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Well, you can turn with me in 
your Bibles to Matthew chapter 27. Matthew chapter 27. We've been 
considering Matthew's passion narrative. for a while now in 
our Lord's Supper services, and I want to read beginning in Matthew 
27 at verse 32. Now, as they came out, excuse 
me, they found a man of Cyrene, Simon by name, him they compelled 
to bear his cross. And when they had come to a place 
called Golgotha, that is to say, place of a skull, they gave him 
sour wine mingled with gall to drink. But when he had tasted 
it, he would not drink. Then they crucified him and divided 
his garments, casting lots, that it might be fulfilled which was 
spoken by the prophet. They divided my garments among 
them, and for my clothing they cast lots. Sitting down, they 
kept watch over him there. And they put up over his head 
the accusation written against him, This is Jesus, the King 
of the Jews. Then two robbers were crucified 
with Him, one on the right and another on the left. And those 
who passed by blasphemed Him, wagging their heads and saying, 
You who destroy the temple and build it in three days, save 
yourself. If you are the Son of God, come 
down from the cross. Likewise, the chief priests also, 
mocking with the scribes and elders, said, He saved others, 
Himself He cannot save. If He is the King of Israel, 
let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him. 
He trusted in God, let Him deliver Him now, if He will have Him. 
For He said, I am the Son of God. Even the robbers who were 
crucified with Him reviled Him with the same thing. Now, from 
the sixth hour until the ninth hour, there was darkness over 
all the land. And about the ninth hour, Jesus 
cried out with a loud voice saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani. That is, my God, my God, why 
have you forsaken me? Some of those who stood there, 
when they heard that, said, this man is calling for Elijah. Immediately, 
one of them ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine, and 
put it on a reed, and offered it to him to drink. The rest 
said, let him alone. Let us see if Elijah will come 
to save him. And Jesus cried out again with 
a loud voice and yielded up his spirit. Then behold, the veil 
of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom, and the earth 
quaked, and the rocks were split, and the graves were opened, and 
many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised. 
And coming out of the graves after his resurrection, they 
went into the holy city and appeared to many. So when the centurion 
and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and 
the things that had happened, they feared greatly saying, truly, 
this was the Son of God. And many women who followed Jesus 
from Galilee, ministering to him, were there looking on from 
afar, among whom were Mary Magdalene, Mary, the mother of James and 
Joses, and the mother of Zebedee's sons. Amen. Well, let us pray. Our Father in heaven, we thank 
you for your word. We thank you for this narrative 
and for what it instructs us concerning the death of our Lord 
Jesus Christ. We know that as a result of his 
death and his resurrection, we have eternal life, and we praise 
you for that. We ask now that you would guide 
our thoughts and our meditation, that you would draw out our hearts 
in love and worship and adoration. I do also want to pray for our 
brother Jonathan Hall tonight, Ask God that you would continue 
to watch over him and Selina and their little children, and 
just bless in this whole process. And God, encourage all of us 
now. There are many things going on 
in the world today, many things that perplex our hearts and our 
minds, and many things that drag us down, if we allow it. But 
help us to be encouraged by the balm of Gilead. Help us to find 
great nurture in the word of the living God. and especially 
as we concentrate our energy upon the Son of Man who loved 
us and who gave himself for us. Forgive us again for our sin 
and transgression, guide and lead us by your Holy Spirit, 
and we pray through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Well, our focus 
tonight is on verses 51 to 56. So the narrative that I read 
has to do with the crucifixion of our Lord. So the crucifixion 
proper is recorded in verses 32 to 38. And then you have the 
mockery of Jesus while he is on the cross, verses 39 to 44. 
and then the death of Jesus here specifically in 45 to 56. But as we narrow in on this particular 
section, there is the cry of dereliction in verses 45 and 
46, the mockery of the bystanders, again, verses 47 to 49, the death 
of Jesus in verse 50, and then tonight the signs and wonders 
after the crucifixion in verses 51 to 53, and then finally the 
witnesses to the crucifixion. The women and the soldiers testify 
great things concerning the Son of God who gave himself for us. Well, let's look first at the 
signs and wonders following the crucifixion. There are three 
recorded here. First, the torn veil, verse 51a. This is also parallel in Mark 
and in Luke. Secondly, you have the earthquake 
and rocks. That's unique to Matthew. The 
other gospel writers do not record that. And then you have the resurrection 
of the saints. in verses 52 and 53, again, unique 
to Matthew. You won't find that in Mark or 
in Luke. So the torn veil, the earthquake 
and the rocks, and then the resurrection of the saints. I doubt that every 
question will be answered tonight in terms of the resurrection 
of the saints, but I'll simply try to point you in the right 
direction. In the first place, notice the torn veil. Verse 50 
tells us that Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded 
up his spirit. Then behold, the veil of the 
temple was torn in two from top to bottom. Now commentators are 
a bit divided upon this because we don't know if it was the inner 
veil or the outer veil. There was an inner veil that 
separated the holy place from the holy of holies. And then 
there was an outer veil that separated the Holy Place from 
the outer courtyard. And there is significance to 
be found in both. With reference to the inner veil, 
it would indicate or underscore that there is now access. As 
well, there is no more sacrificial system. There is no more Old 
Covenant legislation in terms of our approach to God. With 
that inner veil rent from top to bottom, it shows the initiative 
of God. It's not from bottom to top. 
