Sunday, Oct. 20
Matthew 27:11 – 28:20 Read it here
The endings of the gospels, like their beginnings, are each distinctive.
The common element to each is that some of the women come to the tomb and find it empty. Their confusion ends when an angel, or Jesus himself, tells them that he has been raised from the dead.
Most of what we know of the post-resurrection appearances comes from John, Luke and Acts (Luke and Acts are by the same author).
The final verses of Mark are contested, as they don’t appear in all manuscripts.
In Matthew, though, the conclusion is short and emphatic: The story doesn’t end here, but it is now our story to tell.
In his account of the crucifixion itself, Matthew says very little about Jesus directly. The only words of Jesus he recounts are his minimal reply to Pilate (“Yes, it is as you say”) and his quotation of the opening words of Psalm 22.
Instead, Matthew directs his attention to the varied reactions to what Jesus is doing.
We see the eagerness of religious leaders to rid themselves of Jesus.
We see the crowd whipped into mindless frenzy, demanding the death of the man they welcomed as Messiah just days before.
We see Pilate, weak and indecisive, unwilling to take a stand.
We see Pilate’s wife, scared by dreams.
We see soldiers, some mocking, some scared, one afraid that Jesus is who he says he is.
We see “many women,” including some of Jesus’s closest followers, standing watch.
We see a wealthy follower, offering up his own tomb for Jesus’s body.
And we see God’s response, offering his own witness to the importance of what just happened. The curtain of the Temple is torn, opening access to God himself. Even the righteous dead bore witness.
All of this set the stage for the brief but powerful post-resurrection appearance as told by Matthew: Jesus tells his disciples to continue his ministry, and he will be with them.
“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Now it’s our story to tell.