Anchor My Faith

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Author: Stephen Weller
651 words, 3 minutes read time

The Guard Instructed To Lie

Scripture: Matthew 28:11-15

With the previous lesson we ended the section with Jesus alive and well after being crucified and place dead in a tomb. With this lesson we will cover a short section about the report from the Roman guard who failed to keep the tomb secure.

^{Mt 28:11} While they were going, behold, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests all that had taken place. ¹² And when they had assembled with the elders and taken counsel, they gave a sufficient sum of money to the soldiers ¹³ and said, “Tell people, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ ¹⁴ And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” ¹⁵ So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story has been spread among the Jews to this day.

According to Matthew, the angel of the Lord had just spoken to Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, but according to Luke it was two men that stood by them in dazzling apparel. After many years between the event and when the gospel accounts were written that is the difference in what the two gospel writers remembered. The important point is that these two women had been given a message to deliver to the eleven disciples and most probably other disciples who followed Jesus.

As these women were going to tell the disciples, some of the guard waited until an appropriate time and went into the city of Jerusalem and told the chief priests all that had taken place at the tomb. Hearing this report, the chief priests were faced with the reality of Jesus’ resurrection and were forced once again to conspire together with the elders to decide what to do next in order to preserve their religious and political influence.

Since the soldiers faced possible execution for dereliction of guard duty, one of the most severe offenses while occupying foreign territory, they decided to cooperate with the Jewish religious leaders in an attempt to save themselves.  After taking council, the Jewish religious leaders decided to give a sufficient sum of money to the soldiers as a bribe and as a means to meet their temporary living expenses and told them to tell the people that the disciples of Jesus came by night and stole the body from the tomb while they were sleeping. If they were sleeping they weren’t standing guard and if they were sleeping they wouldn’t know who came and took the body.

Eventually this story would be heard by the governor and if he enquires about this the Jewish leaders promise to satisfy him and keep the soldiers out of trouble. Just as Pilate saw the lack of evidence against Jesus, anyone who seriously considers what happened at the tomb and how the wrappings that were around Jesus were neatly laid out in the tomb and the witness of those who went to the tomb would see the lack of truth to the story that was being reported. Even today those who are considered as antichrist, according to 1 John 2:18 – 25, are trying to explain the tomb event in ways that deny that Jesus rose from the dead.

Conclusion

The Jewish religious leaders managed to have Jesus crucified without any evidence against him and now that Jesus has risen from the dead, they once again engage themselves in their sinful plans to preserve their religious and political influence. They lied to Pilate about evidence against Jesus and now they are lying about his resurrection. However, one day they will stand before their judgment and their shame and fear will be overwhelming as they realize what a holy God is about to sentence them with.