The Significance of the Resurrection

The pyramids of Egypt are famous because they contain the mummified bodies of ancient Egyptian rulers. Westminster Abbey in London is famous because in it rest the bodies of many English notables. Arlington Cemetery in Washington, D.C., is revered because it is the final resting place of many American heroes. But the Tomb of Jesus is notable because NO body lies in it! There is no epitaph on Jesus' tomb that begins with the words, "Here lies. . ." There is no epitaph inscribed in gold or cut in stone. Rather, Jesus' epitaph is that which the angel spoke: "HE IS NOT HERE. HE IS RISEN!"

Three of the greatest trio of words in the Bible are these three words, "He is risen." What marks Christianity from all the religions of the world is that we have a resurrected, living Savior. We do not follow someone who just was, but someone who is and ever shall be.

How does the resurrection validate Jesus of Nazareth as God's only Son? Before his resurrection the apostles believed Jesus to be the Son of God. Following his resurrection and many appearances to them, they knew he was the Son of God. In fact, they felt so strongly about this that they were willing to risk their lives to tell others of his saving grace. Jesus' resurrection proved that his crucifixion was an acknowledgement of divine love for sinners.

When Jesus was crucified, the apostles considered it a personal disaster. For their leader it was a public disgrace. For all of them it was tragical political disappointment.Only through the doorway of an empty tomb from which Jesus had been raised could God reveal that his Son's death on the cross was a revelation.

How did the resurrection enable Jesus to intercede for us in God's presence? The apostle John wrote in (1 John 2:1-2) that, "if anyone does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense, Jesus Christ, the Righteous One."

The author of Hebrews tells us that Christ is a mediator who acts on our defense (Hebrews 9:14). The writer further declares that Christ has offered himself and continues to offer his sacrificial death a an atonement for the sins of those who accept him as Lord and Savior (Hebrews 10:10-14).

How did the resurrection give believers a living Lord and companion for the road of life? Jesus Christ is much more than an inspirational memory of One who lived in the past. In the forty days between his resurrection and his ascension, he gave the disciples many indisputable proofs that he had conquered death and the grave (Acts 1:3). He repeatedly encouraged them to wait for a precious gift from the Father God (Acts 1:4-5).

In the Gospel of John, Jesus had promised at a time when his disciples could not fully understand his words, "I will not leave you as orphans, I will come to you" (John 14:18). He was to fulfill this promise on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit would come to reside in the church.

May you always remember that the believer must never lose sight of the significance of the resurrection. Ask your self these questions. Do our lives demonstrate that we serve a risen Lord and Savior? Do we possess the hope, peace, and strength that the reality and power of His resurrection gives to the Christian?

Everyone who has ever lived will be raised from the dead, some to eternal life with Christ and others to eternal separation from God. Today in prayer, thank the Lord that death has no power over those who put their trust in Jesus Christ.

Scripture references:

Romans 1:4; Matthew 28:18; Acts 2:36; John 14:6; John 14:2; Matthew 26:28; John 5:28-29; John 12:48; Acts 17: 30-31.

Let us pray:

God our Father, by raising Christ your Son you conquered the power of death and opened for us the way to eternal life. Let our celebration today raise us up and renew our lives by the Spirit that is within us. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

May God bless you,

The Coffeehouse Bible Ministry

Jesus, Was The Ultimate Sacrifice

On the Christian Holy Day known as Good Friday, observed the Friday before Easter, Christians commemorate the passion, or suffering, and death of Jesus Christ on the cross. Many believers spend this day in fasting, prayer, repentance, and meditation on the agony of Christ on the cross.

Jesus Christ, died on a Roman cross as recorded in Matthew 27:27-56, Mark 15:21-38, Luke 23:26-49, and John 19:16-37. Christian theology teaches that Christ's death provided the perfect atoning sacrifice for the sins all mankind, thus making the crucifix, or cross, one of the defining symbols of Christianity.

The biblical account of Jesus' death on the cross, or crucifixion, his burial and his resurrection, or raising from the dead, can be found in the following passages of Scripture: Matthew 27:27-28:8; Mark 15:16-16:19; Luke 23:26-24:35; and John 19:16-20:30.