It's not man sort of making his way upward, but it is rather 
from the top to the bottom indicating showing, demonstrating that God 
is appeased, that atonement has been wrought, and now man has 
access by God's grace through the mediation of our Lord and 
Savior Jesus Christ. One man says that the whole epistle 
to the Hebrews is commentary on this split veil. Now, if it's 
the outer veil, that's significant in terms of the impending judgment 
upon Jerusalem. Now, these two concepts are not 
far removed. Judgment typically implies salvation, 
and salvation typically implies judgment. While Old Covenant 
Israel is going to be cut off, and that's already been announced 
by Jesus in Matthew chapters 23 and chapter 24, there is that 
opening up in terms of the New Covenant, that blessed era prophesied 
in the Old Testament, inaugurated by the Lord Jesus Christ, wherein 
access to the Father is through the Son. the one who yielded 
up his spirit, the one who rendered up a blood atonement, the one 
who was the sacrifice for his people. So the judgment aspect, 
again, I think it's there. Matthew Poole makes this comment. 
By this rending of the veil, God testified his wrath against 
the Jews, and that he was leaving his temple amongst them. Spurgeon 
says, as if shocked at the sacrilegious murder of her lord, the temple 
rent her garments like one stricken with horror at some stupendous 
crime. Again, these concepts are mingled. The new covenant is initiated, 
is inaugurated, and it is signified here by the renting of this temple. So the veil is torn from top 
to bottom, indicating God's activity in bringing salvation to his 
people. Every attempt by man in terms of false religion is 
an attempt by man in vain to gain access to God. The only 
way that sinners have access to God is if God initiates, is 
if God orchestrates, if God actually puts into practice a way or means 
by which sinners can come into his presence. That is signified 
by the rent veil from the top to the bottom. As well, the veil 
that prohibited access to the Holy of Holies is torn, indicating 
now that the sinner has approached into the Holy of Holies. And 
again, that is made much of in the book of Hebrews by the Apostle 
Paul. So we have access into that Holy 
of Holies, and if you're thinking in terms of Old Testament religion, 
that was only for the high priest on the Day of Atonement. We have 
this priesthood of believers today that is most excellent 
in the new covenant. We are those who, by God's grace, 
have access into God's holy presence. Again, not because of our good 
works, not because of our virtue or our law keeping, but because 
of what Christ has wrought in terms of His atonement on the 
cross for His people. And the veil is torn, and that 
serves as a visible display of the covenantal transformation. 
Again, that will happen in A.D. 70, when Jerusalem is surrounded 
by her enemies, when the temple is destroyed, when the city is 
sacked, and when the Jews go into exile. But with reference 
to the rending of the veil, the veil is torn and that serves 
as a visible display of the covenantal transformation involved and the 
fulfillment of the ceremonial law. For those who witness or 
rather attend the Wednesday night or the confession study, there's 
three divisions in the law of God. There's the moral law, there's 
the judicial law, and then there's the ceremonial law. And the ceremonial 
law was extant or present in Old Covenant religion. It prefigured 
Christ. It pointed forward to the Lord 
Jesus by virtue of a lot of different ways and sacrifices and means. They were tutored to look forward 
to the coming Messiah. Well, by the sacrifice of our 
Lord Jesus Christ, that has been fulfilled. Again, I think I mentioned 
this recently, we don't have sacrifice. Tonight what we engage 
in is not atonement. This is not a bloodless atonement 
vis-a-vis Roman Catholicism. It is a means of grace. It is 
a time and a special way to remember our Lord's death on our behalf. 
