April 5, 2026 | EASTER Morning Worship | Livestream

Christ rose from the tomb and the narrative moves from fear to worship. Matthew’s account frames the drama: the chief priests and Pharisees secure the tomb, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary visit at dawn, an angel descends in blinding light, rolls back the stone, and the guards collapse like dead men. The angel calls the women to see the empty place and to run tell the disciples; Jesus meets them, receives their worship, and sends them with a commissioning to Galilee. The physical traces of Good Friday—the wounded feet and the sealed tomb—reappear now transformed by resurrection life and glorification.

Charles Wesley’s Easter hymn anchors these events in liturgy and doctrine, structured under three corollaries: Christ is risen, death is defeated, and believers are soaring. The hymn summons heaven and earth to testify, echoing angelic proclamation and the disciples’ later acclamation. Death’s apparent triumph collapses before the true King: stone, guard, and seal prove vain; the grave becomes not an end but a doorway to glory. That victory over death extends beyond the ending of physical life to the defeat of hell’s claim and the final enemy’s sting.

Union with Christ emerges as the believer’s present and future reality. By grace, those once dead in trespasses share Christ’s risen life now, seated with him in heavenly places and promised a transformed, immortal body at his coming. Worship and sacrament commemorate and effect this fellowship: the bread and cup proclaim Christ’s body and blood given for sinners, offering assurance of adoption and the Spirit’s power to live as an Easter people. The text presses an urgent pastoral call: confess Jesus as Lord, believe in his resurrection, and receive forgiveness and new life. Communion and benediction send the community out to embody love, proclaiming by word and deed that Christ has died, Christ is risen, and Christ will come again.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Christ is risen, seen and proclaimed The empty tomb and the angel’s command convert fear into testimony; seeing leads to worship and mission rather than mere curiosity. Resurrection proves Jesus’ identity and invites a response of trust that grounds Christian hope in concrete, historical events. Worship flows from encounter, not abstract doctrine, because the risen Lord meets his people and receives their praise. [36:23]
• 2. Death and hell have been defeated Stone, guard, and imperial seal aimed to secure finality, but the resurrection exposes their impotence and overturns cosmic claims of defeat. The victory reorders reality: death becomes a passage to glory rather than final defeat, and hell loses its ultimate verdict. That defeat reshapes how believers face suffering, mourning, and dying—through the lens of endured, transforming victory. [48:08]
• 3. Believers share in Christ’s new life Union with Christ means the old self died with him and the new self rose with him; resurrection life begins now and culminates in a transformed body. This spiritual and future physical reality presses Christians into holy living and confident hope, since identity now rests in Christ’s risen status rather than fluctuating feelings or performance. The believer’s present weakness sits inside an inaugurated victory that will be consummated at his return. [53:51]
• 4. Respond now: confess and believe The call to confess Jesus as Lord and to believe in his resurrection anchors conversion in faith that receives forgiveness and the Spirit. That response is not merely intellectual assent but a trust that reorients life, opens to adoption, and empowers witness and sacramental participation. Easter’s urgency invites decision: embrace Christ today and live as an Easter people now. [57:28]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [07:28] - Call to Worship and Opening Prayer
• [34:17] - Gospel Reading: Matthew 27–28
• [36:23] - Angel Rolls Back the Stone
• [37:19] - Women Meet the Risen Lord
• [39:35] - Hymn History: Wesley’s Easter Hymn
• [41:11] - Point One: Christ Is Risen
• [48:08] - Point Two: Death Is Defeated
• [52:57] - Point Three: Believers Soar with Christ
• [57:28] - Invitation: Confess and Believe
• [63:09] - Communion: Bread and Cup
• [73:00] - Closing Hymn and Benediction

Bible reading
Matthew 28:1-10 (ESV)
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.”

Observation questions

1. What specific instructions did the angel give to the women at the tomb, and what was their immediate response?
2. How did the appearance and actions of the angel contrast with the efforts made to secure the tomb (the stone, the guard, the seal)? [48:24]
3. What was significant about the women’s physical response when they encountered the risen Jesus? [46:28]
4. What emotions did the women experience as they left the tomb, and how did those emotions shape their actions?

Interpretation questions

1. Why do you think the angel specifically told the women to “see the place where he lay” before sending them to tell the disciples? What might that visual experience have meant for them?
2. The guards “became like dead men” [36:23] while the women, though afraid, were able to receive the angel’s message and act on it. What does this reveal about the different ways people respond to God’s power and presence?
3. Jesus tells the women, “Do not be afraid,” both through the angel and in person. Why was this message so crucial at that moment, and how might fear have hindered their witness?
4. The resurrection wasn’t just spiritual; it was physical. Jesus’ feet could be touched [46:15], and the tomb was empty. Why is the physical reality of the resurrection essential to Christian belief?

Application questions

1. The women moved from fear to worship and witness. Where in your life do you need Jesus to meet you in your fear or sadness and turn it into joy and purpose? [38:01]
2. The resurrection means death is a defeated enemy and a doorway into glory. How does this truth change the way you think about your own mortality or grieve the loss of loved ones? [51:21]
3. Because of union with Christ, your old self died with him and your new self rose with him. What does it look like to live daily in the reality of your new, resurrection identity—especially when you feel weak or defeated? [54:19]
4. Jesus sent the women to tell his disciples the good news. Who in your life needs to hear the message, “He is risen,” and how can you share it with joy and boldness?
5. The angel sat on the stone—a “holy flex” [42:45]—boasting in Christ’s victory. How can you cultivate a heart that boasts not in your own strength but in Christ’s finished work?
6. Communion reminds us that we are forgiven and united to Christ. How can regularly remembering Jesus’ death and resurrection strengthen your faith and love for him? [01:03:09]
7. If you’ve never personally trusted in Christ, what is holding you back from confessing him as Lord and believing God raised him from the dead? [57:28] What would it look like to embrace him today and begin living as an Easter person?