Jesus clearly understood his mission on earth involved laying down his life as a sacrifice. Jesus knew it was His Father's will for him to die. He proves his anticipation and understanding of his death in these passages from Scripture: Mark 8:31; Mark 10:32-34; Mark 10:38; Mark 10:43-45; Mark 14:22-25; John 10:17-18

The professional religious leaders - the chief priests, elders and scribes - were the driving force behind the death sentence. Judas, Pilate, the crowd of people who called for Jesus to be crucified, and the Roman soldiers all played a part.

He angered His opponents with a bitter denunciation (Matthew 23). Some of the Jewish leaders hated Jesus because He condemned their sins. They did not want to believe the truth He preached, as He urged them to repent and turn back to God.

He offered no resistance when the chief priest's mob came to arrest Him. He refused to defend Himself before Pilate. Jesus, Himself, said those responsible for His death were doing God's will, even though they didn't know it (Matthew 26:53-54, Mark 10:33-34, John 12:24-28, 18:11, 19:10-11).

Jesus' death was an essential part of God's plan for our salvation. Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice to atone for the sins of all people. Through His death, we are freed from the deadly grip of sin. Death on the cross was Jesus' destiny. Once the right time had come, Jesus did what was necessary to be sure it happened as planned.

Additional Scripture: Isaiah 5:16; Romans 5:12; Romans 3:23; Isaiah 35:8; Romans 6:23; Romans 5:21; 1 Peter 1:18-19; Hebrews 2:14-17; 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Corinthians 1:30.

Let us pray:

Lord, by the suffering of Christ your Son
you have saved is all from the death
we inherited from sinful Adam.
By the law of nature we have borne the likeness of his manhood.
May the sanctifying power of grace help us to put on the likeness of our Lord in heaven who lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen

God bless you,

The Coffeehouse Bible Ministry

Jesus' Last Supper

During Passion, or Holy Week, the Thursday before Easter is observed as Maundy Thursday. You might be familiar with it as Holy Thursday, or Great Thursday. On this day, Jesus shared the Passover meal, or the "Last Supper", with His disciples. The Last Supper is the last meal Jesus Christ had with his disciples prior to his arrest and crucifixion.(Luke 22:7-20).

The Passover meal abounds with symbolism relating to God's salvation, both for the Israelites from slavery in Egypt and for us from bondage to sin. Perhaps I can help clarify the symbolism of the meal for you below:

The unleavened bread shows the haste of the people's leaving. The bitter herbs reflect the bitterness of slavery. Savory chutney has a mortar-like texture, reminiscent of the brick-making and hard labor in Egypt. Red wine embodies joy. Most importantly, the roasted lamb, sacrificed before the meal, illustrates redemption.

Paul explicitly called Christ "our Passover lamb" (1Cor. 5:7).
After washing the feet of the disciples, Jesus celebrated the Feast of the Passover, instituting the Sacrement of Holy Communion. He ate His Last Supper with His disciples in the upper room (Luke 22:7-38), then went to the garden of Gesthsemane to pray as He waited for His hour to come.

It was here the Jesus, having been betrayed by Judas, was arrested and taken to several sham trials before the chief priests, Pontius Pilate, and Herod (Luke 22:54).

So, what is the significance of the Last Supper? It is described in three of the four New Testament Gospels; Matthew, Mark and Luke. Listed here are some of the highlights of the Last Supper taken from Luke:

I. In Luke, Jesus predicts He will suffer soon after this meal and it will be His last meal on Earth before finishing His work on behalf of the kingdom of God (Luke 22:15-16).
II. Jesus gives his disciples symbols of remembrance for His body and and His blood sacrificed on behalf of all mankind. (Luke 22:19)
III. Jesus provides a very important principle for living a Christian life. It is this: "the greatest are those who serve others, not those who expect to be served". (Luke 22:26)
IV. Jesus provides hope to his followers. (Luke 22:29-30)

In conclusion, the Last Supper reminds us of Christ's sacrifice, and that by faith in Him, we can partake of Christ for all eternity.

Additional scripture referring to the significance of the Last Supper:

The Supper is a remembrance of Him. [Luke 22:19]
The Supper is our communion with Him. [1 Cor 10:16]
The Supper is our fellowship with the body of Christ and especially the local body. [1 Cor 11:18-20]
The Supper is a commemoration of His death. [1 Cor 11:26]

Let's pray:

Help me, O God, to be rightly prepared to receive the Supper. Take away any unbelief and overcome any doubts that I may have. Lord Jesus, give me a believing heart that the words "for you" truly are for me. Amen.

