In the opening argument of that powerful statement recorded in 1 Corinthians 15, Paul lists the facts about Christ's resurrection. "He," that is Christ Jesus, "was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures," the apostle claims (vs. 4). We who read the vivid descriptions of that Sunday morning when the women walked to the tomb might quickly agree with Paul that the Scriptures do record the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We easily forget, however, that Paul, when he writes, "Scriptures," refers to the thirty-nine books of the Old Testament. Where is the resurrection of the Lord Jesus described in the Old Testament? How can it be said that Christ's resurrection is according to the Scriptures of the Old Testament?

We can ask similar questions about Jesus' sermon delivered on the road to Emmaus. Cleopas and his friend heard a message that moved their hearts. The message also moved from Moses to the Prophets and told how the Christ must suffer and then enter His glory (Luke 24:13-35). When Jesus proclaimed from the Old Testament about His glory, certainly one point of His sermon on that first day of the week covered His resurrection. The sermon was not recorded. We may wish otherwise. We don't know exactly the passages of the Old Testament He employed in this amazing and moving explanation. What we do have, however, is this: the same Old Testament Scriptures that Jesus used. So, we today can search the Scriptures of the Old Testament to find where the predictions and pointers to the resurrection may be found.

Where can we begin? With what Scripture? Let's begin with Matthew 12:39-42. Jesus has been challenged to produce a miraculous sign to validate His ministry. He responds, "A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth" (39, 40). It's plain that our Lord speaks of His death and resurrection in this passage. It's also plain that the experience of Jonah points to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Did the Lord employ Jonah's prophecy when He preached to the Emmaus travelers? It is possible. Is this the kind of Scriptural authority Paul cites in 1 Corinthians 15? It is possible. The "Sign of Jonah" message spoken by our Lord does teach us how Jesus read the Old Testament Scriptures. Although Jonah didn't die, he did descend to what was as good (or bad?) as the grave. Jonah puts it this way, "You brought my life up from the pit, O Lord my God" (Jonah 2:6).

Are there other accounts that point us to the resurrection? We think of Noah and the mighty flood (Genesis 6-8). The world came under the water of judgment. The ark passed through the judgment and saved Noah and his family. When the waters receded, a dove brought an olive leaf as a symbol of a new springtime for the world and its inhabitants. The Christ also passed through a terrible judgment and when the sentence was fulfilled God lifted Him up from death and all those who are in Him. The sacrifice of Isaac speaks of resurrection in plain words (Genesis 22). God called Abraham to sacrifice his one and only son of promise, the one through whom God would bless the nations of the world. When father Abraham raised the knife, the angel of the Lord stopped him. A ram was pro­vided in Isaac's place. Certainly this speaks of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. It also con­veys another message. According to Hebrews 11, this passage points us to resurrection. "Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and figuratively speaking, he did receive Isaac back from death" (vs. 19). Another Father's thrust sacrificed His only begotten and that Son was also raised from the dead.

We see in the humiliation of Joseph a pattern that projects the experience of the Savior (Genesis 37 ff.). Joseph went down to the depths, first a slave and then in prison. Yet, the Lord raised him up and placed him at Pharaoh's right hand. Similarly, the prison house of death could not hold the Savior.

Could Paul's use of the Scriptures and Jesus' Emmaus sermon include the laws given from Mt. Sinai? Leviticus 23 tells of the Festival of First Fruits. The law looks forward to the time of settlement in the Promised Land. At the beginning of barley harvest the farmer must take the first fruit of the field to the priest who then would wave it before the Lord, an act that symbolizes an offering. This would take place on the first day of the week during the month of Abib that corresponds to our March and April. We know on which day of the year this festival occurred for it took place on the first day of the week following the Passover Sabbath. The seed that was planted becomes the first fruit of a glorious harvest. Paul makes use of this picture in 1 Corinthians 15:20: "But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the first-fruits of those who have fallen asleep."

Some see the theme of renewal in Aaron's rod that budded. After Korah's rebellion, God wished to demonstrate His approval of Aaron's leadership position. Twelve dead sticks were placed before the Lord (Numbers 17). One represented Aaron and the tribe of Levi. Eleven staves remained as lifeless as before. Aaron's rod, however, not only sprouted, it blossomed and bore fruit overnight. Christ's resurrection testifies that God's seal of approval fell upon His work. He faithfully obeyed His Father's will even when obedience led through Gethsemane to Golgotha.

As we make a grand tour of the Old Testament Scriptures we can ask if there are other signs of the resurrection. Jonah was in the belly of the great fish and lived to tell about it. Others have had similar experiences. Daniel 3 tells of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, three friends of Daniel. Refusing to bow before Nebuchadnezzar's ninety-foot image they risked the fiery furnace. Bound, they were hoisted up and into the fire-belching furnace. The soldiers that delivered them to the flames died of the heat. The three friends, however, danced about the flames unharmed. There was also a fourth figure who, to Nebuchadnezzar's eyes, appeared to the like a Son of God. They were as good as gone but God rescued them from a certain death.

Another episode from the sixth chapter of this book involves Daniel himself. Caught up in palace intrigue, Daniel was sentenced to the lion's den. He would be their next dinner. The law of the Medes and Persians didn't give king Darius any opportunity to rescue his favored official. Down went Daniel into the den of the lions. They rolled a stone to seal what certainly was Daniel's grave. But a hungry lion or the threat of death is no match for God. He spared His prophet. Lions proved better judges of righteousness than all the laws of Persia. When they rolled the stone away, Darius found that Daniel lived.

All these passages serve as pointers to the resurrection. The God who rescued Noah and family, who lifted Daniel from his grave, would have no difficulty raising up Him who was the Christ, the Son of the Living God. Are there, perhaps, direct statements that declare the resurrection of Jesus Christ?

Many see in Hosea 6:2 a reference to the Lord's resurrection: "After two days He will revive us, on the third day he will restore us, that we may live in His presence." This hope filled the hearts of repentant Israelites. Jesus, in Luke 24:46, 47 sees repentance as a response to His resurrection. He told His disciples, "This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in His name to all nations."

The Lord speaks in Psalm 16:10: "You will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay." Peter, in his Acts 2 sermon, quotes from this Psalm and applies it to the resurrection of Christ: "God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses to the fact" (vs. 32). Isaiah 52:13 says, "See, my servant will act wisely; He will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted." The next chapter continues the promise: "After the suffering of His soul, He will see the light of life and be satisfied. Therefore I will give Him a portion among the great" (vss.11, 12). Peter reflects the message of Isaiah when he declares, "You killed the author of life, but God raised Him from the dead" (Acts 3:15).

Time doesn't allow me to tell of the crossing of the sea, the passing through the Jordan and of prophets who raised the dead. The very direct statements of Jesus foretelling both His death and resurrection should have forewarned the disciples that God would raise Him up on the third day. The Old Testament alone would have informed them of the promise of resurrection down to the day when the stone would be rolled away. The same God that stopped the sea and raised up sons to life would by His power raise His only Son to life.

So, if we listen carefully, we may catch a little from the Savior's sermon on the road to Emmaus. No, we can't hear His message, but we can read His text. And Paul, detailing the facts of the resurrection can call upon the Old Testament Scriptures as a witness and testimony to the fact of the empty tomb. Pointers to the event abound. Prophecy was fulfilled. There can be no doubt about it. God raised Jesus from the dead and He entered into His glory according to the Scriptures. Jesus summarized Old Testament teaching on the subject when He raised Lazarus from the grave. He said, (John 11:25) "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies, and whoever lives and believes in me will never die." Do you believe this?