The 16th chapter of Mark opens
as follows. And when the Sabbath was passed
Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James and Salome had bought
sweet spices that they might come and anoint him and very
early in the morning the first day of the week they came unto
the sepulcher at the rising of the sun And they said among themselves,
who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulchre?
And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away,
for it was very great. And entering into the sepulchre,
they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in
a long white garment. And they were affrighted. And
he saith unto them, Be not affrighted. Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which
was crucified. He is risen. He is not here. Behold the place where they laid
him. But go your way. Tell his disciples
and Peter that he goeth before you into Galilee. There shall
ye see him as he said unto you, And they went out quickly and
fled from the sepulcher for they trembled and were amazed. Neither
said they anything to any man for they were afraid. This is of course one of four
accounts of the resurrection of Christ in the Gospels. Each
drawing out different facets and different views of the same
situation. to present Christ to us in different
lights. And this account in Mark chapter
16 and the following verses to the
end of the chapter from verse 9 to verse 20 are the subject of Satan's rage. Satan would rob us of the glory
of Christ every way that he can. And in his modern translations
of the Bible, he would seek to remove and cast doubt on the
last passage in this chapter. But he can no more erase the
record of what Christ has done, the Son of God, than he could keep Christ in
the grave. For as God this past 2,000 years
has preserved his word from all the corruptions and attacks of
men and Satan, so God and Christ had the power to conquer death.
Christ had the power to lay down his life and he had the power
to take it again. And though the accuser sought
to keep him in the grave. He was powerless in the face
of the one who came for sinners, the one who laid down his life,
and the one who early in the morning on the first day of the
week rose from a tomb which was sealed with a great stone. all
the might of man, all the might of the empire of Rome that would
seal the tomb could not keep him in it. But Satan raged a few days earlier when he knew
his hour was come when he knew he had but a moment. He acted
quickly. He stirred up the people. He
stirred up Judas, one of Christ's disciples, to betray his master. Christ was betrayed into the
hands of the scribes and the Pharisees, the chief priests
and the elders. They delighted to have this troubler
in their hands, concocted a false trial. They brought him before
Rome. They brought him before Pilate. They brought their accusations
against him, who Pilate refers to as the King of the Jews. They railed against him. and Christ answered them nothing. Pilate marveled that Christ was
silent in the face of his accusers. He wondered at this one who stood
before him. He sought to release him, but Satan in his subtlety would
move The mass would move the people to cry out for his crucifixion. Pilate offered to release unto
them one prisoner expecting the release of Christ. Yet the people
cried out for the release of that murderer Barabbas. Christ the innocent should be
slain. and Barabbas the guilty in his
place was released. What will ye that I should do
unto Christ? What will ye then shall I shall
do unto him whom ye call the king of the Jews? Pilate asks. And they cried out, crucify him. Why what evil have he done? And
they cried out, the more exceedingly, crucify him. So Pilate, willing to content
the people, released Barabbas unto them and delivered Jesus
when he had scourged him to be crucified. And the soldiers led
him away into the hall called Praetorium, and they called together
the whole band, and they clothed him with purple, and plaited
a crown of thorns, and put it about his head, and began to
salute him, Hail, King of the Jews! And they smote him on the
head with a reed, and did spit upon him, and bowing their knees
worshipped him, And when they had mocked him, they took off
the purple from him and put his own clothes on him and led him
out to crucify him. And they compelled one Simon
a Cyrenian who passed by coming out of the country, the father
of Alexander and Rufus to bear his cross. And they brought Christ
unto the place Golgotha, which has been interpreted the place
of a skull. And they gave him to drink wine
mingled with myrrh, but he received it not. And when they had crucified
him, they parted his garments, casting lots upon them, what
every man should take. And it was the third hour, and
they crucified him. And the superscription of his
accusation was written over the king of the Jews. And with him
they crucified two thieves, the one on his right hand and the
other on his left. And the scripture was fulfilled
which saith, and he was numbered with the transgressors. Yes, Satan knew his hour had
come. He moved the people. He had them
deliver up Christ to be crucified. And here Christ is lifted up
upon the cross. The people pass by and rail at
him, they wag their heads, they mock him. They say let him come
down from the cross, he saved others himself he cannot save.
