Dr. Doug Bookman

A. The Tomb Is Empty (Early Sunday Morning)

Scripture: Matthew 28:1-8; Mark 16:1-8; Luke 24:1-12; and John 20:1-10

Notes: The women coming to attend to the body were the first to hear the staggering angelic announcement that “He is not here, for He is risen”! They carry that message to the unbelieving apostles; Peter and John hasten to visit the empty cave. Note that there was absolutely no expectation on the part of any of Jesus’s disciples that He would rise from the dead, a reality which makes their testimony concerning His resurrection the more undeniable.

Questions/Observations: In the preaching of the gospel in the book of Acts, the resurrection is emphasized more than the death of Jesus. Clearly, the fact of the resurrection is absolutely central and essential to the gospel message (1 Corinthians 15:1–58). Why do you think this is?

B. Jesus Appears Five Times on the Day of His Resurrection

Scripture: Matthew 28:9-10; Mark 16:9-14; Luke 24:13-43; and John 20:11-25

The Appearances:

1. To Mary Magdalene, who is given a message to carry to the disciples
2. To the other women who had come to the tomb
3. To two disciples traveling to Emmaus who are joined by Jesus but do not recognize Him until they break bread with Him
4. To Simon Peter (referenced in Luke 24:34 and 1 Corinthians 15:5 but not narrated)
5. To the astonished disciples (Thomas absent)

Questions/Observations: The Bible does not record all of the post-resurrection appearances of Jesus, but those it does record powerfully make the point that He had really and physically returned from the dead.

C. The Soldiers Report to the Jewish Authorities

Scripture: Matthew 28:11-15

Notes: The Sanhedrinists demanded that the Roman guards testify that Jesus’s body had been stolen by His disciples.

Adapted from the Life of Christ study notes of Dr. Doug Bookman, professor of New Testament Exposition at Shepherds Theological Seminary (used by permission).

Dr. Doug Bookman

A. Jesus Buried after Undeniable Proof of His Death

Scripture: Matthew 27:57-60; Mark 15:42-46; Luke 23:50-54; and John 19:31-42

Notes: Jesus had promised that He would be in the tomb “three days and three nights” and that He would rise from the dead “on the third day.” There seems to be some conflict here, but not by Jewish reckoning. The Talmud states that “a day/night is an onah [i.e., a unit of time]” and that, in computing the passage of time, “any part of an onah is as the whole.” Jesus physically died late on Friday afternoon, was in the tomb before the sun went down (thus, by Jewish reckoning, Friday is the first onah or day/night unit), remained there all Saturday (the second), and rose sometime before sunrise on Sunday (the third).

B. The Women Observe the Tomb; the Romans Seal It

Scripture: Matthew 27:61-66; Mark 15:47; and Luke 23:55-56

Notes: The gospels are explicit that certain believing women marked carefully where the tomb was, intending to return after the Sabbath to finish preparing the body for burial. The preparation had been hasty and partial because the Sabbath was approaching. By Jewish law, the body could be dressed for three days – the day of death was day #1. By sundown on the third day after that, the tomb had to be permanently sealed because the corpse would begin to smell horribly. These women were coming to the tomb early on Sunday when they discovered it empty. Although Jesus’s disciples had never been willing to hear His promise to rise on the third day – and thus did not anticipate that event – Jesus’s enemies had heard that claim. For that reason, they demanded that Pilate place an official seal on the tomb and provide armed guards so that Jesus’s disciples could not come and steal the body.

Adapted from the Life of Christ study notes of Dr. Doug Bookman, professor of New Testament Exposition at Shepherds Theological Seminary (used by permission).

Dr. Doug Bookman

A. Jesus on the Way to Golgotha (Before 9:00 a.m.)

Scripture: Matthew 27:31-34; Mark 15:20-23; Luke 23:26-33; and John 19:17

Notes: The Romans intended crucifixion to be 1) unspeakably cruel; 2) mercilessly lingering (men would often last a day or more on the cross); 3) inescapably public (again, to hinder any seditious impulse in the citizenry); and 4) publicly certifiable (the death had to occur visibly and undeniably on the cross so that the rumor would not get started that the seditionist had somehow survived and the rebellion should go on). Thus, crucifixion was always on a low hill outside a main city gate (because a gate is a bottleneck – a person going into/out of the city must pass that way). Jesus is forced to carry the horizontal piece of the cross to the place of execution, just outside a main gate on the north of the city of Jerusalem.

B. The First Three Hours on the Cross (9:00 a.m.-Noon)

Scripture: Matthew 27:35-44; Mark 15:24-32; Luke 23:33-43; and John 19:18-27

Notes: Jesus is crucified between two criminals. Sunlight remains. The soldiers gamble for Jesus’s garments (in fulfillment of Psalms 22:18). The inscription is affixed amid much scoffing. Jesus speaks three times: 1) to His heavenly Father on behalf of His tormentors: “Father, forgive them,” 2) to the repentant thief: “Today you shall be with me in paradise,” and 3) to His mother and to John: “Woman, behold thy son.”

C. The Final Three Hours on the Cross (Noon-3:00 p.m.)

Scripture: Matthew 27:45-50; Mark 15:33-37; Luke 23:44-46; and John 19:28-30

Notes: God draws a supernatural darkness over the scene. Jesus, as the Lamb of God, is “forsaken” (i.e., judicially dis-fellowshipped, rejected) by the Father, suffering the agony and torment of spiritual death (i.e., separation from the Father) on behalf of fallen men. (It was the prospect of this spiritual separation that had so horrified Jesus as He contemplated the cross.) Jesus is silent until late in the three hours, and then He speaks four times: 1) in agony, “My God, why…,” 2) to those standing by: “I thirst!” (Jesus had something more to say, but His mouth and throat were so parched by the ordeal of crucifixion that He did not have the physical strength to say it; thus this request for moisture for His lips), 3) to a breathlessly waiting world, a cry of sublime victory: “It is finished,” and 4) having completed the awful task: “Father, into thy hands….” The Prince of Life lays down His physical life for three dark days.

D. Physical Phenomena at the Death of Jesus

Scripture: Matthew 27:51-56; Mark 15:38-41; and Luke 23:50-54

Notes: These events include the following: the rending of the veil in the temple; tremors in the earth that split rocks; the resuscitation (return to mortal life) of some who had (recently?) died and been buried in the regions of Jerusalem. These physical signs drew many onlookers to faith, including a centurion (Roman soldier given leadership over 100 troops) who had been assigned to the detail conducting this crucifixion.

Adapted from the Life of Christ study notes of Dr. Doug Bookman, professor of New Testament Exposition at Shepherds Theological Seminary (used by permission).