#Did the Jews crucify their Messiah?

[thinkingonscripture]

Who Crucified Jesus?

The question is sometimes raised as to who crucified Jesus? According to Chafer, “Closely related to the contrast between the divine and human sides of Christ’s death, is the question: Who put Christ to death? As already indicated, the Scriptures assign both a human and a divine responsibility for Christ’s death.”[1] According to the testimony of Scripture, Jesus’ death on the cross was the…

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

Jesus Brought before Pilate

1 When morning came, all the chief priests and the elders of the people conferred together against Jesus in order to bring about his death. 2 They bound him, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate the governor.

The Suicide of Judas

3 When Judas, his betrayer, saw that Jesus was condemned, he repented and brought back the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders. 4 He said, “I have sinned by betraying innocent blood.” But they said, “What is that to us? See to it yourself.” 5 Throwing down the pieces of silver in the temple, he departed, and he went and hanged himself. 6 But the chief priests, taking the pieces of silver, said, “It is not lawful to put them into the treasury, since they are blood money.” 7 After conferring together, they used them to buy the potter’s field as a place to bury foreigners. 8 For this reason that field has been called the Field of Blood to this day. 9 Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah, “And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of the one on whom a price had been set, on whom some of the people of Israel had set a price, 10 and they gave them for the potter’s field, as the Lord commanded me.”

Pilate Questions Jesus

11 Now Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” Jesus said, “You say so.” 12 But when he was accused by the chief priests and elders, he did not answer. 13 Then Pilate said to him, “Do you not hear how many accusations they make against you?” 14 But he gave him no answer, not even to a single charge, so that the governor was greatly amazed.

Barabbas or Jesus?

15 Now at the festival the governor was accustomed to release a prisoner for the crowd, anyone whom they wanted. 16 At that time they had a notorious prisoner called Jesus Barabbas. 17 So after they had gathered, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release for you, Jesus Barabbas or Jesus who is called the Messiah?” 18 For he realized that it was out of jealousy that they had handed him over. 19 While he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent word to him, “Have nothing to do with that innocent man, for today I have suffered a great deal because of a dream about him.” 20 Now the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds to ask for Barabbas and to have Jesus killed. 21 The governor again said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas.” 22 Pilate said to them, “Then what should I do with Jesus who is called the Messiah?” All of them said, “Let him be crucified!” 23 Then he asked, “Why, what evil has he done?” But they shouted all the more, “Let him be crucified!”

Pilate Hands Jesus Over to Be Crucified

24 So when Pilate saw that he could do nothing but rather that a riot was beginning, he took some water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.” 25 Then the people as a whole answered, “His blood be on us and on our children!” 26 So he released Barabbas for them, and after flogging Jesus he handed him over to be crucified.

The Soldiers Mock Jesus

27 Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole cohort around him. 28 They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, 29 and after twisting some thorns into a crown they put it on his head. They put a reed in his right hand and knelt before him and mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 30 They spat on him and took the reed and struck him on the head. 31 After mocking him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.

The Crucifixion of Jesus

32 As they went out, they came upon a man from Cyrene named Simon; they compelled this man to carry his cross. 33 And when they came to a place called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull), 34 they offered him wine to drink, mixed with gall, but when he tasted it, he would not drink it. 35 And when they had crucified him, they divided his clothes among themselves by casting lots; 36 then they sat down there and kept watch over him. 37 Over his head they put the charge against him, which read, “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.”

38 Then two rebels were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left. 39 Those who passed by derided him, shaking their heads 40 and saying, “You who would destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” 41 In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking him, saying, 42 “He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down from the cross now, and we will believe in him. 43 He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he wants to, for he said, ‘I am God’s Son.’ ” 44 The rebels who were crucified with him also taunted him in the same way.

The Death of Jesus

45 From noon on, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. 46 And about three o’clock Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” 47 When some of the bystanders heard it, they said, “This man is calling for Elijah.” 48 At once one of them ran and got a sponge, filled it with sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink. 49 But the others said, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.” 50 Then Jesus cried again with a loud voice and breathed his last. 51 At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, and the rocks were split. 52 The tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised. 53 After his resurrection they came out of the tombs and entered the holy city and appeared to many. 54 Now when the centurion and those with him, who were keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were terrified and said, “Truly this man was God’s Son!”

55 Many women were also there, looking on from a distance; they had followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering to him. 56 Among them were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.

The Burial of Jesus

57 When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea named Joseph, who also was himself a disciple of Jesus. 58 He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus; then Pilate ordered it to be given to him. 59 So Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth 60 and laid it in his new tomb, which he had hewn in the rock. He then rolled a great stone to the door of the tomb and went away. 61 Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the tomb.

The Guard at the Tomb

62 The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate 63 and said, “Sir, we remember what that impostor said while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ 64 Therefore command the tomb to be made secure until the third day; otherwise, his disciples may go and steal him away and tell the people, ‘He has been raised from the dead,’ and the last deception would be worse than the first.” 65 Pilate said to them, “You have a guard of soldiers; go, make it as secure as you can.” 66 So they went with the guard and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone. — Matthew 27 | New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition (NRSVUE) New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. All rights reserved worldwide. Cross References: Genesis 20:6; Genesis 31:11; Genesis 50:5; Exodus 21:32; Exodus 26:31; Numbers 4:5; Deuteronomy 21:6; Joshua 2:19; 1 Samuel 19:5; 1 Samuel 20:32; 2 Samuel 17:23; 2 Kings 13:21; 2 Kings 19:21; Psalm 22:8; Psalm 22:16; Psalm 31:13; Psalm 69:21; Psalm 71:10; Psalm 94:21; Isaiah 22:16; Isaiah 25:7; Isaiah 50:6; Isaiah 53:7; Isaiah 53:9; Jeremiah 1:1; Jeremiah 26:8; Daniel 6:17; Zechariah 11:12-13; Matthew 1:16; Matthew 2:2; Matthew 16:21; Matthew 17:23; Matthew 20:19; Matthew 26:61; Matthew 26:63; Matthew 28:1; Matthew 28:11; Matthew 28:14-5; Mark 7:11; Mark 15:2; Mark 15:5-6; Mark 15:15; 15:42-43; Luke 23:5; Luke 23:9; Luke 23:53-54; John 19:9; John 19:14; John 20:1; Acts 1:19; Acts 3:14; Acts 5:28; Acts 13:28; Romans 16:7; 1 Thessalonians 2:3; James 1:5; Hebrews 5:7

[orthodoxadventure]

HOLY PASCHA: The Resurrection of Our Lord

Commemorated on May 5

Pascha (Easter)

Enjoy ye all the feast of faith; receive ye all the riches of loving-kindness. (Sermon of Saint John Chrysostom, read at Paschal Matins)

The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is the center of the Christian faith. Saint Paul says that if Christ is not raised from the dead, then our preaching and faith are in vain (I Cor. 15:14). Indeed, without the resurrection there would be no Christian preaching or faith. The disciples of Christ would have remained the broken and hopeless band which the Gospel of John describes as being in hiding behind locked doors for fear of the Jews. They went nowhere and preached nothing until they met the risen Christ, the doors being shut (John 20: 19). Then they touched the wounds of the nails and the spear; they ate and drank with Him. The resurrection became the basis of everything they said and did (Acts 2-4): “. . . for a spirit has not flesh and bones as you see that I have” (Luke 24:39).

The resurrection reveals Jesus of Nazareth as not only the expected Messiah of Israel, but as the King and Lord of a new Jerusalem: a new heaven and a new earth.

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth. . . the holy city, new Jerusalem. And I heard a great voice from the throne saying “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with men. He will dwell with them, and they shall be his people. . . He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away (Rev. 21:1-4).

In His death and resurrection, Christ defeats the last enemy, death, and thereby fulfills the mandate of His Father to subject all things under His feet (I Cor. 15:24-26).

Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing (Rev. 5: 12)

THE FEAST OF FEASTS

The Christian faith is celebrated in the liturgy of the Church. True celebration is always a living participation. It is not a mere attendance at services. It is communion in the power of the event being celebrated. It is God’s free gift of joy given to spiritual men as a reward for their self-denial. It is the fulfillment of spiritual and physical effort and preparation. The resurrection of Christ, being the center of the Christian faith, is the basis of the Church’s liturgical life and the true model for all celebration. This is the chosen and holy day, first of sabbaths, king and lord of days, the feast of feasts, holy day of holy days. On this day we bless Christ forevermore (Irmos 8, Paschal Canon).

