RESURRECTED LIKE NO OTHER
Many have no fear for their own death but according to the National Institute of Mental Health, 68% of people fear death. From a purely human viewpoint, why would anyone look forward to the cessation of their life? We know those in the military, when presented with a dangerous situation, will risk their lives for others. Confronted with a situation that threatens our close loved ones, we, too, will risk our lives for them. However, in either case (military or loved ones) these potential sacrifices are not planned. Jesus’ sacrifice had long been planned. He gives us hope in the face of death. That hope was made clear when Jesus rose from the dead. His death and resurrection conquered death for those who place their faith in Him. We can be assured of eternal life- even beyond this physical life- because of Jesus.
Read Matthew 28:1-7
Jesus is alive and we can live forever!! The Jewish Sabbath day had ended at sunset on Saturday and we learn that the stone had been removed from the tomb’s entrance. Mary Magdalene and “the other Mary” (who was the mother of James and Joseph Matt. 27:56) went to the tomb with spices to prepare Jesus’ body for burial. There are reports that there was no time before the start of the Sabbath after Jesus was removed from the cross to apply such spices to His body. So when the women, who had supported Jesus during His ministry, arrived at the tomb they found the tomb empty. They had fully expected to find His corpse and they had major concerns on how they would remove the stone blocking the tomb’s entrance (Mark 16:3). Even while planning to honor Jesus by applying the spices, they had to be feeling a sense of hopelessness, defeat or confusion. Without question, the stone over the tomb was never a problem for the women as the angel had moved the stone so the women could enter the tomb. However, in their minds, they still faced the tragic situation of facing Jesus’ corpse- until the angel spoke. (It is clear that the angel was described as a “He”. Of course, we really don’t know what that means for an ”angel”.)

It should be understood that the stone was not rolled aside so Jesus could get out but so others could get in and see that Jesus had indeed risen from the dead, just as He had promised. The women were greeted by a sight very different from anything they had expected. Either just before or at the time of their arrival at the tomb, “there was a violent earthquake” (v.2)! An angel came down out of heaven, rolled the stone away from the entrance and in triumph, sat on the stone. The angel’s dazzling appearance was a chock to the Roman guards, who trembled and fell unconscious. The angel gave the women a message of comfort- “He is not here!” His former burial place was now empty, and they could easily verify this fact for themselves. His resurrection had been a bodily one. Besides telling the women that Jesus had risen, the angel sent the women on a mission. They were to find Jesus’ disciples and tell them the wonderful news of the resurrection. They were also to tell the disciples that Jesus would precede them to Galilee. When the disciples returned to Galilee, they would find Him there already.

The angel, who announced the good news of the resurrection to the women, gave them four messages: 1) Do not be afraid! The reality of the resurrection brings joy, not fear. When we are afraid, remember the empty tomb. 2) He isn’t here. Jesus is not dead and is not to be looked for among the dead. He is alive, with His people. 3) Come see! The women could check the evidence for themselves. The tomb was empty then, and it is empty today. The resurrection is a historical fact. 4) Go quickly and tell! They were to spread the joy of the resurrection. Jesus’ resurrection is the key to the Christian faith.
Why is this the key to Christian faith? (It shows that the Living Christ is the ruler of God’s eternal Kingdom, not a false prophet or imposter. We can be certain that an earthly death is not the end. There is future life!)
Read Matthew 28:8-10
Notice the unusual use of the words “fear and great joy” together, but the presence of both is understandable. The women had just experienced an earthquake, had seen a radiant angel, and had heard of Jesus’ resurrection. Who among us would not have had some fear? And at the same time, the joy of knowing that Jesus had overcome death and was ready to meet them in Galilee filled their hearts with overwhelming gladness and joy. The women quickly left the tomb to carry out the angel’s instructions. So fear mingled with the joy they felt as they ran to tell the eleven remaining disciples the news of the resurrection. The empty tomb by itself did not prove the resurrection. But now the women were about to witness the real proof that Jesus had risen. Jesus met them on their way and He spoke to the women. The meeting was not merely a vision. The Mary’s were able to grasp Jesus’ feet in an act of worship. He was the Jesus they remembered. But now they recognized Him as deserving the worship belonging to God alone. They may have felt like breaking out in a happy dance or at least sing “Oh Happy Day”.
Jesus repeated the instructions the angel had given the women (28:7). There was one important change, however. He called His disciples “my brothers” (v. 10). They had failed Him completely in His time of greatest trial, but Jesus forgave them and looked ahead to what they would be as they served Him in the future. Jesus told the women to pass a message to the disciples. He said that He would meet them in Galilee, as He had previously told them (Mark 14:28). The disciples were afraid of the religious leaders and they stayed hidden behind locked doors in Jerusalem (John 20:19). Jesus did not unlock the door. He just appeared to them in the flesh. So Jesus met them first right there (Luke 24:36) and then later in Galilee (John 21).

