Apples of Gold
Radio Script for June 11, 2008
“A Core Belief – The Resurrection”
Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.
One of the core beliefs of Christianity is the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
In First Corinthians 15 Paul wrote, “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins…that he was buried, (and) that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures…”
Now listen as Paul spells out his evidence for the resurrection. He said that Jesus “appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time…then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me…”
This is a key reason why we believe in Jesus’ resurrection – because so many people witnessed it personally.
Paul went on to say that if Christ didn’t rise from the dead, then the Gospel is useless and the apostles were liars. And if Christ wasn’t raised, then we are still in our sins, and every Christian who has died is lost. If Christ didn’t rise from the dead, then we are to be pitied above all men, he said.
But we believe Christ did rise from the dead, and we believe for two reasons. First of all, like I said, we believe the testimony of the witnesses who actually saw the risen Savior. And second, we believe because of the new birth and the living hope God has placed within us. First Peter 1:3 says that our living hope comes “through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”
Because Jesus is alive, we have hope for life beyond the grave, eternal life with him.
We believe that Jesus is the Son of God, and one proof of that was his resurrection. Romans 1:4 says that Jesus was “declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead…”
While Jesus walked this earth, several times he predicted his resurrection.
Matthew 16 says that Jesus explained to his disciples that he would go to Jerusalem, be killed, and “on the third day be raised to life.”
One day the Jews demanded Jesus give them a miraculous sign to prove his authority. Here is the proof he offered them. He said, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” He was talking about his body, and his resurrection.
After the transfiguration in Mark 9, Jesus told Peter, James and John, “Don’t tell anyone about this until after the Son of Man has risen from the dead.” Then they discussed among themselves, “What does he mean, ‘risen from the dead’?”
Even on the night of his betrayal he told his disciples, “…after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.”
Even though Jesus taught his disciples about his resurrection, they just didn’t see it coming. In Matthew 17, after Jesus explained his death and resurrection, it says his disciples were filled with grief. All they seemed to hear was the part about his death.
Luke 18:34 gives us a reason why the disciples didn’t pick up on the resurrection part. It says, “Its meaning was hidden from them.” Luke 24 says it wasn’t until after his resurrection that Jesus “opened their minds so they could understand...”
Jesus’ opponents certainly understood his prediction to rise again. That’s why, in Matthew 27, after Jesus’ crucifixion, they went to Pilate and asked him to secure the tomb “until the third day.” Otherwise his disciples might come and steal that deceiver’s body, and his “last deception will be worse than the first,” they said.
So Pilate gave the order, “Make the tomb as secure as you know how.”
But it didn’t work. Jesus did rise from the dead.
Angels announced it to the women who came to the tomb. “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here. He has risen!”
Luke 24:34 says, “It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.”
Soon the disciples became bold witnesses of the resurrection. After Pentecost, Acts 4:33 says, “With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus…”
Acts 2:32 says, “God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact.”
When Peter preached at Pentecost he said, “…wicked men put him to death by nailing him to the cross. But God raised him from the dead…”
When a crowd gathered after a crippled beggar was healed, Peter preached, “You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this.”
In Acts 4, Peter preached to the Sanhedrin that God had raised Jesus from the dead.
In Acts 5 Peter preached to the high priest that “the God of our fathers raised Jesus from the dead.”
At the Gentile Cornelius’ house, Peter preached that “…God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen…by witnesses whom God had already chosen – by us who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead.”
In Acts 13 Paul preached that “God raised him from the dead, and for many days he was seen by those who had traveled with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. They are now his witnesses…”
In Thessalonica Paul proved from the Scriptures “that the Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead.”
In Athens, Paul stirred up the philosophers by telling them about Jesus and his resurrection.
When standing before Festus and King Agrippa, Paul told them that Jesus had risen from the dead.
The epistles are full of references to Jesus’ resurrection.
Romans 4:25 says that Jesus “was raised to life for our justification.”
Romans 10:9 says that if we confess with our mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in our heart that God raised him from the dead, we will be saved.
First Corinthians 15:20 says that “Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.”
Second Corinthians 4:14 says, “we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us…”
And this is our living hope, that because Jesus was raised from the dead, we, too, will be raised from the dead, and will live with him eternally.
We do have hope, and we have it because of this core truth: the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Comments?
E-mail me: dougapple@wave94.com.
May God bless you today! With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
© 2008 The Arrow’s Tip
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(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)
Why “The Arrow’s Tip”? Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold. Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.” I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.
Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL 32315
(850) 926-8000
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