The events following the resurrection of Christ are recorded in each of the four gospels - Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Like any report of anything, each contains only a partial report of the events. We are seeing a story reported by four different people. Looking at them, it is very hard to believe that they consulted together about what to put in the New Testament. This in fact, can be a good reason to believe the whole thing was not just cooked up for the deception of the masses.
Here is one way you could see these events fitting together my wife and I worked out. We found out later it is not original. Also, there are other ways to reconstruct the events - some more satisfactory than others. Search through http://www.webcom.com/ctt/ordorise.html towards the end of the file.
Our way of seeing it:
1. The first thing that happened was the earthquake reported in Matthew 28:2-4. An earthquake took place. An angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and rolled the heavy stone from the door, and sat on it. The Roman guards shook for fear of them, and became like dead men.
A question skeptics should answer, is: "If the angel did not move the heavy stone away, then who did?" The Roman guards? The disciples while the guards were watching? The Pharisees? One thing is clear: the stone was moved and the guards knew it. After reporting these things, they were paid to say that the disciples stole the body. But how would the disciples have pulled this off?
Mary Magdelene and the other women may have been on the way to the tomb when the earthquake happened (Matthew 28:1) or it may have happened before they started.
2. Mary Magdalene, the other Mary, the mother of James (Mark 16:1), Salome (Mark 16:1), and other women (Luke 24:1) went down to the tomb with spices hoping to anoint the body of Jesus. We know that Mary Magdalene left while it was still dark (John 20:1). She and the other women had been asking, "Who will roll away the stone from the tomb for us?" (Mark 16:3). They came to the tomb when the sun was risen.
3. Mary Magdalene (and the other women - Mark 16:4) saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. (John 20:1). Then she (Mary Magdalene - not the other women) ran and came to Simon Peter, and John and said, "They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him".
4. While all this was happening, the other women had remained behind at the tomb. They did not come with Mary Magdalene to Peter and John. The Bible tells us what happened to these women at that point.
5. The other women entered the tomb (Mark 16:5), and did not find the body of the Lord Jesus (Luke 24:3). While they were wondering about this, two men stood by them in shining garments (Luke 24:4). These men were angels. At this point the event described in Matthew 28:5 took place. One of the men (angels) said, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. And go quickly and tell the disciples that He is risen from the dead, and indeed He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him. Behold, I have told you." (Matthew 28:5-7). The same basic instructions were given in Mark 16:6-7 and Luke 24:5-7. Putting these three accounts together, we have a consistent and more complete idea of the actual words spoken at that time.
6. These women (but not Mary Magdalene) then ran off from the tomb. Luke 24:9 tells us that they returned from the tomb. At that stage they were afraid and said nothing to anybody (Mark 16:8) but later they told the disciples, after the women met Jesus.
7. While they were heading towards the disciples, Peter and John were on their way to the tomb. (John 20:3). They were running fast. (John 20:4). John stopped and looked. Peter ran in. They did not see the angels. John saw and believed what Mary Magdalene had said. They saw the empty graveclothes, and then they went back to their own homes (John 20:10).
8. Mary Magdalene came back to the tomb, following Peter and John. She stood ou
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