Matthew goes to tell of that meeting in Galilee also (28:16-20), but does not mention the initial Jerusalem meeting. Why do you think that Matthew did not mention the Jerusalem meeting? (It could be that Matthew was not wanting tell that he and others were afraid to go to Galilee! Maybe he thought it was not that important to share.)

Afterwards, the disciples became eyewitnesses of the resurrected Lord. Paul wrote, “He (Jesus) appeared to over 500 at one time… Then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all He also appeared to me.” (1 Cor. 15:6-8). All of these passed their witness on to others, who told others, until someone told us. So our responsibility is to pass it on to as many as we can. Because Jesus rose from the dead and is alive today, we can not only know the story, we can also experience the eternal life with Him that God desires for each of us. Jesus resurrection is completely unique. No other “leader” of their religion rose from the dead; Buddha did not; Muhammad did not; Confucius did not! As our lesson title indicates- Resurrected Like No Other!

REVELATION: A DEEPER LOOK INTO THE MEANING

THE BOOK OF REVELATIONS IS FILLED WITH SYMBOLISM AND PHRASES THAT ARE NOT EASY TO UNDERSTAND. THERE ARE A LOT OF GOOD BOOKS ON REVELATION AND HEAVEN. THIS IS JUST ONE FOR YOU READING TIME.

CLICK HERE FOR FURTHER LOOK AT REVELATIONS

OUR NEED FOR DIRECTION
We all need direction and purpose in our life. Without direction we can stumble in darkness. We like to think we live in an enlightened society, but we live in a world of darkness. Society in general is selective about what it considers wrong. In society’s “enlightened” thinking, what was once considered sin is no longer considered sin. Just as light revealed darkness, Jesus reveals our sin and darkness. Jesus does not merely reveal our darkness. He invites us to come to Him and walk in His light. Jesus is the light who reveals the way- the direction- we should go. Do you remember feeling afraid of the dark? Is there something that reminds you of that feeling? Not asking for vocal answers, just think what got you past that feeling. Jesus is there to help us through these feelings. The Holy Spirit will give us the way for the direction we need to go.
Read John 8:12
At this time, many were not as excited over Jesus and His miraculous works. This was because Jesus teaching had begun to challenge people’s beliefs. Many ceased to be enamored of Him as He clarified who He was and what He had come to do. Included in His description of His character and nature was the fact that He is the Light of the world. Even as Christians today, there are times will are not as excited over Jesus. We need to always recall the “JOY” of our salvation!
To better understand what Jesus meant by “I am the light of the world”, we need to go back to John 1:4-5. Here Jesus said about the light: “The darkness can never extinguish it”. This means the darkness of evil never has and never will overcome God’s light. Jesus Christ is the Creator of life, and His life brings light to humankind. In His light, we see ourselves as we really are (sinners in need of a Savior). When we follow Jesus, the true light, we can avoid walking blindly and falling into sin. He lights the path ahead of us so we can see how to live. He removes the darkness of sin from our lives. In what ways have we allowed the light of Christ to shine into our lives? Think about that and the direction that gives us! Let Christ guide our life, and we will never need to stumble in the darkness.
At another unspecified time during the Feast of Tabernacles Jesus made His second great claim when He said, “I am the light of the world” (v.12). He went on to explain that the person who followed Him would not walk in moral and spiritual darkness but would walk in the light of life. One of the features of the Feast of Tabernacles was the lighting of the large golden lampstands in the Court of the Women on the first night of the feast and possible on other nights. These lights that illuminated the entire courtyard were a reminder of the pillar of fire that accompanied the children of Israel by night during wilderness wanderings. If these were not lighted each night, and Jesus made a claim (that He was the light) at a time when they were not lighted in the courtyard where they would have stood, His claim is even more emphatic. In both the Old and New Testaments light was used as a symbol of God. The true light of God’s grace and glory was expressed in Jesus Christ.
So what does it mean to follow Christ, as v. 12 is telling us? As a soldier follows his captain, so we should follow Christ, our commander. As a slave follows his master, so we should follow Christ, our Lord. As we follow that advice of a trusted counselor, so we should follow Jesus’ commands to us in Scripture. As we follow the laws of our nation, so we should follow the laws of the Kingdom of Heaven.
Read John 8:13-15
The Pharisees refused to recognize and acknowledge Jesus’ identity as the Son of God, the Messiah. They likewise failed to understand that He had come from God and would be returning to God. The Pharisees thought that Jesus was either a lunatic or a liar. Jesus provided them with a third alternative: He was telling the truth (Pilate asked the question that the Pharisees ignored- What is the truth?). Because most of the Pharisees refused to consider the third alternative, they never recognized Him as the Messiah and Lord. When we seek to know who Jesus is, we must not close any door before looking through it honestly. Only with an open mind will we know the truth that He is the Messiah and Lord.
Ignoring the claim, the Pharisees jumped to the validity of His witness. It seemed the claim of an egoist since it was uncorroborated by other witnesses (v.13). Jesus’ response to them indicated that they could not ascertain the validity of His witness because they did not understand its context. They knew neither His origin nor His destination. Since they did not know the Father who had sent Him they could not understand His witness to Himself. His judgment was not according to their standards. Their standards were external appearances. His standard of judgment rested on the truth of God. While He did not judge anyone by their external standards (v.15) His very presence was a judgment of persons.
The Pharisees were judging by “human standards” and Jesus refused to play that game. Jesus was telling them that He was not judging anyone. Instead He was using the righteous standards of God. Jesus’ role was to be the light, not a judge. Jesus had already pointed out that God had not sent Him to condemn the world but to save it. But He had also stressed that the one who would not believe in Him was condemned already (3:17-18). We know there are many reasons people give for God’s Word as truth and sharing some them may prepare us on how to respond when we encounter them. So what are some of those reasons we can tell others that God’s Word is truth? (Read 2 Peter 1:16-21; 1 John 1:1-4; Revelation 1:1-3; Luke 1:1-4; 1 Corinthians 15:1-49; All talk of Eyewitnesses and Psalm 22:1-31- Praise). Also all the beauty of the earth, the details of the human body and of course what Jesus has done for you.)
Read John 8:16-19
Persons were judged in the light of God’s truth (v.16). Even the Pharisees own law to which they gave such credence called for two witnesses so that testimony could be verified. Jesus had two witnesses: Himself and the Father (v.18). But they immediately wanted to know where His father was so the testimony could be verified. They may have been Galileans who brought up the question of legitimacy of His birth by that question. Or they may have been Judeans who did not know that but did want to see His father produced so the story could be checked. The Pharisees argued that Jesus’ claim was legally invalid because He had no other witnesses. Jesus responded that His confirming witness was God Himself. Jesus and the Father made two witnesses, the number required by law (Deuteronomy 19:15).
The Pharisees could only ask- “Where is your Father?” One way to understand this is that it was a serious social challenge of their authority. The other way to understand this question would be that they were thinking in natural terms of an earthly father and were ready to search for him to see if he would support Jesus’ position. For me, the Pharisees were only trying to mock or trap Jesus. Clearly, Jesus was saying that they already have seen and know that. Since they know Jesus, they would know who His Father was and know where He is!!!!!!
In a statement that indicates an eyewitness, John noted that Jesus had been doing that teaching in the Court of the Women near the treasury boxes. That would have been close to the meeting place of the Sanhedrin. They could have heard what He said. They could have apprehended Him. But they did not because His “hour”, His time for presentation and glorification, had not yet come in God‘s time (v. 20). This should have been clear to all- that God was the witness.