But we're not sacrificing. There's no incense. There's no 
animals that we bring into this place. Why? Because the ceremonies 
of Moses have been fulfilled by our Lord Jesus Christ. The 
temple was under that same sort of an operation. Now that Jesus 
has come, there's no significance in an earthly temple. This idea 
of dispensational theology to rebuild the temple in the city 
of Jerusalem to await for the Lord Jesus Christ is to go precisely 
backward in redemptive history. The temple stood to point to 
the Lord Jesus. Now that the Lord Jesus is here, 
we don't have to have a temple. We certainly don't have blood 
atonement in terms of animal sacrifice. That is a backward 
motion in terms of redemptive history. John Calvin comments, 
for then Christ, the true and everlasting priest, having abolished 
the figures of the law, opened up for us by his blood the way 
to the heavenly sanctuary, that we may no longer stand at a distance 
within the porch, but may freely advance into the presence of 
God. That is, I think, a good take-home message. There may 
be some confusion in terms of the inner veil, in terms of the 
outer veil, in terms of salvation, in terms of judgment, in terms 
of ceremonies, and in terms of what is binding in new covenant 
religion. But let this fester, or rather 
simmer, in your heart. What he says, we may freely advance 
into the presence of God. What was reserved for the high 
priest on the Day of Atonement alone has now been opened up 
through the high priestly office of our Lord Jesus Christ, so 
that we have access to the Father through the mediation of the 
Son in the presence and the power of the Holy Spirit. such that 
the church, as it were, enters into the very new Jerusalem when 
we gather together for corporate worship. We can advance, we can 
enter the holy of holies. Now notice, secondly, the earthquake 
and rocks in verse 51b. So then, behold, the veil of 
the temple was torn in two from top to bottom, and the earth 
quaked and the rocks were split. Davies and Allison say God vindicates 
his son with a shower of astounding miracles. Nature speaks again 
and loudly. If you go back to verse 45, now 
from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness 
over all the land. So the created order speaks at 
the crucifixion of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is as it were, as 
if the created order is underscoring the significance of what is transpiring 
in the death of our Lord Jesus Christ. One man says, as the 
skies darken before Jesus' death, now the earth trembles after 
it. So you have this statement, the 
earthquake and the rocks were split. Turn back to the book 
of Judges to see the significance involved in this language. Several 
passages underscore for us what is in view here. Remember that 
it's not only the death of Jesus in its positive aspect in terms 
of opening to us the Holy of Holies. But there's also the 
judgment upon the nation that has taken the Lord of glory and 
has crucified Him. So these Jews, these lawless 
men, appeal to Pontius Pilate because they don't possess the 
prerogative of execution of criminal offenders. So they set up the 
case, they present it to Pilate, Pilate, because he's a coward, 
kowtows to mob rule, and what we have here is the greatest 
crime that ever transpired. Christ is holy, harmless, and 
undefiled. There was nothing in him deserving 
the treatment that he received at the hands of men. So this 
phenomena that occurs in the natural order again underscores 
the significance of the event, but it also thunders forth God's 
judgment over those rejecters. Notice in Judges 5 at verses 
4 and 5 in the Song of Deborah. Lord, when you went out from 
Seir, When you marched from the field of Edom, the earth trembled 
and the heavens poured. The clouds also poured water. 
The mountains gushed before the Lord, this Sinai, before the 
Lord God of Israel. Turn over to Psalm 114. Psalm 
114. The significance of this is that 
God intervenes, and the significance of this is that He not only intervenes, 
but He shows His disapproval of their action. In other words, 
he is intending to bring judgment to bear upon them. That was announced 
in chapters 23 and 24 with the destruction of Jerusalem that 
would occur in AD 70. But notice in Psalm 114, specifically 
at verses 7 and 8. Tremble, O earth, at the presence 
of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob, who turned 
the rock into a pool of water, the flint into a fountain of 
waters. And then in terms of judgment, 
look at the prophet Jeremiah. Jeremiah chapter 10. So we've 
got God's intervention and we've got God's judgment. Jeremiah 
chapter 10, verse 10. But the Lord is the true God. 
He is the living God and the everlasting King. At His wrath, 
the earth will tremble and the nations will not be able to endure 
His indignation. the minor prophet, Joel, Hosea, 
Joel, the second of the minor prophets, chapter three, verse 
16, same sort of an emphasis, the judgment of God as demonstrated 
through the natural order. So Joel 3.16, the Lord also will 
roar from Zion and utter his voice from Jerusalem. The heavens 
and earth will shake, but the Lord will be a shelter for his 
people and the strength of the children of Israel. And then 
the prophet Nahum, just go a few books further and you'll see 
the prophet Nahum. This is a prophecy of judgment 
against the city of Nineveh. You remember that Jonah was sent 
on that mission of mercy to preach to the city of Nineveh. Well, 
the Ninevites repented, but their repentance wasn't lasting. And 
so the prophet Nahum prophesied concerning their impending doom. 
And then you notice in chapter one of the prophet Nahum, specifically 
at verses five and six, the mountains quake before him, the hills melt, 
and the earth heaves at his presence. Yes, the world and all who dwell 
in it. Who can stand before his indignation and who can endure 
the fierceness of his anger? His fury is poured out like fire 
and the rocks are thrown down by him. So back to Matthew 27, 
it's God's intervention wherein this phenomena happens. But it's 
demonstrative of God's judgment. And if these godless, Christ-rejecting 
Jews had pondered their own scriptures, they would have stood in fear. 
There's no sense of that whatsoever. They continue impenitent, they 
continue rebellious, they continue in that place of rejecting both 
Yahweh and His Christ. Matthew Henry said, the earth, 
by trembling under such a load, bore its testimony to the innocence 
of Him that was persecuted, and against the impiety of those 
that persecuted Him. Never did the whole creation 
before, grown under such a burden as the Son of God crucified, 
and the guilty wretches that crucified Him. So we would expect 
this in terms of the significance of the event that it would be 
attended by this phenomena. But it does demonstrate to us 
not only the salvation of the elect as they have access to 
the Holy of Holies, but the damnation of those who reject and those 
who continue in penitent. Back to Matthew chapter 27, we 
have the third aspect in terms of the resurrection of the saints. 