PREPARATION

Twelve weeks of preparation precede the “feast of feasts.” A long journey which includes five prelenten Sundays, six weeks of Great Lent and finally Holy Week is made. The journey moves from the self-willed exile of the prodigal son to the grace-filled entrance into the new Jerusalem, coming down as a bride beautifully adorned for her husband (Rev. 21:2) Repentance, forgiveness, reconciliation, prayer, fasting, almsgiving, and study are the means by which this long journey is made.

Focusing on the veneration of the Cross at its midpoint, the lenten voyage itself reveals that the joy of the resurrection is achieved only through the Cross. “Through the cross joy has come into all the world,” we sing in one paschal hymn. And in the paschal troparion, we repeat again and again that Christ has trampled down death—by death! Saint Paul writes that the name of Jesus is exalted above every name because He first emptied Himself, taking on the lowly form of a servant and being obedient even to death on the Cross (Phil. 2:5-11). The road to the celebration of the resurrection is the self-emptying crucifixion of Lent. Pascha is the passover from death to life.

Yesterday I was buried with Thee, O Christ. Today I arise with Thee in Thy resurrection. Yesterday I was crucified with Thee: Glorify me with Thee, O Savior, in Thy kingdom (Ode 3, Paschal Canon).

THE PROCESSION

The divine services of the night of Pascha commence near midnight of Holy Saturday. At the Ninth Ode of the Canon of Nocturn, the priest, already vested in his brightest robes, removes the Holy Shroud from the tomb and carries it to the altar table, where it remains until the leave-taking of Pascha. The faithful stand in darkness. Then, one by one, they light their candles from the candle held by the priest and form a great procession out of the church. Choir, servers, priest and people, led by the bearers of the cross, banners, icons and Gospel book, circle the church. The bells are rung incessantly and the angelic hymn of the resurrection is chanted.

The procession comes to a stop before the principal doors of the church. Before the closed doors the priest and the people sing the troparion of Pascha, “Christ is risen from the dead...”, many times. Even before entenng the church the priest and people exchange the paschal greeting: “Christ is risen! Indeed He is risen!” This segment of the paschal services is extremely important. It preserves in the expenence of the Church the primitive accounts of the resurrection of Christ as recorded in the Gospels. The angel rolled away the stone from the tomb not to let a biologically revived but physically entrapped Christ walk out, but to reveal that “He is not here; for He has risen, as He said” (Matt. 28:6).

In the paschal canon we sing:

Thou didst arise, O Christ, and yet the tomb remained sealed, as at Thy birth the Virgin’s womb remained unharmed; and Thou has opened for us the gates of paradise (Ode 6).

Finally, the procession of light and song in the darkness of night, and the thunderous proclamation that, indeed, Christ is risen, fulfill the words of the Evangelist John: “The light shines in darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (John 1:5).

The doors are opened and the faithful re-enter. The church is bathed in light and adorned with flowers. It is the heavenly bride and the symbol of the empty tomb:

Bearing life and more fruitful than paradise Brighter than any royal chamber, Thy tomb, O Christ, is the fountain or our resurrection (Paschal Hours).

MATINS

Matins commences immediately. The risen Christ is glorified in the singing of the beautiful canon of Saint John of Damascus. The paschal greeting is repeatedly exchanged. Near the end of Matins the paschal verses are sung. They relate the entire narrative of the Lord’s resurrection. They conclude with the words calling us to actualize among each other the forgiveness freely given to all by God:

This is the day of resurrection. Let us be illumined by the feast. Let us embrace each other. Let us call “brothers” even those who hate us, And forgive all by the resurrection. . .

The sermon of Saint John Chrysostom is then read by the celebrant. The sermon was originally composed as a baptismal instruction. It is retained by the Church in the paschal services because everything about the night of Pascha recalls the Sacrament of Baptism: the language and general terminology of the liturgical texts, the specific hymns, the vestment color, the use of candles and the great procession itself. Now the sermon invites us to a great reaffirmation of our baptism: to union with Christ in the receiving of Holy Communion.

If any man is devout and loves God, let him enjoy this fair and radiant triumphal feast. . . the table is fully laden; feast you all sumptuously. . . the calf is fatted, let no one go hungry away. . .

THE DIVINE LITURGY

The sermon announces the imminent beginning of the Divine Liturgy. The altar table is fully laden with the divine food: the Body and Blood of the risen and glorified Christ. No one is to go away hungry. The service books are very specific in saying that only he who partakes of the Body and Blood of Christ eats the true Pascha. The Divine Liturgy, therefore, normally follows immediately after paschal Matins. Foods from which the faithful have been asked to abstain during the lenten journey are blessed and eaten only after the Divine Liturgy.

THE DAY WITHOUT EVENING

Pascha is the inauguration of a new age. It reveals the mystery of the eighth day. It is our taste, in this age, of the new and unending day of the Kingdom of God. Something of this new and unending day is conveyed to us in the length of the paschal services, in the repetition of the paschal order for all the services of Bright Week, and in the special paschal features retained in the services for the forty days until Ascension. Forty days are, as it were, treated as one day. Together they comprise the symbol of the new time in which the Church lives and toward which she ever draws the faithful, from one degree of glory to another.

O Christ, great and most holy Pascha. O Wisdom, Word and Power of God, grant that we may more perfectly partake of Thee in the never-ending day of Thy kingdom (Ninth Ode, Paschal Canon).

The V. Rev. Paul Lazor New York, 1977

[frociaggine]

The Book of John: list of Bible verses referenced in Nona The Ninth

Here are all the verses from the gospel of John (the Apostle) referenced in the titles of the chapters about John (our kindly Prince of Death, the King Undying, etc.) in Nona The Ninth. Spoilers for the book.

John 20:8

Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed.

From The Resurrection Of Jesus - or: the very first chapter, were we find out that Harrow is still around.

John 5:20

The Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing; and he will show him greater works than these, so that you will be astonished.

John 5 (referenced multiple times in the book) is Jesus Heals on the Sabbath. John... no healing yet, but he tries. “Most of the bodies [were] damaged beyond repair. But, Harrow … all the ones I touched, all the ones I loved … they stayed incorrupti.”

John 15:23

Whoever hates me hates my Father also.   

From Jesus the True Vine. The verse reference is interesting - this is the chapter where John starts experimenting with his powers, and A- and M- are with him all the way.

John 5:18

For this reason the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because he was not only breaking the sabbath, but was also calling God his own Father, thereby making himself equal to God. 

Local Nerd Guy Starts Streaming Cadavers

John 8:1

While Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.

This is the one with the cows. You know the one.

John 19:18

There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, with Jesus between them. 

John 19 is The Crucifixion Of Jesus. This is the chapter where past John & Co. find out where their initial project funding went, and present Jod says fuck eleven times.

John 5:1

After this there was a festival of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

The White House, that’s it.

John 3:20

For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. 

Pretty transparent. This is the chapter where John & co. attempt to have the FTL project investigated. Ends with John publicly announcing he’s a necromancer to drum up attention.

John 9:22

His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that anyone who confessed Jesus to be the Messiah would be put out of the synagogue.

John 9:22 is The Pharisees Investigate the Healing. This is the chapter where the army intervenes and John reiterates. Or “Guys as careful as you shouldn’t have accidents”.

John 1:20

He confessed and did not deny it, but confessed, “I am not the Messiah.”

From the Testimony of John the Baptist. The attack on the compound, the bombs, Alecto.

John 5:4

Sometimes an angel of the Lord came down to the pool and stirred up the water. After the angel did this, the first person to go into the pool was healed from any sickness he had.

John talks about resurrection, and memory manipulation while he’s at it.

Fun fact! This verse is from the New Century Version, as it was absent from the New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition that I used for all the others. I looked it up, and it was present in some older copies of the text and not in others - probably why it’s omitted from the NRSVCE (although it’s present in a footnote of Catholic editions of the gospel in my native language. Yes, I checked)

[firstumcschenectady]

“Hosanna” based on Psalm 118:1-4, 19-24 and Matthew 21:1-11

Within Christianity, we use “Hosanna” to express joy, and praise, and adoration. Just one little issue with that – the actual meaning of the word. Hosanna is a Hebrew word meaning “Save us, we pray!” The people around Jesus weren't shouting “Great is God” or “Jesus is good!” or “YAY, Jesus, YAY God!” Instead, they were shouting, “God, save us from our oppressor” which was clearly the Roman Empire, who – let's be honest – didn't appreciate that. “God, help us, the enemy is bigger than we can take on ourselves.” “God, we're in over our heads, help us out here!”

And, of course, they were shouting, “Save us, we pray” during a PASSOVER celebration, when Passover celebrates God's actions in saving the people from oppression in Egypt, which made the Roman Empire's representatives a “little bit” antsy.