May God bless you,

The Coffeehouse Bible Ministry

He Died for Our Sins

We have heard many sermons on the sufferings of Christ on the cross. Words do not have the capacity to communicate the suffering Christ experienced as he died for our sins. The loneliness of the cross was terrible. Jesus was forsaken by his friends, and in the midst of his agony he even felt forsaken by God and cried out, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"

Order of the Events of the Crucifixion:

Arrival at Golgotha (Calvary), Mt 27:33; Mk 15:22; Lk 23:33; Jn 19:17
Offer of a benumbing drink, Mt 27:34
The crucifixion, Mt 27:35
Cry, 'Father, forgive...', Lk 23:34
The parting of Christ's garments, Mt 27:35
Jesus mocked, Mt 27:39-44; Mk 15:29
The thieves rail on Him, but one believes, Mt 27:44
Second cry, "Today you will be with me...', Lk 23:43
Third cry, 'Dear woman, here is your son,' Jn 19:26-27
The darkness, Mt 27:45; Mk 15:33
The fourth cry, 'My God, my God...', Mt 27:46-47; Mk 15:34-36
Fifth cry, 'I am thirsty,' Jn 19:28
Sixth cry, 'It is finished,' Jn 19:30
Seventh cry, 'Father, into thy hands...,' Lk 23:46
Jesus dismisses His spirit, Mt 27:50; Mk 15:37

The shame of the cross is frequently forgotten by modern-day Christians. Crucifixion was the ultimate in insult and public contempt for a criminal. It is impossible for us to even begin to understand the horror of the cross to the sinless soul of the divine Son of God.

The writer of the book of Hebrews says that part of our Lord's motive for enduring the agony of the cross was for "the joy that was set before him." Hebrews 12:2 Is it possible that one could endure such agony, such loneliness, such shame, such horror and yet experience joy in doing so? The writer of Hebrews says yes. There were at least three joys that led Jesus to the cross.

1. The joy of glorifying God. In his great prayer, Jesus prayed, "Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy son also may glorify thee" (John 17:1) Jesus came to the earth to make known (or glorify) the nature, character, and purpose of God.

2. The joy of the highest possible personal achievement. Jesus rejected Satan's temptations and endured the cross because there was no other way to save people. In doing so, he was to achieve the highest possible destiny for his life.

3. The joy of saving souls. Jesus endured the cross to experience the joy of saving you and me from sin. We were slaves and he came to set us free. We were guilty and he came to cleanse us. We were helpless, and he came to rescue us. We were in a hopeless condition, and he came to give us life. He makes forgiveness possible. He gives new life, eternal life, spiritual life, divine life.

Was the death of Christ on the cross a waste as far as you are concerned? If you have rejected him, then as far as you are concerned, he died in vain. Let his death on the cross be your death to sin. Let the life he revealed on the first Easter morning be your life.

Let his example challenge you to give your life completely to the divine plan. Determine to live so as to glorify God in your daily life that others might come to your Savior and be saved by his death on the cross and be transformed by his living presence.

Prayer:

Of all of God's gifts
Easter shows us our fate
Forgiven we will rise
And pass through Heaven's gate

This Easter remember
The sacrifice of a Son
And through His resurrection
Eternal life we have won

This Easter I pray
That the love of God
Is resurrected
Reborn, renewed
Inside your heart.

God Bless You!

Cami

Passion Week (Jesus' Final Week)

Passion Week is a very special time of year for Christians. We, at The Coffeehouse Bible Ministry, thought it might be helpful to present a basic chronological view of this week for our guests. Please keep in mind that the following is intended only to be a useful guide to reading through, and reflecting upon the Passion Week.

The final week of Christ’s life is notoriously difficult to accurately reconstruct, so this is intended to be more of a prayer guide than a precise history. Our recommendation is to read through the daily Scriptures (choose one gospel account, or read all versions) and spend a few moments in prayerful reflection in preparation for Easter Sunday.

