When Jesus Died, “What Was Lazarus Thinking?”

8018929CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT!  – He Pulled A Rabbit Out of An Empty Hat?  

 Setting The Scene……..

You are on the way to a movie, and your friend says, “This Jesus died and rose from the dead stuff is all about smoke and mirrors! Like when I was a little kid and did tricks, like pulling a fake rabbit out of a hat…. That’s kind of what happened to Jesus….Like A Vegas Magic Show, the Audience Just Thought That They Saw What They Saw!”

Whenever you turn on television, listen to the radio, search the internet or look at a billboard advertisement you are confronted with “claims”.  Each “claim” beckons people to trustingly believe in what they are told.  But, as we grow and mature, we learn to evaluate and judge the accuracy of these “claims”.

In fact, the recounting of the resurrection of Jesus is a “claim”.  Whether it is through reading the gospel accounts, seeing a video or stage production, or hearing a song, the essential claim is repeated. For example, this claim is clearly made in the chorus from the song “He is Risen” by Dallas Holm.

‘Cause I’ll…rise again; Ain’t no pow’r on earth
Can tie me down; Yes, I’ll rise again
Death can’t keep me in the ground!

10053358Also in the Easter song by the music group 2nd Chapter of Acts

The angel up on the tombstone
Said He has risen, just as He said
Quickly now, go tell his disciples
That Jesus Christ is no longer dead

Joy to the world, He has risen, hallelujah
He’s risen, hallelujah
He’s risen, hallelujah
Hallelujah

This is a fantastic claim – Jesus raised Himself from the dead. The Holy Spirit raised Jesus from the dead. And, God the Father raised Jesus from the dead.  It was the will and work of the Trinity, with perfect eternal value. If it is true, what power and ability would be required for such an event to happen? Is it even possible?

Before looking at how such a claim may be evaluated why is this claim so important?

claim3_forsuchaday_13THE MOST IMPORTANT CLAIM OF ALL

 When at the airport, we claim our luggage.  When there is property damage, we file an insurance claim.  When a person wins the lottery, they claim their winnings. There are claim checks and claim tickets, even claims to fame. When a person “claims” something it is of importance. Like to the woman who claimed to be the lost Russian princess, daughter to the last Russian Tsar, it was of significant value.  If the claim was verified as “true”, she would have great temporal power and influence.  But, of all the claims, what is the most important claim on earth?

“For what I received I passed you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, (not just happenstance) that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the twelve…..”(1 Corinthians 15:3 NIV)

“PINCH ME…. I MUST BE DREAMING ….”DID LIFE REALLY CONQUER DEATH?”

God’s Sons and Daughters Are Sometimes like a Ping Pong Ball in Play, Caught between Two Players….

standupagain_13 So, you’re a Christian, and, you believe that Jesus is resurrected? – (The New Testament Greek word translated, ” Resurrection”, literally means, ” To Stand Up Again”)  So, You say, “Yes!”, yet, there is the question more important …Do you know He is resurrected?”  In other words, what does this “knowing” mean to us when going about our daily living?  We don’t challenge this truth claim, but do we? Is it not true for every son or daughter of God that with each decision or thought or feeling or action, there is either a rejection or embrace of the fruit of “life prevailing over death”?

So what about the first rejections to Jesus’ claim to “raise Himself up in 3 days”?  Throughout the ministry of Jesus, the religious leaders asked Him for proof of his declarations. In fact, even at the crucifixion, Jesus was ridiculed by the derisory asking again for proof of His claims. “Let this Christ, this King of Israel, come down from the cross that we may see and believe.” (Mark15:32 NIV)

 Those, who mocked Jesus on the cross, knew of His claim, that of His proposed rising from the grave. If he did rise from the grave then all that He had spoken would be validated. “Sir”, they said “we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, After three days I will rise again.” (Matt 27:63) The religious leaders actively planned and acted to make sure they could refute his claim of rising from the dead. The resurrection was living proof that all of his promises and teachings were authentic and true.

In the first letter to the Corinthians, Paul clearly communicated that without the resurrection there is NO basis for faith, because there is no validation for the new covenant (Jer.31:33-34) between God and mankind. “And if Christ has not been raised then your faith is futile: you are still in your sins.”  (1 Corinthians 15:17 NIV)

 So let us examine “the resurrection” claim for life did conquer death and this is reality not myth!

