LET'S ALL PRAY THIS WEEK: 49 Pre-teens leave for camp on Monday morning. Let's pray for them to have a great week together and in spiritual growth. Let's pray for Brittany Parsons and for all the others who will be ministering and supervising for at least part of the week, including our own Steve Day and Marty Holmes. Let's pray for the bus driver/s who will be transporting this precious cargo to and from camp. Let's Pray!

Let's pray for the young missionary (Jessica Van Slyke) and her colleague, Sarah who will soon be in Russia doing medical missionary work. The following is an excerpt from an earlier blog in case you wish to make a contribution to Sarah and Jessica's missionary work.
Financial Support--Missionary to Russia

Our class was privileged to have Jessica Van Slyke join us last Sunday. Jessica will be traveling soon to Moscow, Russia where she will be serving as a missionary. If you have a desire to support Jessica's work, here is the address she sent. Just send a check to the following address:

And here's the address to the gatekeeping account(tax-deductable):
Agape Unlimited, Inc.
P.O. Box 50994
Midland, TX 79710
They just have to put "Sarah and Jessica" in the memo line!

Let's pray this week for mine and Cindy's friend, Annette Doucette who is recovering from a broken hip and hip replacement surgery. Let's pray for Wendy who recently underwent a colostomy and was fitted with a colostomy bag.
Let's pray for Gena Higginbotham's grandfather, L.T. L.T. has suffered a heart attack and is very weak. Let's pray for Kathleen's Mom as she continues to seek a new job. Let's pray for Clayton Jackson and his grandmother as they travel. Let's pray for the Scastas as they travel this weekend. As we approach the July 4 weekend, let's pray for our country and for our leaders. Let's Pray!



MARK YOUR CALENDARS FOR SUNDAY SCHOOL LUNCH

On Sunday, July 11, we would like to have a time of fellowship over lunch at Fuddruckers immediately after the worship service. I hope that all of you will make an effort to join us for this time of informal fellowship and visiting. As I mentioned in class, it will be a great opportunity for those of us who do not normally have an opportunity to see your kids to have that opportunity. We will pull tables and chairs together and just enjoy lunch and each other.

TODAY'S LESSON:

Circumstantial Evidence for Christ

Today, we considered the circumstantial evidence to support Jesus Christ as the risen Son of God! Jesus' closest followers scattered in the wake of the crucifixion. They were not expecting Jesus to die at the hands of the Romans. When He died on a cross, they were unsure of His power, doubting that He could be the Messiah of all creation, and afraid that the authorities would come after them next. However, in three days Jesus rose from the dead and Jesus' followers were eyewitnesses that He lived and He walked and He talked after also being eyewitnesses to His death. Their relationship to Jesus changed forever. They were now convinced that Jesus was and is the Son of God. After all, they saw with their own eyes! They were committed...not just committed....but obsessed and completely sold out. They faced torture and martydom, but they never recanted from their commitment. They knew what they saw.

On the other hand, there were non-believers who made a complete 180 degree change of direction after encountering the risen Jesus. Jesus' half-brother James was not a believer--until he saw Jesus alive and well after the resurrection. He became a church leader and died a martyr's death as a result of his commitment. Saul of Tarsus pursued Christians with a vengeance. Yet, after his personal encounter with the living Christ, he became one of the greatest crusaders for Christ that the world has ever known.

If you have not read The Case for Christ, I encourage you to do so. The evidence will reveal the truth!

THE CASE FOR CHRIST--Evidence for the Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ: The Pivotal Point for All Human History