Palm Sunday
Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a donkey colt while crowds welcome him as the anticipated Messiah which to them meant “king” as opposed to the 2nd member of the Trinity.
Scriptures: Matthew 21:1-11; Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:28-44; John 12:12-19

Monday
Jesus clears the temple.
Scriptures: Matthew 21:10-17; Mark 11:15-18; Luke 19:45-48

Tuesday
Jesus engages the priests and authorities in debate and evades their verbal traps. By afternoon he begins teaching in parables which, among other things, warn the people against the Pharisees and predict the temple’s destruction.
Scriptures: Matthew 21:23-24:51; Mark 11:27-13:37; Luke 20:1-21:36

Wednesday
The gospels do not specifically mention the events of this day. We recommend you make a special emphasis on prayer this day. Set aside extended time to be in conversation with God. Work through either the 22nd Psalm (quoted by Christ from the cross) or the Lord’s Prayer to guide you.Recommended Scriptures: Psalm 22, Luke 11:1-13

Thursday
Here Jesus celebrates the Passover meal a day early and in the process charges it with new meaning and significance. He prepares the disciples for his death and institutes the Lord’s Supper. Following the meal, they sing a hymn and depart for the Garden of Gethsemane where he spends time in solitary and agonizing prayer.
Scriptures: Matthew 26:17-30; Mark 14:12-26; Luke 22:7-23; John 13:1-30.

Good Friday
Following his betrayal, arrest, desertion by the disciples, false trials, condemnation, beating and mockery, Jesus is forced to carry his own cross to Golgotha where he is crucified.
Scriptures: Matthew 27:1-66; Mark 15:1-47; Luke 22:66-23:56; John 18:28-19:37

Saturday
Jesus body is placed in the tomb on Friday night where it lies throughout this day. All work is stopped in honor of the Sabbath. We recommend that if possible everyone take a purposeful Sabbath break from their regular routines. Take an hour or more and spend it in solitude and silence. Go for a walk; shut the door to your room – anything that provides quiet space to be alone with your thoughts. Consider the silence and solitude of a tomb as you reflect on the death of your savior.

Easter Sunday (Resurrection Day)
The Father raises the Son from the dead sometime early Sunday morning, possibly before dawn. I doing so, He fulfills the Old Testament typology of the Firstfruits. Through His death believers are justified, that is, the perfect righteousness of the Son is attached to sinners, and through His resurrection we can be assured that the sacrifice of the Lamb of God was accepted by a Holy God, and therefore, our resurrection is certain.
Scriptures: 1 Corinthians 15:23; Matthew 28: 1-3

We pray that this information will be beneficial to you!

Let us pray...

Please, Lord, guide my mind with your truth. Strengthen my life by the example of Jesus. Help me to be with Jesus in this week as he demonstrates again his total love for me. He died so that I would no longer be separated from you. Help me to feel how close you are and to live in union with you. Amen

Bless you,

The Coffeehouse Bible Ministry

Be Rich In Jesus Christ

One of the founding fathers of the United States, Patrick Henry, was a native of Virginia, of which state he became Governor. He was eminent through life as a statesman and an orator.

A little before his death, he remarked to a friend, who found him reading his Bible, "Here is a book worth more than all the other books which ever were printed; yet it is my misfortune never to have, till lately, found time to read it with proper attention and feeling."

This excellent man left in his Will the following important passage;—

"I have now disposed of all my property to my family: there is one thing more I wish I could give them, and that is, the Christian religion. If they had that and I had not given them one shilling, they would, be rich; and if they had not that, and I had given them all the world, they would be poor."

So many of us traverse through our entire lives in the endless search for worldly riches. Some of us acquire what we believe to be the riches that were sought after, but either through time, greed, illness or death, they soon vanish from our grasp.

After reading the above quotation by Patrick Henry, it reminded me of the bible passage 1 Corinthians 1:5. This one powerful passage can be looked at as three distinct parts which describe the true source of the riches that are found only in Jesus Christ. Let's take a look:

1. The source of these riches is found in Jesus Christ. God wants the best for his children. His promises are riches for us all. Phillipians 4:19 says,"My God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus."

2. The promise of these riches is that a person is enriched in everything. Christ makes a difference in every facet of life. In other words, He makes a difference in what you or I want. Even more importantly, Christ also makes a difference in what one does with what one has.

This enrichment is "in all utterance and in all knowledge." "All utterance" is the outward expression, and "all knowledge" is the outward. These apply to such areas as husband-wife relations, parent-child relations, and relations with friends and acquaintances.

They also apply to one's physical welfare, such as blessings and privileges of health and the sufferings and sorrows of illness. Enrichment can also apply to one's economic life, which would include earnings and expenditures. Most of all, enrichment applies to one's spiritual life.

