Easter Sunday

He is risen!

As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside privately and told them what was going to happen to him. “Listen, we’re going up to Jerusalem, where the Son of Man will be betrayed to the leading priests and the teachers of religious law. They will sentence him to die. Then they will hand him over to the Romans to be mocked, flogged with a whip, and crucified. But on the third day he will be raised from the dead, and once I am raised from the dead, I will go ahead of you to Galilee and meet you there. (Matthew 20:17-19, 26:31-32)

The day of preparation

Now this all happened on Friday, the day of preparation, and the Jewish leaders didn’t want the bodies hanging there the next day which was the Sabbath (and a very special Sabbath, because it was Passover week). So they asked Pilate to hasten their deaths by ordering that their legs be broken. Then their bodies could be taken down. So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the two men crucified with Jesus. But when they came to Jesus, they saw that he was already dead, so they didn’t break his legs. But one of the soldiers, however, pierced his side with a spear, and immediately blood and water flowed out.

Now there was a good and righteous man named Joseph who was a rich man from the town of Arimathea in Judea, who had become a secret follower of Jesus (because he feared the Jewish leaders) but he was waiting for the Kingdom of God to come. He was an honored member of the Jewish high council, But he had not agreed with the decision and actions of the other religious leaders. As evening approached, Joseph took a risk and went to asked Pilate for permission to take down Jesus’ body. Pilate couldn’t believe that Jesus was already dead, so he called for the Roman officer and asked if he had died yet. The officer confirmed that Jesus was dead, so Pilate issued an order to release the body of Jesus to him. Then Joseph came to the place of crucifixion that was near a garden, With him came Nicodemus, the man who had come to Jesus at night. He brought about seventy-five pounds of perfumed ointment made from myrrh and aloes. They took the body down from the cross and wrapped it in a long sheet of linen cloth, Following Jewish burial customs, and laid the body in Joseph’s own tomb that had been carved out of rock which was close by and had never been used before. Then they rolled a great stone across the entrance and left. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joseph followed and saw the tomb where his body was placed. This was done late on Friday afternoon, the day of preparation, as the Sabbath was about to begin. Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome went out and purchased burial spices and prepared them so they could anoint Jesus’ body. But by the time they were finished the Sabbath had begun, so they rested as required by the law.

The Sabbath

The next day, on the Sabbath, the leading priests and Pharisees went to see Pilate. They told him, “Sir, we remember what that deceiver once said while he was still alive: ‘After three days I will rise from the dead.’ So we request that you seal the tomb until the third day. This will prevent his disciples from coming and stealing his body and then telling everyone he was raised from the dead! If that happens, we’ll be worse off than we were at first.” Pilate replied, “Take guards and secure it the best you can.” So they sealed the tomb and posted guards to protect it.

Sunday Morning

Very early on Sunday morning, while it was still dark Suddenly there was a great earthquake! For an angel of the Lord came down from heaven, rolled aside the stone, and sat on it. His face shone like lightning, and his clothing was as white as snow. The guards shook with fear when they saw him, and they fell into a dead faint.

As the new day was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went out to visit the tomb. As the women were on their way they were asking each other, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?”

Meanwhile, some of the guards went into the city and told the leading priests what had happened. A meeting with the elders was called, and they decided to give the soldiers a large bribe. They told the soldiers, “You must say, ‘Jesus’ disciples came during the night while we were sleeping, and they stole his body.’ If the governor hears about it, we’ll stand up for you so you won’t get in trouble.” So the guards accepted the bribe and said what they were told to say. Their story spread widely among the Jews, and they still tell it today.

When Mary Magdalene and the other Mary arrived at the tomb, they looked up and saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled aside. As they stood there puzzled Mary started crying, and as she wept, she stooped and looked in. Two men suddenly appeared, clothed in dazzling robes, one sitting at the head and the other at the foot of the place where the body of Jesus had been lying. “Dear woman, why are you crying?” the angels asked her. The women were terrified and bowed with their faces to the ground. Mary replied, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and we don’t know where they have put him.” Then the angel asked, “Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive? The women were shocked, but the angel said, “Don’t be alarmed. You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead! Look, this is where they laid his body. Now go and tell his disciples, including Peter, that Jesus is going ahead of you to Galilee. You will see him there, just as he told you before he died.”Then they remembered that he had said this. So they fled from the tomb, trembling and bewildered, but also filled with great joy. They rushed back to tell his disciples—and everyone else—what had happened.

It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and several other women who told the apostles what had happened. But the story sounded like nonsense to the men, so they didn’t believe it. However, Mary Magdalene ran and found Peter and John. She said, “They have taken the Lord’s body out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!” Peter and John started out for the tomb. They were both running, but John outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He stooped and looked in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he didn’t go in. Then Peter arrived and went inside. He also noticed the linen wrappings lying there, while the cloth that had covered Jesus’ head was folded up and lying apart from the other wrappings. Then John also went in, and he saw and believed— for until then they still hadn’t understood the Scriptures that said Jesus must rise from the dead. Then they went home again, wondering what had happened.

