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From: TW Schoewe
Christ is Risen! This is not only a Biblical statement but a historical fact! Four solid rocks or reasons certify the Resurrection!: (1) A Day was commemorated, (2) A Book was written, (3) An organization was begun, and (4) a Transformation was experienced.
Each July 4th celebration is evidence of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. SUNDAY, never before used as a day of worship, is recognition of the deliverance from Man's greatest foes...sin, death and hell. Countless millions have celebrated this day ever since that first Sunday after Good Friday. Why? Because Christ arose SUNDAY.
The sacrifice of many of our Americans at Gettysburg to preserve our Union resulted in president Lincoln's immortal Gettysburg Address. The death of Christ on Good Friday and His resurrection on Sunday resulted in a Book being written called the New Testament. Were there no Resurrection there would be no New Testament. Why? Because it is based solely on Christ's Resurrection!
Why was there a Soviet Union? Had there not been a Bolshevik revolution in 1917 there would never have been a Soviet Union which now is in the dustbin of history. The Christian Church is far larger and much older than the former Soviet Union ever was. And it continues to be on the historical scene! The Church began not because of a revolution but because of an empty tomb and a Risen Christ! Were there no Risen Christ there would be no Church.
Many of you know the transformation that we experience when we pass from civilian life to military life. Outside of the fact of taking a simple oath and we were “in,” there is no explanation. When one hears the story of Christ's sacrificial death, one is faced with the undeniable fact of His Resurrection. And when one believes that there flows from the heart an oath of allegiance to Jesus Christ. We become new creatures with new hope and new power. We cannot deny our own experience and existence as Christians.
As we celebrate Easter again and are reassured of the Resurrection, let's join old Apostle Paul in the victory shout! 1 Corinthians 15:55ff. “Oh death, where is thy sting? Oh grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
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