3. To have this enrichment, certain conditions must be met. One must surrender all aspects of one's life to the Lord Jesus. Ones must have an abiding faith in Jesus and his promises as set forth in God's Word. One must be obedient to God's will after first determining what it is.

So what is the main idea of all of this? It is this; that in order for you and I to appreciate the riches of Christ in our lives, we must focus our attention on his promises and not on ourselves. A simple concept for sure, but one that is very difficult for most of us to follow.

Scripture readings:

Romans 2:4 "His kindness and forbearance and patience"
Romans 9:23, Ephesians 1:18, 3:16 The riches of God's glory
Romans 11:13 The riches of God's wisdom
Ephesians 1:7,2:7 The riches of his grace
Ephesians 2:4 The riches of his mercy
Ephesians 3:8 The riches of Christ are unsearchable
Romans 10:12 "Abounding in riches for all who call upon Him"
I Timothy 6:17 The world offers uncertain riches
Luke 16:11 Jesus gives "true riches"

Let's Pray:

O God, who resists the proud, and gives grace to the humble: grant us the virtue of true humility, where of Your Only-begotten son showed in Himself a pattern for Your faithful; that we may never by our pride provoke Your anger, but rather by our meekness receive the riches of Your grace. Amen

God bless you,

Adele

The Attitude of Pride

There’s an old saying that, “God pickles the proud and preserves the foolish.”

Tancredo Neves ran for the presidency of Brazil in the 1980s. He boldly declared that if he got 500,000 votes from his own party, not even God could keep him from being president. Well, he won the election, but one day later he got sick and died. There is no way to know if God accepted his challenge, but what we can know for sure is that human beings ought not to make such bold, arrogant pronouncements. Remember the Titanic. People said God couldn't sink it, but it sank on its maiden voyage.

The world may see pride as a sign of respect and dignity, a sign that our worth as human beings is supreme, that we deserve respect and even worship for ourselves. The world may take pleasure and satisfaction with pride as it represents achievements that we have accomplished. But, our conceit is the source of pride. When we are filled with conceit, we have a vastly exaggerated opinion of ourselves.

Our self-esteem must come from who we are in Christ and what Christ has done for us. This should give us an enormous satisfaction and sense of worth. The King and Creator of the universe cares for us and loves us. He is living within, guiding, loving, and holding us. There is no adequate substitution for that! But, it is sad that we try so hard to substitute the wonders of the truth of what Christ did for us with senseless, insignificant lies.

Christ is calling us from an over-exaggerated opinion of ourselves, calling us from our vanity and from our delusions of conceit. Christ calls us out of conceit, which is faith in ourselves, and into Himself.

Let’s not fall into the trap of putting on a performance, of acting out the Christian life. Let’s not play a Christian, but let us be a Christian. Let our actions be in response to the transformation of Christ's grace by living honest lives. We must allow Christ’s amazing grace to root out all the evil within us, especially the hypocrisy that causes so much destruction. Those who won’t listen to advice cannot be helped. More souls are ruined by pride than by any other sin whatever.

God wisely designed the human body so that we can neither pat our own backs nor kick ourselves too easily. Here are a few things that we can we do to avoid entertaining the attitude of sinful pride in our lives. They are:

1. Avoid the attitude of pride in our lives. (Because of its consequences) Proverbs 13:10; Proverbs 11:12; Proverbs 15:25; Proverbs 16:5

2. Avoid the attitude of pride in our lives. (By practicing its alternative) Proverbs 16:19; Proverbs 25:6-7; Proverbs 26:12; Proverbs 27:1; Proverbs 18:12

Scripture readings:

Proverbs 21:24; Isaiah 16:6; Isaiah 25:11; Jeremiah 48: 29-30; Amos 2:1; Obadiah 1:3; Zephaniah 2: 8,10

Let’s pray:

Father, Your love is pure, and Your motives are for our good. We ask forgiveness for walking in pride and letting this false strength and reliance on our flesh guide us, defend us, and sustain us. We turn over to Jesus this pride, its causes and effects, and all its inordinate desires. Father, we ask You to renew and create in us a clean heart, and to purge us of all pride that blocks us from being like Jesus. Help us to set our will on You, Father that Your will may be done on earth as it is in heaven. Help us defeat pride and all its roots by Your love. And Father, help us to be at one with You in Jesus. For this we pray and give thanks, in Jesus’ name. Amen

May God bless you,

Myree