THE TWO PERSPECTIVES OF THE RESURRECTION TODAYwomanblondewithplacard _2_13

Today, when considering the validity of the claim of the resurrection there are two distinct perspectives: the Perspective of Heaven, or the Perspective of the Godless or Worldly Man.  And for Jesus’ disciples, there at the resurrection, there was a transitional perspective.

“I WILL BELIEVE IT WHEN I SEE IT” 

HEAVENLY KNOWLEDGE

We are programmed, so to speak, by God to “believe”, that is to say, to “know something or someone to be true”It is our Spiritual DNA. – Especially as sons and daughters of God, we are “Truth Knowers”. Generally speaking, “belief or unbelief” or “not knowing or knowing” is a natural part of earthly living. We might make our decisions on the basis of what is feasible or attainable or actual or on the basis of “what we hope to be reality”. For the Christian, our “belief” or “trust” is based upon an intimate relational and contact knowledge of a real perfect and eternal person, God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – The Trinity!

So, what happens as our “experience or lack of experience” determines what we believe or know to be true? It happens every day!  Sometimes, we are “shocked it happened”, or that “it did not happen.” – It is “sur-real”.   In our everyday, there are alot of “I can’t believe its”. The television actor says, “I can’t believe it is not really butter!”  At the shopping mall, someone says, “Can you believe it; I got this for half price?” Or, on the television news, a reporter describing fast breaking events exclaims, “Folks, can you believe your eyes, what a plane crash, everyone survived!” In short, our experiences are either based in Kingdom reality, or in that of the Godless realm.

thinkonit_13GETTING YOUR SPIRITUAL EQUILIBRIUM

“OH BOY, I NEED TO SIT DOWN”

As Christians, when something happens which requires us to “know it to be true”, we need to get our “spiritual equilibrium” – The “Resurrection of Jesus” is one such event. When it came to the actual “Resurrection”, there were a number of people thrown off their natural and supernatural balance! At the time of the resurrection, for those who loved Jesus, there was a Transitional Perspective – something between the “Heavenly Perspective”, and the “Worldly or Godless Perspective”.  At the resurrection, the “prophetic reality” had already inspired the fulfillment of the earthly establishment of what was already an eternal fact – He Has Risen.  And, while in a transitional understanding, His disciples, (already recipients of prophetic revelation yet realized through the personal encounter of fulfillment), were brought to “Heavenly Perspective”. It was the first responders to the empty tomb that needed to be spiritually re-calibrated to heavenly reality. This is clearly shown in the encounter at the tomb between the angelic messengers and the women.  The women came to the tomb prepared to anoint Jesus’ body for burial. – “After all He was dead, wasn’t he?” They were filled with sadness and despair. On the other hand the angelic messengers came to declare a totally opposite and completed reality – “He has Risen”. 

The Past Tense of Heaven Waits For Us To Encounter Its Eternal Finality

The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified’.” He is not here; he has risen just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.(Matt 28:5-6). There is no doubt in the mind of the angelic messengers that the resurrection took place. The verb tense used by the angelic messenger emphasizes the fact that the action took place. Hence the English translation of the verb is “has risen” rather than “is risen”. There is a stark contrast between the angelic certainty and the inability of the women to accept the heavenly reality that Jesus had previously declared!

 ALL THAT GLITTERS ISN’T GOLD

WORLDLY OR GODLESS  PERSPECTIVEworldmap_forsuchaday_13

DEFINITION – Being “of the world” – A man or a woman are both “rulers” and the “ruled”.  As “the rulers”, a person is the dictator of an orderly system of all manner of evil.  – A deceived leader of self and of others cloaked with restless activities, time wasting business and frutile social activities.

As, “the ruled”, a person who is a friend to the government of human things – Sees everything from their “worldly” perspective.  In fact a “worldly” or “earthly” person is one who dearly loves (prizes) in a personal and intimate way the government (organized rule) of earthly things or man. It is a harmonious arrangement.  He or she “leans on” it as a trusted confidant and holds it dear in a close union of deepest personal affection. The way “man without God” thinks, informs their every decision, feeling and action. He or she enjoys all the advantages or pleasures that the whole circle of earthly goods and ideas offer.  

