Turn with me now to Matthew 28.
Matthew 28. We have a glorious verse of scripture to
look at this morning. This is one of the most joyful,
powerful, sovereign, victorious verses of scripture that has
ever been written or read. Like Revelation 1 verse 3 says,
blessed is he that readeth And they that hear the words of this
prophecy blessed. That's what every person in this
room is right now. Blessed. And it's because our
text is going to be Matthew 28 verse six. He is not here. For he is risen. As he said. Come see the place
where the Lord lay. Does hearing that make you happy?
It makes me happy. In reading that, can we see the
power and the sovereignty and the victory in these words? Just think about this. Think
about this declaration. He is not here. He's not here. For he is risen. As he said,
come see the place where the Lord lay. One of the things that
I especially love about that verse is in those few words,
that's just a few words. Our Lord is acknowledged, he
is mentioned, he is spoken of four times. The first word is
he is not here. For he is risen as he said, come
see the place where the Lord lay. I just love hearing him acknowledge
that especially love hearing of his resurrection, the resurrection
of the Lord Jesus Christ. This conversation is taking place
in the tomb. Look at verse one. It says, in
the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first
day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the
sepulcher. And behold, there was a great
earthquake, for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven
and came and rolled back the stone from the door and sat upon
it. His countenance was like lightning
and his raiment white as snow. And for fear of him, the keepers
did shake and became as dead men. And Mark's account adds
these words right here. It says, and entering into the
sepulcher, they went inside the tomb, entering into the sepulcher,
They saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in
a long white garment, and they were affrighted. They were scared. Verse five, and the angel answered
and said unto the women, fear not ye, for I know that you seek
Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here. I think that's
about the greatest announcements ever been made. I got to thinking
about that first statement, he is not here. That is the only
place that God's people don't want him to be. That's the only place that God's
people do not want him to be, still in that tomb. That's the
only place that is literally the only place that God's people
are thrilled to hear. He's not there. He's not there. Turn with me to Psalm 139. Psalm 139 verse 1 says, O Lord,
thou hast searched me and known me. Thou knowest my down-sitting
and mine uprising. Thou understandest my thought
afar off. You know everything. You know
everything about me. You know everything I think.
You know everything I do. You know my down-sitting, my
uprising, my thoughts. Verse three, thou compassest
my path and my lying down and art acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word in my
tongue, but lo, O Lord, thou knowest it altogether. Thou hast
beset me behind and before and laid thine hand upon me. David
said, you're behind me, you're in front of me, so close you
lay your hand on me. Verse six, such knowledge is
too wonderful for me. It is high, I cannot attain unto
it. Whither shall I go from thy spirit,
or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up
into heaven, thou art there. Do you want to go to heaven if
Christ is not there? He is heaven, isn't he? If I ascend up into heaven, thou
art there. He said, if I walk through the
gates of heaven, thank God it would be announced to me, he
is here. He's here. He said, if I make my bed in
hell, behold, thou art there. You know, our God is sovereign
over everything. Things in heaven, things in earth, even things
under the earth. He rules over all. Verse 9, if I take the wings
of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even
there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold
me. If I say, surely the darkness shall cover me, even the night
shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not
from thee, but the night shineth as the day. The darkness and
the light are both a light to thee. For thou hast possessed
my reins, thou hast covered me, even in my mother's womb. And for that, David said in verse
14, I will praise thee. I'll praise you. He said, that's
my comfort. That literally is our comfort.
David said, everywhere I could possibly go, you're there. Thou art with me. And it's because
you're the living God. That's the reason why. You're
the living God. You're not still laying there
dead in that tomb like every other dead body on earth is.
Everybody else, their body or what's left of
their body is still laying right there. The gospel is built on the fact
that He is not still in that tomb. In Revelation 1, he said, I am
he that liveth. He said, I was dead, but I'm
alive forevermore. There is only one place in existence
where Jesus Christ is not. And it's still in his own tomb.
To that we cry, thank God. Thank God. That makes us so happy
to hear that. Go with me back to Matthew 28. Verse six says, he is not here. For he is risen as he said. As he said, he arose sovereignly. He didn't just arise. He arose
sovereignly. He arose in power. He arose in
authority. In Isaiah 43, he said, I will
work and who shall let it? People say, won't you let God
do something? Have you ever heard anybody say
that? Won't you let God, you know there's a popular slogan,
let go and let God. He says, what do you mean let
me do something? I'm God, there is none else. I will work and who shall let
it? Who's going to let me? In Isaiah 46, he said, I have
said it, I will do it. And that's exactly what happened
here. He plainly said, this is what I'm going to do. He sovereignly,
powerfully, authoritatively, said, this is what I'm going
to do. This is how I'm going to do it.