Mary then turned to leave and saw someone standing there. It was Jesus, but she didn’t recognize him. (Isaiah 52:14) “Dear woman, why are you crying?” Jesus asked her. “Who are you looking for?” She thought he was the gardener. “Sir,” she said, “if you have taken him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will go and get him.” “Mary!” Jesus said. She turned to him and cried out, “Rabboni!” (which is Hebrew for “Teacher”). She ran to him, grasped his feet, and worshiped him. “Don’t cling to me,” Jesus said, “for I haven’t yet ascended to the Father. But go find my brothers and tell them to leave for Galilee, and they will see me there. ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ Mary Magdalene found the disciples who were grieving and weeping and told them, “I have seen the Lord!” Then she gave them his message, and that Jesus was alive, but they didn’t believe her.

Road to Emmaus

That same day two of Jesus’ followers were walking to the village of Emmaus, seven miles from Jerusalem. As they walked along they were talking about everything that had happened. As they talked and discussed these things, Jesus himself suddenly came and began walking with them. But God kept them from recognizing him. He asked them, “What are you discussing so intently as you walk along?” They stopped short, sadness written across their faces. Then one of them, Cleopas, replied, “You must be the only person in Jerusalem who hasn’t heard about all the things that have happened there the last few days.” “What things?” Jesus asked. “The things that happened to Jesus, the man from Nazareth,” they said. “He was a prophet who did powerful miracles, and he was a mighty teacher in the eyes of God and all the people. But our leading priests and other religious leaders handed him over to be condemned to death, and they crucified him. We had hoped he was the Messiah who had come to rescue Israel. This all happened three days ago. Then some women from our group of his followers were at his tomb early this morning, and they came back with an amazing report. They said his body was missing, and they had seen angels who told them Jesus is alive! Some of our men ran out to see, and sure enough, his body was gone, just as the women had said.

Then Jesus said to them, “You foolish people! You find it so hard to believe all that the prophets wrote in the Scriptures. Wasn’t it clearly predicted that the Messiah would have to suffer all these things before entering his glory?” Then Jesus took them through the writings of Moses and all the prophets, explaining from all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. By this time they were nearing Emmaus and the end of their journey. Jesus acted as if he were going on, but they begged him, “Stay the night with us, since it is getting late.” So he went home with them. As they sat down to eat, he took the bread and blessed it. Then he broke it and gave it to them. Suddenly, their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And at that moment he disappeared! They said to each other, “Didn’t our hearts burn within us as he talked with us on the road and explained the Scriptures to us?” And within the hour they rushed back to Jerusalem. There they found the eleven disciples and the others who had gathered with them and they told their story of how Jesus had appeared to them as they were walking along the road, and how they had recognized him as he was breaking the bread, but no one believed them. And just as they were telling about it, Jesus himself was suddenly standing there among them. “Peace be with you,” he said. But the whole group was startled and frightened, thinking they were seeing a ghost! Jesus asked “Why are you frightened? Why are your hearts filled with doubt? Look at my hands. Look at my feet. You can see that it’s really me. Touch me and make sure that I am not a ghost, because ghosts don’t have bodies, as you see that I do.” As he spoke, he showed them his hands and his feet. Still they stood there in disbelief, filled with joy and wonder. Then he asked them, “Do you have anything here to eat?” They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he ate it as they watched.

But one of the twelve disciples, Thomas (nicknamed the Twin who was called Didymus.), was not with the others when Jesus came. They told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he replied, “I won’t believe it unless I see the nail wounds in his hands, put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound in his side.”

Eight days later the disciples were together again, and this time Thomas was with them. The doors were locked; but suddenly, as before, Jesus was standing among them. “Peace be with you,” he said. Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and look at my hands. Put your hand into the wound in my side. Don’t be faithless any longer. Believe!” “My Lord and my God!” Thomas exclaimed. Then Jesus told him, “You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.” Then he said, “When I was with you before, I told you that everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and in the Psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. And he said, “Yes, it was written long ago that the Messiah would suffer and die and rise from the dead on the third day. It was also written that this message would be proclaimed in the authority of his name to all the nations, beginning in Jerusalem: ‘There is forgiveness of sins for all who repent.’ You are witnesses of all these things. I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age. And now I will send the Holy Spirit, just as my Father promised. But stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you with power from heaven.”

Please Read Your Whole Bible, But this was from: (Matthew 20:17-19, 26:31-32, 27-28, - Mark 15-16, - Luke 23-24, - John 19-20)