What We Have Here Is A Failure To Comprehend…

knowitistrue_girljeans_forsuchadayasthis_12 The “Eternal Statement of Heavenly Fact”

God’s Eternal “Real-Time” is both a challenge and inspiration to His sons and daughters. As illustrated by the women at the tomb or any of the disciples, the claim of the resurrection was not accepted on the previous words of Jesus.  – Not grasped, His words could not even be surety to the promise they were to them, nor, to the eternal “statement of Heavenly fact” they had always been. It was just the opposite. As far as they were concerned, he was dead and buried.  Even the memory of Lazarus did not connect – The one who raised Lazarus from the dead was now dead himself. Their hopes and dreams for what might have been, had been crushed. Fear and anxiety were their companions.  Their spiritual understanding was stuck between the Old Covenant and the New Covenant. – God was saying, “Earthly Times have changed To Calibrate with the Eternal Statement of Heavenly Fact – He Has Risen!”  But, it was within these earliest of days after the crucifixion that the claim of the “resurrection” needed to be validated for them to believe.

If I claimed to be the lost descendant of a Russian Tsar, how would I prove that my claim is legitimate? Or, if I was the “Lazarus” of the New Testament fame, what proof could I offer that I lived, died, and lived again?  From the least to the greatest claim, a “proof” or “proofs” can offer unquestionable substantiation:

abc_13HOW IS THE RESURRECTION CLAIM VERIFIED?

“Hey Lazarus, what do you know about the dead being raised?”

 

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  1. Personal Encounter With Jesus

 Lazarus, of New Testament documentation, knew about death and dying, and about being made alive again.  After all, he was pronounced “dead”, prepared for burial, wore burial clothes. entombed, and his physical body began the process of decay. Lazarus also knew at whose hand he was raised back into life!  And, Lazarus knew it from “personal experience” – contact knowledge with God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit!  Life to Death and Back To life again – The proof was in the experience and it satisfied many levels of human query! 

 What about the other disciples?

The Full Circle of Heavenly Authenticity

 The New Testament Scriptures do not tell us about Lazarus and his response to the resurrection of Jesus, but it does tell us about the other disciples, many of whom had seen Lazarus “raised from the dead”.  Possibly, even with the knowledge of others being raised from the dead immediately after the crucifixion, the disciples still believed Jesus to be dead. The “why” is for another discussion. 

For Jesus’ disciples, both the gospels and the book of Acts demonstrate that the claim of the resurrection was validated when the individuals encountered the living Christ or angelic messengers. Through these encounters the individuals’ perspective was changed from a transitional vantage point  to a heavenly perspective. – The eternal heavenly reality was now anchored in human history – He Has Risen!

 When the angelic messenger spoke to the women at the tomb and the Lord appeared to them, they knew that Jesus’ claims were true and the experience radically changed them. However the women’s encounter did not change the disciples. “but they (the disciples) did not believe the women” (Matt. 24:11 NIV). It was not until the others had their own personal encounter that enabled them to understand the resurrection from the heavenly perspective. “Then he (Jesus) opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. He told them, “This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day…….” (Luke 24:45-46). When Paul met Christ on the Damascus road, all the questions and doubts of who Jesus was and his resurrection melted away. 

Note: After the resurrection, and before Jesus’ ascension, the disciplesnotebook encountered the risen Jesus, a contact experience.  A risen Jesus further validated the disciples contact experience through the Scriptures which  foretold of His resurrection.  The Old Testament Scriptures,  then in turn, reaffirmed the disciples true encounter with the risen Jesus.   It was the “full circle” of heavenly authenticity which included personal experience, and historical and prophetic context!

 This encounter with the living God has been repeated throughout history. – His presence and our person, side by side sharing eternal living.  Just as personally meeting a living person, who was known to be dead, gives uncontestable proof of a continued living existence, so too does daily personal encounter create undeniable proof that Christ has Risen.

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  1. Personal Encounter With The Holy Spirit

“But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; He will guide you into all truth. He will speak only what hears and will tell you what is to come.”(John 16:13)

The Holy Spirit is not a “thing” or an “it”, or simply the power of God – He is God Himself.  The Scriptures tell us that He is “Another Comforter, Just Like Jesus”.  He thinks, speaks, leads, teaches, convinces, gives gifts and shares His perfect and eternal virtues………As the gospel is preached and taught, the Holy Spirit through conviction and His demonstrable power brings an encounter with the living God. In this way God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – uniquely tailors the form and type of encounter that will meet the needs of the unique personality and destiny that God has given to each individual. Whether this is through a specific supernatural experience, reading a book, listening to another share a teaching or an intensive learning pursuit, the Holy Spirit inspires every individual in a unique way to validate the claim that “He has risen”.

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  1. External Facts That Validate the Claim

From the day that every human is born they are surrounded by the natural world and inundated by its sounds and stimuli. As individuals grow, they are educated in the thinking and ways of the world and so acquire a worldly perspective.  

