Jesus Rose From The Dead

Episode35

Jesus rose from the dead! Why is it that people still don’t believe that Jesus was the Son of God and rose from the dead? As CS Lewis said, “Jesus was either a liar, a lunatic, or the Lord.” Which is it? In this podcast we explore what over two thousand years of history say about this amazing occurrence.

John 20: 29

Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.

Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen Me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Thanks to our sponsor, LD Entertainment and our featured movie The Miracle Season, if you have a chance to catch this in theatres please do, I highly recommend it! Also, on DVD when it comes out later this year.

What a mess our world is in when we still have people who claim that Jesus did not do what he said he would.

John 2:18-20

“The Jews then said to Him, “What sign do You show us as your authority for doing these things?” Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”The Jews then said, “It took forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?”

Jesus was referring to Himself – that he would die and on the third day rise again from the dead. And, if this was not true why does the Bible depict so many who saw him afterward and who later died for him?

Even if you don’t believe the Bible the fact that there are so many Christian followers still today over two thousand years after He lived and died shows us that it happened. Today, all over the world there are martyrs for Christianity. No one will give up their lives for an illusion. Obviously, God does what He says.

Faith is based on things that are believed and unseen.

I have a link to a website that has a spread chart with the scripture references as well as the people who were eyewitnesses – http://factsandfaith.com/the-witnesses-who-and-how-many-people-saw-jesus-alive-after-his-crucifixion/

One of the most read scripture is Matthew 28:1-10 – the two women who saw Jesus on Sunday morning, Mary Magdalene and the “other Mary” thought to be the mother of James. They then went back and reported it to the disciples. Jesus appeared to the disciples, he appeared to the two men on the road to Emmaus, and on and on.

Some say it is made up or hallucination, but all those people? Remember Thomas, he didn’t believe and said he wouldn’t until he had touched his wounds.

Faith is a funny thing, for some, it is a given and for others, it is a hard pill to swallow.

Why does this matter? Because showing that Jesus did not raise from the dead, the entire premise of the Christian faith – that Jesus died for us, for our sins so that we could be justified by His grace and unfathomable mercy!

People need Christianity to go away so that they can feel free to do what they want. Well, news alert! Christianity isn’t going anywhere. Believers are here to stay, and not the lukewarm ones, you know the people that go to church and cut you off in the parking lot – I’m talking about the ones who pray in church, the daily communicants all over the world, those who join prayer chains outside of abortion clinics, those who volunteer in homeless shelters those who put their faith in action.

Since I’m Catholic I’ll address those of my own faith, the Christmas or Easter Catholics, those who for some reason feel the need to go to church on those two days and yet abandon their faith the entire time in between. Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy you are there, but I spend my time on those days praying for all of you and that you will come back.

Faith is more than attending church – although we should. It is more than saying your prayers, and we should do that as well. Faith is an actionable term. Would you die for Christ? Would you die if your life was threatened and in order to save it you had to abandon your faith?

I love the movie God’s Not Dead – the first one where a young man’s faith is challenged by an atheistic professor. He loses the support of his girlfriend, his family and yet is conflicted that God is not dead, He is very much alive and He should stand up for his beliefs in a way that challenges modern-day convention.

That, in a nutshell, is the world in which we live. A world that tells us that Jesus did not raise from the dead. A world that points fingers at Christian’s and accuses them of mental unbalance if they hear God – how does this happen?
It happens because we are silent. Well, I’m silent no more, and I pray that all of you rise to the challenge as God asks you to – maybe it is to one person in line at the grocery store who notices the cross around your neck. Maybe you are like my son who doesn’t like to talk about his faith but does the sign of the cross on his forehead before he goes up to bat, even though most of the people in the stands are unbelievers or various denominations of Christian. Whatever that is, however you are called I ask that you stand up for Christ.

He lived.

He died.

He was buried.

He rose on the third day.

I believe it.

Dear Lord Jesus, I thank you for your life, death, and resurrection. I thank you for taking on the burden of my sins. I thank you for coming for the salvation of all mankind. I say yes to you Lord, I say yes in the belief that you died and rose and are here with me now. I pray for those listening to this broadcast that you infill all of us with the power of your mercy and your holy spirit so that we may spread the good news and live lives according to your most perfect will. Amen.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Jesus Rose From The Dead