The Roman Empire's representative Pontius Pilate was already coming to the city, like he did every year at Passover, with soldiers and fanfare meant to keep the Jewish people in check. The Roman Empire saw QUITE CLEARLY that getting a whole bunch of people together in the city to celebrate God's acts of freeing them from oppression was a tinderbox for revolt, and they sought to tamp it down with displays of power and reminders of their violent capacity. In fact, they came in from Pilate's normal abode on the Mediterranean – so from the West. With gleaming horses, and banners with the golden Eagle of Rome, with drums and the crowds shouting “Hail Caesar, son of God; Praise be to the Savior who brought the Roman Peace; Caesar is Lord….” the Empire sought to intimidate people out of revolt.

But.

Then there was Jesus. Jesus who seems to have let the crowd claim kingship of Ancient Israel on his behalf, which sometimes feels a little bit strange but is in the story nonetheless. The Palm branches were a flag of Israel- the opposite of the Golden Eagle. The donkey was expected to be ridden by the Messiah entering the city – but also is rather opposite a gleaming horse. The soldiers accompanied Pilate – while a large crowd of people impoverished by the Empire accompanied Jesus. And Instead of “Hail Caesar” the people shouted “God Save Us (from the empire).”

The Roman Empire took this Jesus parade as a significant threat.

I believe they were meant to. The protest made the violence of the Empire stand out. They crucified Jesus with the accusation “King of the Jews” above his head, as if this was the charge against him. And, after all, they shouldn't have killed the leader of a PEACEFUL revolt, only a violent one. But sometimes the authorities have a hard time telling the difference between violence and what scares them. (Still true today.)

Then, of course, Jesus did another PEACEFUL demonstration – this time managing to make visible the ways the Empire had put in place Temple leaders who were aligned with Empire and not God's people. That one many of us learned as the “Cleansing of the Temple.” John Dominic Crossan reflects on the “den of robbers” the Temple is said to be saying, “Notice, by the way, that a 'den' is not where robbers do their robbing but where they flee for safety with the spoils they have robbed elsewhere.” (God and Empire, 133.)

Jesus made clear the city of Jerusalem was where “conservative religion and imperial oppression – had become serenely complicit.” (131) And, he dies for it. Crossan says, “He did not go to get himself killed or to get himself martyred. Mark insists that Jesus knew in very specific detail what was going to happen to him – read Mark 10:33-34, for example – but that is simply Marks' way of insisting that all was accepted by both God and Jesus. Accepted, be it noted, but not willed, wanted, needed or demanded.” (131)

Beloveds, this Palm Sunday parade is one of the most brilliant acts of non-violent direct action I've ever heard of, but it is part of the story of why the Empire responded with violence. I can't hear the Palm Sunday story without knowing that it walks us to the Good Friday Crucifixion and the Holy Saturday grief and disillusion. They're all a part of this one story – that when you make clear the ways people are oppressing others, there is a fierce lash-back and the power of violence is immense. Thank God, that isn't the whole story – we get to Easter next week – but it is a real story, one that we can't dismiss.

This year, the Palm Sunday parade that walks Jesus into Jerusalem sounds terrifyingly like Nex Benedict walking into school on their last day. I can't separate out Jesus being faithful to God despite the consequences from gender-queer and non-binary people claiming their space in the world – despite the consequences. But, friends, it is sickening.

There is a story out there, one that says people are supposed to stay in tight little conformist boxes that help others make sense of the world and, heavens, the VIOLENCE that comes out when people speak up and say, “this box doesn't fit me.” And it can be such small stuff:

I'm a woman, but the box “quiet and gentle” doesn't fit me

or

I'm a man, but the box “stoic” doesn't' fit me

or

I'm a woman, but the box “looking for a man” doesn't' fit me

or

I'm a man, but the box “looking for a woman” doesn't' fit me

or

… the box “wants to have kids” doesn't fit me

or

… the box “monogamy” doesn't fit me

or

… the box “woman” doesn't fit me

or

… the box “man” doesn't fit me

or

… the box “gendered” doesn't fit me.

And, I mean, you all know this but... WHO CARES? They're all just silly little made up boxes that no one should be forced into and everyone should have the space to occupy, or adapt or not occupy as they see fit? Sure, some people want the world to be black and white without shades of gray – that everyone is cis-gendered, straight, sexual, and single raced ;) But, too bad because that's just not true.

And yet, the violence that comes when people try to force others back into the boxes they think they should live in – it reminds me of the violence of empire. There seem to be gleaming horses, loud drums, and shiny swords all over the place. And, worse, it isn't just the external violence that attacks people – the very people who are brave enough to leave their ill-fitting boxes behind end up internalizing the violence. They're courageous, they're clear, they know who they are and they won't go back to pretending to be otherwise – but that violence is so darn insidious, and it gets inside them. Those silly stories about how we're supposed to be are so poisonous. That human need for connection gets twisted around and turned against people. And the beautiful ones who are brave and unique and wonderful end up dead.

Jesus could have stayed out of Jerusalem, except he couldn't.

Nex could have pretend to have their gender assigned at birth, except they couldn't.

They couldn't. It would have been safer, easier, …. some would say wiser. But they couldn't.

Friends, as you know, the trans and queer communities around the country and world are aching for Nex and Nex's family and friends. Their death has reminded people of prior losses, of other brave and beautiful souls who also internalized the violence against them. The heartbreaks are everywhere.

This holy week, we will worship through the blessings of Jesus, the death of Jesus, the heartbreak of the disciples, and land on the wondrous reality that God's work can't be stopped by violence or death.

But how do we make sense of Nex? And the ones before them? And the ones after them? How do face the violence of the Empire today, and the ways it gets internalized?

There aren't easy asnwers.

We grieve.

And we share the aches with God.

And we name the problems with each other.

And we keep on learning how to undercut the broken narrative, and break open little boxes, and keep people safe when they leave them.

We aren't going to do it fast enough – we already haven't, but just because we can't do it immediately doesn't mean we can stop. Jesus showed us the power of violence to stop people, and the ways religion can become complicit with violence. And he paid for it, paid to teach us those lessons. But we have them! So, we know that God and love are more powerful than violence, and love is the way we respond. And we know that religion that oppresses isn't religion at all, and we shout it from the rooftops.

Hosanna.

God save us.

We pray.

Amen

Rev. Sara E. Baron First United Methodist Church of Schenectady 603 State St. Schenectady, NY 12305 Pronouns: she/her/hers http://fumcschenectady.org/ https://www.facebook.com/FUMCSchenectady

March 24, 2024

[orthodoxydaily]

The Holy Apostle Matthias was born at Bethlehem, and was a descendent of the Tribe of Judah. From his early childhood he studied the Law of God in accord with the Books of Scripture under the guidance of Saint Simeon the God-Receiver. When the Lord Jesus Christ revealed Himself to the world, Saint Matthias believed in Him as the Messiah, followed constantly after Him and was numbered amongst the Seventy Disciples, whom the Lord "did send by twos before His face" (Lk. 10: 1). After the Ascension of the Saviour, Saint Matthias was chosen by lot to replace amongst the 12 Apostles the fallen-away Judas Iscariot (Acts 1: 15-26). After the Descent of the Holy Spirit, the Apostle Matthias preached the Gospel at Jerusalem and in Judea together with the other Apostles (Acts 6: 2, 8: 14). From Jerusalem he went with the Apostles Peter and Andrew to Syrian Antioch, and was in the Cappadocian city of Tianum and Sinope. Here the Apostle Matthias was locked into prison, from which he was miraculously freed by the Apostle Andrew the First-Called. The Apostle Matthias journeyed after this to Amasia, a city on the shore of the sea. During a 3 year journey of the Apostle Andrew, Saint Matthias was with him at Edessa and Sebasteia. According to Church tradition, he was preaching at Pontine AEthiopia (presently Western Gruzia / Georgia) and Macedonia. He was frequently subjected to deadly peril, but the Lord preserved him alive to further preach the Gospel. One time pagans forced the apostle to drink a poison potion. The apostle drank it and not only did he himself remain unharmed, but he also healed other prisoners which had been blinded by the potion. When Saint Matthias left the prison, the pagans searched for him in vain – since he had become invisible to them. Another time, when the pagans had become enraged intending to kill the apostle, the earth opened up and engulfed them. The Apostle Matthias returned to Judea and did not cease with the enlightening of his countrymen with the light of Christ's teachings. He worked great miracles in the Name of the Lord Jesus and he converted a great many to faith in Christ. The Jewish High-Priest Ananias hated Christ and earlier had commanded the Apostle James, Brother of the Lord, to be flung down from the heights of the Temple, and now he ordered that the Apostle Matthias be arrested and brought for judgement before the Sanhedrin at Jerusalem. The impious Ananias uttered a speech in which he blasphemously slandered the Lord. By way of answer, the Apostle Matthias pointed out in the prophesies of the New Testament, that Jesus Christ – is the True God, the Messiah promised Israel by God, the Son of God, Consubstantial and Co-Eternal with God the Father. After these words the Apostle Matthias was sentenced to death by the Sanhedrin and stoned. When Saint Matthias was already dead, the Jews, to hide their malefaction, cut off his head as being an enemy of Caesar. (According to several historians, the Apostle Matthias was crucified on a cross, and indicate that he instead died at Colchis). The Apostle Matthias received the martyr's crown of death for Christ in about the year 63.

