may take it again. No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father.”

 

In fact, Jesus’ promise of His resurrection was so widely known that after the crucifixion, the Jewish clergy approached Pilate and said, 'Sir, we remember, while he was still alive, how that deceiver said, "After three days I will rise." Therefore, command that the tomb be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night and steal Him away, and say to the people, "He has risen from the dead." So the last deception will be worse than the first' (Matthew 27:62-64).

 

From our perspective in the 21^st century, we know what His disciples didn’t know at the time – that Sunday morning was coming. And so, we ought to be able to sympathize with the disciples who were in despair and in fear for their lives after Jesus’ arrest, murder, and burial.

 

They just didn’t know what was about to happen – just as WE so often in life, especially when things seem their darkest – neither do we know our Sunday is coming.

 

I love the message spoken by the angel at the tomb: “He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying.”

 

The women didn’t believe it. But the gospel writers tell us the men weren’t any better. Indeed, they ALL were certain it was over. Their hopes for a new messianic age were hopelessly crushed. We don’t have time to go there today, but you can read the 24^th chapter of Luke’s gospel and pay attention to the conversation between the two men on the road to Emmaus when they met the ‘stranger.’

 

As I prepared this message, I then thought about the angels who met the women. God's angels never wonder, or doubt, or question any of their Lord’s promises or anything else that comes out of God's mouth. They simply accept it as true because God said it. And for them, that settles it.

 

And so, they were – and I am speculating here since the Biblical record says nothing of their tone of voice – I think the angels were incredulous at the surprise of the women and also of the apostles when on that first day of the week, they were frightened and confused that they couldn’t find the body of Jesus.

 

To paraphrase their remark: “Uhhh . . why are you so upset? Jesus is not here. He’s risen, just as He said. How is it that you didn’t believe Him?”

 

Christian! We need to get that. The angel told them, “He is risen – just as He said.”

 

I love that message because if Jesus did what He said He was going to do – rise from death – then that in and of itself alone should compel all of us who believe the message of the resurrection – that alone should encourage us to have the absolute conviction that EVERYTHING ELSE Jesus said is also true.

 

I mean, think this through logically: If He overcame the impossible – who ever heard of anyone physically rising from the dead on His own power after three days in the grave? So, if He overcame the impossible, and therefore the impossible is true, then how shall we doubt anything else He said?

 

And all that begs the question – what ELSE did Jesus say? What else did the King of glory say that we must hide in our hearts – because He said it and therefore it is true?

 

Well, we don’t have more than a few minutes on this Resurrection Sunday to look in depth at them all, but let’s highlight only a few

Number one. Jesus said to the penitent thief on the cross next to Him, “This day you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43) After the criminal acknowledged to Jesus his sin, the Savior promised that before the sun set on that Friday, he would join Jesus in paradise.

Why is it important to know what Jesus said to the thief? I can think quickly of at least two reasons. First, since Jesus completely and totally forgave the thief of his sins, then there is no reason for you or me to think Jesus will not completely and totally forgive OUR sins when we bring them to Christ in repentance.

 

Furthermore, in the Lord’s response to the penitent thief, He did not even hint at what some call ‘soul sleep.’ That erroneous theory posits that when the body dies, the soul remains with the corpse until the general resurrection. But that is NOT what Jesus said to the thief. He told the thief “THIS DAY, you will be with me in Paradise.”

 

Nor is that idea of soul sleep found in any of the New Testament letters. They all tell the reader that when any Christian closes his or her eyes in death, they immediately open them in the presence of their Savior Jesus. That’s why the apostle Paul told the Christians at Philippi: “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. But if I am to live on in the flesh, this will mean fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which to choose. But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better; yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake.” (Philippians 1:21-24)

 

It’s also why Paul wrote to the Christians at Corinth: “We are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.” (2 Corinthians 5:6–8)

So, Christian – and my remarks here are directed ONLY at the true Christian – when you die you will immediately open your eyes to see your risen Savior. You will be with him in paradise. Jesus promised it to us, just as He promised it to those in our Ashwood family who have already gone on to be with their Lord and ours.

 

But to the non-Christian – regardless of your religious affiliation – when you die you will immediately enter an eternal agony away from God's presence. I’ll address that point shortly, and that is why I plead with you, even now, to repent of your sins. Turn to Messiah Jesus. He alone can take your sins and exchange them for His righteousness.  

 

Number two – What else did Jesus say? Well, He said not all people are children of God. THAT is an important point and often overlooked or even dismissed in many churches. 