If you look at verse 52, It says, and the graves were opened, and 
many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised. 
And coming out of the graves after his resurrection, they 
went into the holy city and appeared to many. This demonstrates Christ's 
power over the grave. This demonstrates what will be 
admitted or rather testified by Jesus in John's gospel in 
John 5, 24 to 29. He has the power over the grave. 
But when we look at that particular passage, we need to make a stop 
at the end of opened. Because as the text is punctuated, 
at least in the New King James, the idea is that the graves opened, 
the saints were resurrected, and then they sat in the grave 
for three days. And then they exited the grave 
when Jesus rose from the dead. Their resurrection is connected 
to Jesus' resurrection. That's the way the text is to 
be interpreted. Notice, and the graves were open, 
full stop, period. And many bodies of the saints 
who had fallen asleep were raised. And coming out of the graves 
after his resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared 
to many. So you see the process or the 
trajectory there. You've got the graves open when 
the Son of Man dies. But then three days later, many 
of these saints are raised at that point. It is consistent 
with the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Calvin says, 
there is no probability in the conjecture of some commentators 
that after having received life and breath, they remain three 
days concealed in their graves. That's not what happened. So 
the graves were open, preparatory for the resurrection that would 
take place when Jesus rose from the dead. Now, in terms of the 
significance of this particular passage, it foreshadows chapter 
28. It foreshadows the reality that 
Christ will rise from the dead. So in verse 50, you have the 
statement, Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded 
up his spirit. And then here in verse 53, and 
coming out of the graves after his resurrection. So it foreshadows, 
as I said, chapter 28. If there were no chapter 28, 
you still have a Christ resurrected from the dead. As well, it underscores 
the efficacy of Christ's atoning work. So when that veil is rent 
from the top to the bottom, that is God's signature that what 
Christ has accomplished is efficacious. It is approved by the Father. 
It is accepted. The way of access has been gained. 
We now have the ability to go behind the veil into the very 
Holy of Holies and to meet with God Most High. So we have the 
efficacy of Christ's work underscored by His resurrection from the 
dead. And then notice this identification 
of many saints. It says, and many bodies of the 
saints who had fallen asleep were raised. We don't know who 
they are. It doesn't give us their names. 
It doesn't give us their identities. It doesn't tell us either their 
status. Did they continue on in their 
lives the way that Lazarus, who was raised from the dead, did? 
Or did they ascend at the time that our Lord Jesus ascended? 
Commentators are divided on either way. But we do know, we don't 
know who they are, but we do know this. that they were saints 
that were resurrected by virtue of the work of the Lord Jesus 
Christ. In other words, His life, His 
death, His resurrection was applied to all those prior to Him. Turn 
to the book of Hebrews where you see that. You see a retrospective 
application of the finished work of our Lord Jesus to old covenant 
saints. Hebrews chapter 9. The point 
is simple. Anyone who has ever entered into 
the presence of God has done so on the basis of the active 
and passive obedience of our Lord Jesus Christ. Enoch walked 
with God and then he was not. Abel was a righteous man who 
passed into the presence of God. How did they enter in? through 
the blood atonement wrought out by our Lord Jesus Christ. The 
way we look back in history at that event, it has blessing for 
us. In the same manner, that event 
had blessing for those prior to the cross. Notice in Hebrews 
9.15, And for this reason, He is the mediator of the New Covenant, 
by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the 
First Covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise 
of the eternal inheritance. Look at chapter 10, verse 1, 
for the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and 
not the very image of the things can never, with these same sacrifices, 
which they offer continually year by year, make those who 
approach perfect. For then would they not have 
ceased to be offered. For the worshipers once purified 
would have had no more consciousness of sins. But in those sacrifices, 
there is a reminder of sins every year. For it is not possible 
that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins. They were 
typological. They pointed forward to the Lamb 
of God who takes away the sin of the world. But they weren't 
efficacious to bring sinners into the presence of God Most 
High. That is reserved solely for the work of our Lord Jesus 
Christ. And then one final observation 
before we leave these saints. Notice what it says. Verse 53. 