[starspanner]

The John Verses from Nona the Ninth

Mostly using the New Oxford Study Bible, a Catholic edition, double checked with other editions. 

20:8 -- Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed.

5:20 -- The Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing; and he will show him greater works than these, so that you will be astonished.

15:23 -- Who-ever hates me hates my father also.

5:18 -- For this reason the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because he was not only breaking the sabbath, but was also calling God his own father, thereby making himself equal to God.

8:1 -- while Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Some editions kind of mush this with the end of 7:53 -- And they went back, each to their own home.

5:1 -- After this there was a festival of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

19:18 -- There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, with Jesus between them.

3:20 -- For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so their deeds may not be exposed.

9:22 -- His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that anyone who confessed Jesus to be the Messiah would be put out of the synagogue.

1:20 -- He confessed and he did not deny it, but confessed, "I am not the Messiah."

5:4 -- Is a verse NOT FOUND in some modern Catholic bibles. The Oxford simply ignores its existence. My New American Bible Fireside Study Edition says: "Toward the end of the second century in the West and among the fourth-century Greek Fathers, an additional verse was known: 

'For [from time to time] an angel of the Lord used to come down into the pool; and the water was stirred up, so the first one to get in [after the stirring of the water] was healed of whatever disease afflicted him.' 

This verse is missing from all early Greek manuscripts and the earliest versions, including the original Vulgate. It's vocabulary is markedly non-Johannine." Ronald Knox retains it with almost that exact wording in his translation, and merely adds in a footnote, "This verse is omitted in some manuscripts."  My King James bible includes it.

[awideplace]

Q: Did Jesus Really Exist?

A: Typically, when this question is asked, the person asking qualifies the question with “outside of the Bible.” We do not grant this idea that the Bible cannot be considered a source of evidence for the existence of Jesus. The New Testament contains hundreds of references to Jesus Christ. There are those who date the writing of the Gospels to the second century A.D., more than 100 years after Jesus’ death. Even if this were the case (which we strongly dispute), in terms of ancient evidences, writings less than 200 years after events took place are considered very reliable evidences. Further, the vast majority of scholars (Christian and non-Christian) will grant that the Epistles of Paul (at least some of them) were in fact written by Paul in the middle of the first century A.D., less than 40 years after Jesus’ death. In terms of ancient manuscript evidence, this is extraordinarily strong proof of the existence of a man named Jesus in Israel in the early first century A.D.

It is also important to recognize that in A.D. 70, the Romans invaded and destroyed Jerusalem and most of Israel, slaughtering its inhabitants. Entire cities were literally burned to the ground. We should not be surprised, then, if much evidence of Jesus’ existence was destroyed. Many of the eyewitnesses of Jesus would have been killed. These facts likely limited the amount of surviving eyewitness testimony of Jesus.

Considering that Jesus’ ministry was largely confined to a relatively unimportant area in a small corner of the Roman Empire, a surprising amount of information about Jesus can be drawn from secular historical sources. Some of the more important historical evidences of Jesus include the following:

The first-century Roman Tacitus, who is considered one of the more accurate historians of the ancient world, mentioned superstitious “Christians” (from Christus, which is Latin for Christ), who suffered under Pontius Pilate during the reign of Tiberius. Suetonius, chief secretary to Emperor Hadrian, wrote that there was a man named Chrestus (or Christ) who lived during the first century (Annals15.44).

Flavius Josephus is the most famous Jewish historian. In his Antiquities he refers to James, “the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ.” There is a controversial verse (18:3) that says, “Now there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man. For he was one who wrought surprising feats....He was [the] Christ...he appeared to them alive again the third day, as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him.” One version reads, “At this time there was a wise man named Jesus. His conduct was good and [he] was known to be virtuous. And many people from among the Jews and the other nations became his disciples. Pilate condemned him to be crucified and to die. But those who became his disciples did not abandon his discipleship. They reported that he had appeared to them three days after his crucifixion, and that he was alive; accordingly he was perhaps the Messiah, concerning whom the prophets have recounted wonders.”

Julius Africanus quotes the historian Thallus in a discussion of the darkness that followed the crucifixion of Christ (Extant Writings, 18).

Pliny the Younger, in Letters 10:96, recorded early Christian worship practices including the fact that Christians worshiped Jesus as God and were very ethical, and he includes a reference to the love feast and Lord’s Supper.

The Babylonian Talmud (Sanhedrin 43a) confirms Jesus’ crucifixion on the eve of Passover and the accusations against Christ of practicing sorcery and encouraging Jewish apostasy.

Lucian of Samosata was a second-century Greek writer who admits that Jesus was worshiped by Christians, introduced new teachings, and was crucified for them. He said that Jesus’ teachings included the brotherhood of believers, the importance of conversion, and the importance of denying other gods. Christians lived according to Jesus’ laws, believed themselves to be immortal, and were characterized by contempt for death, and renunciation of material goods.

Mara Bar-Serapion confirms that Jesus was thought to be a wise and virtuous man, was considered by many to be the king of Israel, was put to death by the Jews, and lived on in the teachings of His followers.

Then we have all the Gnostic writings (The Gospel of Truth, The Apocryphon of John, The Gospel of Thomas, The Treatise on Resurrection, etc.) that all mention Jesus.

In fact, we can almost reconstruct the gospel just from early non-Christian sources: Jesus was called the Christ (Josephus), did “magic,” led Israel into new teachings, and was hanged on Passover for them (Babylonian Talmud) in Judea (Tacitus), but claimed to be God and would return (Eliezar), which his followers believed, worshiping Him as God (Pliny the Younger).

There is overwhelming evidence for the existence of Jesus Christ, both in secular and biblical history. Perhaps the greatest evidence that Jesus did exist is the fact that literally thousands of Christians in the first century AD, including the twelve apostles, were willing to give their lives as martyrs for Jesus Christ. People will die for what they believe to be true, but no one will die for what they know to be a lie.

Source: https://www.gotquestions.org/did-Jesus-exist.html

[hiswordsarekisses]

AN UNCLEAN SPIRIT RETURNS TO HIS HOUSE by Lynette Hughes: In Matthew 12:43-45 Jesus tells what happens when a demonic spirit is cast out of a man. He says the demonic spirit goes through dry places seeking rest and finds no rest. Then the evil spirit says. 'I will go back to the house ( the human being) from which I came.' When he comes back he finds it empty, swept and put in order." Then he goes and takes with him seven other Spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. So shall it also be with this wicked generation."

This parable is about a house occupied by an undesirable tenant. When the tenant vacates the house or is evicted, and is unable to find another house to live in, he returns and finds ‘his house’ empty, swept and put in order. “Empty” means unoccupied, “Swept” means superficial dirt and litter has been brushed away and “Put in order” means it has been repaired, fixed up and arranged neatly. The problem was after being cleaned and set in order, it remained ‘unoccupied” allowing the evil spirit to repossess the house and bring 7 others more wicked than himself to live there.

Jesus uses the casting out of a demon from a man to illustrate the condition of this particular wicked generation of Jews. Those listening to Jesus understood what He was conveying; they understood the tenant is a demon and the house is a person’s body. They knew from experience that demons could enter a person. Unfortunately, many believers today fail to understand the simplicity of this parable.

Verse 45 says "the last state of that man is worse than at first. So shall it be with this wicked generation!!" The ' unclean spirit' of idolatry had been cast out of the nation of Israel a number of years earlier after the Babylonian exile and the return of the Jews to their homeland. They’d been ‘delivered' from their captivity, nevermore to return to their idolatrous worship even into the times of Jesus - there were, of course, exceptions to this but predominantly the nation of Israel reached the conclusion that only the God of Israel should be worshipped. The nation had been swept and emptied of its ‘unclean spirit’ of idolatry only to be ‘put in order’ with all the legalistic practices and self-righteousness of Pharisaism. They were like a cleansed, unoccupied house….making them an even better habitation for Satan and his cohorts to live there without being noticed. Their condition became worse than when they were idol worshippers.