DEMONS

So, as was indicated in the previous article Satan is real!! Well, today we will look at the fact that demons are real. Both of these are scary topics that we normally would prefer to avoid. Many Christians would even prefer to hide from the reality of evil in the world. Hiding from the evil does not diminish the reality of evil. What we find to be a wiser approach is to be aware of who it is who seeks to do us harm. We stand by knowing who it is we are standing against. We need to stand against Satan and his demons when we stand in Christ, the one who defeated our greatest enemy. We had just studied when and how Jesus removed the many demons from one man who was being controlled by this evil spirit recorded in Mark 5. Jesus is greater than any spiritual power and He said He has given us all authority in Him to defeat the enemy.

Read Mark 9:17-22a

Peter, James and John had just experienced the “transfiguration” of Jesus when they accompanied Jesus to the top of the mountain. Jesus had promised His disciples that He would return in glory after His death, but Peter and James, and John got a preview of that glory in the transfiguration experience. When Jesus was transformed, the disciples literally saw Him in a new light of heavenly glory. Then Elijah and Moses reappeared just as mysteriously as they had left the earthly scene. Why these two? Perhaps it was because Moses commonly represented the Law, and Elijah stood for the Prophets. Into that spiritual summit there came the voice of God to claim Jesus as Son and to approve His ministry (1:9-11). For Jesus, the experience was further preparation for the cross (Luke 9:31) and reassurance of His divine Sonship.

With Elijah there and Moses, too, Peter must have thought the kingdom had come in its completeness. Whatever he thought, he wanted to build three booths or shelters. But a cloud enclosed Jesus, Elijah, and Moses. And God’s voice reaffirmed that Jesus was His Divine Son and told the disciples to listen to Him. Jesus had said for those with ears to hear (4:9,23; 8:18); now God reinforce that command. Every Christian has the promise of a future transfiguration. Interestingly enough, the Greek word for transfiguration (v.2) is applied in Romans 12:1-2 and 2 Corinthians 3:18 to obedient Christians who let God transform their lives. ‘

Once more Jesus descended to the surroundings of frail mankind. The scene was    disheartening powerless disciples, arguing scribes, and a brokenhearted father with an epileptic son. The boy reportedly had an evil spirit (demon), and the symptoms came out in the form of epilepsy. That was the scene when Jesus came down from the glory of the transfiguration. The details of this even contrast messiahship and discipleship.

