The Resurrection of Christ (Matthew 28:1–20)

[Stephan Choe]

October 1, 2026

Key Verses

5–6:     “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.’”

18–20: “And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’”

Most television news is far from pleasant. We often hear about terror, war, and oppression. Such news leaves us feeling uneasy and pessimistic.

Yet, we have every reason to look forward to a glorious future with confidence, for we shall rise again and live in glory.

How do we know this? Through the resurrection of Christ! He is the first fruit of the resurrection, and we shall follow Him. Let us joyfully consider the account of Christ’s resurrection in this chapter.

His resurrection conveys two essential messages to us. I would like to explain this message to you.

Jesus Christ was nailed to the cross on Friday around 9 a.m. (Mark 15:25) and died around 3 p.m. From Saturday onwards, Roman soldiers stood guard at His tomb to prevent anyone from stealing His body and spreading false rumors about His resurrection.

The Sabbath—that is, Saturday—has passed, and the sun is rising on the first day of the week; it is Sunday morning. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary—specifically, the mother of James and Joseph (see 27:56)—come to the tomb (see Luke 23:56 and 24:1). According to the Gospel of Mark, Salome, the mother of James and John, is also present (Mark 16:1). They intend to anoint Jesus’ body with oil in order to preserve it for as long as possible.

In all the Gospels, Mary Magdalene heads the list of eyewitnesses to the risen Christ (Matt. 28:1; Mark 16:1; Luke 24:10; John 20:1, 11). Yet this is hardly surprising. We recall the story of the man from Gerasa; evil spirits drove him to fits of rage and self-harm. Mary, too, suffered greatly from evil spirits, but Jesus set her free. She was overjoyed. Out of gratitude, she followed Jesus and, together with other women, provided for the needs of Jesus and his disciples.

But to her horror, Jesus was crucified, suffered an agonizing death, and was buried. What more could she do for him now? She could only anoint his body with oil so that it might remain preserved in a lifelike state for as long as possible.

When she arrived at Jesus’ tomb early on Easter Sunday morning together with the other Mary, she experienced something unexpected: a massive earthquake occurred. The angel of the Lord descended from heaven, rolled aside the stone sealing the tomb’s entrance, and sat upon it. His appearance was like lightning, and his garments were snow-white. The guards were seized with terror and fell down as if dead.

The angel spoke to Mary and the other women: “Do not be afraid! I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay; then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead. And look, he is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you” (5–7). The guards go to the high priests and report what has happened. The high priests give them money and instruct them to spread the rumor that Jesus’ disciples came during the night and stole his body. In other words, they are to cover up the truth. Yet there is a Latin saying: "Great is the truth; it will prevail." The Gospel is the truth. It prevails.

I would now like to explain two key points regarding the account of Christ’s resurrection:

The first key point is that the resurrection of Christ is the very best news for us.

What Mary Magdalene and the other Mary experienced was so astonishing that they were completely surprised and overwhelmed by His resurrection. Consequently, at first, they could not bring themselves to believe it. Yet the empty tomb and the encounter with the risen Jesus compelled them to believe, for the angel said to them, "He is not here; He has risen!"

Our entire faith hinges on the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We are called to believe this message.

The resurrection of Jesus is undoubtedly the most incredible of all Jesus’ miracles. Many people find it difficult to believe in the resurrection. They simply feel the idea of ​​the resurrection is too good to be true. They are undecided about whether to believe in it.

Nevertheless, the resurrection of Jesus is an actual historical event. And His resurrection proves that Jesus is truly the Son of God. Moreover, it makes sense when one considers that the almighty, loving God could not leave His beloved Son forever in the grip of death. Indeed, God freed Jesus from the power of death and called Him back to life.

The Bible refers to Jesus as the firstfruits of the resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:20). This means that, through His resurrection, Jesus has thrown wide the door to the Kingdom of Heaven for us. Had Jesus risen from the dead alone, without this benefit extending to us as well, His resurrection would have been only half the good news for us. Some might then say, "Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!" (1 Corinthians 15:32). Yet the resurrection of Jesus is good news for us all, for everyone who believes in Jesus Christ will also rise again and enter the Kingdom of Heaven. There, there is neither pain nor suffering nor death. There, we will see Jesus Christ face-to-face and have fellowship with Him. There, we will enjoy blessed fellowship with all the believers who have gone before us—such as Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, David, Luther, Bonhoeffer, Choo Ki-Cheol, Son Yang-Won, and so on.

Revelation 21:2–4 describes the bliss of the resurrected: “I saw the city of God, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God—festively adorned like a bride on her wedding day. I heard a mighty voice calling from the throne: ‘Here God will be in the midst of people! He will dwell with them, and they will be His people. Yes, from now on God Himself will be in their midst as their Lord. He will wipe away all their tears, and death will be no more, neither suffering nor crying nor pain will exist anymore; for the things that once were are gone forever.’”

