Matthew 28:6

“He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay.”

Where it comes from

Early on Sunday morning two women go to the tomb expecting a body. Instead they find the stone rolled away, an angel sitting on it, and the guards collapsed in fear. The angel's first word to them is the same one Jesus always used: do not be afraid.

What it means

Everything in Christianity rests on this one sentence being literally true. Paul said as much: if Jesus did not rise, the whole faith is pointless. But He did, and the angel's invitation was to come and look at the evidence for themselves. An empty cross and a draped cloth say more than a crowded one. The grave did not keep Him, and it will not keep anyone who belongs to Him.