THERE is something in our house we call "Mug's Law". That's the law which, if I'm late for work, says that all the traffic lights will be on red! The same law is in operation if I break a plate. It is sure to be one of a set that cannot be replaced!

There are many other principles in Mug's law. Visitors will always arrive when the house is in its worst state of chaos! Rain is most likely on my day off! And so on...

In some houses it goes by a different name, but I think you will recognise Mug's Law. Every home knows its effects. I have never seen it written out anywhere. I imagine, however, that there is also a clause about accidents. I would guess that if you were looking for witnesses, Mug's Law would see to it that there were none. Everyone would have blinked at that exact moment or have looked the other way.

The Greatest Miracle Ever
There was no shortage of witnesses who saw the risen Lord however. It was to the embarrassment of the Jewish leaders that there were all too many. Jesus Christ rose from the dead.

It will not do to pretend that experienced Roman soldiers made a mistake. It makes no sense to claim that he was examined and certified dead, but was not. It is foolish to suggest that a man so cruelly treated could revive after three days in a freezing tomb. It would have been impossible anyway for him then to roll away the huge stone door. Four women had debated who might shift its great weight for them.

It is nonsense to suggest that the disciples could have removed the body. The disciples were frightened men. Perplexed and disillusioned, they tried to come to terms with Jesus' death. They had placed so much trust in him. They had thought he was Messiah. Then their hopes had been dashed and their own lives put in danger.

Peter, especially, was overcome with remorse at having denied his Lord. It is laughable to believe that they could have got past the special guard on the tomb. It is fanciful to claim that they could then have convinced the world that Jesus was alive. It is just plain silly to accept that they would then suffer and die to support such a trick. Even though this was the version of the story the Pharisees preferred, it was clearly far from true.

It is clutching at straws to suggest that the Pharisees themselves removed the body. Why then did they have to struggle to stifle the work of the disciples? Why could they not just produce the body? That would have ended all preaching about the resurrection.

Where Was It?
There is no doubt that the body of Jesus had miraculously disappeared. It could not be accounted for. There is no reasonable explanation of its disappearance. That is why some have called the resurrection the best attested fact of history. Here is what the Bible says:.

"...Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he rose again. the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that he was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that he was seen by James, then by all the apostles. Then last of all he was seen by me also,.."
(1 Corinthians 15:3-8)

When Paul wrote these words, over half of those he mentioned were still alive. There were at least 250 people who could be contacted and questioned. Three days after his death, Jesus Christ was alive again.

No Doubt Who It Was
He was a recognisable Jesus too. He was not a mere spirit form which might have been imagined. It was the body that was missing from the tomb. It was in that body raised to new life and made glorious that Jesus appeared.

It was not a body still emaciated by the effects of torture and execution. It is not now a body fed by blood cells subject to disease and death. It is a body energised by God's spirit, undying and eternal. Yet it is a body.

Jesus came to his disciples. He came when the door was locked. He appeared in the room. He invited Thomas to touch him. He could have felt the marks of the nails in his hands or the place where he was speared.

Jesus appeared on the road to a nearby village. He said the grace at a meal with two of his disciples. They recognised his characteristic gestures and realised who he was.

He appeared on the sea shore. He had lit a fire there and prepared a meal for some of the disciples. He ate with them there.
It is this risen Lord who is our Lord. It is the risen Christ who gives our lives meaning and hope. It is in Jesus that we can live.

The Reality of Death
Death is an unpleasant fact. There is no escaping its reality. Yet there is a way out. God has shown what that way is by raising Jesus.
There is no comfort in believing something that is not true. Unfounded speculation, not supported by the Bible, is no help. The idea of living on at death is outside Bible teaching. The possibility of the soul going to be with God in heaven is not in the scriptures. The true hope of the Christian lies in resurrection.

The Bible promises that those who love God will be raised to life again. That life will not be the sad frustrations of mortality. It will be an eternal happiness based on the pattern of their Lord.

Jesus was the first. The Bible describes him as the first-fruits. It is a phrase that anticipates more to come. It looks forward to a harvest of believers.

"But now Christ has risen from the dead, and has become the first-fruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since by man came death, by man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. But each one in his own order: Christ the first-fruits, afterwards those who are Christ's at his coming."
(1 Corinthians 15:20-23)

Many find this teaching about resurrection incredible. Yet Abraham, Job, David, Jesus and others believed it. Elijah, Elisha, our Lord, Peter and Paul raised people to life.

Solomon spoke of the grave never being satisfied. It has "gobbled" men and women up all down the ages, but now the tables are turned. God has overcome the enemies of sin and death through the work of Jesus. Death itself is "swallowed up" in victory. That victory we can share.
That is why the apostles speak of people who have "fallen asleep". It is not a polite veiling of brutal facts. It is the way God sees the issue. Those who ignore God die for ever. Those who love God merely "sleep", awaiting the time when Jesus will raise them.

Waiting For Life
Their waiting is not hard. They know nothing at all. Death is an unconscious state of sleep. Their wait will not seem long.
Faith in God's promise of resurrection is important. It affects the present as well. It means that death is not the cause of so much sorrow. It may be a time of grief for those who are bereaved and have to face life alone. Yet we can see our loved ones again if we and they "are Christ's at his coming".

"But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you should sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with him those who sleep in Jesus."
(1 Thessalonians 4:13-14) 