AR 16{Verses 1, 2. In Matt. 28:1. The women visited the grave at dusk of the Sabbath, just as the first day commenced. They had bought sweet spices and ointments before the Sabbath (Luke 23:56), and early in the morning of the first day they go to complete their work.
Verse 3. They think of the difficulty of that great stone in the way. "Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulcher?”
Verse 4. "And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away: for it was very great." How often we, like them, anticipate difficulties in what we do for the Lord, and how often we are made to prove that He goes before us to order the way. (Prov. 3:5-6.)
Verses 5-7. On entering the sepulcher they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted. He speaks to them, calming their fears, and tells them the one they sought. Jesus of Nazareth, was risen. He is not in the grave. "Behold the place where they laid Him." He gives them a message to His disciples and Peter to meet Him in Galilee. (Matt. 26:32.)
Verse 8. The women went out quickly and fled from the sepulcher, fear keeping them silent about what they had seen. Afterward they met the Lord Himself and received the message anew. (Matt. 28:9.) How comforting this message would be to Peter, who could see in it that the Lord had not cast him off, but still called him "Peter"-his new name. (Matt. 16:8; John 1:42, margin.) Peter had thrice denied that he knew the Lord, but the Lord would not deny Peter. (2 Tim. 2:13.)
Verses 9-11. Tell of Mary Magdalene, to whom he appeared first, after He was risen, and of the blind unbelief of the disciples who refused to believe in His resurrection.
Verses 12, 13. Tell of another occasion, and again how slow their hearts were about this truth of resurrection.
Verse 14. And when with the eleven He upbraided them about this same unbelief, this truth of resurrection. How important it is! Man's natural mind refuses it, for resurrection bears witness to the almighty power of God, and stamps the work of Christ as that work that has glorified. Him and that has glorified the Son in return ( John 13:31, 32.)
Verses 15, 16. Their commission here is, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.”
Verses 17, 18. Are the signs witnessing that they were sent by God. (Heb. 2:4.) It was power able to deliver from Satan; to speak with new tongues, and thus to convey the gospel to nations in their own languages-the proclamation of grace to all men; death could not touch them without the Lord's permission; and diseases would yield to the authority in trusted to them.
Verses 19, 20. The Lord was eventually received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God. And they went forth, and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following.
In the history of the progress of the gospel we see that all was not fulfilled at once. The apostles did not go from Jerusalem till they could stay there no longer. History outside of the Bible tells us that then they went to different places and labored, and the Lord worked with them. Peter was used to open the door to the bringing in of the Gentiles in Acts 10 as he had done also for the Jew in Acts 2. But it was Paul that took the lead as the apostle to the Gentiles in preaching the gospel to every creature (all creation). Which means that no nationality was excluded, it went beyond the Jews, to all men.
In answer to the Lord's prayer upon the cross (Luke 23:34), another offer was given to the Jews as a nation in Acts 3 that if they repented then the Lord would come back and set up His kingdom, thus fulfilling the unfulfilled prophecies. Instead of repenting, they abused His servants; and stoned Stephen, sending him after His Master. (Luke 19:14.) Stephen sees Jesus standing on the right-hand of God, as if waiting to come. That offer is closed with Stephen's death, henceforth the gospel was to individuals. And the Church was scattered abroad from Jerusalem, except the apostles, and those scattered abroad went everywhere preaching the word. (Acts 8:1, 4.)
And the Lord worked with them also. May we know, too, what that means, "The Lord working with them," in our service.
The word is now established: signs are not needed in this day, to make us see that the gospel is from the living God.