Apr 23, 2011

Trust in the Risen Savior today!

Jesus Christ the Risen Savior is the only way to Heaven!
So?
This means no other way will get you to heaven,but his way.
So trust in the risen Savior today!
Admit you are a sinner, repent of your sin-tell him you are sorry for any bad stuff you do that makes him sad,believe he died on the cross to save you from your sin, was buried,and rose again,and call upon him-that is ask him to come into your heart and be your Lord and Savior!

Apr 22, 2011

Jesus Christ: The Risen Savior!

Jesus Christ is the only Savior ever! He is alive! He is Risen indeed!

-Outline of Jesus Christ Resurrection Day
I. Christ Resurrection Was...
A. Told/Mentioned by His Angels
B. Confirmed by Many (a. Women-Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James,Joanna of Salome,b. Men-disciples (11 original, plus others),guards of the tomb itself
II. Lied About By
A. Chief priests and other leaders
used bribery-money to pay off the guards
B. Guards-took money to keep themselves safe
-false accused disciples of stealing Jesus body
II. Results
A. Many Believed Jesus had Risen from the dead!
B. Some doubted his resurrection
C. The Lie about what really happened is still told in Jewish homes even now

IV. Scriptural Support for His Resurrection Found In...
A. Matthew
B. Mark
C. Luke
D. John
E. Acts

Matthew 28:1-6 "After the Sabbath, at the dawn on the first day of the week,Mary Magdelene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake,for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone, and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning,and his clothes were as white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. The angel said to the women, Do not be afraid, for I know you are looking for Jesus. He is not here:for he is risen as he said,Come see the place where the Lord lay."
Matthew 28:7-10 "Then go quickly and tell his disciples: He is risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him. Now I have told you. So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. Greetings, he said. They came to him,clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said unto them, Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me."
Matthew 28:11-15 "While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soliders a large sum of money,telling them, You are to say, His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep. If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble. So the soliders took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day."
Matthew 28:16-20 "Then the eleven disciples went up to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him, but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
Mark 16:1-19 "When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdelene, Mary the mother of James,and Salome, brought spices so they might go anoint Jesus body. Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise,they were on their way to the tomb and they asked each other who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb? But when they looked up, they saw that the stone,which was very large, had been rolled away. As they entered the tomb,they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed. Don't be alarmed, he said. You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter,He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you. Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were so afraid. When Jesus rose early,on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene,out of whom he had driven seven demons. She went and told those who had been with him and were mourning and weeping. When they heard that Jesus was alive and that she had seen him, they did not believe it. Afterward Jesus appeared in a different form to two of them while they were walking in the country. These returned and reported to the rest; but they did not believe them either. Later Jesus appeared to the Eleven as they were eating; he rebuked them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had risen. He said to them, Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons...After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them,he was taken up into heaven and sat at the right hand of God."
Luke 24:1-35 "On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took they spices they had prepared and went to the tomb, but when they entered,they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this,suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed with thier faces to the ground, but the men said to them, Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he is risen! Remember how he told you,while he was still with you in Galilee: The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again. Then they remembered his words. When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others. It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna,Mary the mother of James, and the other with them who told this to the apostles. But they did not believe the women, because thier words seemed to them like nonsense. Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb. Bending over,he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves, and he went away, wondering what had happened. Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus,about seven miles from Jerusalem. They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. as they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; but they were kept from recognizing him. He asked them, What are you discussing as you walk along? They stood still their faces downcast. One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, Are you only a visitor to Jerusalem and do you not know the things that have happened there in these days? What things he asked. About Jesus of Nazereth,they replied. He was a prophet,powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; but we had hoped that he was the one who was to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place. In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning but didn't find his body. They came and told us that they has seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive. Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see. He said to them, How foolish you are, and how slow of hear to believe all the prophets have spoken! Did not Christ suffer these things and then enter his glory? And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in the Scriptures concerning himself. As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus acted as if he were going farther. But they urged him strongly, Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over. So he went in to stay with them. When he was at the table with them,he took bread, gave thanks,broke it and begin to give it to them. Then, thier eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. They asked each other, Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us? They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together and saying, It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon. Then the two told what had happened on the way,and how Jesus was recognized by them when he broke bread."
Luke 24:36-53 "While they were still talking about this,Jesus himself stood among them and said to them,Peace be with you. They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost. Hes said to them, Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds? Look at my hands and feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have. When he had said this, he showed them his hands and feet. And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement, he asked them, Do you have anything here to eat? They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and and ate it in thier presence. He said to them,This is what I have told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms. Then he 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, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are my witnesses of these things. I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high. When he led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, he lifted up his hands and blessed them. While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven. Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God."
John 20:1-9 "Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved , and said, They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him! So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. Then Simon Peter,who was behind him, arrived and went into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen. Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.)
John 20:10-18 "Then the disciples went back to their homes, but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. They asked her, Woman, why are you crying? They have taken my Lord away, she said, and I don't know where they have put him. At this,she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but did not realize it was Jesus. Woman,he said, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for? Thinking he was the gardener, she said, Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him. Jesus said to her, Mary. She turned to him and cried out in Aramaic, Rabboni! (which means Teacher). Jesus said, Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to my Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, I am returning to my Father and your Father,to my God and your God. Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: I have seen the Lord! And she told them that he had said these things to her."
John 20:19-22 "On the evening of the first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews,Jesus came and stood among them and said, Peace be with you! After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. Again Jesus said, Peace be with you! As the Father sent me,I am sending you. And with that he breathed on them and said, Receive the Holy Spirit."

* Doubting Thomas
John 20:24-29 " Now Thomas (called Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, We have seen the Lord! But he said to them, Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my fingers where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it. A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, Peace be with you! The he said to Thomas, Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it to my side. Stop doubting and believe. Thomas said to him,My Lord and my God! Then Jesus told him, Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed. "
There are those who have not seen the Resurrected Christ, yet still believe that he did rise from the dead!
This includes...
myself,some of my relatives, my friends and many others!

Acts 1:1-11 "In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and teach until the day he was taken up into heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. After his suffering,he showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. One one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command:Do not leave Jerusalem,but wait for the gift my Father promised,which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. So when they met together, they asked him, Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Isarel? He said to them: It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. After he had said this, he was taken before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. Men of Galilee, they said,why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven."
Stephen saw a glimpse of the resurrected Savior in heaven!
Acts 7:55-56 "But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. Look,he said, I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God."

Saul of Taurus saw the risen Savior on the way to Damascus to persecute Christians.
Acts 9:1-6 "Meanwhile Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's disciples. He went to the high pries and asked for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? Who are you Lord? Saul asked. I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting, he replied. Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do."