Turn with me to Matthew 12. Matthew 12 verse 38. Then certain of the scribes and
of the Pharisees answered, saying, Master, we would see a sign from
thee. But he answered and said unto
them, an evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign.
And there shall no sign be given to it but the sign of the prophet
Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and
three nights in the whale's belly, so shall the Son of Man be three
days and three nights in the heart of the earth. Meaning,
not four. That's what he means, only three. After three, I'm coming back
out. Three days. Turn to Matthew 16. Matthew 16 verse 21 says, from that time forth began Jesus
to show unto his disciples how that he must go unto Jerusalem
and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and
scribes and be killed and be raised again the third day. He told them. plainly. This is what is going to happen.
This is what I have decreed to be done. This is how it's going
to go. Look right here at Matthew 17
verse 22. Matthew 17 verse 22. And while
they abode in Galilee, Jesus said unto them, The Son of Man
shall be betrayed into the hands of men. and they shall kill him. And the third day he shall be
raised again. They were exceeding sorry to
hear that. But he told them, get ready, this is happening.
This is going to happen. Look at Matthew 20, verse 17.
Matthew 20, verse 17. And Jesus, going up to Jerusalem,
took the twelve disciples apart in the way, and said unto them,
Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man shall be betrayed
unto the chief priests and unto the scribes, and they shall condemn
him to death, and shall deliver him to the Gentiles, to mock
and to scourge and to crucify him, And the third day he shall
rise again. Now turn with me back to Matthew
28. Verse six says, he is not here
for he is risen as he said. He is not here. He has risen
as he said. You know, that's how every single
thing in life, everything on this planet, everything in time
and existence, that's how everything is going to go. As he said. As he said, in the end, we're
going to find that to be the case concerning everything. It
is all going to go as he said. exactly as he sovereignly said. He is not here, for he is risen
as he said, come see the place where the Lord lay. That is the
gospel. That is the gospel. That is salvation.
When salvation comes to a sinner, It is by way of a personal announcement,
a personal address. You know, you write a letter
and you put an address on it. It's to somebody specifically. When salvation comes to a center,
it is a personal declaration to come. That's what it is. That announcement, that personal
address is not an invitation. It's not an invitation. Our Lord
does not declare a message and then at the end of it, offer
an invitation for anybody who would like to come and then start
begging and pleading, trying to encourage people to get the
guts to get out of their seat in front of everybody and come
to Him. That's not how it works. It is
not an invitation. It is a command. Come see the
place where the Lord lay. That is a loving, drawing demand. A word directly from God Almighty. You come. You know, I'm not a good English
guy, but isn't it when there's no subject, there's an understood
you, something like that. Come see the place where the
Lord lay. That means you, you come see the place where the
Lord lay. You come and see with God-given
spiritual eyes of faith. You come and see. The place where the Lord lay.
You come inside this tomb. You cast the eyes of your heart
right here on this place where the Lord laid for you. This place was your place. Have you seen your tomb yet?
Have you seen your grave yet? Anybody seen it? I know some
people maybe have bought plots, but have you dug them open and
looked inside them yet? Would you like to see your tomb? This was your tomb. This place was your place. This
was your place. This place was the result of
your sin. Had he not laid here for you,
This would have been the very place you laid. He came here for you. He laid
here for you. That's the messenger's declaration.
Come here. Come here. Come inside here.
Look at this. He came here for you. He laid
here for you. He left here for you. That's the gospel, that is the
word that a sinner hears when salvation comes. Before salvation
comes, a sinner is trying to figure out how to not be a sinner
anymore so he or she can go to heaven. A sinner is digging into the
law. Okay, now what does the law say? I got to do this and
I got to stop doing that so I can go to heaven. When salvation
comes, this is what a sinner hears. Come here. Look right
there. See the place where the Lord
laid for you. He came right here for you. He
laid right here for you. He left here for you. He accomplished
this for you. He is not here for he is risen,
as he said, come see the place where the Lord laid. Come here,
Gabe. He says that to each one individually. Your name. You enter into this, you see
what this means for you. What does the fact that He laid
there and arose there and left there for us, what does that
mean for us? Turn with me to Acts 13. Acts 13, the Apostle Paul said
in verse 26, men and brethren, children of
the stock of Abraham and whosoever among you feareth God, to you
is the word of this salvation sent. For they that dwell at
Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him not, nor
yet the voices of the prophets, which are read every Sabbath
day, they have fulfilled them in condemning him. And though
they found no cause of death in him, yet desired they Pilate
that he should be slain. And when they had fulfilled all
that was written of him, They took him down from the tree and
laid him in a sepulcher. But God raised him from the dead.
