in the Gospel according to Matthew, the last chapter in this account, Matthew chapter 28. And we take our focal point in the verses 5 through 10. But we read the context of our text in Matthew 28. This is the Word of God. Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning and his clothing white as snow. And for fear of him, the guards trembled and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, 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. So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy and ran to tell his disciples. And behold, Jesus met them and said, greetings. And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me. While they were going, behold, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests all that had taken place. And when they had assembled with the elders and taken counsel, they gave a sufficient sum of money to the soldiers and said, Tell people his disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep. And if this comes to the governor's ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble. So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story has been spread among the Jews to this day. Now the 11 disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him, they worshiped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always to the end of the age." That's Matthew 28 in our text. Beloved congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you want to study a painting, brothers and sisters, you can do so in one of two ways. You have a close-up look and study the details, the lines, and the different aspects of the painting. You can also step away at some distance and oversee the whole to get a global impression of it. With the observation and study of the global impression, you see more the overall plan and purpose of the painter with this painting. That's how I wish to look now at Matthew's account of the Lord's resurrection this afternoon. Matthew has come to the end of his account of the gospel of the King of Israel. That is Matthew's main focus. Except for his account of Christ's final suffering and death, the story of his passion, Matthew's main emphasis and focus has been on Christ's Galilean ministry. It should not be surprising, therefore, that we find in this final chapter Christ's appearance in Galilee as the central event. The angel at first, and the Lord Jesus after, urged the women to tell Christ's disciples to go and meet him in Galilee. And when they finally meet there, it's in Galilee that Christ gives them his great commission. Now go and take this gospel of my kingship into the world and make disciples of all nations. Yes, beloved, when I read and reread this chapter, that reference to Galilee was striking, since Mark also emphasizes it. What I found intriguing as well is the fact that it is combined with the command Go quickly and tell his disciples he's going before you to Galilee, verse seven. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, verse 10. And when they are in Galilee finally, go and make disciples of all nations. Just as we can have that with a painting, So we can see in the overall composition of this chapter that common theme, a plan of sorts, which gives coherence to the whole chapter. At the center, we hear the command to go, go quickly, get on your way and go to Galilee. Yes, even into the world. For Matthew, that seems to be the thrust of Easter. The message about Christ's resurrection moves people, mobilizes people to go and tell others to share it with the world. So rather than looking at one particular event that happened on this morning of Christ's resurrection, as we did this morning with Mark 16, Paying attention to the smaller details as we did, I now wish to proclaim the calling and command that's coming from the glorious event of Christ's resurrection. When we see that after Christ's resurrection, his disciples are mobilized to proclaim his kingship. Then we see, first of all, the reason for this mobilization, and secondly, the purpose of this mobilization. So after Christ's resurrection, his disciples are mobilized to proclaim his kingship. We see the reason for this mobilization, our first point, and the purpose of this mobilization. So first of all, the reason. When you read the accounts of the events that happened on the morning of Christ's resurrection, brothers and sisters, one thing stands out in all of them. It was an overwhelming, awesome, and life-changing experience. It left the people who found out about his disappearance and heard about his resurrection awestruck and paralyzed. Just read Matthew's account in our text and you see it in the reaction of these women in the garden where his tomb was. There was a violent earthquake as an angel came down from heaven and his appearance was like lightning. Then we see the guards become like dead men while the two Marys are seen afraid yet filled with joy. Their emotions are all mixed up. They don't quite know what to think of it all. On the one hand, they are struck with awe and filled with fear, while the message, the sight, and the realization of the moment fill them with great joy as well. No wonder they're all mixed up. Also when they meet the Lord Jesus himself a moment later, they are filled with love as they fall down on the ground and clasp his feet. They also are overwhelmed with awe and wonder and worship him, wishing that this moment would never end. He has risen and they don't want to let go of him, but hold on to him forever. Without going into detail about the moment in verse 16 and 17, we also see there a mixture of emotions of worship with some and doubt with others. You see, beloved, how our text portrays an overall impression of deep and mixed emotions. We see his disciples astonished and amazed, confused, and confounded, filled with fear and joy. It's all mixed together, tears, doubt, and worship. It incites, upsets, and paralyzes them. At the same time, they cannot think straight anymore or act