 

Yes, in a generic sense all of us are His creation; But scripture is very clear that not all people are God's children, but ONLY those who are adopted into God's family through their faith in Jesus as God incarnate, who died as a sacrifice for their sins.

 

The Jewish teachers and theologians thought THEY were children of God. But Jesus told them they were dead wrong. “If God were your Father,” Jesus said, “you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God . . . ⁴⁴ You are of your father the devil . . . [and ]He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God.” (see the entire context in John 8:42-47)

 

False teachers and pastors tell their congregations that all men and women are children of God. But that is a lie from hell itself. As the Scripture says: “He [Jesus] came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. John 1:11-13

 

And now let’s again take a moment for personal application: Are YOU a true child of God?  How do you know you are? If you believe Jesus died as your atoning substitutionary sacrifice for your sins, that He rose from the dead, if you’ve been baptized, live in ongoing repentance of sins, and strive to obey Him day by day – then you can be certain you ARE a true child of God.

 

Number three: What did Jesus say about the eternal destiny of all true children of God? Well, descriptions of heaven defy description because we’ve never experienced anything like heaven. Thus, we have no clear reference points. How can a person born blind understand the colors red or yellow or green or blue? How can a person born deaf ever know the auditory magnificence of a Mozart symphony? As the Scriptures tell us: “Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him.” (1 Corinthians 2:9)

 

So, I will not focus our attention on the physical description of heaven. Instead, I draw our attention to Revelation 21: “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” (Revelation 21:4)

 

And Isaiah 25:9 – “And it will be said in that day, “Behold, this is our God for whom we have waited that He might save us. This is the Lord for whom we have waited; Let us rejoice and be glad in His salvation.”

 

Christian, did you get that? No more pain, or loss, or separation, or tears, or loneliness, or sadness, or illness. Oh! I do not care about streets of gold and gates of pearl if I can live forever without any sorrow or loss or loneliness. I don’t care what heaven looks like if I can see our Father’s face – maybe even sit in His lap like a little child, and feel His arms around me – like my children when they were small sat in my lap and I wrapped my arms around them.

Number four: What did Jesus say about hell? No honest seeker of truth can read the New Testament and come away without a healthy fear of that eternal destiny in which all who are NOT God's children will find themselves for ever and ever. I know I’ve already addressed this terrible destiny, and I do so again because of its importance to all of us.

 

Many of you remember the story Jesus told of the Rich Man and Lazarus. You’ll find it in Luke 16. When both men died, Lazarus went to Father Abraham’s bosom, while the Rich Man went to hades, or hell. It was there, in utter and unending torment, that he begged Abraham to send Lazarus to his brothers to warn them to change their lives so they would not end up in that terrible place. “But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ But [the Rich Man] said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!’ But [Abraham] said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’” (see Luke 16)

 

False teachers and pastors tell you that a loving God would never send anyone to eternal torment. But Jesus said hell is real. The Lake of Fire is real. And all who continue to reject God's offer of reconciliation with Himself, who live a lifestyle of disobedience to Christ will, unquestionably, spend eternity in torment. No one in hell should be surprised that they’re there – because it will be just as Jesus said.

 

Finally for today’s message, number five: What did Jesus say about His forgiveness of our sins? Plenty. And He said it so often as to make an unshakable point about His forgiveness.

Essentially, it is this: When we confess to Him our sins – no matter how egregious and horrible and awful and wicked those sins – when we honestly and humbly confess our sins to Him – He forgives all of them. Not a shadow of sin remains. He has cast even our worst sins as far from Him as east is from west.

 

Here are only a few of the assurances He said about forgiveness: (Matthew 26:27) “And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.

 

Luke records for us: and [Jesus] said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. Luke 24:46-47

 

Furthermore, the Lord, by His Holy Spirit through the apostle John promises us: “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:8-9)

Why is it so hard for so many people to take Jesus at His word when He said, “Your sins are forgiven”?

The angel seemed to me to be incredulous that those at the empty tomb were shocked that Jesus was not there. “He is risen,” he told them. “Just as He said.”

 

Are angels of God equally incredulous with us when we don’t believe what Jesus said – about Himself, about the identify of God's children, about heaven, about hell, about forgiveness of our sins, and about how the Christian immediately enters Christ’s presence at death?

 

Oh, may the Holy Spirit help us, day by day, to trust the Lord with all our heart, and NOT lean on our own understanding. In all our ways to look to Him, and He WILL guide our paths. (See Proverbs 3:5)

 

He said He would.