Easter's Two Greatest Words 

Matthew 28:1-6

PSBC ~ 4/23/00

In a nutshell: The angel's message to the women who first came to the tomb embody the full meaning of Easter for all of us–Come and See.

I. Introduction

A. Bee Story

A little boy and his father were driving down a country road on a beautiful spring afternoon. Suddenly out of nowhere a bumblebee flew in the car window. Now, I don't know about you, but a bee in the car is something that I've experienced. And it's a little scary. But what made this incident really terrifying was that the little boy was deathly allergic to bee stings. So, when he saw the bee, he became petrified.

But his father, thinking quickly, reached out, grabbed the bee, squeezed it in his hand, and then released it. The bee then started to fly around inside the car again, as soon as he let it go. So the panic started all over again for the little boy.

Well, his father saw the panic on his boy's face. So, he pulled the car off to the side of the road. Then he reached out his hand, but this time it was to show the boy something.

There still stuck in his skin was the stinger of the bee. "Do you see this?" he said. "You don't need to be afraid anymore. I've taken the sting for you."

B. Transition

Well, friends, that's the message of Easter in one simple statement. You and I don't need to be afraid of death anymore. Jesus Christ already faced it for us. And He won. He took the sting out of death, and all He asks us to do is to respond to that action in two ways... to "Come and See"!

I get those words from what the angel said to the women who came to that tomb on that first Easter Sunday.

If you have your Bibles, turn in them to the last chapter of Matthew...chapter 28, and let me read the first 6 verses... (p. 1549 in Large Print Bibles)

Matthew 28:1-6
1 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.
2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it.
3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow.
4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.
5 The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.
6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.

Each of those two words–come and see–is an imperative in the Greek language, which is the language that the New Testament was originally written in. This means that each of these words carries with it the weight of a command. ...Come; and See. Let me explain, this morning, why I call them Easter's two greatest words.

II. An Invitation to Come

Let's first look at the importance of this command, the command to "come".

Now, the reason this word is so important is because there is so much in our lives that hinder us from coming to the reality of Easter. It was true for the women who met this angel, and it's true for us, as well.

A. What hindered the women?

When you think about it, it was no easy thing for the women to obey the angel in the early morning hours, and come to the tomb.

1. First of all it was in a graveyard! It was a place that was inhabited by dead bodies. It was a "spooky" place. It was not the kind of place you wanted to be in during the dark hours just before dawn. It was a frightening place. Women in those days were not trained in martial arts. They didn't have mace. They didn't have whistles to blow incase they got into trouble. They didn't even have cell phones to call for help.

2. Second, there were the authorities. These women came to anoint a body that lay in a grave that was sealed with the seal of the most powerful nation on earth–the nation of Rome. It was sealed on orders of the official representative of the most powerful man on the face of the earth–Caesar. That seal prohibited anyone from entering that tomb.

And if that wasn't enough, it was guarded by the best soldiers Rome had ever trained–the men of the Praetorian guard. Men who were proficient in killing with spears, swords, knives and their bare hands. These men had orders to kill first and ask questions later, of anyone who even looked like they were going to try to enter the tomb without permission.

So, it meant that if these women were going to obey the angel, they'd have to get over their fears, get past the guards, put themselves in danger of losing their lives, and disobey the most powerful nation on the face of the earth, and the most powerful man who was living at the time.

3. Third, there was the stone. You see, to add to all those things that I've mentioned so far, we must add, the stone! This was a boulder that weighed almost four tons, and had to be rolled up an incline in order to expose the entrance to the cave and access to the body of Jesus.
Who was going to move that rock?
–The women? –not unless they were the female heavy-weight powerlifitng champions of Jerusalem.
–The soldiers? –let's see, "kill first, ask questions later." I don't think so.
–The disciples? –well, maybe, but come to think of it, they had all run and hid in various closets and corners in Jerusalem. So, you couldn't count on their help.

Yet the angel said... "Come!"

And the women didn't hesitate. They left and forgot the things that hindered, and they just kept coming to the tomb, and obeyed the angel's invitation.

B. Same invitation to us

Don't miss this important word–this imperative invitation to come to the tomb. Because it is one of the central truths that will make Easter's reality, your reality. It is the same invitation that Jesus gave on many occasions during His ministry. The women recognized it as the authentic voice of God inviting them, and they obeyed it.

Have you ever shown the courage these women showed on that first Easter morning? Or have you given in to the things that hinder you?

