After Joseph of Arimathea buried Jesus in his new tomb and rolling a large stone against the mouth of the tomb, the chief priests and the Pharisees demanded Pilot set up a special guard. The guard would ensure none of the disciples of "that deceiver" (Matt. 27:63) came to steal the body. Matt. 27:66 says, "And they went and made the grave secure, and along with the guard they set a seal on the stone." They were taking no chances.
For all their hard work, Jesus' disciples never came to steal the body. What ACTUALLY happened was just what Jesus had promised: He was raised from the dead! No one came to get Him out. He walked out. There was an earthquake and an angel of God came to the tomb to roll away the stone. The guards were fearful of the angel and "became like dead men" (Matt. 28:4). Later, the guards went into Jerusalem and reported what had happened to the chief priests. "And when they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, and said, 'You are to say, "His disciples came by night and stole Him away wile we were asleep." And if this should come to the governor's ears, we will win him over and keep you out of trouble.' And they took the money and did as they had been instructed, and this story was widely spread among the Jews, and it is to this day" (Matt. 28:12-15).
Isn't it amazing the cover stories people construct to obscure the truth? To what depths will men stoop to stop the mouths of true prophets and preachers? This was a cover story and a blatant lie.
I think of the lie of Evolution. Men who cannot accept the possibility of a higher creative power have to come up with some other reason for our existence.
What other cover stories and lies have people concocted to escape God's truths?
Nathan