and coming out of the graves after his resurrection, they 
went into the holy city and appeared to many. This as well foreshadows the 
nature of the Christian hope. I have suggested before that 
we are not Gnostics. Gnostics believe that the body 
isn't incidental. It's sort of a necessary evil. It's not all that, you know, 
it's just not something that is an end. That's why, you know, 
in 1 John, for instance, and in 2 John, the apostle there 
emphasizes that Jesus has come in the flesh. Why? Because not 
fully developed Gnosticism in play at that point, but at least 
in sort of seed form Gnosticism, they rejected the idea of the 
physical. They rejected the idea of the 
bodily. You see that through the history 
of the church as well. Roman Catholicism, for instance, 
teaching that marriage, the only reason for marriage is for procreation. Now that's certainly an aspect 
of marriage, but there's other parts to it as well. You know, 
the emphasis in Rome about not eating meat on Friday during 
Lent or, you know, not eating whatever. There is this sort 
of degradation of the physical among some who profess faith 
in Christ. And I think we can fall prey 
to that as well and somehow think that the end of redemption is 
simply the soul in the presence of God Most High. That's not 
it, brethren. We believe in the resurrection 
from the dead. We believe in life eternal in 
the age to come. body and soul. One man says matter 
matters. God made it in creation, took 
it on in incarnation, and raises it again in resurrection. Bodies 
are not immaterial or unimportant to the biblical God. They matter 
so much that God raises them. In the Apostles' Creed, we joyfully 
confess, I believe in the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting. So brethren, this is a foreshadow 
of that. It's not just a sort of a bodiless 
spiritual existence when we get to heaven. No, there's gonna 
be a general resurrection. All of the bodies that are dead 
will be raised, reunited to their souls, and brought into the presence 
of God Most High, where we body and soul will live forever and 
ever, praising Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. So that is foreshadowed 
here as well. And then it says that they went 
into the holy city, Jerusalem, and appeared to many. Christ 
is the first fruits of the resurrection. We see that pattern. Their resurrection 
is connected to His resurrection. But the saints went into the 
holy city and appeared to many to confirm that the Christ who 
had been crucified has now been raised from the dead. They didn't 
just do this as some sort of a parlor trick. They didn't do 
this just because, hey, look, I was dead and here I am. They 
did it to testify to the efficacious work of the Son of God who loved 
us and gave himself for us. They were testifiers. They were 
witnesses. They were those who shone the 
light of God's glory upon the resurrection of Jesus Christ 
our Lord. So those are the signs and wonders 
following the crucifixion. Let's look finally at the witnesses 
to the crucifixion. Very intriguing what we have 
here in verses 54 to 56. In the first place, you have 
the confession of the soldiers. This is no small confession either. This is a robust, excellent confession 
made by these soldiers. Notice in verse 54, So when the 
centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the 
earthquake and the things that had happened, they feared greatly, 
saying, Truly this was the Son of God. Now, in terms of their 
identity, John tells us there were four soldiers present at 
the cross to make sure that everything happened in an orderly way. This 
wasn't their first rodeo. This is what they did. Now, when 
it says that they feared greatly when this earthquake comes, that 
indicates the supernatural character of the earthquake. They had done 
many a crucifixion that were not attended by earthquakes. 
This one happened to be. So in terms of these men, they're 
the four specifically tasked with carrying out his execution. 
They are the ones, according to 27 to 31, who mocked him. Look back at 27 to 31. They mocked our Lord Jesus Christ. They cast lots for his garments, 
according to verse 35, which is indicative of the fact that 
Christ hung on that cross naked. He had no clothing on. Typically 
in Christian art, they put something covering his private parts. That's 
not the way the text reads. The text reads that he was naked 
on that cross. As well, they were the ones who 
kept watch over him, according to verse 36, and the ones who 
witnessed all that he had suffered on the cross. So that's who they 
are. But in terms of their fear, again, 
look at the passage. when they saw the earthquake 
and the things that had happened. So the rent veil, they knew the 
effect of the earthquake, and then the rocks were split. They 
knew that the graves were open, but again, the actual bodies 
weren't raised until connection with Jesus' resurrection. But 
they saw this phenomena, and then it says they feared greatly. 
They feared greatly. They knew they weren't doing 
a normal process in this execution. They knew there was something 
atypical about this particular event. And then notice their 
confession. Truly, this was the Son of God. Now this is ironic, because previously 
in the passage, people were walking by, wagging their heads and mocking 
Him, challenging Him, if He is the Son of God, let Him come 
down from that cross. The religious leaders themselves 
mocked Him in that particular way. So the rejection of the 
Son of God on the part of the Jewish leaders and the people 
of Israel makes this that much more glorious. They, the ones 
to whom He came, the very nation from whom Messiah comes, He comes 
to His own, His own receive Him not. They don't confess Him as 
the Son of God. They use that as a taunt. They 
use that as ridicule. They use that as mockery. They 
use that as a means by which to blaspheme Him. And yet the 
Roman soldiers, men associated with death, Men associated with 
pain and torment and punishment. Men who, again, this was not 
their first rodeo. They nevertheless confess that 
Jesus is the Son of God. Davies and Allison say the soldiers 
who are set up as witnesses in verse 36 take up the title used 
to ridicule Jesus in verses 40 and 43 and make it a sincere 
confession. As well, the confession of the 
Son of God in light of what they knew. Think about what these 
men had seen. They had seen the charge above 
his head. This is Jesus, the King of the 
Jews. They had heard the mockery in 
verses 40 and 43. The idea that Christ was, in 
fact, the Son of God. They hear Jesus cry in terms 
of his commitment of his spirit to the Father in Luke's gospel. And then their time in Israel. 
They would have had some concept of Messiah. They weren't ruler, 
at least in terms of military, over these people. They would 
be somewhat familiar with some of the idioms of their religion 
and of the messianic expectation. And so this is an accurate confession. Truly, this was the Son of God. 