The man in the parable, though given a new opportunity in life, remained indifferent to God and had not replaced his uncleanness with the presence of God. Similarly, the majority of the Pharisees did not profit from the parabolic warning Jesus gave them; rather than fill the house with the presence of God, they grew more and more wicked; they crucified their Messiah, and persecuted His apostles. They were worse off than if they had never heard the Gospel; their destruction in 70 AD hovered in the background.

It is as if Jesus is saying: "Let me tell you what you Pharisees are like, indeed, what this entire generation is like. You are like a man who is delivered of a demonic tenant. You put your life in order; you reform your ways; you clean up your act; you become morally respectable. But your house is empty because I don't live there. So when that demonic spirit comes back he returns with seven of his friends who are more wicked than himself and you’re worse off than you were before!" His point is that external change is deceitfully dangerous when still in conflict with internal desires. We are not to be deceived by a morally reformed but spiritually Christless life. We must not allow our house to stand empty.

When Jesus sent out His disciples: “…. they went out and preached that people should repent. And they cast out many demons…” (Mark 6:12-13). First repentance, then deliverance. The proof of repentance is a change of lifestyle. We make a mistake when we think all we have to do is recognize we have a problem and make every effort to clean up our lives, sweep out all the dirt and put our lives in order. It takes more than an exterior wipe-down, you have to get the ground-in dirt out. You must come into complete agreement with God about sin and keep the doors closed! Some people want deliverance but don't want to walk in submission and obedience to God. The prerequisite to successfully resisting the devil is submitting to God. If you don’t first submit to God then you cannot resist the devil.

Some people desire deliverance from the consequences of their sins but don't believe obedience is essential to salvation. They neglect the renewing of their minds with the word of God and developing an intimate relationship with their Savior. They are darkened in their understanding that Jesus is the source of eternal salvation to all those who OBEY Him. Just because you have been delivered from demonic bondage doesn’t mean demonic spirits won’t make every attempt to come back to their ‘home.’ You must be firmly rooted and grounded in God's Word to maintain your freedom. Perhaps one of the most important things you can do once you’re delivered is to ask for and receive the baptism of the Holy Spirit.

On a personal application: If you have met someone who was delivered and had a strong walk with the Lord and backslid and returned to sin, they get hard and calloused, and become worse than they ever were before they came to Christ. It’s very difficult to restore or win them back. It could have been they were bound by drugs or alcohol or involved in the occult or sexual immorality before coming to Christ and being delivered. But when they are finally set free, when their house is clean but left empty, the evil spirit will return to repossess his house. They will find themselves in a worse condition than before and more hardened against God and the things of God.

Just as an empty building is vulnerable to termites, rat infestation, mold and homeless squatters and will slide into decline and decay, so too, will the person who is not filled with the presence of God. When God cleanses people of demons and they allow their house to stand empty, it will not be long before unwanted house guests arrive.

[childofchrist1983]

Both Jews and Gentiles rose up against God's only begotten Son and Messiah, Jesus Christ, and caused Him to be crucified; but they did not realize they were fulfilling God's prophecies and purposes. Like Joseph's brothers who sold him as a slave into Egypt, they meant it for evil, but God meant it for good (Genesis 50:20).

As mortal humans, we do not understand many things that happen to us in this life. But we know that while men freely choose to do evil and wrong others, they are not outside of God's Providential rule of His creation. They only "bring" what God "sent", and we know that God can and does work all of it together for the good of us, God's people and children, and for His own everlasting glory. Therefore, we will not be discouraged amidst the wrongs done to us by others. Rather, we will trust that "God meant it for good." Trust in Him - Always!

Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for His mercy and grace. May we all accept Him and His eternal gift of salvation and ask that He would transform our hearts and lives and give us a new direction according to His will and ways. Thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for His Holy Spirit who saves, seals and leads us. May we always thank Father God Almighty and the LORD Jesus Christ for His almighty power and saving grace. For He is our strength, and He alone is able to save us, forgive our sins and gift us eternal salvation and entry into His Kingdom of Heaven.

May we make sure that we give our hearts and lives to God and take time to seek and praise Him and share His Truth with the world daily. May the LORD our God and Father in Heaven help us to stay diligent and obedient and help us to guard our hearts in Him and His Holy Word daily. May He help us to remain faithful and full of excitement to do our duty to Him and for His glorious return and our reunion in Heaven as well as all that awaits us there. May we never forget to thank the LORD our God and our Creator and Father in Heaven for all this and everything He does and has done for us! May we never forget who He is, nor forget who we are in Christ and that God is always with us! What a mighty God we serve! What a Savior this is! What a wonderful Lord, God, Savior and King we have in Jesus Christ! What a loving Father we have found in Almighty God! What a wonderful God we serve! His will be done!

Thanks and glory be to God! Blessed be the name of the LORD! Hallelujah and Amen!

[newman-the-newmanite]

Why Christianity?

Simply put: Christianity is right.

Slightly More-Complexly put: The ideals presented within the Bible, alongside reasoning of many saints and philosophers are seen to be meet and right to concur with, and to follow religiously(in a literal sense, in this case).

However, it is important to note no matter what, faith will be required to believe. Belief ipso facto requires faith(to different extents).

In the words of the great Doctor of the Church, St. Thomas Aquinas “To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no explanation is possible.”

Our Lord was around 33 when He was crucified and died. Upon the third day, He Rose again in accordance with scriptures (Mark 16:5-7).

Around the Year of Our Lord (Anno Domini)70 and 95 would the Gospel According to St. Mark be written down. This is still within the lifetime of many of those within the land of Judea, whereas to descent could easily be made.

In opposition to this was Richard Carrier, stating "There are still people today who believe that in 1947 an alien craft crashed and was recovered, along with alien bodies, by the United States government, and that this was subsequently covered up and kept secret."(Carrier, as seen within Pulliam 2010).

However, there is multiple problems with this association between the lack of Christ within the Tomb, and the Roswell Incident, as so has it been called. Firstly: There is indeed disagreement within such. The Military has been stout in debunking this belief, within the Roswell Morning Dispatch, an article almost immediately after was made titled “Army Debunks Roswell Flying Disk as World Simmers with Excitement.” Furthermore, there was many less people directly seeing the objects, than there was Jesus. If they knew Jesus Christ was false, they would have stated such.

An Important figure to note upon such is Josephus. His accounts of Our Lord's Crucifixion can be found in many apologetic circles from days far gone until hitherto this era we see ourselves in.

Many would argue that such accounts are false or altered. Yet, even with people within anti-Christian apologetics, the Crucifixion isn't directly denied.

in order to clarify who Jesus really was. I have placed the sections possibly inserted by the scribe in brackets: At this time there appeared Jesus, a wise man [if indeed one should call him a man, for] he was a doer of startling deeds, a teacher of people who receive the truth with pleasure. And he gained a following both among many Jews and among many of Greek origin. [He was the Messiah.] And when Pilate, be¬ cause of an accusation made by the leading men among us, condemned him to the cross, those who had loved him previ¬ ously did not cease to do so. [For he appeared to them on the third day, living again, just as the divine prophets had spoken of these and countless other wondrous things about him.] And up until this very day the tribe of Christians, named after him, has not died out. (Antiquities 18.3.3) 2(Ehrman, 2009, 150).

This shows that the crucifixion isn't something to be denied in the words of Josephus. All the doubt would show is that Josephus did not truly believe in Christian Ideals, which is not something I, or many others, would argue.

This, alongside the prophecies of Isiah 5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.(Isiah 53:5) there is much connections to be made, regardless of whether or whether not you believe Christianity is inherently true.

This inherently strikes the Islamic belief of Crucifixion being too humiliatingly for a prophet(especially one of the Highest Prophets) as at the very least, questionable, at most, false.

To these points, atheists might ask: "Why do you believe Christianity? there is multiple religions out there" or state "I am as much of an atheist as you, you just believe one more religion than I"

For the latter: that makes no sense. A married man is as much single as I am; they just have one more spouse than I. ( I hope the ignorance in that statement shone fourth)

For the first: all these reasons put together, plus simplistic reasonings for God (CS Lewis and St. Thomas Aquinas are good ones, alongside St. Augustine of Hippo, and others. )

For those who need 100% proof, let me ask this:

Do you believe in reality? If so, why?

I ask this, because, ultimately, there is no reason to believe your surroundings exist(You can prove you exist in some form through the statement Cogito, Ergo Sum, yet to prove your surroundings exist is impossible).