They spit at him, they deride him. They knew not who it was
that hung there before him. They did not have a clue what
was happening. They thought a man, simply a
man, was being crucified. And yet in this hour in which
Satan raged, God was crushing him. Christ
was crushing him. under his foot. Satan would bruise
the heel of Christ upon the cross. But that heel crushed Satan's
head. When the sixth hour was come
there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth hour. Darkness. What happened in that darkness?
changed the course of history man went astray when man was placed upon this
earth man rebelled against his maker man reviled his god and
creator man cast out his God and creator, when he came into
this world as a man amongst men. Man nailed God in the person
of Christ to the cross. Man thought he had killed God. And yet in those three hours
of darkness, There was an incredible transformation
which none could see except God should open the eyes to declare. At the ninth hour Jesus cried
with a loud voice saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabbath fani which
is being interpreted, my God, my God, Why hast thou forsaken
me? The people heard and they knew
not what he said. They thought he might be Elias. Their mockings continued. And yet here's the son of his
father. Forsaken, crucified, slain, tormented
in the hours of darkness. My God, my God, why hast thou
forsaken me? And Jesus cried with a loud voice
and gave up the ghost. And the veil of the temple was
rent in twain from the top to the bottom. And when the centurion
which stood over against him saw that he so cried out and
gave up the ghost, he said, truly this man was the son of God. The women also looked on. Mary
Magdalene and Mary the mother of James the less than of Joseph
and Salome. And when the evening was come,
because it was the preparation, that is, the day before the Sabbath,
Joseph of Arimathea, an honourable counsellor, which also waited
for the kingdom of God, came and went in boldly unto Pilate,
and craved the body of Jesus. And Pilate marvelled if he were
already dead. calling unto him the centurion.
He asked him whether he had been any while dead. And when he knew
it of the centurion, he gave the body to Joseph. And he bought
fine linen, and took him down, and wrapped him in the linen,
and laid him in a sepulchre, which was hewn out of a rock,
and rolled a stone unto the door of the sepulchre. And Mary Magdalene,
and Mary the mother of Joseph, beheld where he was laid. Yes, he died. He died. He didn't die of crucifixion. You may think, well, he was crucified. That's how Christ died. But Christ
was crucified between two other malefactors. And crucifixion
was a slow, a painful, and a lingering death. The worst of deaths. It took many hours before the
life finally sapped out of one who was nailed to a cross. And yet Christ died. in the space of a few hours. When the soldiers came to break
the legs of those who were crucified in order that they might finally
finish them off through the final pain of the breaking of the legs,
they found that Christ was dead already. And they thrust a spear
in his side. And as we read in John, out came
blood and water. No, it wasn't the crucifixion
which killed The Lord Jesus is what happened in those three
hours of darkness. What happened when man could
not behold. In the light, those who mocked
saw a man in weakness nailed to a cross, but they saw nothing. For what truly happened upon
that cross was what happened when the light of the sun was
taken away in those three hours of darkness. Satan raged and Christ died. But in that
death, Christ conquered. Satan's head was crushed. For
his death was not for his own sins. His death was not for his
own transgressions. He was numbered with the transgressors
that the scriptures might be fulfilled. But he was not a transgressor. He died for the sins of others. He died the innocent for the
guilty. He died the just for the unjust. He died for sinners. He suffered
under the outpouring of wrath against sin. It's God's almighty
wrath which rained down in the darkness upon that lonely figure
upon the cross which slew him. not the crucifixion, it's not
the physical pain which killed him but that eternity of judgment
which is due unto each and every one of us for the awfulness of
the depravity of our hearts and souls, for the awfulness of the
multitude of rebellious deeds which we've uttered, which we've
committed, which we've performed since the day in which we were
born until the day in which we pass from this world into eternity. that corruption which seeps through
us, which flows out of our heart, which stains our every deed and
our every word and our every action, that by which we are
utterly guilty before a holy and an almighty God. that which
brings us in guilty under the condemnation of God's holy and
just and inflexible law and his holy and just and inflexible
righteousness and holiness of character, that condemnation
which will be upon our heads if we know not this one who died
in the darkness. It's that condemnation due unto
his people under which Christ died. The just for the unjust. What happened in those hours
of darkness we will never be able to fully comprehend. We
cannot fathom the torment We cannot fathom what it was like
for the Son of God, who'd lain in the bosom of His Father from
all eternity. The one of whom the Father says,
this is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. This is my
beloved Son, hear Him. This one, this love of the Father,
we cannot fathom what it was like for Him. to be forsaken
of all, even his father, as he hung in the hours of darkness,
and as the thunders of heaven rained down upon his soul, for
what he had become, vicariously, as a sacrifice, as a substitute
in the place of a people that deserved it not. My God, my God,
why hast thou forsaken me? He died. He died a death that
none other could die. He died a death of torment that
none can fathom. He died with love for his own. He died because he loved his
own. He died because he would die
to deliver his own. Oh, can you see the love of Christ
that he should go through this? Did he go through it for you?
Child of God, can you behold his love for you in those hours
of darkness? that he should drink that cup,
that awful cup for you. Who cared not for him, who sought
not him, who despised him, who mocked him, who reviled him as
these did when he hung there. You who are no better than they, Oh the love he showed. His father
forsook him in turning his back upon him because of what he was
made to be for his people. Because he bore their sins in
his own body on the tree. Because he was really made sin
for them that he might take sin away. His father forsook him And yet
the son, in such a state, never ceased to call his father,
his father. He looked up in such a state
of torment and still addressed his God as God. His faith was
never diminished. His faith never waned. His heart
was not turned. He did not despair. He did not
turn. He did not grumble. He knew that
his father did right. He knew that this would bring
about the salvation of a countless multitude. He knew. that his reward was before him.
