Raised to Life, Just as He Said
Central to Christianity is that Jesus, the man from Nazareth who died on a cross in the place of sinners, rose again on the third day. He literally died and he literally rose from the grave bodily in victory over sin—the Holy Spirit's vindication that Jesus was truly the Son of God. As the Apostle Paul puts it, Jesus Christ our Lord “was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead" (Rm 1:4).
Adding to and agreeing with the Holy Spirit's declaration that Christ is the Son of God, Christ personally declared the resurrection before it ever took place. He foretold these things as a way of proclaiming that he was the Son of God. On the dawning of that blessed first day of the week, Matthew records two Marys coming to Christ's tomb only be told by an angel that he was not there but had risen "as he said" (Mt 28:6).
Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay” (Mt 28:1–6).
At a pivotal place in the development of Matthew's narrative, the Apostle Peter comes to confess Jesus with greater clarity than any of the other apostles had previously, saying, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Mt 16:16). Upon this confession, Jesus reveals yet more truth about who he is and what he will do as God's Christ. “I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it" (Mt 16:18 NASB). The church that Christ will build will not be overpowered by Hades, by the grave. Death cannot destroy Christ's church. Similarly, death will not destroy Christ himself nor topple his kingdom, even though he was just about to turn south and go to Jerusalem to die. "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 on the third day be raised" (Mt 16:21).
In the following chapter, Christ regathered with the twelve and foretold his death and resurrection a second time. "As they were gathering in Galilee, Jesus said to them, 'The Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him, and he will be raised on the third day.' And they were greatly distressed" (Mt 17:22–23).
For the third time, Jesus, as he took his disciples up to the heights of Jerusalem, told them what was about to happen to him. This would be Jesus's last trip to Jerusalem. "And as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside, and on the way he said to them, 'See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day'" (Mt 20:17–19).
Indeed, what the angel declared to the two Marys was true: Jesus rose from the grave "as he said." In fact, this prophecy of Christ's had reached other ears besides the apostles. The chief priests and the Pharisees knew that Jesus had foretold his resurrection; they testified before Pilate this very fact in order to petition him for soldiers to guard Jesus's tomb. They desired to secure it from any potential ploy of Jesus's disciples to steal his body and spread a myth about Jesus raising from the dead.
The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate and said, "Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, 'After three days I will rise.' Therefore order the tomb to be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples go and steal him away and tell the people, 'He has risen from the dead,' and the last fraud will be worse than the first (Mt 27:62–64).
By securing the tomb with their own guard of soldiers, a great deal of poetic justice is served. They sealed the grave and had it so extensively guarded that there was no way that the disciples could have stolen Jesus's body. And that's the point! No one stole the body; Christ rose from the grave "as he said!" Rather than embrace the risen Christ, however, the religious leaders were the ones to perpetuate a myth. Those who insisted on preventing the spread of lies bribed the guards to spread a lie about what happened to Jesus (Mt 28:11-15). But Jesus rose from the grave "as he said."
Several considerations are apparent from the fact that Jesus rose from the grave in keeping with his word: Jesus was a true prophet; Jesus understood his life and mission and what would happen to him; and Jesus had the authority to control the events leading up to his death and even after he had died. Truly, this was no ordinary man! Having this knowledge, Jesus was still willing to go through with the awful reality of journeying to Jerusalem to be rejected, mistreated, abused, mocked and crucified all the while maintaining his hope that God would not abandon him to the grave but that he would be raised on the third day.
As a result of Christ's death and resurrection, many outcomes were immediate. Of the countless things that Christ's resurrection accomplished, perhaps three rise as paramount: Jesus triumphed over death (his own and ours); Jesus was vindicated as the Holy One of God; and Jesus secured eternal life for every believer. The rest of eternity will not suffice to explore the depth of that grace nor to sufficiently praise Christ for the merits of his accomplishments.
In addition to these immediate outcomes, several church traditions ensued, shaping the rest of history: The Christian tradition of gathering for worship on Sunday is due to Christ rising again on Sunday. The time of worship shifted from Saturday to Sunday. In this way, every Sunday worship service in a Christian church reinforces the reality of Christ's resurrection.
Additionally, Christians have celebrated the resurrection with particular emphasis on Easter Sunday (or Resurrection Sunday if you prefer) each year, commemorating the historic event. Due to the Hebrew calendar following the lunar cycle, the date of Easter may fall on various dates, sometimes in March, sometimes in April. With these ancient traditions as well as Christ's own words, Christianity proclaims with great hope to a dying world, every Sunday and every Easter, that Christ is not dead but he is alive, just "as he said."