This is where some form of a leap of faith is required. eventually, all statements and beliefs boil down to a leap of faith(some gaps larger than others, I will grant that).

For myself, there is no separation between the statement "My surroundings are real" to "God is real" in distance of belief. Others, will see it differently, stating seeing their surroundings shows more proof than God; that Video, Ergo Est. However this shows an assumption of the surroundings existing wherein such belief can't be proven, wherein such belief in needing absolutes disavows such. Thus, Saint Thomas Aquinas' belief on faith comes into play, Faith is required to believe anything, as formerly mentioned. To what degree one person restricts faith(Absolute faith, partial faith, reasoning, et cetera) , is a personal choice, one wherein each person must decide for themselves. If you are a Christian struggling with faith, read apologetics, and pray. There is absolutely nothing wrong with questioning faith. There is nothing wrong with wondering if you're wrong. There is nothing wrong with changing your mind on beliefs you held, or will hold. Let this also be kept: I am not claiming I am smarter, better, or more righteous in my stature because I am Christian. Many non-Christians do great deeds. Many of them are better people than I. Most are more schooled than I. That is not the point I'm trying to get across. I am a person with many flaws, and many traits both good and bad. I am human. Yet, if one were to ask: "Why are you Christian?" or "Why Christianity?" these would be the reasons.

Much of this is simplistic answers to a complex situation. Eventually these topics will be discussed in greater depth.

May God Hold You and Bless You.

Go Fourth and Do As God Willeth.

[basicsofislam]

ISLAM 101: Your Faith.Part8

The Messengers’ Signs and Miracles

Allah I supported His messengers with a number of signs and miracles to prove their truthfulness and prophethood. A miracle, or mu‛jizah, is an extraordinary event in the physical world that surpasses all known human or natural powers. It is performed by prophets, by Allah’s command, for its credential value, to accredit them as Allah’s true messengers

Examples of miracles include:

-Moses’s rod turning into a snake -Jesus’s informing his people of what they ate and stored in their houses -The splitting of the moon for Prophet Muhammad (saw)

A Muslim’s Beliefs regarding Jesus

1) He was one of the greatest of Allah’s messengers and one of those held in high esteem. Indeed, he is one of the messengers Allah describes in the Qur’an as having ‘firm resolve’, namely, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon all of them. About these prophets, the Qur’an states, “We made a covenant with all the Prophets – with you and with Noah and Abraham and Moses and Jesus son of Mary – We made a binding covenant with them.” (Soorat Al-Ahzaab, 33:7)

2) He was a mere human being with no divine attributes whatsoever, whom Almighty Allah sent to guide the Children of Israel and supported with a number of miracles, as the Qur’an states, “He is only a slave on whom We bestowed Our blessing and whom We made an example for the tribe of Israel.” (Soorat Az-Zukhruf, 43:59) He never ordered his people to take him and his mother, Mary, as gods besides Allah; he only told them to do as Allah commanded him to tell them: “Worship Allah, my Lord and your Lord.” (Soorat Al-Maa’idah, 5:117)

3) Muslims believe that Jesus Peace be upon him was one of the greatest of Allah’s messengers, that he had no divine attributes whatsoever and that he was neither killed, nor crucified.

4) He was the son of Mary, a chaste, pious and truthful virgin who entirely devoted herself to the worship of Allah. She gave birth to Jesus after miraculously conceiving him without a human father, his likeness in this being as that of Adam, as the Qur’an states, “The likeness of Jesus in Allah’s sight is the same as Adam. He created him from earth and then He said to him, ‘Be!’ and he was.” (Soorat Aal-‛Imraan, 3:59)

5) There was no prophet between him and Muhammad r. In fact, Jesus u gave the good news of the advent of Prophet Muhammad r, as the Qur’an states, “And when Jesus son of Mary said, ‘O Children of Israel, I am the Messenger of Allah to you, confirming the Torah which came before me and giving you the good news of a Messenger to come after me whose name is Ahmad.’ When he brought them the Clear Signs, they said, ‘This is downright magic.’” (Soorat As-Saff, 61:6)

6) We believe in the miracles he performed by Allah’s permission, such as his ability to heal the lepers, bringing dead people back to life and informing his people of what they ate and stored in their houses, all by Allah’s permission. Allah gave him the ability to perform such miracles to prove he was a true prophet who came with a divine message from his Lord.

7) A person will not be considered a true believer unless he believes that Jesus u was Allah’s servant and messenger and strongly rejects the false statements Jews make about him and which Allah dismiss as untrue. He must al strongly reject the Christian beliefs about Jesus, who have gone far astray for taking him and his mother as gods besides Allah, claiming that he was the son of God or adopting the doctrine of the Trinity, referring to Allah as “the third of three”. Glorified is He and High Exalted above what they say!

8) He was neither killed, nor crucified; instead, he was raised up by Allah to heaven. In fact, Allah gave someone else Jesus’ appearance, causing everyone to believe that Jesus was crucified. The Qur’an says about this, “And their saying, ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, the Messenger of Allah.’ They did not kill him and they did not crucify him but it was made to seem so to them. Those who argue about him are in doubt about it. They have no real knowledge of it, just conjecture. They did not really kill him. Allah raised him up to Himself. Allah is Almighty, All-Wise. There is not one of the People of the Book who will not believe in him before he dies; and on the Day of Rising he will be a witness against them.” (Soorat An-Nisaa’, 4:157-59) In this way, Allah I protected him and raised Him to heaven. He will eventually return to earth towards the end of the world, rule by Muhammad’s law; then he will die and be buried, and will eventually be resurrected, like all human beings, as the Qur’an states, “From it We created you, to it We will return you, and from it We will bring you forth a second time.” (Soorat Taa Haa, 2o:55)

Belief in Muhammad (saw) as a Prophet and Messenger

-We believe that Muhammad May Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him was Allah’s servant and messenger, that he is the best of all mankind without exception, the seal of the prophets and so there will be no prophet after him. He Fully delivered the divine message assigned to him, discharged his prophetic duties, sincerely counselled the Muslim community, and strove hard for the cause of Allah to the best of his ability.

-We believe what he said, obey his commands and avoid the acts he prohibited and warned us against. We must worship Allah according to his guidance (Sunnah) and take none but him as our example. The Qur’an says, “You have an excellent model in the Messenger of Allah, for all who hope for Allah and the Last Day and remember Allah much.” (Soorat Al-Ahzaab, 33:21)

-We must show more love for the Prophet r than for our own parents, children and indeed all humankind. “None of you will be a true believer,” the Prophet r once observed, “until he loves me more than his parents, his children and all mankind.” (Saheeh Al-Bukhaaree: 15 and Saheeh Muslim: 44). However, true love for the Prophet r can only be realised by following his Sunnah. Indeed, true happiness and complete guidance cannot be attained without obeying him, as the Qur’an states, “If you obey him, you will be guided.’ The Messenger is only responsible for delivering the message clearly.” (Soorat An-Noor, 24:54)

-We must accept everything he has brought to us from Almighty Allah, adhere to his Sunnah, holding his guidance in high esteem, as the Qur’an states, “By your Lord, they will not be true believers until they seek your arbitration in their disputes and find within themselves no doubt about what you decide and accept it wholeheartedly.” (Soorat An-Nisaa’, 4:65)

-We must avoid disobeying his orders, for doing so is bound to lead to trials, misguidance and a severe punishment in the hereafter, as the Qur’an states, “Those who oppose his command should beware of a testing trial coming to them or a painful punishment striking them.” (Soorat An-Noor, 24:63)

Characteristics of Prophet Muhammad’s Message

Prophet Muhammad’s message has a number of characteristics which distinguish it from the previous divine messages. These include:

-It was the final divine message, as the Qur’an states, “Muhammad is not the father of any of your men, but the Messenger of Allah and the Final Seal of the Prophets.” (Soorat Al-Ahzaab, 33:40)

-It abrogated all previous messages and laws, and thus no religion will be acceptable to Allah after Muhammad’s mission except Islam. This can only be done by following Prophet Muhammad’s guidance. Similarly, no one will be admitted into Paradise without following in his footsteps, for he is the most honourable of all Allah’s messengers, his community (ummah) is the best community that has ever been brought forth for the good of mankind and his law is the most comprehensive of all divine laws. The Qur’an says, “If anyone desires anything other than Islam as a religion, it will not be accepted from him, and in the next world he will be among the losers.” (Soorat Aal-‛Imraan, 3:85) The Prophet r also said, «By Him in whose hand is the soul of Muhammad, any person of this Community, Jew or Christian, who hears of me and dies without believing in what I have been sent with will be among the inhabitants of Hell.” (Saheeh Muslim: 153; Musnad Ahmad: 8609)