The world of the resurrection lies far beyond our imagination. No human being can truly describe the bliss of the resurrection world in human language. Nevertheless, I would like to introduce you to the world of the resurrected as Sundar Singh [1] described it. Sundar Singh was an Indian Christian. The hymn he wrote is well known:

I have decided to follow Jesus (3x)

No turning back, no turning back.

(An angel told Sundar Singh about the experience of a Christian who died, rose again, and entered the Kingdom of Heaven.) The Christian saw heaven opened before him, and a host of angels and saints came out to meet him; at the gate, the Savior waited with outstretched hand to welcome him. Upon seeing all this, the Christian cried out in great joy: “What a joyful hour this is for me!” Everyone standing at his deathbed was startled.

…

Then the Christian set out for heaven with the angels. They had traveled only a short distance when they encountered another host of angels who called out a welcome to them. Many friends and relatives who had died before him also stepped forward to meet him; seeing them increased his joy even further. When he and the angelic host reached the heavenly gate, the angels and saints lined up silently on either side. He entered, and Christ came forward to meet him at the threshold. He immediately fell at His feet to worship Him, but the Lord lifted him up, embraced him, and said, “Well done, good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your Lord.” At these words, the Christian’s joy became indescribable. Tears of joy flowed from his eyes; the Lord wiped them away with great love and said to the angels, “Lead him to that most glorious dwelling prepared for him from the beginning.”

…

When the Christian finally turned his gaze toward his dwelling, he was amazed: for wherever he looked, he could see the Lord. For Christ is present in every place, and the saints and angels see Him everywhere. The Christian was delighted to see that, on every side, he beheld not only the Lord but also those around Him—a sight that filled him with joy: those of the lowest rank encounter those of higher standing without envy, while those in higher positions take great joy in serving their brothers on the lower rungs, for this is God’s kingdom of love.

In every part of heaven, there are magnificent gardens; these gardens continually yield every kind of lovely, delicious fruit, as well as all manner of sweet-scented flowers that never wither. There, creatures of every kind unceasingly praise God.

Birds of wondrous plumage sing their lovely songs of praise. And whoever listens to the sweet singing of the angels and saints is seized by a marvelous sense of bliss. Wherever one looks, one sees nothing but images of boundless joy. This is the paradise God has prepared for those who love Him; there, no shadow of death, error, sin, or suffering exists—only everlasting peace and joy.”

We ought to receive the news of Christ’s resurrection with great joy.

The second key message of the report on Christ’s resurrection is that we should share this good news with others.

We often hear news like this: “When FC Bayern Munich beats Borussia Dortmund, their fans cheer, while Borussia Dortmund’s supporters are dejected.” Thus, most news in this world is good news for one group of people but not for the other.

The resurrection of Jesus, however, is good news for everyone. In fact, it is the greatest news in all of human history.

Mary Magdalene and the other Mary hurry to share this joyful message with others (8). Suddenly, Jesus stands before them and says, “Greetings!”

The women bow down before him and clasp his feet.

Jesus says to them, “Do not be afraid! Go and tell my brothers to come to Galilee! There they will see me!” (10).

When the eleven disciples arrive at the mountain in Galilee, they encounter the risen Jesus. Upon seeing him, they bow down before him. Yet some still doubt whether it is truly Jesus.

Then Jesus says to them:

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations: baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teach them to observe everything I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (19–20).

The resurrection of Christ and our own future resurrection—this is incredible, yet true. It is a wonderful message. Even when we face various problems, the message of the resurrection allows us to forget all our worries, for a glorious future awaits us. We are called to spread this message. We should share it with as many people as possible—with people in Bochum and Germany, as well as in distant lands like China or India.

In doing so, we are to make disciples so that this Good News can be passed on in a lasting and credible way. For Jesus said to us: "Make disciples of all nations: baptize them... and teach them to obey everything I have commanded you" (19–20).

Jesus commissions us not only to baptize those who come to faith in Jesus Christ but also to teach them everything Jesus said. We are not merely to accumulate biblical knowledge in our heads but also to put Jesus’ words into practice. If we absorb Jesus’ teachings merely as intellectual knowledge, we resemble a person with a huge head but very thin, short arms and legs.

We are to grow as believers who are obedient to God’s Word. We need both a sound understanding of Christ’s teaching and a godly way of life. In this way, we can bear credible witness to Christ. Furthermore, we are to lead others to faith and effectively nurture them as disciples of Jesus.

We should also pray for and support world mission, for Jesus Christ loves all people in all nations of the world and said: "Go and make disciples of all nations!"

Let us therefore pray for missionary work in Germany, Africa, Asia, the Americas, and elsewhere, and make our own small contribution to world mission. May God bless our small contribution to world mission and bring His wonderful work to completion. Amen!

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[1] http://cordisanima.blogspot.de/2014/05/sadhu-sundar-singh-gesichte-aus-der.html, Sadhu Sundar Singh: „Gesammelte Schriften von Sadhu Sundar Singh“, 6. Kap. von „Gesichte aus der jenseitigen Welt“, SGFL, Basel,