normal any longer. And no wonder, you might say, For it is a tremendous moment, an overwhelming experience and a life-changing occasion. The stone is rolled back, the wounds are healed, and the angels from heaven have come to inform them. He lives. The Lord has risen. He is not here. He has risen just as he said. He has conquered death and the grave and a new life has come. Who would not be confused and confounded? Who would not want to hold on to this moment and marvel? Of course, we all would. Yes, and we should too, on a day like today, marvel at the glory and greatness of Christ's resurrection from the dead. Be still. and rejoice, marvel, and meditate. Yet, that cannot be it though, my brother and sister. It should not stay that way with these Marys or those disciples. Hence, we hear the command to go, even three times. They had to be activated and mobilized. Go quickly and tell his disciples. Go on your way and tell the others. Find your fellow disciples and share the news. Go and tell my brothers. Yes, those disciples who had left him, Jesus now calls his brothers. Go and tell them and share your joy with them. Go and don't let the joy and fear, the mixed emotions of the moment paralyze you. For the message about Christ's resurrection has to go out into the world. First into Jerusalem, then to Galilee, and finally also into the whole wide world out there. Yes, that's how this message is coming to us today as well. Today is the day of celebration, the day of rest and joy in our risen Lord, but tomorrow is another day. Tomorrow you will have to go into the world with it and share it. Even this message of our text, beloved, could meet with mixed emotions, mixed reactions in us as it did with the women, the disciples. When you read this chapter 28, you also see another aspect, another reality come to the fore. As we have seen already, the chapter is filled with some shocking events, such as the earthquake, the lightning, as also the guards, those heavily armed soldiers who ended up like dead on the ground. Then we read about the guard's report as well, about lying and deceit, about stories that are made up to denounce the events, to deny the truth about his resurrection, and about bribes and bonuses for false stories and accounts. Yes, this part about the lie is even the middle part, the centerpiece of the chapter. Besides, even among the disciples we read of fear and fright, of doubt also. Yes, that's not just a reality to illustrate why it was so difficult and necessary to mobilize and activate the women, the disciples at that time. This story about lying and deceit has been widely circulated, we read, and continued to this very day. Well, indeed, how true that is, where we can hear of a story like that about a grave that was found and which supposedly contained the bones of Jesus and his loved ones. Do you get the picture, beloved? Do you recognize the emotions, the reactions? Doesn't it happen with us just the same, that we are filled with awe and joy, overwhelmed by the greatness of God's word and the glory of God's work in this world? Yet, when it comes to working with it, sharing it, and being active in our life by spreading the good news, we hesitate. How often doesn't it happen that we know we should say something, but we don't dare? How often do we not encounter those situations in which we know we should say something to our children, to a brother or sister or to a neighbor, but we are afraid? Go, go quickly. I don't dare to. I'd rather just keep to myself. I would just like to keep those beautiful meditations to myself and hold on to the riches of God's word myself. Then we need to be mobilized. Then we need to hear the exhortation of the angels. Do not be afraid. Order reassurance of our risen Lord. Do not be afraid. Fear not. That's the word we hear in the scripture so often, and we need to, for the work of God must proceed. The kingship of the risen Christ must progress. And the gospel of his resurrection and life delivers us from fear. How does it do so, beloved? Well, that's what the Lord Jesus puts up front when he speaks to his disciples on that mountain in Galilee. As I said, that's where Matthew's account comes to its climax, where the Lord Jesus says, all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. That word should take away every fear and every fright. Hence, we do not need to be afraid to speak of our risen Lord, afraid to take the proclamation of his kingship into the world. He is king over everything and everyone. He is king in every place and every situation. He is king of all creation, which he calls into existence by his words. He is Lord of Lord and King over all the political powers in this world. He is the faithful witness and therefore King over every power of lying and deceit. He is the truth and the life as King over all doubt, confusion and insecurity. Hence, we don't need to be afraid. though we may feel so inclined. We do not need to fear and refrain from actively pursuing the outreach of his word, for he is king and has all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, beloved, as our first calling and command, we hear this exhortation and mobilization to go and to do so quickly. Go and tell the resurrection of our Lord. Do not be afraid, even if the earthquakes or the guards threaten or the messages of the lie and liar spread as well. Do not be afraid, but trust in your King. Seek his power in heaven for the earth and proclaim his kingship. And secondly, we see the purpose of this mobilization. Why? Why did the angel mobilize the Marys, brothers and sisters, and why did the Lord Jesus command them to go and tell his brothers to go to Galilee? Why this mention of Galilee? Even three times. And our text climatic meeting in Galilee. It's not as if to say that Jesus did not appear in Jerusalem to his disciples. In fact, from the other accounts, we hear of an appearance that very evening in Jerusalem. Still, from where then this emphasis on