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It has been rightly said that Christianity stands or falls on whether Jesus Christ was resurrected from the dead.
2. The Apostle Paul did as well when he wrote…

1 Corinthians 15:14, … if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain, and so is your faith.

3. But how can we be certain that Jesus Christ was truly raised from the dead since His death took place almost 2,000 years ago?
4. Tonight, we’re going to study one of the post-resurrection appearance accounts of Jesus Christ and discover life-changing answers to this question, answers which confirm He is Risen Indeed!”

Matthew 28:1-15

Context
1. Ever since the first Sunday after Jesus was crucified and buried, “Conspiracy Theories” have been concocted to argue against the most important event in human history, the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
2. But before we can be certain that Jesus Christ was truly raised from the dead, we must answer another important question, “How do we know the Gospel accounts are reliable?”
3. Scholars have developed a standard for determining authenticity, standards similar to what detectives use to determine if a witness is credible.
a. Early Testimony – How soon after the event in question was the testimony recorded? Less time equals greater credibility. Scholars agree that it takes at least 120 years for myths to develop and spread. The Gospels were written between 10-30 years after Christ’s resurrection which increases the credibility.
b. Eyewitness Testimony – Eyewitness testimony is stronger than second-hand testimony. When more than one independent witness attests to an event, there is a strong support that the event occurred.
c. Embarrassing Details – Details which may embarrass a witness or potentially weaken one’s argument increases credibility because people typically try to make themselves “look good”.
d. Unsympathetic Sources – If testimony affirming an event is given by a source who does not sympathize with the person, message, or cause, then authenticity increases. Why? Typically, people are biased against their enemies, not for their enemies!

Transition – How do the Gospels measure up to these standards for credibility? Very strong on all four point!

I. Eyewitnesses Confirmed Jesus is Alive

A. Jesus’ first two appearances were to women
1. Matthew states that “as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week” there was “a severe earthquake” because “an angel of the Lord had descended from heaven and came and rolled away the stone” from Jesus’ tomb. (1-3)
2. Some women who followed Jesus visited His tomb to prepare His body for burial (1).
3. Mark’s Gospel records that they were saying to each other, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” (Mark 16:3)
4. But when they arrived, they discovered the soldiers were either passed out or gone, the stone had been rolled away, and the tomb was empty.
5. Then angels told the women that Jesus had risen from the dead just as He had said. (5-7)
a. The women ran back to the apostles, but they thought the women were speaking “nonsense”. (Luke 24:11)
b. Peter and John ran to the tomb and discovered their report was true; the stone had been rolled away, the tomb was empty, and only grave clothes remained. (John 20:4-10)
6. According to Mark and John, Jesus first appeared to Mary Magdalene.

Mark 16:9, Now after He had risen early on the first day of the week, He first appeared to Mary Magdalene, from whom He had cast out seven demons.

7. This means that Matthew 28:9 records the second appearance of Jesus to the other women in the group that Sunday morning.

Matthew 28:9, And behold, Jesus met them and greeted them. And they came up and took hold of His feet and worshiped Him.

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