1. Illustration of Alexander the Great

The army of Alexander the Great was advancing to attack Persia. At one critical point, it appeared that his troops were going to be defeated. Alexander couldn't figure out what had happen to his troops, who were at one time the finest fighting men in all the world. So, he mounted his horse and rode through the camp and surveyed his troops. He soon saw the problem. He discovered that every man had so much treasure and plunder from their previous campaigns that everyone of them had become literally weighted down, and were spending their time focusing on what they had, rather than the goal of future battles. Without a focus on the future, and with the sheer weight of their riches, they were being hindered from being effective soldiers in combat.

Alexander immediately commanded that all the spoils, and riches, and plunder from the past battles be thrown into a heap in the middle of the camp. And there he burned it all. His men complained bitterly, but they soon came to see the wisdom of their commander's order. A historian later wrote, "It was as if wings had been given to them –they walked lightly again. And victory was assured." That army went on to conquer not only Persia, but the entire world.

2. The Things That Hinder us

Friends, let me ask you something..., Are you carrying baggage that is hindering you from coming to the risen Christ? Unlike any other time in history, we are living in a culture and a society that is hindering us from following this command... to COME! I was sent this internet chain mail late last year. It speaks tremendous truth...

The Paradox of Our Time in History is that
we spend more, but have less;
we buy more, but enjoy it less.
We have bigger houses and smaller families;
more conveniences, but less time;
more medicine, but less wellness.
We read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.
We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.
These are times of tall men, and short character;
steep profits, and shallow relationships.
These are the days of two incomes, but more divorce;
of fancier houses, but broken homes.
We've learned how to make a living, but not a life;
we've added years to life, not life to years;
we've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul.

Does that strike a chord? Can you identify something in your pursuit of happiness or self-gratification, or lifestyle decision, or your life's goals that is hindering you from coming to Christ? If so, listen to what Jesus says directly to you this morning...

Matthew 11:28-29
28 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

C. Come to Jesus

The first half of the Easter message is an invitation to "Come". Come to the truth of the empty tomb. Coming to that truth is the beginning of a relationship–a real, honest, love-relationship with God, Himself. Perhaps you've never entered that relationship before in your life. Maybe you initiated it a long time ago, but have slipped away from it. Either way, Jesus is saying to you this morning, COME to me!

And friend, if that's what your heart is telling you to do, right now, this is how you answer that call to COME to Jesus...

(1) Swallow your pride and admit to God that you are sinful –by that I mean you have to get honest with God and admit to Him that...
-you have been operating your life from your own agenda, not His.
-you've been making decisions based on what's best for you, not based on what He values most. -you have been so focused on you and your wants, that God hasn't even appear as a "blip" on the radar screen of your daily life....
...and this way of living has led to times of disobeying what's most important to God–sometimes intentionally and other times unintentionally. But nevertheless, you recognize that you've gone against Him.

(2) You repent and ask Him to forgive those sins. Repentance means a 180 degree turn from what you know is offensive to God. And when you ask His forgiveness this will take place immediately. When God forgives, it means that your sin is never visited again by Him–it's removed as far as the east is from the west. Then all that's left is...

(3) You have to trust. Trust in the fact that Jesus died on the cross to take away the eternal consequences of your sins. And (listen to this...)your trust must be in that fact ONLY. It's not by anything you have done, but salvation is only based on what He has done as God's sacrifice for your sin.

And the invitation is still open to you today–Come! Get rid of the things that hinder, and COME!

III. See the Place Where He Lay

But I told you that there were two words... the second word is the word, "See".
The angel said, "...SEE the place where He lay." So, what are we to SEE about that place?

A. Humility of Jesus

Well, the first thing you can see is inside the tomb where the body actually was. Jesus' dead body had laid inside that hollowed out cave for three days. Now, understand, we're not talking about just any man.
-We're not even talking about a mere great man.
-We are talking about the place where Jesus the Lord; where Jesus, Jehovah; where Jesus the Savior; where Jesus the Christ; where Jesus the Messiah; where Jesus God's Son; where the one who was with God from eternity; where the one who was equal to God; where God, Himself laid.

You see, God willingly put aside His glory to take on Himself the form of a man. So that He might meet the criteria that He, Himself, established for human beings to have salvation and eternal life. God became man and dwelt among us, lived a sinless life, and died as a sacrifice. And His body was put into that tomb.

When we look at the empty Easter tomb, we see love and humility beyond comprehension directed to each one of us, personally.

B. Horror of Sin

We also see something else that's not pleasant. We see the horror of sin. You see it was our sin that placed Him there in that tomb. Jesus didn't die for His own sin–He didn't have any. He died in my place–and He died in your place.

Isaiah 53:5
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.

Friends, listen to me. When we look at the Easter tomb, and realize that this is the residence of a dead person–and that dead person's name was Jesus–we are looking at the Easter tomb and seeing that it was my sin and it was your sin that brought Him to that end. When we understand that, we can begin to develop a proper awareness of the horror of sin, the magnitude of sin, and the final outcome of sin.