My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Why? And yet he knew what would come
through his sufferings. A great inheritance. A great
inheritance, a wondrous victory. Yes, Satan raged. But Satan's
head was crushed. For when the Sabbath was passed,
and Christ's body had been laid in that grave, sealed with a
great rock, with the might of Rome keeping it there, with Roman
soldiers guarding the way to the tomb, sealed in the grave, dead and buried. When Satan thought he'd done
away with him, when the Sabbath was passed, Mary Magdalene and
Mary the mother of James and Salome had bought sweet spices
that they might come and anoint him. And very early in the morning,
The first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the
rising of the sun. And they said among themselves,
who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulchre?
And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away. For it was very great. The women come to the tomb. to
the grave early in the morning on the first day of the week
at the rising of the sun at the rising of the sun what a signal,
what a picture of what was happening of what had happened what a morning
this was like no other morning in history. The sun has never
risen to a day greater than this day. What a rising of the sun,
what a shining forth of light into a dark and an evil world. How the heavens, how the earth
should rejoice that the sun rose on this day. that the rays of
light should shine forth from the east, that the darkness of
the night should be dispelled. Oh, what had happened! What light there was! What a morning! For the darkness had indeed gone. Many days, many nights had come
since this world was created. Many times the sun had set, the
darkness had come, and the sun had risen again in the morning.
But no day was like this day. When the sun rose on this day,
the darkness was forever dispelled. Not just the darkness we see
in the night, but the darkness in the souls of men. The darkness
of the evil which dwells in this world. The darkness of humanity. On this day the light shone forth
like it had never shone. Light, everlasting light. On this day, the sun rose. And on this day, another sun
rose. Far greater than that sun which
we see in the skies. Far brighter than that sun which
we see in the skies. far more powerful, with heat
far greater, with light which outshines even the light which
we see in the sun. Yes on this day the Son of God,
the Son of Righteousness, rose with healing in His wings. Oh what a day, Oh what a day,
what light there shone on this day. Has this light shone to
you? Have you sorted out? Do you even care? The women that came to the sepulchre
weren't just passing by. neither were they laying in their
beds in their homes and simply saw the light of the sun shining
in through the windows but these knew who it was who
had been nailed to the tree and these mourned that he had
been nailed to a tree and these loved the one who had
been nailed to the tree And they sought him out, for
in him they hoped. For in him they knew that the
salvation of the Jews would come. Have you sought out this one
in whom is light? Have you sought him out? Have you gone to the cross? Have
you gone to the tomb? Have you examined? Have you cried
out to sea? They came at the rising of the
sun and they discovered something incredible something amazing This tomb, this grave had a huge
rock at its door that took many men to roll it
and shut it tight. The might of Rome had been used
to seal it. The elders of the Jews had gone
to the Romans for they had heard report from Christ's disciples that he should rise again. And they thought that the disciples
might try to bring this about. By faking it. By removing his
body from the grave and making a false claim. But it wasn't faked. Because
in order to prevent such an occurrence, in order to prevent such a claim,
they had the Romans do what they could to seal the tomb fast. All the might of Rome sealed
this tomb. It was solid, it was impenetrable. These women that came to the
tomb could not roll a stone away and make a false claim. And yet
when they got there, they looked and they saw that the stone was
rolled away. Nothing. Nothing. No man could keep the Son of
God in the grave. The might of Rome's authority
was on this stone. It wasn't their stone and it
wasn't their grave. A disciple of Christ, Joseph
of Arimathea, had asked for the body and had laid it in his own
grave. And yet Rome has the care of
this stone. And it does what it can to keep
this grave sealed. Now this stone and this grave
It's a picture. It's a picture of that which
would keep us in the grave and of that which would slay us if
we had no deliverance. It's a picture of that which
brings our condemnation. That which would condemn us.