With such a worldly perspective a person will reject the idea of a resurrection for any number of reasons. It may simply be because “resurrection” isn’t in their experience, or they may believe that the claim of the resurrection is merely a creation of the early disciples. –  It is nothing but a myth that has emerged over time to bolster the claims of Christianity. An examination of the evidence would not support such dishonest intellectual claim.

blankYour Friend Says, “My frappacino is more real than Your Jesus”

Setting The Scene…….notebook

You are at a local Starbucks with a friend.  At some point they volunteer their “Spiritual” beliefs. In fact, they go a step farther and say, “You know, it is a well know fact that Jesus never existed, then alone was raised from the dead. Even if he lived, he didn’t really die on the cross, probably just passed out or something!”

Ok, your friend made a few claims, it may have taken you back…. Because the friend’s claim has eternal consequence, do you or do you not respond? In any event, the Holy Spirit will give an answer… What will He choose “Word of Knowledge”, “Word of Wisdom”, a vision, ask you to discuss another subject, or, perhaps remind you of historical facts which prove them incorrect?

BACK IN THE DAY  – Contemporary Enemies of Jesus Said The He Existed And So Did His Friends And Family

The first unreasonable claim is that Jesus never existed!  Apart from the obvious, that your friend wasn’t alive at the time of Jesus and can’t personally know if Jesus lived or not in the first century A.D., he or she ignores the fact that persons in Jesus’ time knew Him intimately. The truth is that over the many centuries, since the Holy Spirit and human authors penned the New Testament that is it has been accepted as a legitimate historical document. – One that chronicles the person, Jesus, and, as such His appearance in human history.  There are people testifying in this historic document who  knew Him face to face! Througout history, atheists, skeptics,  historian, philosophers, scientists and others have accepted and not denied the earthly existence of Jesus or the people who said that they knew Him personally back in the day.  It is a given fact!

Also, encourage your friend to look at ancient non-Christian sources. People who lived around Jesus day!  For example, there is Josephus (Jewish historian) and Lucian (A Greek Satirist); both indicate that Jesus was regarded as wise.  How about Pliny(Roman governor of Bithynia in Asia Minor) and the Jewish Talmud, and, again Lucian which imply that Jesus was a powerful and revered teacher.  Don’t forget, both Josephus and the Jewish Talmud also noted that Jesus performed miraculous feats.  And, let’s throw in Tacitus (Roman historian), and again Josephus, the Jewish Talmud, and Lucian, all of whom  mention that Jesus was crucified. Even Jesus’ resurrection may have been mentioned by Jewish Josephus and Roman Tacitus Both historians of note, and contemporary to the beginnings of the early church. With Josephus suggesting that Jesus was believed to be the Messiah.  And, Pliny and Lucian expressed that Christians worshipped Jesus as God!  

So, your friend is wrong……….Jewish, Greek and Roman persons of note, including the Emperor Nero and Pontius Pilates’ wife  knew Jesus of Nazareth had an earthly existence.  And, this is all recorded outside the New Testament in non-Christian literature.  Even the historical document – The New Testament – includes the testimony of Jesus’ existence through His friends, family members and enemies.

So, your friend is wrong….. The New Testament is a reliable historical document with more copies in existence than those which verify the earthly lives of Plato, Caesar, Aristotle, Homer, even Shakespeare! There are so few original existing manuscripts of the aforementioned that your friend should not believe that any of those named even lived!  Just on shear manuscript numbers alone, they should have absolute assurance that Jesus lived on this earth as the New Testament documents.

The second unreasonable claim is that Jesus never died. The uninterested or the skeptic or the misinformed, may claim that Jesus only fainted as a result of the crucifixion ordeal. This is commonly called the “swoon” theory. This constantly recurring objection was first popularized by Venturini several centuries ago and is often quoted today.  This theory claims that after being placed in the tomb, Jesus came to and emerged from the tomb and the disciples only thought that he was resurrected.  “Skeptic David Friedrich Strauss–certainly no believer in the resurrection–gave the deathblow to any thought that Jesus revived from a swoon: “It is impossible that a being who had stolen half-dead out of the sepulcher, who crept about weak and ill, wanting medical treatment, who required bandaging, strengthening and indulgence, and who still at last yielded to His sufferings, could have given to the disciples the impression that He was a Conqueror over death and the grave, the Prince of Life.”

