WHY WAS THE STONE ROLLED AWAY?

Submitted by Sam Nobles

But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.  Luke 24:1-3 ESV

That may seem like a pretty silly question to you. Most would say that the stone was rolled away because Jesus needed a way out of the tomb. Others have said that the stone was rolled away so Jesus could rise from the dead. Both of these statements seem valid, but I don’t think they’re the only reason the stone was rolled away from the tomb of Jesus. I suggest two more reasons…

THE STONE WAS ROLLED AWAY, NOT FOR JESUS TO COME OUT, BUT SO THE BELIEVERS COULD GO IN

Jesus didn’t need the stone rolled away in order for him to exit the tomb. In fact, later that same Sunday evening, Jesus entered into a room where the doors were shut and locked (John 20:19-20). If Jesus could do that, then he could have come out of his tomb with the stone still in place. You see, the stone was not rolled away for Jesus to come out. Whatever the nature of Jesus’ resurrected body, he needed no door. No wall could hold him out, and no stone could hold him in. The open tomb was not the means of Jesus’ exit; it was the means of the disciple’s entrance. It was the means by which we are able to enter into the family of God.

THE STONE WAS ROLLED AWAY, NOT SO JESUS COULD RISE, BUT SO WE COULD KNOW THAT HE IS RISEN

The open tomb makes it possible for us to go in, to see the discarded grave clothes and to see that Jesus is not there. That’s why the stone was rolled away. The stone was rolled away so that we could look in. It was rolled away so that the empty tomb could be visible to all. The empty tomb is the greatest evidence of the resurrection of Jesus. Cynic and critics have tried to explain it away, but that empty tomb still stands as evidence to all that Jesus is not dead. He is alive! It is because of the resurrection that you and I can have life – a new life, now as a believer in Christ, and a future in heaven in the presence of Almighty God that will never end.

Scripture to Claim:
He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay.
Matthew 28:6 ESV