And then... In terms of Matthew's gospel, 
we see it very specifically in John. So John starts off, in 
the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the 
Word was God. And then John ends with Thomas' 
confession, my Lord and my God. What is John trying to communicate 
to us? He's trying to communicate to 
us theology proper. He's identifying for us who the 
Word is. He's telling us that Jesus is 
the second person of the triune God, who for us men and for our 
salvation came down from heaven. It's not as obvious in Matthew's 
gospel, but it is as obvious in Matthew's gospel. If you think 
about Matthew's Gospel, this confession of Jesus as the Son 
of God is made by the Father. The Father makes this confession 
in chapter 3 at verse 17 at the baptism of the Lord. The Father 
makes this confession in chapter 17 at the transfiguration of 
our Lord. The disciples on a couple of 
occasions in Matthew's Gospel confess that Jesus is the Son 
of God. Jesus himself obviously claims 
to be the Son of God in Matthew's Gospel. And even the demons in 
chapter 8 at verse 29 confess that Jesus is the Son of God. And so when we read this by the 
soldiers, they were absolutely positively right on. They were 
correct. They weren't just taking a stab 
at some theological guess, but rather Matthew is showing us 
that this one who is crucified is in fact the Son of God. The 
religious leaders and the pastors by of Israel rejecting their 
Messiah would wag their heads and mock him for claiming to 
be the Son of God. And yet these Roman soldiers 
now confess that he is, in fact, the son of God. Bruner makes 
this good observation. He says, it pleases Matthew that 
just as it was Gentile magi who first honored Jesus' birth in 
Matthew 2, so it is now Gentile militia who first honor Jesus' 
death. They say, they affirm, they confirm 
that what we know of a truth and what was completely rejected 
by this audience is the reality. And then Bruner says that Luther 
believed that the soldier's confession, quote, is a sign of the power 
of the death of Christ. The blood of Christ not only 
wakens dead bodies, but also sinners' souls. These were sinner 
souls who had been awakened through the death of our Lord Jesus Christ. Brethren, we may sit with Abraham, 
Isaac, and Jacob, and the four soldiers who conducted the execution 
of our Lord Jesus Christ. They made the good confession. 
Think back to Matthew chapter 16. Who do men say that I, the 
Son of Man, am? The apostles say, well, there's 
all these people out there with all these conjectures out there, 
and then Jesus brings it to bear upon his own. Who do you say 
that I am? And Peter confesses, thou art 
the Christ, the son of the living God. And Jesus says, blessed 
are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood did not reveal 
this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. He was the one 
that made this known. So these soldiers make the proper 
confession concerning Jesus Christ, and they say, truly, this was 
the Son of God. And then notice the presence 
of the women. The presence of the women. There 
are three things here. Their devotion. They had followed 
Jesus about 80 to 100 miles from Galilee. They had ministered 
to Jesus on several occasions. That they look on from afar here 
is no bad testimony on them. It is simply a matter of fact. 
In terms of their identity, we are told Mary Magdalene, Mary 
the mother of James and Joseph, probably not Jesus' mother, and 
then the mother of Zebedee's sons. Remember, it was the mother 
of Zebedee's sons that brought her two precious boys to our 
Lord Jesus when they were jockeying for position. at the right hand 
of the Son of God. Remember that passage in Matthew 
chapter 20? Jesus says, I have a baptism to undergo. I have 
a cup to drink to undergo that you men know nothing up. And 
so when it comes to push or when it comes to crunch time, guess 
where the sons of Zebedee are not? They're not present at the 
cross, but their mother is. Now, why does Matthew include 
this bit of information here? Well, in the first place, there's 
an apologetic significance. Apologetic significance. Bruner, 
again, says, precisely because women's witness was not considered 
dependable in Israel's courts. Now, that makes us go nuts in 
the 21st century, but that's just not the way it was back 
then. Right? It was the way. I'm not saying 
it was right. I'm not condoning it. I'm not 
saying that women's testimony shouldn't be valid in a court 
of law, but it's simply reporting what was. It's just the way that 
it was. We can't go back and clean up 
history. We can't go back and refashion history. We can't go 
back and fix history. It's an impossible task. We learn 
from history, we praise God for history, we extol the heroes 
in history, and we castigate the wretches in history. But 
we can't go back and police history. But in terms of the apologetic 
significance, again, Bruner, He says, precisely because women's 
witness was not considered dependable in Israel's courts, the canonical 
writers would have had male witnesses present at these crucial events 
if they had invented the stories. In other words, that women were 
the witnesses and that the canonical writers, Matthew, Mark, Luke, 
and John, record that evidence that they're committed to the 
truth. They're not shaping their narrative. They're not saying 
in their first century context, well, nobody's gonna believe 
the testimony of women, so we'll excise them from the narrative 
and we'll put in a faithful body of men. That's not what they 
do. There's apologetic value to the reality of what we find 
in the gospel records at the level of the women's witness. As well, notice the contextual 
significance. They are present at his death 
here, they are present at his burial, verse 61, and they are 
present at his resurrection in 28, verse 1 and following. And then in terms of the practical 
significance, the male disciples are not there. It's not saying 
that women are better than men. It's just simply a commentary 
on what happened in terms of the crucifixion of our Lord. You had the bravado of a Simon 
Peter who said, I will never deny you. He denies Jesus to 
a servant girl. We see in Matthew 26 that all 
the disciples flee from him. And yet here are these faithful 
women. The Bible's not anti-woman. The Bible's not chauvinistic. 