This morning, we considered the evidence that supports the hinge point on which all other human history and human endeavor rests: Did Jesus Christ actually die on an old wooden cross and if He did die, was he resurrected on the third day? If these things did not occur, then human life is meaningless and our faith as Christians is of no value and also meaningless. Therefore, the validity of these events is easily the most critical analysis that can be undertaken by Christian and non-Christian alike. Validation of these events verifies that Christ is who He says he was, the Son of God, and that He was and is capable of saving sinners from the consequence of their actions: death. Indeed, the critical importance of these events is emphasized in Paul's first letter to the church at Corinth. In 1 Corinthians 15: 13-14, Paul writes, "But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain."
As Mr. Strobel discusses in the book, there are those who try to explain the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ by postulating that Jesus actually never died. He only fainted or was drugged and actually was alive when he was removed from the cross. This theory is popularly characterized as the "swoon theory." Yet, we examined the likelihood that a person could walk away from the kind of punishment that Jesus suffered at the hands of the Romans. We considered these fact: 1) The Romans were experts in administering the death penalty and inflicting pain on those whom they viewed as enemies, 2) Jesus was flogged prior to the crucifixion. Often, flogging in and of itself was sufficient to bring about the death of a victim. Flogging resulted in the exposure of nerves, muscles, and, in some cases the intestines of the person being flogged. As we discussed in class, there were no antibiotics at the time of Jesus. A person whose skin was torn from his body and who suffered extreme exposure in unsanitary conditions would not be likely to survive even this "minor" punishment. 3) The crucifixion of a person led to a victim being spread-eagled on a wooden cross and nails driven through the victim's hands and feet. In order to breathe while suspended on the cross, victims were forced to press down on their pierced feet and lift the body up so that the diaphragm could fill the lungs with air. In many cases, the victim became so exhausted and debilitated by the excruciating pain, that he simply asphyxiated on the cross. 4) While we did not discuss it this morning, Strobel refers to medical expert testimony that suggests that even if an individual was able to survive the flogging and the crucifixion, the extreme shock that the body would certainly encounter would be enough to bring about death, 5) The Romans, being experts in the administration of the death penalty, had the experience and the knowledge to determine when a victim of the cross was dead. The soldier who looked at Jesus determined that the breaking of His legs was not necessary because He was already dead. Just to ensure that his assessment was accurate, he pierced Jesus' side with the spear and, according to John, "blood and water came out." Again, based on the medical expert testimony, this observation was an indication that the pericardial sac which surrounds the heart had filled with fluid--the "water" that John referenced. Based on the medical testimony, such a condition would have precipitated the stoppage of the heart resulting in death. Clearly, the preponderance of evidence demonstrates that Jesus was indeed dead when he was removed from the cross.
Next, we must consider the allegation that Jesus' disciples stole his body from the tomb in which it was buried. Matthew reported that the chief priests paid the soldiers who were on duty a large sum of money to make the allegation that Jesus' body was stolen. Of course, we know that during that day and time, the soldiers who allowed a body to be stolen when they were assigned to guard the body would be facing torture and death as a consequence of this action. No such response is reported. While this may be the origin of the allegation that Jesus' body was stolen from the tomb, it is only a story that was fabricated by the chief priests to minimize the evidence that Jesus was indeed resurrcted from the dead.
Some of the experts in the DVD pointed out that if the early Christians were fabricating a story about the missing body and the empty tomb, they certainly would not have chosen a woman, Mary Magdelene to be the lead character in the discovery of the empty tomb. Women were second class citizens and Mary Magdelene was also a woman of questionable background. If this report of the Easter Morning discovery were not true, there is no feasible reason for Christian fathers to report it as it was reported. Yet, the report circulated soon after the death of Jesus and even in the face of severe criticism and questions about the credibility of women, Christian reports continued to reinforce this version of events.
Finally, we considered the appearanches of Jesus after his death and resurrection. Jesus appeared to more than five hundred followers as well as to the apostles after his death and resurrection. Again, the preponderance of evidence is overwhelming--Jesus Christ of Nazareth was seen time and again by those who would recognize him. He lives! He lives! Christ Jesus lives today! Amen!

THE CASE FOR CHRIST--Analyzing Jesus

We were pleased to have Trey and Shelly Schultz join us in Sunday School this morning. Please join us in praying that the Lord will guide them to the Sunday School class that He has for them.

Here are the other prayer requests that Tracey published from this morning's class: Swope- Please pray for Zane's childhood friend. He has been in poor health the past few years and is on a heart transplant list and now is going through a divorce- The Haley family.

Higginbotham- Please pray for Gina's grandfather. He has diabetes and has had to have several toes amputated and is facing losing more. Also pray for her mom who is caring for him. Her mom and grandfather have had a very tense relationship over the years.

Miles- Please remember Messiah's Ranch. It is a local christian camp, and the lake which was their main attraction has dried up.

Scasta- Please pray for Craig's mom, Phyllis, as she undergoes outpatient surgery Tuesday.

Gutierrez- Please pray for them as they travel this week to El Paso and then on to Cloudcroft, NM.

Please remember Pastor Chris. He is at the Southern Baptist Convention this week and has a meeting on Monday that is expected to be very tense as it involves some churches having to give up receiving money that they had gotten used to having.

Please pray that God will stop the oil flow in the Gulf and for all those affected.


TODAY'S LESSON:

This morning, we looked at the material from Chapters 9 and 10 from the book, The Case for Christ. These chapters address what Lee Strobel calls the profile evidence and the fingerprint evidence. Mr. Strobel continues to use the metaphor of a court case and strengthens the analogy by referring to the common police investigator strategy of drawing a profile of a suspect in order to verify the suspect's identification. In the DVD presentation, we saw examples of police artists sketching a profile both free-hand and with the use of a computer in order to establish a picture of the alleged suspect. Mr. Strobel points out that The Old Testament creates a profile for the characteristics of God which are fulfilled in The New Testament as Jesus is described. For example, as we discussed in class, some of the attributes of God include His omniscience, He is all-knowing, His omnipotence, He is all-powerful, His omnipresence, He is present everywhere, and His immutability, He never changes, the same yesterday, today, and forever. We see this profile matched in the biographies of Jesus found in The New Testament.

