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The True Meaning Of The Sabbath
John 19:31 'The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation, that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the sabbath day, (for that sabbath day was an high day,) besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.'
The Sabbath was first mentioned in scripture in Exodus 16, when the Lord miraculously provided manna to the children of Israel in the wilderness. The Israelites were commanded to gather twice as much manna on the sixth day because God would not provide any on the seventh day (Ex. 16:5, 22-30).
Shortly after this, the Lord commanded the observance of the Sabbath day in the ten commandments that were given to Moses on two tablets of stone on Mt. Sinai (Ex. 20:8-11). In this...
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Death Has Lost Its Power
Matthew 27:52 'And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose,'
This is an amazing event that only Matthew records. This earthquake apparently rolled the stones away from many of the graves in the vicinity of Jerusalem, and some of the saints buried there arose from the dead. Even at the death of Jesus, such power was released that death lost its grip on its captives.
It is uncertain whether these resurrected saints died again or were caught up to God. If they were resurrected at Christ's death, then they would have had to die again, just as Lazarus or Jairus' daughter or the widow's son at Nain or anyone else that Jesus raised from the dead during His ministry. This is because Jesus was, 'the...
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Christ Is Alive In Us
John 19:30 'When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.'
When Jesus cried, 'It is finished,' He was not referring to the whole plan of salvation as being completed. He still had to descend into the lower parts of the earth and lead the captives out (Eph. 4:8-9), as well as come back from the dead and ascend to the Father to make intercession for us (Heb. 7:25).
Paul made it very clear in 1 Corinthians 15:14 and 17, that if Jesus did not rise from the dead, then our faith is vain and we are yet in our sins.
Why is the resurrection so important? The resurrection of Jesus makes Christianity different from religion because we are dealing with a real, live...
Honor Your Parents
John 19:26 'When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son!'
Children are to honor their parents, even after they become adults. However, the command to obey is temporary (Gal. 4:1-2). Honor naturally leads to obedience if nothing is asked contrary to God's laws, but honor and obedience are not synonymous. The scriptures teach that when a child marries he is to leave his father and mother and cleave unto his mate (Gen. 2:24). Parental dominance that extends into marriage is the source of many divorces and much marital strife. Yet, a child is to honor his parents for all their life.
The definition of the word 'honor' means 'to esteem, respect', and the Greek...
The Veil Is Torn
Luke 23:45 'And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst.'
The veil spoken of here reached from the ceiling to the floor, from wall to wall, and separated the Holy of Holies from the holy place in the temple. Solomon's temple was 30 cubits high (1 Ki. 6:2), but Herod increased the height to 40 cubits according to the writings of Josephus, a first century historian. Therefore, depending on what standard you use to convert cubits to feet (there is uncertainty as to exactly what a cubit equaled in our feet and inches), this veil was somewhere between 60 feet and 90 feet high.
It is significant that this veil was rent from top to bottom (Mt. 27:51; Mk. 15:38). No man could have torn the veil in this fashion. It was...
I AM A CHRISTIAN
Abraham's Bosom
Luke 23:43 'And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.'
The paradise that Jesus spoke of must have been the same place that Jesus called 'Abraham's bosom,' when He told the story of the rich man and Lazarus. Jesus descended into the lower parts of the earth after His death, and John 20:17 shows that it was some time after His resurrection before Jesus ascended back to His Father. Therefore, this paradise was 'Abraham's bosom' located in 'sheol' in the lower parts of the earth.
The phrase 'led captivity captive' from Ephesians 4:8, refers to Jesus liberating the Old Testament saints. When Old Testament saints died, they went to a place in the center of the earth which is called 'sheol' in...