-It is addressed to both the jinn and mankind. Recounting the statements of some of the jinn who embraced Islam, the Qur’an states, “Our people, respond to Allah’s caller and believe in Him.” (Soorat Al-Ahqaaf, 46:31) Addressing Muhammad r, the Qur’an also says, “We only sent you for the whole of mankind, bringing good news and giving warning.” (Soorat Saba’, 34:28) In this connection, the Prophet r said, “I have been favoured over the other prophets in six ways: I have been given the gift of concise yet comprehensive speech; I have been supported with fear [which Allah cats into my enemies’ hearts]; war booty has been made permissible for me; the entire earth has been made a means of purification and a place of worship for me; I have been sent to all of mankind; and the line of Prophets ends with me.” (Saheeh Al-Bukhaaree: 2815; Saheeh Muslim: 523)

Benefits of Belief in Allah’s Messengers

Belief in Allah’s messengers has a number of benefits, including the following:

1) Awareness of Allah’s care for His slaves for sending messengers to them to guide them to the right path and show them how to worship Allah. Indeed, the human mind cannot possibly do this. Addressing Prophet Muhammad r, Allah I says, “We have only sent you as a mercy to all the worlds.” (Soorat Al-Anbiyaa’, 21:107)

2) Showing gratefulness to Allah for this great blessing.

3) Showing love for Allah’s messengers, holding them in high esteem and adequately praising them for delivering Allah’s message to their people and giving them good counsel.

4) Following the guidance contained in the message which the messengers have brought from Allah, namely, to worship Allah alone without associating any partners with Him in worship and adhering to the dictates of this message. This will bring about happiness for the believers in both this life and in the life to come. The Qur’an says, “Those who follow My guidance will not go astray and will not be wretched. But whoever turns away from My reminder, he will lead a miserable life.” (Soorat Taa Haa, 20:123-24)

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

Devotional Hours Within the Bible by J.R. Miller

A Multitude Converted (Acts 2:32-47)

Everyone had a theory of the strange things that had happened. Some accepted the events as divine manifestations. Some mocked and ridiculed. Some said the disciples had been drinking wine too freely. Peter spoke to the throng and explained the meaning of the wonderful event. He brushed away the thought that the disciples were drunken, by reminding them of the early hour. He suggested the importance of the matter by saying it was something an old prophet had foretold, and then declared that it was the work of the Messiah.

Jesus had been crucified and had risen, and “he has poured forth this, which you see and hear.” Jesus told His disciples it was better that He should go away, for if He did not go away, the Comforter would not come; but if He departed He would send Him unto them. It seemed strange to the disciples that anything could be better to them than the staying with them of their Master. But now, when the promise had been fulfilled, they began to understand it.

If Jesus had stayed on the earth with His disciples, not going to His cross, there would have been no atonement, no Lamb of God bearing the sin of the world. There would have been no resurrection with its glorious victory over the last enemy. There would have been no intercessor in heaven pleading for struggling souls in this world and offering evermore the blood of His own sacrifice for sin. There would have been no Holy Spirit coming to stay with believers and to live in the heart of every Christian. Pentecost made it plain, that it was indeed better that Jesus should go away.

In the plainest, clearest way, Peter declared the full, glorious meaning of the events of the past seven weeks connected with Jesus Christ. “Let all the house of Israel therefore know assuredly, that God has made him both Lord and Christ this Jesus whom you crucified.” The Jews had killed their Messiah! This would seem to be the defeating of God’s purpose of redemption. Yet that was not the end. Though the Son of God was dead, God’s plan of love for the world could not fail. Jesus was raised up and exalted to be Lord and Christ. The Jewish people had missed their chance, had lost their Messiah but Jesus was still the Messiah for all the world. God’s purpose was not allowed to fail. The blood shed upon the cross by the rejecters of Christ, became the very blood of eternal redemption. The love of God is greater than human sin.

Peter’s words went to the hearts of the men to whom he was speaking. The Holy Spirit gave divine power to the words. “When they heard this, they were pricked in their hearts!” It was as if their hearts had been pierced with sharp iron. Their souls were filled with remorse. They saw now what they had done. God had sent His Son to be their Messiah, and although they had been looking and praying for the Messiah yet they had killed Him! No wonder they felt the power of remorse. Jesus comes to each one of us now personally, as He came to the Jews. If we reject Him as our personal Savior we crucify Him afresh. What have we been doing with Jesus since we first heard His Name? People sometimes say they are not great sinners; they have done nothing very bad. They forget that the greatest of all sins is unbelief, and the rejection of Jesus Christ as Redeemer and Lord.

The people asked in their great distress, “What shall we do?” They saw their sin and cried out to know what they must do to be saved. Could they undo the terrible crime they had committed in crucifying their Messiah? They were in sore perplexity, and they did just what they ought to have done they asked Christ’s apostles to tell them what they should do. If we have been rejecting Christ, we should ask the same question. We cannot change our past; we cannot undo our rejection.

A soldier lay dying in a hospital. A chaplain was passing through the ward, and seeing the dying man, knelt beside him and asked him, “Can I do anything for you?” The soldier opened his eyes and looked up with despair in his face, and cried, “Oh, sir, can you u ndo?” They followed a sad confession of a wasted life. The young man had not only ruined his own life but had also been a tempter to many others. “Oh. Sir, can you un do these things for me?” he cried again. No! there is no possible undoing. What is done cannot be undone. But although the past be wasted, the future remains. God is ever giving us another opportunity to be saved. We shall see in Peter’s answer, what we must do.

Peter put his answer in a few plain, clear words, “Repent, and be baptized everyone of you in the name of Jesus.” There was still a way of salvation, though they had so dealt with their Messiah. Repentance was the first step. What is repentance? It is more than dropping a few tears over a wrong life. The wrong must be given up, turned away from, forsaken forever. There must be a change of mind, and that change of mind must show itself in the conduct.

A little way outside of Dayton, a young man met an old gentleman one day and asked him, “How far is it to Dayton?” “Twenty-five thousand miles,” was the answer, “if you keep on as you are going now. But it is a quarter of a mile if you turn square about.” If an impenitent sinner, facing away from God, asks how far it is to heaven, the answer is “Millions and millions of miles, if you go on this way; just two steps if you turn right about.” We never can be saved if we keep our sins. We must repent. Baptism implied that the penitents had received Jesus Christ as their Savior and accepted Him as their Lord. If we would be saved we must do the same give up our sins and receive Christ.

The penitents were baptized unto the remission of their sins. It is sin that is the trouble. Our sins have destroyed us. But there is one way of being saved from our sins. It is through Jesus Christ. Remission is more than mere forgiveness. It means sending away, dismissing forever. This tells in a word what God does when we come to Christ. Merely to remit the penalty would be a poor blessing. In our heart the old sin still would live, with all its old power. The only way really to be freed from our sins is to have the sins themselves cleansed out of our life.

God’s forgiveness is complete; He remembers our sins against us no more, forever. Then He sends His Spirit to live in us. He breaks sin’s power and gives us a new master. Christ says, “Take my yoke upon you.” The final result is the lifting of the life up to glory. One summer day the sun found some foul, stagnant water lying in a gutter. It lifted it up and the winds bore it on their wings through the air, and on a mountain top, far off, it settled down again upon the earth, no more foul and stagnant but cleansed and pure now, white, spotless snow, as radiant as an angel’s garment. So Christ takes souls stained and defiled by sin, lifts them out of the foul corruption of earth, and brings them at last to the mountains of glory, whiter than snow.

Peter assured the penitent people before him, that they need not despair. There was hope for them. “To you is the promise, and to your children,” he told them. Although the Jewish people had crucified Christ, the offer of salvation was still made to them. Even hands, which had been stained with blood of the Messiah, were washed white in the very blood, which they themselves had shed!

The gospel was not for the Jews only but for all the world; it was for “all that are afar off.” The circle widens out, as when a stone is dropped in the center of a lake and little waves roll in circles wider and wider, until they splash on all the shores, even out on the farthest bays and creeks. The promise was given first to the company that stood there and heard Peter, and then it reached out until it came to those who were afar off the farthest off in space, living at the ends of the earth; the farthest off in time, down to the end of the world; the farthest off in character, the worst and the guiltiest.

Those early followers of Christ “continued steadfastly in the apostles’ teaching.” Continuance and steadfastness are essential. It is not enough to begin a Christian life; one persevere unto the end, through all discouragement, through all temptation, through all trial, faithful unto death. These first believers kept themselves in the school of Christ, coming continually to the meetings to receive instruction from the apostles.

