Although, historically speaking, one may be able to provide a rough estimate of the era in which Jesus was born and later crucified and resurrected, the knowledge of Jesus has always been in the earth. God declares the end of a thing from the beginning. Before He even does anything, He has already told someone about it.
             I Peter 1:10 - 12 teaches that the prophets of the Old Testament “inquired and searched diligently” about the salvation that should come to you by Jesus Christ. The sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow were testified of long before Christ even entered the earth. The passage in I Peter clearly relates that the Spirit of Christ resided in the prophets of old and gave each of them bits of truth that, once they were examined all together, told the whole story of Jesus’ life.

                                   There’s A Party At My House
           The way that God revealed bits of truth to the prophets about Jesus and His purpose on the earth can be likened to an invitation. For example, if I invited some friends to a party at my house, I may tell one friend “music.” I may whisper to another, “Friday at 8:00.” I may yet tell another, “chicken wings and soda.” I may reveal, “brick house” to another friend and “casual dress” to the last invitee. Each individual clue -- “music,” “Friday at 8:00 PM,” “chicken wings,” “soda,” “brick house,” “casual dress” -- means nothing if each stands alone. But, when you string all the clues together, they reveal that there will be a party at my house on Friday night at 8:00 PM. The menu will consist of chicken wings and soda, the attire will be casual and there will be music.
             To each prophet God told something that He did not tell another. He told Isaiah that all our sins would be cast on Jesus. He told Malachi that He was the Sun of righteousness rising with healing in His wings. He told Elijah of the power with which He would be adorned.
             The prophets sent coded messages such as these in order to declare the end from the beginning. The messages were preached in such a way that Satan would have absolutely no understanding of what God was trying to tell His people. If Satan had known and understood who the Son of God was, he never would have crucified Him, for Satan would never purposefully prove God’s Word:

But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden       wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:

Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory

But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have   entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared  for them that love him.

But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.                               (I Corinthians 2: 7-10)

             Just as you are on a quest for God, even God’s own Spirit is constantly searching the deep things of God. No one is exempt from trying to find God for himself. God should be just as real to you as that chair you are sitting in. He should be just as real to you as the air you breathe and the ground that you walk upon. All you have to do is look up, for even the heavens declare the glory of God and the earth reveals His handywork!

                                               Abraham’s Vision 
             Recall how Hebrews 11:17-19 address Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son, Isaac. God told Abraham to kill his only begotten son and Abraham was so compliant with this command because he knew Isaac was his promised seed and that all future generations would proceed from Isaac. Abraham said, “OK, I’ll kill him,” but he expected Isaac to live. He believed that God would literally raise Isaac up from the ashes on the altar of sacrifice if He had to!
             Just before Abraham went to the mountaintop where he was supposed to sacrifice Issac, he told his servants that he AND his son would return (Genesis 22:5). Abraham had such great expectation from God that he told the men to wait, and he and his son would be right back!              Abraham had a vision, an inner picture, of Isaac being raised from the dead (Hebrews 11:19). That inner picture, which was conceived before God met Abraham’s anticipation, convinced Abraham’s soul to wait on God because he knew his hope came only from Him! I imagine that Abraham paused on that mountain and imagined the end result -- his son being revived by God Himself! By being expectant, Abraham anticipated God’s next move and acted accordingly.
             The Spirit of God entered Abraham, and he saw the resurrection of Jesus but he thought he saw the resurrection of his son. So, even before the ministry of the prophets began, God was sharing His idea, His purpose and His dream of resurrecting Christ when Abraham visualized Isaac’s resurrection.

                                           The Missing Body
            Luke 24: 1-5 details what those who came to prepare the body of Jesus found upon their arrival. They did not find the body, but they did find two men in “shining garments” who asked them, “Why seek ye the living among the dead?” The disciples were perplexed, angry, sad and  mad that the body of Jesus was gone. They expected to see Him lying in the tomb, where they originally laid Him, but they obviously did not understand that they would be in serious trouble if that body was still in the tomb. Ironically, the disciples would have rejoiced had they found Jesus still dead in the tomb. Thank God, the body was missing! If Jesus had not risen we would still be in our sins, we would perish in an everlasting fire and all ministry, teaching and preaching would be in vain. Thank God, the body was missing!
             Notice that the angel asked them why they were seeking the living among the dead. Why did he ask them this? He wanted the disciples to realize they were looking in the wrong place. Colossians 3:1 admonishes that, “If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.” Look in the right place for Jesus. They were looking for Jesus, who was alive, in the middle of a graveyard. Dead faith had them looking in the graveyard. The disciples were closer to Jesus than any other group of people. They were present for all His teachings, healings and the myriad of miracles He performed. They even heard Him say repeatedly that He would rise after three days to ascend unto His Heavenly Father. Yet, they still expected to find Him lying cold and grey in a dark, damp tomb.
             In Luke 18:8, Jesus asks, “Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?” Jesus had given explicit instructions regarding where He would be when He arose, but no one possessed the faith to believe it. In Mark 14:28, Jesus reveals to His disciples exactly where to meet Him after His resurrection, “But after that I am risen, I will go before you into Galilee.” He wanted them to meet in Galilee so that He could give them additional instructions. His own disciples did not have enough faith to believe Jesus had risen from the grave. He asked His own people if He would find faith in the earth because He knew they wouldn’t believe Him.
             When you don’t use your faith properly, you will end up looking in the wrong place. You will be looking for God in the graveyard, the one place that He does not frequent.
             Are you expecting God to show up in your life and He is nowhere to be found? Does your search for God seem stagnant and fruitless? Maybe you are looking for God in the wrong places. Are you expecting a man or a woman to fill a void in your life? Are you expecting a big windfall from the lottery to be the answer to your problems? Are you finding all of your satisfaction in your career, while overlooking your family and those who need you the most? Only God can correct what is wrong in your life.  If you are still expecting Him to come through for you while you are putting emphasis on the material aspects of life, then you are looking for God in the wrong place.
           If the disciples had truly believed Jesus was resurrected, as He said, they would have been looking for Him in Galilee instead of in the graveyard. Even after they were told that Jesus was alive, they believed the words which they heard were idle tales (Luke 24:11). What their ears heard  seemed so far-fetched that they did not even conceive of it as being a little bit true. Jesus possesses all kinds of  power. The disciples had seen Him raise people from the dead, and they still did not believe that Jesus’ own resurrection power would work on Himself. Shall Jesus find faith on the earth when He returns? Do you believe in the power of God?

Summary --- Looking In The Wrong Place

1. Although you need to search for God by any means possible, you need to be careful not to look in the wrong place. If you think you can look elsewhere and find the happiness and prosperity that only God can supply, you are looking in the wrong place.

2. Thousands of years before Jesus was born, God had already revealed bits of truth concerning Jesus to each of His prophets. The message of salvation has been preached for thousands of    generations.

3. After His crucifixion, His disciples looked for Jesus in the wrong place. They went to the cemetery although Jesus had explicitly told them to meet Him in Galilee. They did not possess the faith necessary to look for Jesus in the “right” place.