Galilee? Well, that's a most important occasion for more than one reason. The Lord Jesus himself had promised this meeting in Galilee before his death already, as we heard this morning. In Galilee, the Lord Jesus intended to meet all his believers as one great body. In fact, when the apostle Paul mentions in 1 Corinthians 15, verse six, some of the appearances of the risen Lord, it is most likely that the appearance to his 11 disciples at the mountain in Galilee coincided with or is part of the appearance to the 500 brothers, the majority of whom were still alive when Paul wrote 1 Corinthians. Why Galilee, beloved? Well, in the scriptures, Galilee is known as an outpost, Galilee of the Gentiles. It's the land of the people who were living away from the hub of God's service and temple glory, away from Jerusalem and Judea, where all the action and activities took place. Galilee was a plain country in the backwoods where there wasn't much to take pride in or feel good about. That's where his disciples have to go and come together and not be disturbed by any of their enemies. In fact, the homes of most of them were in that neighborhood. Yes, in their everyday simple surroundings, the Lord Jesus wants to meet with them. Then in this country, the Lord Jesus takes his 11 disciples aside again and addresses them specifically with the Great Commission. Go from Galilee to the nations, to the Gentiles, to the people who in the eyes of the Jews are unclean. Go and make disciples of the Greeks and the barbarians and proclaim my kingship in this world. My word for the new life of every disciple. Go to Rome, to Antioch, to Dunville, go to Galilee. You see, brothers and sisters, today, as much as in those days, people go for the top, for the sensational, for the kick and the thrill of the moment. Even in church life, people are looking for something special. for a special service or for a special experience in order that they may feel God's nearness, see Christ's greatness, and have their faith boosted. The Lord Jesus, however, calls and commands his disciples to go to Galilee. Go to your hometown, to your everyday life, to your plain and simple surroundings, where you have your work on Monday and your meetings on Wednesday. Go to Galilee, where you have your workshop, your laundry, and your everyday common business, for that's where it is going to happen. That's where you have your calling, your task as a Christian. Don't stay put here with the thrill of a resurrectionist service, a Jesus appearance, for that is not the ultimate purpose of this moment, of my mobilization. Your life in Galilee, your everyday common life in your neighborhood, that's where you must show the light and life of your King. That's where you will experience the powers of new life. That's where you will have to explain and tell about your king. And what do you have to tell them, beloved? What is your task? Go quickly and tell his disciples. He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. That's our task in the Galilee of our plain and simple daily life. Go and live for the risen Lord. your heavenly king. That's the purpose of Christ's mobilization in our texts. That's the call and command that's coming to us in the light of the gospel of Easter. It's a calling that starts at home, in our own life. The Lord lives. I have a king in heaven. and I wish to obey Him in everything He has commanded me in His words. I am baptized into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and I wish to live my life in the communion with God, in the household of the living God. Yes, and thus, beginning with myself, beloved, submitting my life to the King, and the kingship of Jesus Christ and sharing his powers of new life, he sends me out to share this with others too. As the angels told the women and the women told the disciples, and the disciples became apostles who bring this message into the world, so I may share it at home and at work. I may tell it to my children and my grandchildren, to my colleagues, to my neighbors, or whomever God puts on my path. Why are you a Christian? They ask sometimes. Why do you go to church twice every Sunday? Because I have a Lord who lives, a King who is the Christ. whose word I want to hear and whose love I wish to share. That's how we are sent on our way as recipients of the gospel of his resurrection and as participants in his new life. We are mobilized to tell and share the gospel, and we can and may do so, for he has also assured us, saying, and surely I am with you always to the very end of the age. That's the gospel of Easter, beloved, and that's the calling and command that you receive on this day. Yes, then you are called to go back to your common everyday life in your own plain and simple neighborhood with the promise that the Lord Jesus is with you. He is there for you and guarantees his help to you so that you won't have to be afraid. And his promises and help are enough for he has conquered death and grave. He rose and lives never to die anymore. He is the Lord of Lord and King of Kings with whom you are safe everywhere and forever. He has been faithful to this day and he knows you where you live. Yes, he also knows that you live in the midst of the lie. of false religions and of newspaper articles reporting a hoax discovery of the bones of your Savior, talking about fake news. Today as well, they will tell you how great a nonsense that is, the story about the resurrection of Jesus Christ, your Lord, nevertheless. With the apostles' words in 2 Timothy 2 verse 19, we continue on our way. God's solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription, the Lord knows those who are his, and everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness. Now this Lord is coming to you saying, go and tell your children, be my disciple in your family and show the newness of life at work. Don't be afraid for all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Amen. Let us respond by turning to number 404.