C. It's Where We Will Be

But there's a third thing that we should see when we look at the empty tomb. It's this...We're going to wind up in a similar place someday.

Folks, we're all going to die. Unless Jesus comes back before our appointed time. Dying is more of a certainty than paying taxes. It's conceivable that you may have had enough deductions on your tax forms this year, so you didn't have to pay any taxes. But there aren't any deductions that will keep you from dying.

Illustration: There is a true story about a man who was a church musician, who came into a hospital for an operation on his tongue. He asked the doctor about the prognosis for the future. His surgeon told him that he would probably be able to speak with sufficient plainness to make himself understood, but that he would never sing again.

So, the patient said that if that were the case, he wanted to sing one more song before his tongue was touched. So, in the presence of the doctors and nurses he started to sing his favorite hymn:

There is a fountain filled with blood,
Drawn from Immanuel's veins;
And sinners plunged beneath that flood
Lose all their guilty stains.

Then the man concluded with this verse:

Soon in a nobler, sweeter song
I'll sing Thy power to save,
When this poor lisping, stammering tongue
Lies silent in the grave.

After that, the anesthesia was administered, and the operation was performed, but the man never recovered from the surgery. His last song was his last utterance on this earth.

Friends, the empty tomb reminds us that we all will face death.

Let me ask you, if you were placed in critical circumstances, like that man on the operating table, what would you sing? What would be the last words that demonstrated your hope for the future?

D. Jesus Isn't There

But as important as it is to see the humility of Jesus; and as important as it is to see the horror of our sin that put Him in that tomb sin; and as important as it is to realize that we will someday be in that same condition... the fourth thing that we need to see is the most important of all. Don't miss the powerfulness of this wonderful truth...

When we look at the tomb where Jesus was laid, we SEE that Jesus isn't there! He is risen! He has conquered death! That is the most important thing you could ever see.

Every single account of the tomb where the body of Jesus was placed–I don't care if it is an account in the Bible, or an account by an eyewitness, or the account of an historian–all the account say the same thing. Jesus is not there!

Oh, there are reasons given that don't include the resurrection. The Bible even mentions some of these that were spread by the enemies of Jesus. But not one version of the account–either religious or secular–denies that the tomb was empty and the body gone.

How did it get that way?

1. Well, some say that it was the enemies of Jesus that stole the body. But that doesn't make sense because they would have produced it later when claims of the resurrection were made by the disciples.

2. Some say the disciples stole it. But if they stole it do you really think they would have been willing to die (as all but one of them did later) for what they new to be a fabrication? That doesn't make sense either.

3. The only explanation that makes any sense out of the facts is that Jesus Christ rose from the dead–that's why the tomb was empty. He proved that He was God. He proved that He alone had the power to conquer the puny power of death that humans face with so much fear. Jesus Christ conquered death–that's why the tomb was empty.

E. We Will Rise With Him

But there's still one more thing that I want you to notice, when you see the empty tomb. And this is it... "We also will rise with Him."

If we have asked Jesus to be the forgiver of our sin and follow Him as the leader of our life, then we also will rise with Him someday.

Friends, Jesus didn't just come to this earth to teach, die, and rise again, in order that in the end, He'd have to eventually give us up.

Hebrews 7:25 says that he came to "‘save completely' those who come to God through him..."

Listen to this..., this saving stuff that I'm talking about is not just a group of nice words put together by religious fanatics. Salvation is not just some "spiritual" or mystical thing that prophets with long beards, who live in seclusion all day, think about. And salvation is not just something for the soul.

Listen to me friends, this salvation–this "saving completely"–includes the body as well. The salvation that Jesus brings is complete salvation –the empty tomb means that one day we too will rise and be with Him. Paul writes to Christian men and women...

1 Thessalonians 4:13-14; 16-18
13 Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope.
14 We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.
16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.
18 Therefore encourage each other with these words.

IV. Conclusion

Let me close with this story...

Illustration: A father knelt down beside his little girl's bed. It was time for prayers, hugs and kisses, and tucking in. The little girl began the childhood prayer she had repeated so many times before:

Now I lay me down to sleep; I pray you Lord my soul to keep. If I should die before I wake, I pray you Lord, my soul to take.

Only, this night she got the words mixed up. She prayed, "If I should wake before I die." Embarrassed, she stopped. "Oh Daddy, I got all mixed up."

But her father responded, "Not at all honey! In fact, that's probably the first time the prayer has been properly prayed. You see dear, my deepest longing for you is that you may wake up before you die."

Easter's two most powerful words are Come and See! They embody the truth that takes the sting out of death. And I share them with you today, so that you might wake up before you die– Come and See–Jesus, the resurrected Lord! 

Amen.