A WORD FOR MY FB FRIENDS FOR 3/9/2014: 43 DAYS TILL EASTER – FAITH – FACT OR TRADITION? The Daily Devotions from now till Easter are to help each of us encounter the risen and living Christ every day. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ FAITH – FACT OR TRADITION? How do you know that what you believe about Easter is true? 1 Cor 15:6 After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. NKJV The risen Christ spent 40 days with His followers before returning to heaven. After He appeared to Peter and the other apostles, He was seen(“He was made manifest”) to over 500 brothers. This fact shows that Jesus’ followers numbered far more than the 12 or even the 120 later gathered in Jerusalem. “Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea and the region across the Jordan followed Him, and 5,000 families later did the same. As a result, we should not be surprised that 500 met the risen Christ 3 years later. The majority remain, indicating that Paul knew them or of them. Until now refers to the 2 decades that passed between Easter and the writing of I Cor. However some eyewitnesses fell asleep, a typical biblical metaphor for a believer’s death. Think about it: If 500 people have the same hallucination, that might be a bigger miracle than the resurrection. Think about it: Watergate involved 12 of the most powerful men in the world and they couldn’t keep a lie for 3 weeks. Why should anyone believe that 12 apostles could keep a lie for 40 years? Not very possible. The appearance of Jesus, after the resurrection, by 500 eyewitnesses is further proof that Easter is not just a tradition or a holiday, but a facto of history. I don’t know of anything else that I can give account for the change I have experienced in my life, so I conclude that Jesus rose from the dead and therefore He must be God, His Word must be true, and His service must be worth my life. When I made that conclusion, I renewed my commitment to Him as my Savior, Lord and King. Would you join me today, if you haven’t already? HAVE A GREAT DAY!
Posted on: Sun, 09 Mar 2014 02:53:56 +0000
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