When Jesus, Peter, James, and John came down to join the other disciples, they were met heby the disciples, scribes, and a crowd that seemingly sensed that Jesus would settle an argument. Jesus’ question in verse 16 could have been directed to the disciples, the scribes, or the crowd as a whole. The question was: “What is all of this arguing about?” Before a disciple or a scribe could answer the question, a troubled father said, in effect: “I’m responsible. I brought my son to you for healing. You were one, so I appealed to your disciples who were supposed to have your authority to cast out demons and heal. But they were powerless. That’s when the argument began”. The argument may have been about how to cast out demons or who had the authority to cast out demons. The disciples’ failure was striking in view of the authority of Jesus had given them earlier (6:7, 13). While Jesus had been gone, the disciples were unable to heal, and they probably were unable to hold their own in a debate with the scribes; so, the situation was embarrassing for them. No wonder Jesus was dismayed with the lack of faith of the disciples matched by the unbelief of the crowds who then ordered the boy to be brought to Him (v.19).

The picture of the demon-possessed boy and his father was pathetic. From childhood, the boy had these symptoms unable to speak and hear (vv. 17-26), convulsed to the ground, foaming at the mouth, grinding his teeth, and rigid or exhausted. Whenever the seizures would come, the boy’s life was endangered by demon’s plan of plunging the boy into fire or water. (The image of God was distorted in this person, and Satan would have liked to destroy it altogether.)

Read Mark 9:22b-27

For years, the boy had required twenty-four-hour watch care. No wonder the father said, “But if you can do anything, have pity on us and help us” (v. 22). The implication was, “Your disciples are powerless; but if you have any power, help us!” Jesus immediately set the record straight. His power was not in question; the man’s lack of faith was the problem (v.23). The man had had some faith, or he would not have brought his boy to Jesus. But when Jesus pointed to faith as the missing quality, the father didn’t argue. He prayed, “I believe; help my unbelief!” (v.24). Jesus healed the boy once and for all and showed that salvation is for all of life as well as for death. The boy lay as peacefully after the convulsive spirit left him as if he were dead. But Jesus lifted him to life- almost as a preview of final death and resurrection.

Privately, the disciples wanted to know why they hadn’t been able to cast out the demon. Though Jesus had grown weary of their lack of faith (v.29; also see 4:40; 6:50.52; 8:17-21), they were still learners; and He was still their Master Teacher. Jesus explained that this kind of demon could be driven out only by prayers of faith (vv. 19. 29). The best ‘t manuscripts do not include fasting as a requirement for casting out demons. Jesus did not have to fast to cast out the demon, and He had exempted the disciples from any need to fast while He was with them (2:18-22).

So, why couldn’t the disciples cast out the evil spirit? In 6:13, we read that they cast out demons while on their mission to the villages. Perhaps they had special authority only for that trip, or perhaps their faith was faltering now. Mark tells this story to show that the battle with Satan is a difficult, ongoing struggle. Victory over sin and temptation comes through faith in Jesus Christ, not through our own efforts. This faith must be ongoing, renewed, and strengthened.

Jesus’ words do not mean that we can automatically obtain anything we want if we just think positively (there is a person on TV that seems to be saying this). Jesus meant that anything is possible if we believe, because nothing is too difficult for God. We cannot have everything we pray for as if by magic, but with faith, we can have everything we need to serve Him.

Read Mark 9:28-29

The attitude of trust and confidence that the Bible calls “belief or faith” (Hebrews 11:1, 6) is not something we can obtain without help. Faith is a gift from God (Ephesians 2:8-9). No matter how much faith e have, we never reach the point of being self-sufficient. Faith is not stored away like money in the bank. Growing in faith is a constant process of daily renewing our trust in Jesus. The disciples would often face difficult situations that could be resolved only through prayer. Prayer is the key that unlocks faith in our life. Effective prayer needs both the attitude of complete dependence and the action of asking. Prayer demonstrates our reliance on God as we humbly invite Him to fill us with faith and prayer. There is no substitute for prayer, especially in circumstances that that seem impossible.

This incident proved that only lack of faith and lack of prayer hinder man’s full deliverance. When faith is not what it should be, we need to pray for a better quality of faith. Further, a person with real faith will not set a limit on God’s power that is available in Jesus. So, the only real answer in facing any demon is to call on God for even more faith. Furthermore, we cannot live the Christian life well without a full, continuing commitment to Christ through faith and dependence upon Him alone.