In our study of Mark we left off in Mark 15:47; where after Joseph and Nicodemous had laid Jesus' body in Joseph's new tomb and rolled the stone down to cover the entrance while the women were watching to see where it had been placed.

Mark 16:1; The events of this verse occur 3 days and three nights later. Because of the series of Sabbaths and the travel bans that were imposed on the Sabbaths the women were unable to go to the tomb until after the ritual travel bans were lifted after the Sabbaths so they go to the tomb as soon as they could very early on the first day of the week.

Matthew reads us in on some of what happened in Jerusalem during those three days.

Matt 27:62; This meeting between Pilate, the Pharisees, and the chief priests occurred on the next day that was the Sabbath of First Day of Unleavened bread. According to how we count time it was a Thursday.

The phrase "the chief priests and Pharisees" is very meaningful because the chief priests were Sadducees, and the Sadducees and the Pharisees despised each other.

They had been fighting each other for over a hundred years and whenever you get the chief priests and the Pharisees together you have a miracle. The miracle that brought them together was their mutual hatred of Jesus Christ.

All forms of religion unite against Jesus Christ and the truth. In this case we see the chief priests and the Pharisees uniting in order to completely suppress anything pertaining to Christ. The very fact that they tried to suppress the truth of the resurrection is in itself a proof of the resurrection.

The religious rulers of the Judea did everything they could to suppress everything about Jesus. Since He personified the truth they were suppressing the truth.

If there had been no actual historical resurrection then the chief priests and the Pharisees would have been successful in their suppression of any false resurrection message if one had been made but since there was a real resurrection it could not be covered up.

The fact that resurrection is the central doctrine of Christology and in the whole realm of Christianity indicates that their attempts to suppress the truth were unsuccessful. 2Cor 13:8; In fact their failed attempt to suppress the truth actually magnifies the truth. Psa 76:10;

This is a principle we always need to remember in view of what the progressive fascists are doing in our country today. When their lies fail to suppress the truth and they will fail because God will make them to fail, the truth will be magnified more than it would have been than if they hadn't attempted to suppress it. Gen 50:20;

Matt 27:63; The word translated "sir" is actually the Greek words "kurios" that means "lord" this how they should have addressed Jesus but instead when they go to Pilate they call him "kurios" or "lord."

This is a hypocritical as it gets because they hated Pilate and they have been continuously writing to Tiberius Caesar in an attempt to get rid of him. Why would they now refer to the person they hate as lord? They are sucking up to him because they want something from him.

"We remember that when He was still alive the deceiver." They remember very well because they clearly saw Jesus' miracles, they heard His teaching, and in spite if it that they called Him "the deceiver."

This indicates their complete rejection of every miracle, every sign, everything that He did. Jesus Christ presented everything that was necessary to represent His Messiahship and they have totally rejected it and their rejection is bound up in one word "deceiver."

They called Christ the deceiver and Pilate lord; This is the inversion of thought that occurs with negative volition and this is religion exposed. Religion always caters to political power, and it will sell out to any political power that will advance its agenda.

"After three days I will rise again" was Jesus' reference to His resurrection. They remember His message so there was no problem with His communication.

Jesus reached the Pharisees and the chief priests and they understood what He told them but because of their negative volition, and unbelief they have rejected Him as savior, as Messiah, and Lord and in an attempt to suppress and obscure His message they have distorted and lied about what He said.

Matt 27:64; This entire statement is blasphemous, but it is exactly the way they said it. The words "last deception" are literally, the last fraud.

They are afraid that people will accept Him and His message and if He is resurrected His message will be unstoppable so they are going to do everything they can do to prevent it.

Matt 27:65; Pilate gave them permission to use Roman guards. Roman soldiers are going to be used, not the Jewish temple guards. The word "watch" means a guard detail; "go and make it as secure as you can."

Pontius Pilate turns a Roman guard detail over to the chief priests, put them under the command of the chief priests so the chief priests actually gave the instructions.

If Pilate were giving the instructions he would simply say to find the tomb and use the usual security measures that may or not be appropriate for guarding a tomb. But the chief priests would make sure that the tomb was definitely guarded so there would be absolutely no way for the body to be removed.

The use of Roman guards also provides for irrefutable objectivity and undeniability regarding exactly what happens so as always God is using the wrath of man to praise Him.

Matt 27:66; The Roman guard not only sealed the tomb probably with a rope and wax that was pressed with the official Roman seal that if tampered with would break and be detected and in addition they posted soldiers as guards at the site. The presence of the guards made it impossible for any person or group to remove Jesus' body without being detected.

Some general notes regarding Jesus' resurrection before we get back to our passage in Mark where we will see that the resurrection had occurred because it is in the Divine decree and there is nothing anyone can do to prevent it.

Without the resurrection of Jesus Christ it is impossible for Christ to be glorified. Jesus Christ has to have a human body for His glorification. When Jesus Christ died on the cross His humanity died, His deity did not and could not die so it is His humanity that has to be resurrected.

Jesus Christ's glorification depends upon His resurrection, His ascension as a man, and His being seated at the right hand of the Father as a man. It is the humanity of Christ at that point that becomes superior to all angelic creation, even though angels were created superior to mankind.

Jesus Christ in His humanity is glorified at the point of being seated at the right hand of the Father. This is impossible without the resurrection of the humanity of Christ.

Jesus Christ had to be glorified before the Church Age could start. John 7:39; "The Spirit was not yet given because Christ was not yet glorified" John 16:14; when the Spirit is given His purpose is to glorify Christ through the church.

Without the resurrection the Holy Spirit cannot be sent to indwell every believer, and the Holy Spirit cannot perform His ministry of baptism that places every believer into union with Christ.

Resurrection indicates the completion of justification. Rom 4:25;. Justification is actually completed at the cross because on the cross God judged all of our sins on Christ on the cross so that when anyone believes in Jesus they get God's righteousness.

The sins of the believer are judged in Jesus on the cross and those who believe receive God's righteousness when they believe. 2Cor 5:21;

No believer is justified until he receives God's righteousness. Three things are required to live with God forever, we must have eternal life, our sins must be judged, and we must have His righteousness.

God's righteousness can only be given because Jesus Christ whose humanity has God's perfect righteousness is seated at the right hand of the Father When we believe in Jesus Christ as savior we enter into union with Him and His righteousness becomes our righteousness.

Justification means vindication and God views every believer "in Christ" and when He does that He sees His righteousness and declares every believer vindicated.

Resurrection is a guarantee of ultimate sanctification and glorification. 1Cor 15:20-23; 1John 3:1-2; Phil 3:21;. When we get a resurrection body we no longer have the old sin nature. Ultimate sanctification requires the removal of the OSN and that occurs with resurrection. 1Cor 15:53-55;

Without resurrection there is no priesthood. Jesus Christ is a priest after the order of Melchizedek forever. This is the part of the divine decree that was disclosed in Psa 110:4;

Jesus Christ cannot be a priest if His soul is in Paradise, His spirit is in the presence of God, and a body in the tomb. If He were simply resuscitated He could only be a priest for whatever additional physical lifetime He would live, so resuscitation is insufficient.