And he was seen many days of them which came up with him from
Galilee to Jerusalem, who are his witnesses unto the people.
And we declare unto you glad tidings, how that the promise
which was made unto the fathers, God hath fulfilled the same unto
us, their children. in that he hath raised up Jesus
again, as it is also written in the second Psalm, thou art
my son, this day have I begotten thee. And as concerning that
he raised him up from the dead, now no more to return to corruption,
he said on this wise, I will give you the sure mercies of
David. Paul said, the almighty Godhead
has made a promise to all of his people. What I did for Christ,
I'm going to do the same thing for you. What was said about
him, that's exactly what is going to be said about you. Look with
me at Galatians 1. Galatians 1 verse 1, it says,
Paul, an apostle, not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus
Christ and God the Father who raised him from the dead. And
all the brethren which are with me unto the churches of Galatia,
grace be to you and peace from God the Father and from our Lord
Jesus Christ. who gave himself for our sins,
that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according
to the will of God and our Father, to whom be glory forever and
ever. Amen. Isn't that good news? Grace
be to you. He gave Himself for you. He delivered
you from this present evil world according to the will of God
the Father. That's the whole reason Christ
lived and died and rose again. For you. For you. Turn with me to Ephesians 1. Verse 15. Wherefore, I also, after I heard
of your faith in the Lord Jesus and love unto all the saints,
cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in
my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father
of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation
in the knowledge of him. The eyes of your understanding
being enlightened that you may know what is the hope of his
calling, and what is the riches of the glory of His inheritance
in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power
to us-ward who believe, according to the working of His mighty
power, which He wrought in Christ when He raised Him from the dead,
and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenly places,
far above all principality and power and might and dominion,
and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also
in that which is to come. and hath put all things under
his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the
church, which is his body, the fullness of him that filleth
all in all." Paul said, when God the Father raised Christ
from the dead and set him on high, he set you with him. He raised you and he set you
right there with him. Behold, you are not there. You're not there. You're not
there in that tomb for you are risen in Christ. As he said. That's the way it
is, as he said. Come see the place where you
laid in him. And after you see that, see the
place where you were raised and ascended and seated in him. See that? Come and see that.
Look at Colossians 2. Colossians 2, I asked our brother
to read this for us a minute ago. Verse 9, Colossians 2 verse
9. For in him dwelleth all the fullness
of the Godhead bodily, and you are complete in him, which is
the head of all principality and power, in whom also you are
circumcised with the circumcision made without hands. in putting
off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of
Christ, buried with him in baptism, wherein also you are risen with
him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised
him from the dead and you, him and you. Being dead in your sins
and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together
with him, gave life to with him, having forgiven you all trespasses,
blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against
us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing
it to his cross. And having spoiled principalities
and powers, he made a show of them openly, triumphing over
them in himself, the margin says. Oh, what power, what authority,
what victory, what sovereignty, what good news. What a gospel
God has provided for sinners like us, sinners like you and
me. He was there. You were the reason he was there.
I was the reason he was there. He was there. But he's not there
anymore. And by his mercy and his grace,
because of the power of his blood, the power that was in the payment
of his blood for our sins, neither are we. Neither are we. Let's close with first Peter
one. 1 Peter 1 verse 18. For as much as you know that
you were not redeemed with corruptible things as silver and gold from
your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers,
but with the precious blood of Christ as of a lamb without blemish
and without spot. who verily was foreordained before
the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last
times for you, who by him do believe in God, that raised him
up from the dead and gave him glory, that your faith and hope
might be in God. Seeing you have purified your
souls and obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love
of the brethren, see that you love one another with a pure
heart fervently, being born again, not of corruptible seed, but
of incorruptible by the Word of God, which liveth and abideth
forever. For all flesh is as grass, and
all the glory of man is the flower of grass. The grass withereth
and the flower thereof falleth away, but the word of the Lord
endureth forever. And this is the word which by
the gospel is preached unto you. He is not here, for he is risen
as he said. Come see the place where the
Lord lay.