They tied Jesus up. Did they really have to? Can't imagine he'd have fought them, though obviously they didn't trust that.
"Nail him to a cross." "Bravo, King of the Jews!"
High priests and religion scholars were right there mixing it up with the rest of them.
"Listen, he's calling for Elijah." There's Elijah again.
"This has to be the Son of God."
Joseph of Arimatea: "One who live expectantly, on the lookout for the Kingdom of God..."
Women watching prepared to embalm.
"Who will roll back the stone for us?" Whose stone have you rolled away? Who has rolled away a stone in front of a tomb of your life?
"Don't be afraid."
Commanded them to tell others, but they went away silent. V. 8 was original end of gospel. V. 9-20 were added later.
"Resurrection turns the tables. No longer am I doing something for God; God is doing something for me. No longer am I drawn by my needs to God; God is drawn by his compassion to me, whether I am ready for God or not, whether I feel anything for God or not. That means we are not in charge; God is. That means we aren't coming to God; God is coming to us...There can't be a resurrection without a death. What area of your life is God perhaps trying to put to death that you are trying to keep alive? What if you let it die? What new life might come out of it? What new hope, new love, new joy?
" Dear Lord, I can't remember the last time I was beside myself, my head swimming, so stunned at something you had done that I was speechless. I long so much to live that way. To be surprised by you. To surrender to you. I long to live the way Paul lived, experiencing the power of your resurrection in my life. Show me what needs to die in me, Lord, so that you can live in me. Help me to sit here for a few minutes in silence, waiting for your Spirit to show me..." EP
Jesus' appearances to believers. Signs: throw out demons; speak in new tongues; snake handling; poison drinking; healing sick.
1 Corinthians 14-16
"Go after a life of love as if your life depended on it--because it does. Give yourself to the gifts God gives you. Most of all, try to proclaim God's truth (in everyday speech so others can understand, grow and be strong, experiencing God's presence with you)."
"Plain truth-speaking goes straight to the heart of believers and doesn't get in the way of unbelievers. " "Plain words will bring them up against the truth and probe their hearts."
"When you gather for worship, each one be prepared with something that will be useful for all--sing, teach, tell a story, lead a prayer, provide an insight." "When we worship the right way, God doesn't stir us up into confusion; God brings us into harmony."
Wives must not disrupt worship--they weren't taught faith stuff, and they were asking questions. This is about decorum.
"When you speak forth God's truth, speak your heart out. Don't tell people how they should or shouldn't pray. Be courteous and considerate in everything."
Because God was so gracious and generous, here I am. And I don't want God's grace to go to waste. "If you became believers because you trusted the proclamation that Christ is alive, risen from the dead, how can you let people say there is no such thing as a resurrection?"
"Why do you think I keep risking my neck in dangerous work?"
"It's resurrect, resurrection, always resurrection, that undergirds what I do and say, the way I live. If there's no resurrection, we simply die."
Think straight. Awaken to the holiness of life. No more playing fast and loose with resurrection facts. Ignorance of God is a luxury you can't afford in times like these."
Planting a dead seed and raising a live plant as parallel image..."When we're raised, we're raised for good, alive forever!"
Physical life first. Then spiritual. "We're not all going to die, but we are all going to be changed."
"It was sin that made death so frightening and law-code guilt that gave sin its leverage, its destructive power. But now in a single victorious stroke of Life, all three-sin, guilt, death-are gone, the gift of our Master Jesus Christ. Thank God!"
What are we to do with the resurrection? Shelve it away as a dusty piece of doctrine? Or live it, depending on the power of God, who raised Jesus, to raise us, to raise our marriages from the dead, to raise our hopes, our faith, our dreams? Well...
Relief offering for poor Christians. Be as generous as you can.
"Keep your eyes open. Hold tight to your convictions. Give it all you've got. Be resolute. Love without stopping."
"Our Master Jesus has his arms wide open for you. And I love all of you in the Messiah, in Jesus."
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