The Bible doesn't have an axe to grind against women. Again, 
persons think that. They assume that. They operate 
with that mindset. But it's simply false. It's simply 
incorrect. It is simply wrong. Matthew dignifies 
these women by demonstrating their presence at the death, 
burial, and resurrection of our blessed Lord Jesus Christ. Calvin 
says, but praise is bestowed on the women alone who accompanied 
Christ till death because their extraordinary attachment to their 
master was more strikingly displayed when the men fled trembling. And Calvin's not saying bad men, 
they're horrible men, they're satanic men, they're in hell 
kind of men. That's not what he's saying. 
He's simply commending the faith of these women who were present 
at the death, the burial, and the resurrection, in spite of 
the fact that the men had fled when the going got tough. After 
having promised that I will die for you, I will not deny you, 
whatever comes your way, I will be right there with you. Well, 
when push came to shove, off they went. Which, before we close, 
doesn't that illustrate the beauty of the gospel? What does Jesus 
not do? You guys deserted me, so forget 
it. You guys deserted me, so I'm 
cutting you off. You guys deserted me, so I'm 
done with you. No, the glory of the gospel is 
that God's not done with us. The glory of the gospel is that 
there is forgiveness with thee that thou mayest be feared. The 
glory of the gospel is that if we confess our sins, he is faithful 
and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. The glory of the gospel is that 
through the blood atonement of our Lord Jesus Christ, through 
the rending of that veil, the opening up to the Holy of Holies, 
once By grace, a sinner is conquered, then that sinner is conquered 
forever. He doesn't lose his salvation 
because he has a lapse. He doesn't lose his salvation 
because he has remaining corruption. He doesn't lose that salvation 
because ultimately that would reflect upon the Savior. Either 
he comes to save his people from their sins, or he doesn't. And 
if a man can be truly saved and then lost, that reflects upon 
the ability or the lack of ability on the Savior himself. So this 
idea that sinners for whom Jesus died and rose again can somehow 
lose their salvation, again, it's been well said, if we could, 
we would. Absolutely, positively, in a 
moment. If the church could have been 
destroyed by now, it would have been destroyed by now. God Most 
High is in control of the church, and He's in control of individual 
sinners, and we rejoice in that. Well, in conclusion, a couple 
of thoughts, and then we move to the supper. First, the efficacy 
of the atoning work of Christ. From chapter 27, verse 32, to 
chapter 27, to verse 56, the crucifixion of our Lord Jesus 
Christ is all according to the plan and purpose of God. This 
wasn't invented by men. This wasn't conceptualized by 
some drama school. This was the plan and purpose 
of God Most High in order to save His people from their sins. 
That whole detailed legislation that we have in the Old Testament 
is preparatory. I hope that as you read through 
the Old Testament now, you feel that sense of preparation. You 
know this is going somewhere. You know that there's purpose 
here. You know that every sacrifice, every detail, every jot, every 
tittle of that ceremonial law is pointing forward to and prefiguring 
the coming of the Son of God, who will save His people from 
their sins. And with reference to the efficacy, 
we see it in the rent veil. We see it in the resurrection 
from the dead. We see the power of Jesus in 
inaugurating the new covenant. J.C. Ryle says, the rending of 
the veil proclaimed the termination and passing away of the ceremonial 
law. It was a sign that the old dispensation 
of sacrifices and ordinances was no longer needed. Now brethren, 
when we talk like this, it doesn't mean it was bad. It rather means 
it was temporary. There was built-in an obsolescence 
with reference to the old covenant system. It was built-in. It prefigured. It typified. It pointed forward to the coming 
of the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. So 
when we talk about no more ceremonial law, it's not some triumphalistic 
way saying, oh, the ceremonial law was bad. It was bad, it was, 
no, no, no, no, no. It was given for a time to keep 
the children of Israel under check, to tutor them in terms 
of their Messiah, and to provide for them gracious confirmation 
of God's saving interest in them. And so while it was in play, 
it was a most blessed institution. But that Jesus comes to fulfill 
and therefore abrogates or abolishes the ceremonies, He does so through 
fulfillment. He does so through realization. Back to Ryle. He says, it was 
a sign that the old dispensation of sacrifices and ordinances 
was no longer needed. Its work was done. Its occupation 
was gone from the moment that Christ died. There was no more 
need of an earthly high priest and a mercy seat and a sprinkling 
of blood and an offering up of incense in a day of atonement. 
