He Has Risen Just As He Said

In one paragraph

Ray preached from Matthew 28 on the resurrection and ascension of Jesus, working through the Easter account and landing on the Great Commission. He tied together the disciples' worship, their doubt, and Jesus' answer to that doubt, before the church moved into communion together. Matthew 28 opens with the women arriving at the tomb after the Sabbath ends. Ray walked through the earthquake, the...

Read together

1. 1 Peter 5:7 opening encouragement to cast all anxiety on the Lord because He cares
2. Psalm 147 quoted before prayer: how good and fitting it is to sing praises to God
3. Colossians 1 read before offering: all things created through and for Christ, He holds all things together and is head of the church
4. Mark 16:1-8 described as ending at verse 8 with the women fleeing the tomb in fear and astonishment
5. Mark 16:9-20 noted as a disputed passage that was skipped, continuing the resurrection story
6. Matthew 28:1-20 the main sermon text covering the resurrection, great commission, and guards' report
7. Philippians 2 cited to explain that Christ emptied Himself of some divine attributes before the resurrection
8. John 17 referenced as Jesus praying not only for the disciples present but for all who would believe through their word
9. Ephesians 3:16-19 closing benediction about being strengthened by the Spirit and grasping the breadth of Christ's love

Talk about it

1. Ray pointed to the angel's words at the tomb, 'he has risen just as he said,' and noted that Jesus had told his followers repeatedly that he would rise from the dead. What does it mean to you that Jesus kept saying it ahead of time, and how does that affect the way you read his other promises?
2. Ray described Matthew's account of the guards being bribed to spread the story that the disciples stole the body, and said that story is still circulating today. Why do you think people have continued to work so hard to explain away the resurrection, and what do you find most compelling about the case that it actually happened?
3. Ray said the only imperative in the Great Commission is 'make disciples,' and that 'go' is better read as 'as you are going.' How does that shift the way you think about who is responsible for making disciples, and what does it look like in the ordinary movement of your week?
4. Ray came back to the phrase 'but some doubted' and spent time on it, noting that the word means wavering or halting between two positions. He also pointed out that Jesus did not rebuke the doubters but simply reassured them of his authority and his presence. Where do you find yourself wavering, and how does his response to those disciples speak to that?
5. Ray closed by saying there is no theological argument against a transformed life. What does a transformed life actually look like in practice, and how does the ongoing presence of the risen Jesus connect to that kind of change?