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\u201cGlad that business is over, Lucius said as he tapped the base of his\nspear against the huge stone in front of the tomb.\n.\nJustin nodded in agreement. I just hope it doesn\u2019t cause a revolt or\nsomething, he said quietly so the other guards stationed nearby wouldn\u2019t\noverhear.\n.\nNah, Lucius replied. Did you see how many Jews were at the crucifixion?\nYet only a handful of them wept. Most were screaming, Crucify him! Crucify\nhim!\u2019 I don\u2019t think the Jews are going to cause any trouble over this.\nTheir leaders were the ones who brought him to Pontius Pilate to be\ncrucified, after all.\n.\nThen why are we here? asked Justin. Why have this many soldiers guarding\nthe sealed tomb of a man crucified as a criminal by his own people? It\nmakes no sense. \n.\nLucius shrugged. Some of the Jewish leaders are afraid his followers will\ntry to steal the bodysomething about a prophecy he made about rising from\nthe dead. But trust me, no one\u2019s getting through this. Lucius patted the\nheavy stone, then nodded toward the other soldiers. Or us. Anyway, they\nsay his followers scattered when he was arrested. Why would they risk it\nall now for someone who\u2019s already dead?\n.\nJustin let out a breath. Maybe it wasn\u2019t so bad. Even though standing guard\noutside a tomb still required his full attentionevery Roman soldier knew\nthat failing to fulfill his duty meant pain of deathhe could still think\nof it as a break. No breaking up fights in the street or kicking beggars\nout of sight so prominent Romans didn\u2019t have to look at them as they passed\nby. He could breathe the fresh air and listen to the breeze whispering\nthrough the trees\n.\nJustin\u2019s thoughts were interrupted as heat and light seared through every\npart of him. A scraping roar filled his ears, and he was knocked to his\nknees as the earth shook. He could hear the faint screams of the soldiers\naround him but couldn\u2019t open his eyes in the blinding light. All he could\ndo was throw his arms over his head until it was over.\n.\nFinally, Justin felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see Lucius.\nWhat happened? Justin asked.\n.\nI don\u2019t know, said Lucius. He pointed toward the tomb. But we\u2019ve got a\nsituation.\n.\nJustin turned and gasped. The huge stone had been rolled away from the\ntomb\u2019s entrance. They walked inside and stopped dead. Justin saw Lucius\u2019s\nface pale to the color of ash. He\u2019s gone. Justin\u2019s voice trembled as they\nboth stared at the empty tomb. Courtney Lasater\n.\n Today\u2019s fictional story is based on the true events of Easter morning.\nRead Matthew 27:57-66 and 28:1-6. What do you think it would have been like\nto be one of the Roman soldiers standing guard outside of the tomb when the\nangel rolled the stone away?\n.\n What sticks out to you most, either in today\u2019s story or in the Bible\npassages it\u2019s based on?\n.\n Why is it important that Jesus literally rose from the dead? How might\nknowing the precautions taken by the Roman government, so that no one could\nsteal Jesus\u2019s body, give us confidence that Jesus\u2019s resurrection really did\nhappen?\n.\nHe is not here. For he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place\nwhere he lay. Matthew 28:6 (CSB)\n\xa0\nRead Verses:\nMatthew 17:22-Matthew 17:23; Matthew 27:57-Matthew 27:66; Matthew 28:1-Matthew 28:6