This theory also ignores the fact the Jesus was dead. Medical experts will quickly affirm that the Scriptures’ description of “a flow of blood and water” after Jesus’ side was pierced by a spear (Jhn 19:34) clearly indicated that Jesus was physically dead. Also, the aim of Roman crucifixion was to that of ending life. The Roman’s were experienced in this form of fatal punishment, which had historically ended many a human life. Moreover, Roman and Jewish officials would have been extremely careful to confirm the lifeless Jesus. It was not in the interest of either group for Jesus to be anything other than deceased.

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Setting The Scene…

Your friends say, “Hey, I just heard that they found Jesus’ bonesnotebook in a small box – Somewhere in Israel they say.  Boy, it took archeologists all these years to find out what really happened to him. Someone did a good job hiding his remains.  That is probably because there were so many tombs in that area, it would be easy for Jesus’ body to vanish.  Or, maybe the guy who lent Jesus the tomb decided to move him somewhere else.  Anyway, they found his bones in a small box.”

If Jesus died, then the logical conclusion from the physical evidence leads us to either He has risen or His body was stolen or the disciples went to the wrong tomb.

The claim that the disciples went to the wrong tomb is easily refuted. The Jewish religious authorities had sought and gained permission to post Roman guards at the tomb – 60, 70 or more total. Some sources also say that the Jewish Priests furnished their own guards at the site.  Too many people knew where Jesus was entombed and had a vested interest in His being dead. A “resurrection” would be highly unacceptable, and for some, would be cause for their execution.  As a result, the religious authorities would have been quickly able to recover the body from the correct tomb and so put an end to this new and rapidly expanding worship of Jesus Christ.

The use of a Roman guard also indicates why Jesus’ body could not have been stolen. How would the disciples be able to roll away a one and half to two ton stone, so breaking an official Roman seal, in the presence of Roman guards? Under Roman army discipline, the guards would have been executed for the occurrence of the theft of the body and the breaking of the official seal. The Jewish religious authorities actions also indicate they did not believe that the body was stolen when the offered the guards money and protection if they would state that the disciples had stolen the body. (Matt 28:11-15). 

If Jesus’ body had been stolen, then why were the grave clothes still in the tomb? In fact, the grave clothes, now hollow inside, were still in the shape of Jesus’ body. Why take the time to extract the body and leave the grave clothes, if there were guards that might reappear at any moment? If the grave clothes were removed, how could they remain in the shape of a human body, without a body within them?

If Jesus’ body had been stolen, and the disciples complicit, then why would the apostle Peter allow himself to be crucified upside down on a cross? Why would the apostle Paul be beheaded for his Godly sonship? Or, any of the other apostles or prophets or evangelists torturously dies for a false claim?  Again, the idea that Jesus’ body was stolen or misplaced does not stand up to any reasonable scrutiny. Even a quick look at the facts leads to only one conclusion. – He has risen!

blankYour friend says, ” I love history, do you know that experts have Jesus’ bones in a museum! Yes, you know I saw a picture….”

Setting the Scene…..

Your friends say, “Hey, I just heard that the found Jesus’notebook bones in a small box – Somewhere in Israel they say.  Boy, it took archeologists all these years to find out what really happened to him. Someone did a good job hiding his remains.  That is probably because there were so many tombs in that area, it would be easy for Jesus’ body to vanish.  Or, maybe the guy who lent Jesus the tomb decided to move him somewhere else.  Anyway, they found his bones in a small box.”

If Jesus died, then the logical conclusion from the physical evidence leads us to either He has risen or His body was stolen or the disciples went to the wrong tomb.

The claim that the disciples went to the wrong tomb is easily refuted. The Jewish religious authorities had sought and gained permission to post Roman guards at the tomb – 60, 70 or more total. Some sources also say that the Jewish Priests furnished their own guards at the site.  Too many people knew where Jesus was entombed and had a vested interest in His being dead. A “resurrection” would be highly unacceptable, and for some, would be cause for their execution.  As a result, the religious authorities would have been quickly able to recover the body from the correct tomb and so put an end to this new and rapidly expanding worship of Jesus Christ.

The use of a Roman guard also indicates why Jesus’ body could not have been stolen. How would the disciples be able to roll away a one and half to two ton stone, so breaking an official Roman seal, in the presence of Roman guards? Under Roman army discipline, the guards would have been executed for the occurrence of the theft of the body and the breaking of the official seal. The Jewish religious authorities actions also indicate they did not believe that the body was stolen when the offered the guards money and protection if they would state that the disciples had stolen the body. (Matt 28:11-15).