As Dr. Craig Evans, one of the scholars we saw interviewed on the DVD stated, "Jesus' contemporaries--that is, people who liked Him, people who were indifferent, and people who opposed Him--all acknowledged that Jesus did extraordinary things." Such acknowledgements can be found in John 2:23, John 10:24-25, and Matthew 12:24. However, as we discussed in class, many of us had never considered the forgiveness of sins to be the most impressive miracle performed by Jesus. Yet, according to New Testament scholar Mark Strauss, the most astonishing miracle performed by Jesus was exactly that, the forgiveness of sins. The forgiveness of sins can only be accomplished by God. Therefore, even though Jesus performed other miracles to validate his authority to forgive sins, the forgiveness of sins is the ultimate validation of Jesus as God.

We further examined the fingerprint evidence established by the prophecies of The Old Testament as they identified the only person in all of eternity who could fit the fingerprint of The Messiah. We learned in the DVD presentation this morning that there are 48 ancient prophecies regarding The Messiah. Jesus fulfilled them all! The mathematical odds of one person fulfilling all of these prophecies in his lifetime bring further evidence to the case that there is only one individual in all of eternity who could fit this divine fingerprint. The following chart provides examples of some of the prophecies, the Old Testament reference, and the approximate years they were written before Jesus.

FULFILLED PROPHECY O.T. REFERENCE YRS. BEFORE JESUS

Born of a virgin Isaiah 7:14 700
Born in Bethlehem Micah 5:2 700
Mocked, scorned, whipped, killed by Psalm 22 300--1,000
the piercing of his hands and feet,
bones out of joint, garments divided
by the casting of lots
Time of birth predicted Daniel 9: 24-26 600
Come from the seed of a woman Genesis 3:15 1,400
Descendant of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob,David Genesis 12:3, 17:19 700-1,400
Numbers 24:17
Isaiah 9:7
Heal the deaf and the blind Isaiah 29:18 700
Would teach with parables Psalm 78:2 300-1,000
Would be betrayed for 30 pieces silver Zechariah 11:12 500
Bones would remain unbroken Psalm 34:20 300-1,000
Would be resurrected on the 3rd day Psalm 16:10 300-1,000
Hosea 6:2
* For more information on prophecies fulfilled, see the book, The Case for Christ.

The overwhelming preponderance of evidence from the profile and prophecies created in The Old Testament points to only one person--The Risen Savior, Jesus Christ of Nazareth! Amen!

Please join us next week as we begin to consider the medical evidence, the evidence of the missing body, and the evidence of appearances. The case continues to build--The Case for Christ. Have a great week! Don't hesitate to call me if I can help you in any way or if I can pray for you or with you. 979-229-6606

The Case for Christ--Corroborating Evidence

This morning, we looked at Strobel's collection of corroborating evidence from Chapter 3 of his book and briefly at the rebuttal evidence from Chapter 6 of the book. We talked about the meaning of corroborative evidence. Webster defines corroborate: "To make more certain; confirm: He corroborated my account of the accident." Corroborative evidence supports other testimony; it affirms or backs up the essential elements of an eyewitness account. It can be a public record, a photograph, or additional testimony from a second or third person. It can verify a person's entire testimony or just key parts of it. In effect, corroborative evidence acts like the support wires that keep a tall antenna straight and unwavering. The more corroborative evidence, the stronger and more secure the case.

Chapter 3 from The Case for Christ makes reference to corroborative evidence found outside the Bible. For example, one of the "support wires" from the image described above could be the historical writings from various historians such as Josephus, Tacitus, Pliny the Younger, Tertullian, and Phlegon. These writings verified and validated many of the events, actions, words, and characteristics that we find in the eyewitness accounts of Jesus in the Gospels of the New Testament. For example, the historical description of the darkened sky and the earthquake that occurred when Jesus died on the cross is referenced in the historical documents of the day. Jesus was described as a wise man who performed acts of amazement and who was a teacher to those who followed Him. An important fact to keep in mind is that these historians were not Christians. They had nothing to gain by embellishing the facts. In fact, they likely faced some criticism and persecution from those who were attempting to quell the Christian movement. Yet, they were compelled to record the facts for history and these historical facts clearly corroborated the Biblical version of the life of Jesus.

We took a brief look at Chapter 6, the rebuttal evidence. Most of the rebuttal evidence comes from the gnostic gospels. I did not realize that there were more than 80 gospels, 4 of which were eyewitness accounts that are included in the Bible. The gospels of the New Testament were all written relatively soon after Jesus' death and they are all attributed to the author whose name they bear. Not so with the other "agnostic" gospels. The agnostic gospels were written long after Jesus lived on earth and authorship cannot be attributed to the name listed as the title of these documents. In addition, these documents have many contradictory accounts that do not reflect the events as they were described in the eyewitness testimonies of the Gospels of the New Testament and they do not comply with the other evidence found in historical documents and other outside evidence.

The Holy Bible placed great emphasis on "truth." The emphasis on truth is verified by the following scriptures: Psalm 15: 1-2, Psalm 25:5, Psalm 40:11, Psalm 51:6, and Psalm 145:18. Our lesson today deals with the "Truth" of the Bible, the truth of Jesus, and the truth of Christianity. In John 8:32, Jesus is quoted as saying, "Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." AMEN.