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Dear Christian Believers,
God bless you and your family in the name of our risen
lord and savior, Jesus Christ.
Soon we will be celebrating the resurrection
of our lord Jesus Christ. We'll be reading and teaching
the scriptures concerning details of events leading up
to his arrest and right on through to his resurrection
and ascension. Whenever we present the Word of GOD, whether
it be written or taught, formally or informally, we must
do our best to rightly divide the Word of truth so that
we have truth rather than private interpretation.
II Timothy 2:15
says...
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that
needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of
truth.
During this time of year we read and hear
a lot of material that is traditionally presented as truth
when in reality it is not. Take for instance, Christian
churches all over will celebrate "Food Friday,"
as the day Jesus died on the cross. They have their services
usually around 3PM in the afternoon because that's considered
the approximate time od his death. Then they celebrate
"Easter Sunday Morning" as the day of his resurrection.
Is this traditional teaching true?
Matthew 12:40
For as Jonas [Jonah] was three days
and three nights in the whale's [great fish's]
belly; so shall the Son of man [Jesus Christ]
be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
The record of Jonah
being in the belly of the great fish is written on Jonah
1:17.
How many times have we seen advertisements
for getaway weekends that will say; "come stay
in our resort hotel for three days and two nights."
What does that mean? It means what is says! You can come
for two days and two nights, but the third day you must
check out by noon. You can't stay the third night. The
third day is only part of a day it is not the whole day.
Matthew 12:20 says that Jesus would be
in the heart of the earth (in the tomb), for three days
AND three nights. One day and one night is a twenty-four
hour period of time, therefore three days and three nights
would be a period of seventy-two hours. There is no way
you can squeeze out 72 hours from approximately 3 PM on
Friday until Sunday morning just before sunrise, between
5-6 AM. At most you can get about 40 hours total. If the
scriptures would have just said 3 days and left out 3
nights, I could buy into their argument, but what does
the scripture say? "Three days and three nights."
It locks the time period into three 24 hour periods. To
say anything different would be private interpretation.
2 Peter 1:20
says...
Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture
is of any private interpretation.
If people are going
to privately interpret GOD'S scriptures then hey will
never be able to speak it with authority. It will be an,
"I think this scripture means this or might mean
that." That's not speaking the truth, nor does
it have authority.
Titus 2:15
These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all
authority. Let no man despise thee.
If we receive the Word of
GOD with meekness, with reverence and respect towards
GOD, then we will be able to truly acknowledge it's truth.
We must speak the truth - don't change it or let it be
watered down because we don't want to offend the traditions
or our times, or to avoid confrontations.
2 Corinthians 2:17
For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God:
but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of
God speak we in Christ.
2 Corinthians 4:2
But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty,
not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of
God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending
ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of
God.
Let's stay put on the truth
of GOD'S Word while rejoicing in the celebration of Christ's
resurrection, and live more abundantly and victoriously
in his powerful complete works.
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