If Jesus’ body had been stolen, then why were the grave clothes still in the tomb? In fact, the grave clothes, now hollow inside, were still in the shape of Jesus’ body. Why take the time to extract the body and leave the grave clothes, if there were guards that might reappear at any moment? If the grave clothes were removed, how could they remain in the shape of a human body, without a body within them?

If Jesus’ body had been stolen, and the disciples complicit, then why would the apostle Peter allow himself to be crucified upside down on a cross? Why would the apostle Paul be beheaded for his Godly sonship? Or, any of the other apostles or prophets or evangelists torturously dies for a false claim?  Again, the idea that Jesus’ body was stolen or misplaced does not stand up to any reasonable scrutiny. Even a quick look at the facts leads to only one conclusion. – He has risen!

 If Jesus’ bones were found… which Jesus?  No bones, identified as belonging to the crucified Jesus of Nazareth have been found. No archaeological discovery at any time in recorded history yields anything remotely related to Jesus Christ’s remains.

blankYour friend says, “This is a Classic Case of Hallucination or of Mistaken Identity!”

Setting the Scene…..notebook

You are at dinner, and your friend says, “Someone thought they saw a UFO the other night over by the lake. Now everyone in town is claiming to have seen it too. Boy, the mind can play tricks on you. It’s the ‘power of suggestion’! It was probably just a weather balloon! Anyway, it was probably like that too with Jesus, a bunch of sacred people just thought that they saw him after he died.”

Is there such a thing as “mass hysteria’, and can it really explain “The Resurrection of Jesus?”  If so, how…..?  The idea is that the angel appearing to Jesus’ female disciples at His “alleged” tomb was really a gardener directing the “grief-stricken” women to another location. Perhaps they were trampling the gardener’s recently planted cabbage or he knew that Jesus was placed elsewhere. Or, the tomb-visiting- disciples were so besides themselves that they just hoped to see Him – In any event, soon, others in their grief, saw Jesus everywhere…….So, you are taken back with the idea… but, you gain your “spiritual equilibrium”, “Wait a minute, the Bible is a historical document too…….it is recorded that up to 500 people saw Jesus at the same time! An individual might have a hallucination, but not 500 people with the exact same one at the exact same time! And, what about all the others that saw him years later, or what about me, I saw him when I was 14 (I wasn’t grief-stricken).  What about all those that weren’t expecting to see Him and did? – Such as Paul the apostle. Not to mention the fact that Jesus’ enemies could have squashed the hysteria with producing the body of Jesus, after all, if he wasn’t resurrected didn’t they know where to find Him? It is even historically rumored that Pontius Pilates wife may have appealed to Rome to include Jesus in the pantheon of Roman gods, because He was resurrected! Then, there was Josephus, a Jewish historian that may have suggested Jesus resurrection!”  In short, you go through your encounters with a living Jesus, and all the study about His resurrection. – He Has Risen!

IT IS NOT JUST ABOUT BELIEVING, IT IS ABOUT KNOWING ….

HE HAS RISEN

Jesus’ earliest disciples knew without exception, that He was raised from the dead. It was not a matter of belief or trust, but a “fact”. “He Has Risen!” an Eternal TruthIt is more important than a Russian woman claiming to be a lost princess.  It is more life – changing than claiming a raffle prize or the Lottery winning numbers. It is imperative than any other temporal claim.  It is the most essential and esteemed and pivotal claim of all!   Just as we are required to evaluate the various claims that cross our path in everyday life, the statement “He has Risen” cries out for everyone to make a decision on its validity. – Through encountering Him, and through study and evaluation of truth.  As we come to agree with God and the heavenly perspective, just as the lives of the early believers were transformed, so too, we will be radically changed.  It is not about believing, but about knowing! There is no other conclusion possible. “He has risen.”

DECLARATION – HE HAS RISEN groom-welcome-23255223

Lord Jesus, You are risen – Precious Holy Spirit live Your power and influence and perfect character through me.  Ascended Lord, appear in my life today.  In a vision or dream, may I see You.  May I hear your voice audibly, or to my spirit speak.  You have Risen! When I talk to You in private, may I see Your answer in public.  Tell me what You want me to know and see, then it will happen.  Through study may I also know that You live. You have Risen, may I see You heal.  Speak to me through Your sons and daughters; tell them about me and Your plans for me. –  So many wait for me to show them “How I know You Live! –  I want to participate with You as You reveal to them that You Live. In all that I study, may I live and teach it clearly. In all that I experience, may You be my “Experience Maker”.  Jesus, You Are Risen!

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Copyright – Dr. Brian K. Trott & Dr. Linda Wainwright Trott – 2013

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