Today is the day we commemorate the death of our Lord and Savior. As Dr. J Vernon McGee would say “this is where the rubber meets the road, where our faith gets it traction so to speak”, it’s the day we look squarely at the core of our faith. This is the day Jesus was born for, this is what he came for, to carry our sins to the cross so that we will become his righteousness, a sin covering that allows us to come before Holy God.
2 Corinthians 5:21
God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Today is only the beginning. Sunday is the day we commemorate the resurrection, when Jesus rose from the dead. Without these two events our faith is in vain.
1 Cor 15:17
And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.
Let us take time this weekend to meditate and reflect on these events which is THE core of our faith. The “ologies” and “isms”, the traditions of men, the edicts of the religious, the rantings of the self righteous, have no meaning and no impact, only the cross of Christ and his glorious resurrection, THE GOSPEL, has impact.
This is from a song most recently done by Casting Crowns that was originally an old Hymn from the Presbyterian Hymnal that sums up very well what this weekend, what our faith is all about.
Living he Loved Me
Dying he saved me
Buried He carried my
My sins far away
Rising he justified, Freed me forever
One day he's coming o Glorious day
Until the next time, May the LORD bless us and keep us, In Jesus name I pray.
Friday, April 22, 2011
Friday, April 15, 2011
Christianity – At our Core Part II – Overwhelming Proof
Many times we will be asked why Christians believe that Christ rose from the dead. It’s an absurdity they say, a fairy tale, no one has ever risen from the dead. How can we possibly, 2000 years later, still believe this core truth? It’s quite really simple when you think about it. It comes down to human nature and the fact that nobody dies for a lie.
All of the Apostles were martyred with the possible exception of John. Stephen was the first recorded martyr of the church. (Acts 7). What did he witness that convicted him to point of being stoned to death? The resurrection? He could have been one of the many to witness Christ after the resurrection, or even could have been one of the followers endowed by the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. Nobody knows for sure but what we do know he was executed, stoned to death for his beliefs. If any of these people were lying do you think for one moment that they would have recanted? Yes, they would have, the moment torture started. Not one did!
Saul of Tarsus, later known as Paul the apostle was a mass murderer of members of the early church prior to his conversion. Christ appeared to him on the road to Damascus and he wrote much of the New Testament in the form of letters(epistles) that much church doctrine is derived from. Do you really think he went through years of torture and torment and eventually died for a lie? How about his testimony about Stephen?
Acts 22 19-20: “‘Lord,’ I replied, ‘these people know that I went from one synagogue to another to imprison and beat those who believe in you. And when the blood of your martyr Stephen was shed, I stood there giving my approval and guarding the clothes of those who were killing him." NIV
These are undeniable witnesses.
How rapidly the church grew in spite of the persecution it was under, that it grew under the point of the sword, not at the point of the sword, i.e it wasn't forced, is another stunning testimony to the validity of our faith.
Think about it, pray about it and take heart, for our faith is based on something that is well documented by biblical and extra-biblical sources; the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.
My video of the week: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-w6YG2NZguc
Until the next time, may the LORD bless us and keep us, in Jesus Name I pray
All of the Apostles were martyred with the possible exception of John. Stephen was the first recorded martyr of the church. (Acts 7). What did he witness that convicted him to point of being stoned to death? The resurrection? He could have been one of the many to witness Christ after the resurrection, or even could have been one of the followers endowed by the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. Nobody knows for sure but what we do know he was executed, stoned to death for his beliefs. If any of these people were lying do you think for one moment that they would have recanted? Yes, they would have, the moment torture started. Not one did!
Saul of Tarsus, later known as Paul the apostle was a mass murderer of members of the early church prior to his conversion. Christ appeared to him on the road to Damascus and he wrote much of the New Testament in the form of letters(epistles) that much church doctrine is derived from. Do you really think he went through years of torture and torment and eventually died for a lie? How about his testimony about Stephen?
Acts 22 19-20: “‘Lord,’ I replied, ‘these people know that I went from one synagogue to another to imprison and beat those who believe in you. And when the blood of your martyr Stephen was shed, I stood there giving my approval and guarding the clothes of those who were killing him." NIV
These are undeniable witnesses.
How rapidly the church grew in spite of the persecution it was under, that it grew under the point of the sword, not at the point of the sword, i.e it wasn't forced, is another stunning testimony to the validity of our faith.
Think about it, pray about it and take heart, for our faith is based on something that is well documented by biblical and extra-biblical sources; the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.
My video of the week: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-w6YG2NZguc
Until the next time, may the LORD bless us and keep us, in Jesus Name I pray
Friday, April 8, 2011
Christianity - At Our Core
With Easter Sunday coming upon us I was led to meditate and write about the core of my faith, our faith, the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ our LORD.
Echoing this core truth somewhere along the line Charles H Spurgeon was asked about his theology and he summed it up in four words “Christ died for me” .
Paul goes deeper here:
1 Cor 15: 12-14
But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.
It is really simple, if Christ did not die for our sins and did not rise three days later our faith is empty, void of any meaning. Worse yet, Paul follows this up with:
1 Cor 15: 15-19
More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.
You see, for all of the man made “ologies” and “isms” based on secondary and tertiary issues, if Christ did not die and did not rise our faith is null and void.
So the next time somebody tells you that your faith isn’t strong enough, or that God pre-selected who would be saved, or that you can lose your salvation, ask them what that has to do with the core of our faith.
You see, the very core of our faith, of our salvation rests here:
Romans 10: 9
That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.
It’s really pretty basic; simple; beautiful; perfect.
Here is an Easter Song if there ever was one. Meditate on this, it goes right to the core:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xODpgyqGCYM
Until the next time, may the LORD bless us and keep us, in Jesus name I pray.
Echoing this core truth somewhere along the line Charles H Spurgeon was asked about his theology and he summed it up in four words “Christ died for me” .
Paul goes deeper here:
1 Cor 15: 12-14
But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.
It is really simple, if Christ did not die for our sins and did not rise three days later our faith is empty, void of any meaning. Worse yet, Paul follows this up with:
1 Cor 15: 15-19
More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.
You see, for all of the man made “ologies” and “isms” based on secondary and tertiary issues, if Christ did not die and did not rise our faith is null and void.
So the next time somebody tells you that your faith isn’t strong enough, or that God pre-selected who would be saved, or that you can lose your salvation, ask them what that has to do with the core of our faith.
You see, the very core of our faith, of our salvation rests here:
Romans 10: 9
That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.
It’s really pretty basic; simple; beautiful; perfect.
Here is an Easter Song if there ever was one. Meditate on this, it goes right to the core:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xODpgyqGCYM
Until the next time, may the LORD bless us and keep us, in Jesus name I pray.
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