And behold, there was a great earthquake, for the angel of the Lord descended from Heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it. Matthew 28:2
On May 22, 1960, an earthquake registering 9.5 on the Richter scale occurred in southern Chile, and has been listed as the largest earthquake to ever occur in human history. The quake killed more than 1600 people, many of them drowned in the huge tsunamis that struck South America, the west coast of the United States, Hawaii, the Philippines, and Japan. Thousands were injured, and the damage was in the hundreds of millions of dollars. Despite its great size, the Chile earthquake receives far less attention that one that occurred in Haiti in January of 2010, because that earthquake, although only 7.0, killed as many as 160,000 people, far more than the Chile quake. But these earthquakes pale in significance when compared to the earthquake in today’s text, which everyone who has ever lived and will live in our world.
Unlike the world’s worst earthquakes, which brought destruction and death, the earthquake of Easter morning brings restoration and life. For the first time in human history, One Who had died returned to life again by His own power. And that resurrection proved that the Lord Jesus has power over death, not only for Himself but for all who will trust in Him. We who are saved acknowledge that we are dying, and our bodies may well see decay in the grave, but that temporary state will be swallowed up in victory over death, victory announced by the great earthquake some two thousand years ago.
Our text informs us that the earthquake was caused by the angel arriving and rolling back the stone. The sepulchre had held the body of the Lord Jesus, but its holding power was broken. The angel’s task was to provide the proof that the grave was empty, that its Occupant no longer needed a resting place. Without the angel’s action, we might never know for sure that the Lord Jesus had risen from the dead. Because His resurrection is the basis of all of our hopes for eternity, it is critical that we know for sure that the sepulchre was empty. The women who were there saw the empty tomb. So did Peter and John a short time later. Members of the Roman guard could also have looked in and verified that the body was gone. When Jesus appeared to Mary Magdalene and to the disciples, they could be sure that it was He and not another.
The earthquake announced that our greatest enemy, death, has been defeated. It is now our turn to announce that victory to others, because it is available to all who will accept it. -Jim MacIntosh