Easter

A man was once conversing with a Brahmin priest, and he asked: “Could you say, ‘I am the Resurrection and the Life?’”

“Yes,” replied the priest, “I could say that.”

“But could you make any one believe it?”

Christ proved His superiority right there. His character and His actions were back of His words. He exhibited His divine power to silence His enemies.

Source: Moody’s Stories, p. 64

“The bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is the crowning proof of Christianity. If the resurrection did not take place, then Chrsitianity is a false religion. If it did take place, then Christ is God and the Christian faith is absolute truth.”—Henry Morris

“Before we can reason the resurrection out of history we must reason Paul and Christianity out of existence. We must admit the miracle or frankly confess that we stand before an inexplicable mystery.”—Dr Philip Schaff

Just before Easter in 2009, Fred Winters, pastor of the First Baptist Church in Maryville, Illinois, was shot and killed during a Sunday morning service by a disturbed young man. The tragedy shocked the church and the pastor’s family, but it did not destroy their faith. The next week the newly-widowed Cindy Winters was interviewed on a national news broadcast. When asked about her husband’s killer she said, “I do not have any hatred or even hard feelings toward him. We have been praying for him.

Six-year-old Keirsten  was talking with her grandmother about their church’s Easter sunrise service when she announced, “Nana, I’m not going to that rise-and-shine thing. I have to get up too early!”

Source: Mature Living, March 2013

Five-year-old Brian had a pivotal verse to recite in an Easter program: “He is not here, he is risen” (Luke 24:6). Unfortunately, he could not remember what to say, and the director had to quietly remind him of his line. He then confidently grabbed the microphone and triumphantly shouted, “He’s not here; He’s in prison!”

Source: Mature Living, April, 2011

Jim was leaving church after Christmas services when the pastor greeted him and said, “Jim, it’s time you joined the Army of the Lord. We need to see you every Sunday.”

“I’m already in the Army of the Lord, Pastor,” Jim replied.

“Then why do we only see you on Christmas and Easter?”

Jim looked to the right and to the left, and then leaned over to whisper, “I’m in the Secret Service.”

Source: Unknown

A little boy and his father were driving down a country road on a beautiful spring afternoon. Suddenly out of nowhere a bumblebee flew in the car window. Since the little boy was deathly allergic to bee stings he became petrified. His father quickly reached out, grabbed the bee, squeezed it in his hand, and then released it. But as soon as he let it go, the young son became frantic once again as it buzzed by the little boy.

Some bones from one of Buddha’s fingers were sent as a gift to the emperor of China during the Tang dynasty. They were later forgotten about and then found in 1981. The finding was a sensation to Buddhists everywhere, and the bones are now visited by many Buddhists.

If someone claimed to find a finger that belonged to Christ no Christians would believe him because our faith is founded on the fact that there is no finger to find—Christ rose from the dead.

Source: Rough Guide to China, David Leffman, Simon Lewis, Jeremy Atiyah

On one occasion Michelangelo, the great artist, turned on his fellow artists in a spirit of indignation. He said: “Why do you keep filling gallery after gallery with endless pictures on the one theme of Christ in weakness, Christ on the Cross, and most of all, Christ hanging dead? Why do you concentrate on the passing episode as if it were the last work, as if the curtain dropped on Him with disaster and defeat? That dreadful scene lasted…a few hours. But to the unending eternity, Christ is alive; the stone has been rolled away and He rules and reigns and triumphs!”

A survey conducted April 3-4, 2012 shows that 77% of Americans believe Jesus rose from the dead, and 86% believe that He was a real historical figure.

Source: Rasmussenreports.com

Some folks are like Easter eggs—ornamented on the outside and hard-boiled on the inside!

Source: Unknown

“Christmas is the promise, and Easter is the proof.”

Source: Unknown

The best news the world has ever had came from a cemetery near Jerusalem—the tomb was empty!

Source: Unknown

Abraham Lincoln’s casket was opened in 1901 because it was feared that his body was not there. Christ’s tomb was opened to prove He is not there.

Source: Life Magazine, February 15, 1963

A man and his five-year old son were driving past a cemetery and noticed a large pile of dirt next to a freshly dug grave when the little boy said, “Look, Dad, one got out!”

Next time you drive past a cemetery, think of the One Whom the grave could not hold.

Source: Unknown

This year’s annual Easter egg hunt in Colorado Springs, Colorado was canceled because of misbehaving parents last year. Many parents entered the roped-off area reserved for the children and helped them collect the eggs. This ended the hunt in seconds and left many children with no eggs.

In 1799 the armies of Napoleon appeared on the heights above the town of Feldkirch, Austria. It was Easter Day, and the rays of the rising sun glittered on the weapons of the French, as they appeared drawn up on the hills to the west of the town. The Town Council was hastily called together to consult what was to be done.

After much discussion, the dean of the Church rose and said, “My brothers it is Easter Day! We have been reckoning our own strength, and that fails. Let us turn to God. Ring the bells and have service as usual, and leave the matter in God’s hands.”

As the pastor introduced his children’s sermon on Easter, he asked the little ones, “Do you see anything different about our church today?”

Little Heather quickly figured out the difference and blurted out, “It’s full!”

Source: Illustration Digest, March/April 1994

Submitted by the homiletics class of West Coast Baptist College

The British minister, W. E. Sangster, began to lose his voice and mobility in the mid-1950s. He had a disease that caused progressive muscular atrophy. He recognized the end was near, so he threw himself into writing and praying. In the midst of his suffering he pleaded, “Let me stay in the struggle, Lord. I don’t mind if I can no longer be a general, but give me just a regiment to lead.”

A story is told of an African Muslim who became a Christian. His friends asked, “Why have you become a Christian?”

He answered, “Well, it’s like this. Suppose you were going down the road and suddenly the road forked in two directions, and you didn’t know which way to go. There at the fork were two men, one dead and one alive—who would you ask which way to go?”

Source: Experiencing the Resurrection, Henry and Mel Blackaby
Submitted by the homiletics class of West Coast Baptist College