“He is not here; He has risen, just as He said! Come, see the place where He lay.”MATTHEW 28:6 · BSB · READ MATTHEW 28:1–10 →
The resurrection is not a hope we chase. It's a reality we wake up into.
The women went to the tomb at dawn with spices and a problem: “Who will roll away the stone from the entrance of the tomb?” They were walking toward a sealed grave. They had no idea God had already settled the question before they arrived.
They came expecting a funeral
MATTHEW 28:1 →Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. Love got them out of bed, but grief set their expectations. They planned for death because death was all they had seen.
- Faithful people can still have small expectations.
- Grief tells us how the story ends. It is usually wrong.
- Ask yourself: what am I walking toward, expecting nothing to change?
God moved the stone before they got there
MATTHEW 28:2–4 →A great earthquake, an angel, a stone rolled away, and the guards shaking like dead men. The stone wasn't moved to let Jesus out. He was already gone. It was moved to let witnesses in.
- The problem you're dreading may already be handled.
- God's power doesn't wait for our permission or our planning.
- The empty tomb is an open invitation: come and look.
Come and see, then go and tell
MATTHEW 28:5–7 →The angel's message moves in two steps. First evidence: come, see the place where He lay. Then mission: go quickly and tell His disciples. Faith is not blind. It rests on what God has done in history, and it never stays put.
- Come and see: our faith rests on a real, empty tomb.
- Go and tell: every witness becomes a messenger.
- The first messengers of the resurrection were women the culture overlooked.
Jesus meets them on the way
MATTHEW 28:8–10 →They hurried away in fear and great joy, and suddenly Jesus met them. They grasped His feet and worshiped Him. Obedience put them on the road where He was waiting.
- You often meet Jesus while doing what He said.
- Fear and joy can live in the same heart.
- His first words to them: “Do not be afraid.”
- Name the “stone” you've been dreading, and hand it to God in prayer.
- Read Matthew 28 out loud this week and picture yourself at the tomb.
- Tell one person, plainly, why you believe Jesus is alive.
- What “tomb” are you visiting with small expectations?
- Why do you think God opened the tomb with an earthquake instead of a quiet exit?
- Who is one person you could “go and tell” this week?
Risen Lord, You were out of the grave before we even got up. Forgive our small expectations. Roll away what we cannot move, show us the empty tomb again, and send us running to tell. Amen.