BEING ALIVE IN CHRIST- Luke 24:1-12

One of the most miraculous but controversial facts of history is the resurrection of Christ. This is the foundation of all New Testament preaching. The reason is, without Christ's resurrection, men would have remained in their sins; faith would have been in vain; preachers would be false witnesses and man would have been without hope- 1 Cor. 15:12-19. Other religion can point to the tomb wherein lies the remains of their deity or leader; however, the world is yet to explain the empty tomb of Christ. When soldiers reported the empty tomb, they were bribed to circulate the story that the disciples stole His body. Men must face the fact of His resurrection as the empty tomb clearly points to that.Early heresies denied the divine human-nature of Christ. One of the most troublesome of these to the early Church was Gnosticism. This heresy held the view that Jesus was an ordinary man, that Christ was Spirit or power that descended upon Jesus at His baptism. On the cross, Christ departed, leaving the man Jesus to suffer alone. Any view of the person of Christ which denies is true identity and true humanity must be rejected as heretical.

Three things are significant about the tomb where Jesus was laid. First, John is the only Gospel writer who locates the tomb in a garden. This is a way of emphasizing that what man lost through disobedience in the garden of Eden was now recovered in another garden through obedience; secondly, it was a new tomb which no other person had used and thirdly. it was the tomb of a rich man which fulfills one of the many messianic prophecies about Jesus '' He died like a common criminal but was rich in the death''- Isa. 53:9.

There is always a tension between known present conditions and unknown of the future. We make plans , but many unexpected things can upset these plans. As Christ's body lay in its grave, this tension was at a crucial points for the disciples as to what their future holds. Distressing conditions come to each of us and we wonder how the conflict or sorrow will be resolved. National and world events leave us concerned about the future, but this is a normal Christian living. As a result of Christ's resurrection, we have the Holy Spirit as the guarantee that we will receive what God has promised. This tension can be faced with assurance and confidence. The  resurrection makes the difference; Christ has conquered death.

About the ninth hour, Jesus commended His spirit into the hands of the heavenly father; Hence it became a vital necessity that He have a tomb for His body because it was a few hours to the Jewish Sabbath when all shops would be closed and all works would cease. Many a times, unless someone requested the bodies of those crucified, they were left to rot or devoured by the birds; it was at this precise moment that Joseph of Arimathea stepped forward to save the body of Jesus from such indignity.

Very early in the morning, on the third day, the women did not find the expected body in the tomb rather, they found two unexpected visitors and the search question of the angels rebuked their doubts about the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Because Jesus is alive, our lives can be different. Jesus' resurrected body belongs to a new and higher order of existence. Jesus could come out of a tomb before the door was opened- Matt. 28:2; He could walk through locked doors- Jn. 20:19, Lazarus' resurrected body was not like this and this new wonderful power sets it apart from any resurrected body and became the foundation of all New Testament preaching. Other religions can point to the tomb where the remains of their deity or leader lies.

The arrival of the women at the tomb had been marked by doubt and sorrow but their departure was marked by joy and belief. Jesus is alive forevermore.

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