It's a picture of the law of God. that which pronounces it
thou shalt and thou shalt not against us and which finds that
we have not and we have and finds us utterly guilty under its rights
and under its claims against us. It commands and we do not. The law sounded. The law which was written in
stone. The law which was given to Moses
engraved in stone brought about our condemnation. And that condemnation
would have laid us in the grave. And that condemnation will lay
us in the grave if we know not this one who laid in the grave
for others. He was laid in a grave with a
stone at the entrance. A stone which spake of the law's
condemnation. Which spake of the law's condemnation
which brings man down into death. For the law's sentence against
those that break its least command is thou shalt die. And that penalty
is exacted against every last lawbreaker, including you and
including me. And it's under that law's penalty
which Christ was crucified and which Satan thought he had got
him. Satan brings this stone to the entrance to the tomb and he thinks it cannot be conquered. The accuser brings the condemnation
and he thinks there is no answer. There's a great stone, a great
stone, it cannot be moved. There's a stone which sits down
and weighs down upon your sins. And it cannot be moved for it
is very great. You could try to move it. You can try your best to wriggle
out from under its condemnation and under the guilt. But you've
no strength to move a stone like this. It's a great stone. A great stone. It will keep you
in the grave forever under its condemnation. We are guilty. And the stone weighs down heavy upon
us. But here's something that Satan
never expected and could do nothing to overcome. He took that stone
of the law. He comes as the accuser with
the stone of the law against God's people. And he brings what
is God's, but which he takes as Rome took the grave and the
stone of Joseph of Arimathea. He brings what isn't his, but
he brings what he thinks he can rightfully use. And he brings
that law to condemn each and every child of God. And he thinks
he'll keep them in the grave with it. He brings its commands
and he says, you've not done this, you're guilty. And he's right. And they have no answer to his
every charge, which he reads out against them. the accuser's
right for the law is not the accuser's law but God's law and
he reads a just law and he knows it's a just law and he knows
that they've broken it it's right but what he didn't figure on
is one who would take the punishment away on their behalf What he didn't reckon on was
a substitute, was one who stepped into the breach, was this one
who laid in this grave, was this one who was in this tomb, who
took their sins upon him and who blotted out their sins, that
the stone of the law should be cast aside. And when he died
and when he cried out with a great voice, that stone was smashed. It had no more to say to any
for whom he died. And so when the women came to
that tomb, though there was a great stone, they found it was rolled
away. It was rolled away, for there
was nothing to condemn. And entering into the sepulchre,
they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in
a long white garment. And they were affrighted. And
he saith unto them, Be not affrighted. Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which
was crucified. He is risen. He is not here. Behold the place where they laid
him. They saw a young man. In each of the gospels, we read
a different account of the crucifixion. In John, as we've seen before,
we read that Christ came unto Mary and was mistaken for the
gardener. In Luke there are two men at
the tomb. In Matthew there is an angel
sat upon the rock. But in Mark's gospel we read
of a young man sitting on the right side clothed in a long
white garment. Who is this young man? Why a
young man? Why is he sat? Why on the right
side? Well Mark presents Christ in
his gospel as the servant, as the apostle, the messenger of
God, as him who came to serve and to serve in the declaration
of the gospel. as a servant, as a strong servant,
as one full of strength, one full of life. And here at the grave, we see
a figure of Christ in this young man, clothed in a white garment,
sat down, his work complete, his service at an end, he sat
down, and he's young, he's full of life, he's full of strength,
he's full of vigour. He's sat down. For Christ is
risen and his work is done. There is no more to be done.
He has taken away sins, he's taken away transgressions, he's
made an end of transgressions. He's made an end of sin. He's
blotted out the sins of his people. He conquered death in his death. He's brought in everlasting righteousness. He's brought in everlasting life. and he sits here as a figure
of Him who now sits in glory. This young man is seen as a figure
of Christ who sits in glory now, sat on the right hand of the
Father, clothed in a long white perfect righteous garment, sat
down his work complete, it is finished. A man in glory. in resurrection power, sat until
his enemies be made his footstool, sat down awaiting that day when
unto him every knee shall bow, sat down as him who conquered
death, as Him who conquered hell, as Him who conquered the grave,
as He whom the grave could not hold, sat down as the Saviour
of sinners, the Servant of the Lord, the Preacher of the Gospel,
sat down as that apostle of the Lamb, the Lamb of God, as that
apostle, the one great apostle, the one great messenger, sat
down from that place from whence he preaches his gospel, to us
this day, to us this hour, sat down in glory, sat down a mighty
victor. sat down with satan crushed under
his feet sat down have you seen this young man have you seen
the grave Have you entered in? Have you seen the rock, the great
stone rolled aside? Has it been rolled aside for
you? Have your sins been rolled aside? The stone of the law broken in
pieces, blotted out, the handwriting of ordinances nailed to the cross
and blotted out. Have your sins been washed in
the blood of this one who was crucified for sinners? Have you
gone to his tomb early in the morning at the rising of the
sun and have you seen not one laid down a corpse in a tomb,
not a defeated foe, not Satan's conquest, not the mocked one
of those that railed and scoffed, not a weak poor figure that men
today would ridicule, but a young man sat in a long white garment,
sat down his work done, at whose feet every knee shall bow. The Son of God, the Son of Man,
the Lord Jesus Christ, the Risen Saviour. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, which
was crucified, do you? If you do, hear the response,
He is risen. He is not here. Behold the place
where they laid him.