The true high priest had at length appeared. The true Lamb of God 
had been slain. The true mercy seat was at length 
revealed. The figures and shadows were 
no longer needed. May we all remember this. To 
set up an altar and a sacrifice and a priesthood now is to light 
a candle at noonday. Obviously, he's taken a shot 
at Roman Catholicism, that has a priesthood, that has altars, 
that has sacrifice, that has a tabernacle, that has all those 
things that have been rendered obsolete, not because they were 
bad, but because they were fulfilled. Christ said, it is finished. There is no more ceremonies of 
Moses that the people of God must imbibe. That's why Paul 
in Galatians, for instance, takes aim at those who underscore circumcision 
along with faith as a means for justification. No. Circumcision 
was part of the ceremonial law. It set apart the nation of Israel. 
It prefigured certain things. It was typical of certain things. 
Now that Christ has come, there's no more religious obligation 
on the people of God to get or not get circumcised. If somebody 
wants to do that for cultural or ethnic or whatever, they're 
free to do that. But the moment that one thinks 
it has religious significance, they fall under the anathema 
of the apostle Paul in the book of Galatians. As well, we see 
not only the power of Jesus in the inauguration of the new covenant, 
but the power of Jesus over sin. Access to God has been provided 
by God. The veil is rent from the top 
to the bottom. all of our attempts, all of our 
efforts, all of the things that man, I don't mean us specifically 
here, but mankind in general. The apostle summarizes it in 
1 Corinthians 1, for since in the wisdom of God, the world 
through wisdom did not know God, but they tried, they tried to 
gain access. The philosophers spoke at length 
about God. The Jews certainly had a, had 
the old covenant scriptures and all those sorts of things, but 
when they weren't living by faith in that God, they were trying 
to do it on their own. That's always the common report 
from every man, is that he tries to go it on his own. Not Christianity. Christianity is about a seeking 
God. Christianity is about the God of Luke 19, 10. The Son of 
Man came to seek and to save that which was lost. We have 
victory over sin in our Lord Jesus Christ. And as well, you 
have the power of Jesus over the grave and death. The apostle 
in 1 Corinthians chapter 15 says, death is swallowed up in victory. 
O death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory? We have that communicated to 
us in the opening of the graves, in the rising up of the many 
saints, and in their going into the holy city to testify that 
Jesus Christ is risen. Jesus Christ has power over death. Jesus Christ has power over the 
grave. And Jesus Christ will usher His 
beloved church into His presence. forever and ever and ever. And that, my brothers and sisters, 
is a most encouraging benefit of our religion. Our people die, 
but they die well. They enter into the presence 
of Emmanuel. They go to that place where there's 
no more sorrow, there's no more pain, there's no more suffering. 
They go to that place where there's no more hunger, where there's 
no more thirst. They go to that place where there's 
no more sin. They stand before the throne 
of God day and night, crying out, salvation belongs to our 
God and to the Lamb who sits upon the throne. And you know 
what else is not present in the New Jerusalem? Death itself. That is the last enemy that Christ 
defangs according to 1 Corinthians chapter 15 and verse 28. Death punctuates this lower world. Death is a grief. Death is sorrowful. Death does hurt. But in the new 
Jerusalem, there's no more death. Our Savior is victorious. Our 
Savior is triumphant. And our Savior has removed the 
fangs from the grave itself. And in that, God's people rejoice. Well, let us pray. Our Father in heaven, we thank 
you for the work of Jesus Christ. Every time we remind ourselves 
of the gospel of our salvation, we stand amazed that you would 
choose to save wretches like us. that according to your good 
pleasure you chose us in Him before the foundation of the 
world, and that in your time you sent Him. It wasn't us who 
asked, it wasn't us who fetched, it wasn't us who deserved, but 
you sent the Son of your love into this world, sinners to save. 
We thank you for that life of obedience. We thank you for the 
death at Calvary. God, as we survey this particular 
scene, as we see this veil rent from top to bottom, as we see 
access into the Holy of Holies opened up by our Savior, we stand 
amazed and we give you praise and glory and adoration. And 
we ask that you would comfort and encourage our hearts tonight, 
that you would build us up in our most holy faith, and that 
God, as we continue to diverse distance in this present world, 
we would do so with that cheerful disposition, knowing that when 
we breathe our last, we'll enter into the presence of a gracious 
and a good and a holy God. And as well, help us to look 
forward to the resurrection from the dead, because it's not just 
the intermediate state that is the Christian hope, but it is 
rather that resurrection, that day when you will summons all 
men everywhere to rise up. You will knit body and soul back 
together. You will bring the righteous 
into your presence, where we may enjoy our blessed God, body 
and soul, world without end. We bless and praise you for these 
mercies and these graces that you've given to us. We bless 
and we praise you for the goodness that you have shown to us in 
the gospel of our salvation. And again, Father, we are jealous 
and desirous that others would know this truth as well, that 
you would convict sinners, that you would show them it's not 
their works, it's not their deeds, it's not their subscription to 
ceremonies in terms of law. but it is belief on the Savior 
for salvation. God, do this for your glory. 
Do this for the good of souls from every tribe and tongue and 
people and nation. And may you demonstrate your 
power and your sovereignty and your majesty in the saving of 
sinners by grace through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. And 
we pray in his blessed name. Amen.