Daily Encouragement

Monday, April 18, 2022

"It Is True! The Lord Has Risen"

Message summary: One of the great evidences for the validity of the Christian faith is the changed lives of the disciples. From resurrection morning onward they went forth as devoted servants of the resurrected Christ and many were martyred for their faith. The resurrection truth meant a deep, abiding commitment to the risen Lord for these early disciples of Christ and it has for believers in each subsequent generation. Today, hundreds of millions live for Jesus Christ and I'm one of them. I earnestly hope you are as well. Yes, it's true, the Lord is risen! And I believe, you as a reader will properly respond, "He is risen, indeed!"

Listen to this message on your audio player.

"It is true! The Lord has risen" (Luke 24:34). "By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures" (1 Corinthians 15:2-4).

Did you gather with other believers to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ yesterday? If so we probably sang some of the same songs you did to honor the risen Christ, songs like "Christ, the Lord is risen today" and "Were you there?" and several newer songs.

But we are aware that some of our readers are unable to get out and be with others for a variety of reasons. We trust you experienced the vital truth of the resurrection in your heart, and possibly worshiped Him with other believers via live-stream or some other valuable resource that brings live worship into your setting.

However in our experience there's just no replacement for being with others! Yesterday I had the opportunity to make the comparison by being in our worship service and later watching the recording on the computer. It's just not the same! There is great spiritual invigoration when being in the presence of many others of like precious faith.

We consider this intense vigor when we examine the various gatherings that first Easter and the thrill of testifying, "It is true! The Lord has risen". As in many churches our worship leader proclaimed yesterday "The Lord is risen" and the congregation in one voice responded, "He is risen indeed!" Every Easter we are really blessed by this congregational response to the glorious resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ and never want to lose the newness even though it's an old, old story.

"It is true! The Lord has risen" (Luke 24:34). Have you made this affirmation? It was initially made by the two disciples who encountered the risen Lord on the road to Emmaus. That's the simple, straightforward report they brought to the eleven.

"It is true! The Lord has risen" is at the very heart of the Christian faith, a matter of "first importance" according to the apostle Paul. In fact Paul wrote to the Corinthians, "If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins" (1 Corinthians 15:17).

You see; our faith is grounded in objective historical fact, not religious myth. Peter wrote, "We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty" (2 Peter 1:16).

And now here we are, nearly 2,000 years later (1,989 based upon the commonly held date of 33 AD). You're reading it in a variety of locations all around the world. After Resurrection Sunday it's back to work, back to living out the remainder of our allotted time on planet earth, back to what has often been referred to as "the daily grind." *

Yet the reality of the resurrection is a dynamic truth that should impact and permeate every area of our life, every single day. It should invigorate our walk with Christ and renew our hope in the midst of the daily grind so that our spirit soars above the wear and tear of life's demands and disappointments.

Three reasons that the resurrection of Christ is of first importance:

    * It is a genuine, historical event.
    * It is the crowning event in God’s redemptive plan, assuring us of the ultimate victory.
    * It is a life-transforming event.

One of the great evidences for the validity of the Christian faith is the changed lives of the disciples. From resurrection morning onward they went forth as devoted servants of the resurrected Christ and many were martyred for their faith. The resurrection truth meant a deep, abiding commitment to the risen Lord for these early disciples of Christ and it has for believers in each subsequent generation. Today, hundreds of millions live for Jesus Christ and I'm one of them. I earnestly hope you are as well. Yes, it's true, the Lord is risen! And I believe, you as a reader will properly respond, "He is risen, indeed!"

Be encouraged today, (Hebrews 3:13)

Stephen & Brooksyne Weber

Daily prayer: Father, the message "He is risen" resounds beyond the place of the tomb where Jesus' body no longer lay, for it resounds in our hearts and soars within our spirits today nearly 2000 years later. We serve a risen Savior who is in the world today, who dwells within our hearts, and who reconciles us to You, our Father in heaven. What a joyous and triumphant day we celebrate at Easter and everyday as we acknowledge our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ who died, was buried, and who rose again. Amen.

* Our Amish friends take off on Easter Monday for family gatherings

Today's Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources

For those of you unable to be a part of a live church service yesterday or who may be interested we welcome you to view our service at Calvary Church in Lancaster where Brooksyne sang in the choir at three separate services. I attended the 9:30 service which she tells me was the fullest although all three were essentially full. Ester took this photo from the balcony in the 11AM service.

Click on photo to enlarge

Here's the entire service (cued to beginning) Video

"When Death Was Arrested" Here's the service closing in which the choir again went to the platform and vigorously joined their voices at a specific point in the song with great affect. Video

"At The Cross" Video This powerful reading from the service really blessed us. It was written by Tim Scott, a staff member of our church who is a real wordsmith. The narration is his son-in-law who has a voice suitable for such a solemn reading. The wordsmithing reminded me of this portion of a sermon by S.M. Lockridge titled, "That's My King" Video

Following my attendance at the 9:30AM service yesterday I headed through rural Lancaster County to visit Moses, a friend in a nursing home. It seems like about everyone along Farmersville Road has something to sell but I thought this was an interesting variety!

Our family photo, Easter 2022

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Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version.

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