The Christian life must always be a growing life. There must be growth in knowledge. Young Christians will never grow, however if they feed only upon trashy novels and newspapers. They must get the apostles’ teaching, God’s good bread for souls. They kept themselves also in the fellowship of the apostles. We would say they attached themselves to the Church and made Christian people their friends. They went regularly to the communion breaking of bread. There were faithful in attending the meetings for prayer. Thus they took up the new life with great earnestness and faithfulness.

At once love awoke in their hearts for fellow Christians. Some of these were poor, and those who were rich shared their plenty with them. “They sold their possessions … and parted them to all, according as any man had need.” That is, they were large-hearted and generous. They gave to Christ not only themselves but all that they had. They understood that the strong must help the weak, that the rich must help the poor. They lived together as one family. Whatever there was exceptional about the condition of things in the early Church, the principle is always the same. Those who have blessings, must share them with those who lack. Those who are strong, must help those who are weak. Those who have abundance, must share their plenty with those who are in want.

The result of such beautiful Christian living was that they greatly increased. “The Lord added to them day by day.” This is the way a church should grow. The Lord added those who were added; only the Lord can truly add souls to His Church. Men’s converts do not amount to anything, if that is all they are. There is no use in our urging people to join the Church, until they are first joined to Christ and have been renewed by His grace. We might as well tie green branches to a bare pole, and think we have a living tree. It is interesting, also, to notice that the Lord added “day by day.” Converts were not made merely at communion seasons or at revival times; day by day men came to Christ and took His as their Master. In every true, living church there should be continuous revival.

[dan6085]

The narrative of how Jesus Christ was crucified is rooted in the accounts provided by the New Testament of the Bible. It is important to note that historical interpretations and religious beliefs surrounding these events are complex and sensitive. Here's a detailed overview based on the New Testament accounts and historical context:

### Biblical Narrative of Jesus' Crucifixion

1. **Arrest and Trial of Jesus**:

- **Arrest**: According to the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), Jesus was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane by a group sent by the Jewish religious authorities, after being betrayed by one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot.

- **Jewish Authorities**: Jesus was first brought before the Sanhedrin, the Jewish religious council, where he was accused of blasphemy for claiming to be the Son of God and the Messiah. The Gospels portray the Jewish authorities as seeking Jesus' death because they viewed his teachings and actions as a threat to their authority and religious traditions.

2. **Roman Involvement**:

- **Pontius Pilate**: Since the Jewish authorities did not have the power to execute Jesus under Roman law, they brought him to the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate, seeking a death sentence. The Gospels depict Pilate as initially reluctant to condemn Jesus, finding no fault in him.

- **Public Pressure**: According to the Gospels, the Jewish authorities and a gathered crowd pressured Pilate to crucify Jesus. The crowd is described as choosing to release Barabbas, a known criminal, over Jesus, and demanding Jesus' crucifixion.

3. **Crucifixion**:

- **Sentence**: Ultimately, Pilate acquiesced to the demands of the crowd, washing his hands to symbolize that he did not take responsibility for Jesus' death, and handed Jesus over to be crucified.

- **Execution**: Jesus was scourged, mocked, and forced to carry his cross to the place of execution, Golgotha. He was then crucified between two criminals, with a sign above his head that read "Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews."

### Historical and Theological Context

1. **Roman Authority**:

- **Crucifixion as a Roman Method**: Crucifixion was a Roman method of execution, reserved for the most serious offenders, particularly those accused of insurrection or rebellion against Roman authority.

- **Responsibility**: While the New Testament narratives emphasize the role of the Jewish authorities and the crowd in calling for Jesus' death, the final authority and act of crucifixion were carried out by the Roman government.

2. **Jewish Responsibility**:

- **Blame and Interpretation**: Historically, some interpretations of the New Testament have led to the erroneous and harmful belief that "the Jews" as a whole were responsible for Jesus' death. This has contributed to antisemitism and persecution of Jews over the centuries.

- **Vatican II and Nostra Aetate**: In 1965, the Second Vatican Council issued "Nostra Aetate," which clarified that the death of Jesus cannot be attributed to all Jews of his time or to Jews today. This document emphasized the need for respect and understanding between Christians and Jews.

3. **Theological Significance**:

- **Christian Belief**: For Christians, the crucifixion of Jesus is a central event, seen as the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies and as a necessary part of God's plan for human salvation. Jesus' death and resurrection are believed to atone for the sins of humanity.

- **Redemptive Sacrifice**: Theologically, Jesus' crucifixion is viewed as a redemptive sacrifice, where Jesus willingly suffered and died to bring about reconciliation between God and humanity.

### Conclusion

The crucifixion of Jesus Christ is a pivotal event in Christian theology, described in the New Testament as involving both Jewish and Roman authorities. While the Gospels highlight the role of certain Jewish leaders and the crowd in calling for Jesus' death, the actual execution was carried out by the Roman authorities. It is important to understand these events in their historical and theological context and to reject any interpretations that promote collective blame or antisemitism. The teachings of "Nostra Aetate" have been instrumental in fostering a more accurate and respectful understanding of these events.

[benjtheo]

HE IS RISEN!

Today we celebrated the resurrection of our Messiah, eating fish with him as he did with his disciples. Luke 24:42.

For those confused about this online, an explanation follows.

From previous post I and others have shown that "Easter" is a word that was used by translators of the Bible to mean the Old Covenant Exodus Passover.

The Exodus Passover is a term used to mean the historical event in the Bible when the angel of death passed-over those obedient to Almighty, regarding the blood of a lamb applied to their home doorway. Afterward, they left or exodused the religious repressive Egypt.

Catholics, and Protestants who inherited their seminary errors, erroneously claim "Easter" meant the Messiah"s resurrection. This is why the date error for this year's "Easter" was off the mark so much for Catholics and Protestants about their traditional Bible roots.

To many modern traditional Christians, to learn the truth is both disturbing and shocking.

However, the Holy Bible forewarned over 1500 years ago that Satan and his messengers would deceive the "whole world." Revelation 12:9.

This is an example of that truth.

This also exemplifies the value of the Bible, it should be followed when any church, synagogue, mosques, or the like become incongruent.

So we shared how we Judeo-Christians, or Messianist, have used the Holy Bible to observe the Gospel Passover.

We also use the Bible to guide our fasting after our Messiah was taken from his disciples. Matthew 9:15, Mark 16:10. This is a voluntary fast for disciples today.

Gospel Passover is often called in Holy Scripture "the Lord's Supper," (1 Cor. 11:20, Luke 22:13-20), which is the Old Covenant Passover meal consumed two days early, because our Messiah was crucified on the Jews' Passover day, on Abib/Nisan 14th from the Bible's Jewish Lunar Calendar.

For this 2024, the Exodus Passover occured on April 22, 2024. On the third day, corresponding to April 25th today, our Messiah was not only discovered risen but ate broiled fish and honeycomb with his disciples as evidence of it. Luke 24:42.

For this reason, among others, the fish became a symbol for our Messiah's resurrection, for Messianists, long before the cross.

See our artistic Messianist trisymbol (below) of the Star of David, and menorah (representing the Old covenant Levitical priesthood), Star of David (Kings and Kingdom of Israel), and resurrection Fish (risen Priestly King of Israel, also for the world, its opportunity for eternal salvation and life).

See details about the correct date of the Old Covenant Jewish Calendar today and its Passover, and three days later our Messiah risen, at following links.

https://ccgjgcc.home.blog/2024/04/06/how-to-tell-what-jewish-calendar-is-correct-as-for-passover/

https://ccgjgcc.home.blog/2020/11/03/3-days-and-3-night-chronology/?fbclid=IwAR2cWI3iBLNdM3sFrd9n7Mv5WEFKamwNuGwEw1S-vEXw9YRWakwe0tsFGfk

[chugleychimp]

THE WESTERN CHURCH IS REMEMBERING THE MOMENT WHEN THE MESSIAH OF THE JEWS, (THEIR TRUE KING DESCENDED FROM KING DAVID,) WAS CRUCIFIED [CUT OFF] as was prophesied in Daniel 9:26. "AND AFTER THREESCORE AND TWO WEEKS ( AFTER THE SEVEN WEEKS,) SHALL MESSIAH BE CUT OFF, BUT NOT FOR HIMSELF." (Daniel 9:26)

Co-Co, The Coconut-Throwing Chimpanzee Schoolmaster, did not think that the study on Daniel 11 should omit to pay homage to the greatest moment in History (which The Western Church is remembering at present,) The Crucifixion of JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE MESSIAH OF THE JEWS, THE KING OF THE JEWS. Co-Co with his beloved old record player He is educating the entire zoo this Easter season regarding…