マタイによる福音書28:1-10 Matthew 28:1-10

Today is Easter Sunday, which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus. Jesus was crucified and killed in Jerusalem. Jesus had done nothing wrong and was innocent, but Jewish leaders who envied his popularity made up the charge that he had said bad things about God. They then lied that Jesus had defied the Roman emperor and handed him over to Pilate, the Roman governor, to be crucified. After Jesus’ death on the cross, it was a man called Joseph of Arimathea who laid his body in the tomb. In the land of Judea, the tomb was like a cave dug in the rock. The dead body would be placed there wrapped in cloth without being burnt, and its entrance was closed with a large round stone.

On Sunday morning, the third day after Jesus died on the cross, a group of women who believed in him went to his tomb. When the women arrived at the tomb, something very strange happened. There was a big earthquake and an angel appeared and rolled away the stone at the entrance of the tomb. Then the angel said, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you.” When the women looked inside the tomb, Jesus’ body was indeed gone! The women went to Jesus’ disciples to tell them this wonderful news. On their way, the resurrected Jesus himself appeared to them. He said, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.” Galilee is the place in the north of Israel where Jesus and his disciples first met. But when the disciples heard this news, they could not believe it.

Jesus, who died on the cross, has indeed risen. And he showed us that death is not the end, that there is resurrection. It is wonderful! Thus, Easter is the day when something incredibly wonderful happened. On the evening of that day, the resurrected Jesus also appeared to the disciples who had gathered in Jerusalem. And later, when the disciples were catching fish in a lake of Galilee, the resurrected Jesus appeared to them, just as the angel had foretold, and a miracle occurred in which many fish were caught. At that time, the resurrected Jesus asked Peter three times, who had denied being Jesus’ disciple three times before Jesus was crucified, “Do you love me?” And when Peter answered “Yes,” he commanded him three times, “Feed my sheep.” “Feed my sheep” means to take care of those who believe in Jesus. Thus, the disciples, who at first could not believe, came to believe with joy when they met the resurrected Jesus.