Intermediate Level, Block 9—Biographies of Jesus
Week 89
Jesus—His Resurrection
Point to Emphasize: Jesus rose from the death.
Reading Reference: Psalm 2:7; 16:10; Matthew 16:21; 27:57-66; 28:1-7; Luke 9:22;
John 20:1-16
Memory Verse: He is not here, for He has been raised, even as He said. (Matthew 28:6)
Story Sample
Last week we talked about how Jesus died and was buried. Do you remember that we said that He was not an ordinary man? His birth was not ordinary, His death was not ordinary, and now we will see something even more extraordinary: His resurrection. Jesus rose from the dead! Amazing!
After He died, the body of Jesus was wrapped in fine linen cloths with spices and placed in a tomb with a stone rolled in front. They placed the body of Jesus inside and rolled a stone against the door of the tomb and sealed it. Guards were left by the tomb to make sure no one came to take His body.
But this is not the end of this story! Early on the first day of the week, there were two Marys who loved Jesus and came to see the grave. There was an earthquake and an angel appeared and moved the stone that sealed the tomb. Jesus was not there! The guards were terrified, but the angel told the women not to be afraid and that Jesus had been raised from the dead. Do you remember how there were angels to announce the birth of Jesus? Well, once again we have angels present, announcing the good news of His resurrection.
The angel told them to go quickly and tell the disciples that Jesus had been raised from the dead. So they went to Peter and John, who rushed to the tomb to see. Jesus was not there! They went inside the tomb to look and all that they found were the linens nicely folded and laid in one place. Can you believe that? This was the most important day in the history of man, and yet Jesus took the time to fold His things up before He left the tomb. He was surely the most perfect man!
After Peter and John left to tell the others the good news, Mary stayed behind in the tomb, crying, wondering where He had gone. Two angels sat in the tomb and asked her why she cried. She told them she didn’t know where they had taken Jesus. But when she turned, she saw Jesus standing there. He was no longer dead in the tomb. He was raised from the dead!
This is an extraordinary story. It happened just as the Bible said it would. His resurrection was written about in the Old Testament, hundreds of years before it even happened. In the New Testament, Jesus Himself told His disciples about it before He died. And that is just what happened! Jesus suffered death, was buried in high honor and three days later, He was raised from the dead! Amazing!