April 24th, 2011 - Trust the Facts

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Christianity is different from some other beliefs because that we, as Christians, believe that Jesus Christ was resurrected from the dead. While people manage to do it, it's rather difficult for anyone to follow a dead leader.

There are many other stories in the Bible that seem unbelievable. For example, a man who built a huge boat in the desert in anticipation of rain (Noah). Or, another man lifting a rod by a sea and parting it so that thousands of people could cross on the bed (Moses).

In Luke 24:1-12, we learn that when the women of Galilee, Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary, the mother of James, went to the tomb where Jesus had been laid to rest, the stone was rolled away and Jesus' body was gone. They looked around and saw two men in shining garments and these men asked them, "Why are you looking for the living among the dead?" The men then told the women that Jesus had risen from the dead just like He said He would in His teachings in Galilee. These women remembered His teachings and then went and told the eleven disciples what had happened but the disciples didn't believe them. Peter ran down to the tomb to see for himself and saw that Jesus was indeed gone.

In John 3:16, we learn that God loved the world so much that He sacrificed His only begotten Son so that whomever believed in Him would NOT perish but would have everlasting life. This was not like in the Flood where only eight people survived.

Jesus tells us that HE is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). He will lead us IF we follow!

In John 11:25, Jesus told Martha that He is the resurrection and the life: whoever believes in Him, even when dead, yet shall he live.

The Lord wants all of us to live with Him in heaven but if we aren't saying "Yes" to Him, we're saying "No".

In Romans 10:9-13, we learn that we only have to confess that we believe in Jesus and the resurrection to be saved. Verse 10 teaches us that we believe with our hearts and with our mouths, this confession of our belief turns into salvation. Verse 11 says that whoever believes in the Lord will NOT be ashamed. Verse 12 continues, we learn that there really is no difference between people because there is ONE Lord and he will respond to everyone equally and (Verse 13) ANYONE who calls upon His name shall be saved.