Truth really can be stranger than fiction.
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La verdad puede ser más extraña que la ficción.
First Page - ¡Ya está en marcha! Todas las historias son verídicas, o están basadas en hechos reales. Lectura ilimitada por $4.99 / mes. No hay que descargar nada. Lea en su teléfono, tableta u ordenador.
Manna Minutes Podcast: Eye-opening Bible study in less than five minutes! Access all episodes here.
Manna Minutes en español:
Estudio bíblico que nos hace abrir los ojos en menos de cinco minutos! Acceda a todos los episodios aquí.
Manna Minutes Podcast auf Deutsch:
Augenöffnendes Bibelstudium in weniger als fünf Minuten! Alle Episoden finden Sie hier.
Was There A Curse On Helen's Romantic Life?
The Third Man by Angela Sheffield is based on a true story. Read chapter one now!
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¿Qué tiene que ver conmigo? por Teófila Gottfried
Lo que leemos en la Biblia tiene que ver con todos los seres humanos, sean cristianos o judíos, ateos o agnósticos, budistas, musulmanes o adherentes a alguna de las filosofías o nuevas religiones que surgen en el mundo. ¿Por qué? Ver mayor información sobre este interesante libro.
Scripture of The Day - St. John 14:6
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
Escritura del día - San Juan 14,6
Jesús le dijo: Yo soy el camino, y la verdad, y la vida; nadie viene al Padre, sino por mí.
Bibelstelle des Tages - Johannes 14,6
Jesus spricht zu ihm: Ich bin der Weg und die Wahrheit und das Leben; niemand kommt zum Vater, denn durch mich!
The Crucifixion of Jesus, the Good Christmas Gift of God: An Easter or Christmas Message?
An Easter or a Christmas Message?
Most people who were born and raised in the West understand that Christmas is the celebration of the birth of Jesus whereas Easter is when his resurrection is celebrated. Nevertheless, Christ was born to die on the cross (St. John 12:27) and his work included raising himself from the dead (St. John 10:17-18), thus destroying the last enemy of man--death (1 Cor. 15:26). Therefore, the crucifixion of Jesus is an appropriate subject for an Easter or Christmas message.
Many people are confused when they read a scripture that says that God the Father raised Jesus from the dead and then read another scripture where Jesus says that he resurrected himself. This confusion only clears up once there's understanding that Jesus was both God and man. Jesus the Lord had the power to raise himself from the grave while Jesus the man had no such power. The article, "Who Was Jesus?," published at HeavenlyManna.net, answers every question about the divinity of the Son of God.
The Birth of Jesus: The Good Christmas Gift from God
It is highly improbably that the birth of Jesus occurred on December 25th; but, this isn't a study on the dates and events surrounding when the Savior came into the world. One woman who had attended a Christian church almost all of her life asked, "But, why did Jesus have to die when God can just forgive sins from his throne?" How sad it is to spend that many years faithfully attending a Christian church and not be able even to explain the bare bones basics of the Christian faith.
God requires the the actual shedding of real blood for the remission of sins; this is why he prepared a real body in which God the Son was housed for his mission on Earth. During Old Testament times, the high priest in Israel dared not enter what was called the "Holiest of all" without the blood of a sacrifice to cover his own sins and those of all of Israel (Exodus 30:10, Hebrews 9:7). However, Hebrews 10:5-6 lets us know that the shed blood of animals could never fully please God because their blood only cleansed the flesh, not the heart. The blood of Jesus, the final sacrifice, cleanses the heart so that the flesh does not repeatedly carry out the messages it receives from a dirty heart and conscious (Hebrews 9:14). The crucifixion of Jesus was the immensely superior and final sacrifice provided by God for the remission of sins, physical and mental healing, the blessings and promises of God which culminate into resurrection from the dead to eternal life in his presence (2 Corinthians 1:20, 1 John 5:13). This is why scripture refers to Christ as the Lamb of God.
The Trauma in the Crucifixion of Jesus
True Bible scholars, historians, and some medical doctors have combed the scriptures to know every detail available in the written record left of the suffering and crucifixion of Jesus. The information gathered paints a picture of the ghastly trauma through which the Son of God lived--before he died. We should remember, however, that even if we didn't have the medical view of what happened to Jesus, enough is revealed in plain language throughout scripture to know that his medical condition would have disturbed even the most desensitized emergency medical health care provider to the point of shuddering.
The gospels tell us that Jesus was chastised or scourged (Matthew 27:26, Luke 23:21). Those who are interested in knowing what a scourge is and what it meant to be scourged by the ancient Romans can freely find such information. However, the Bible alone reveals enough information about the physical condition in which Jesus was found before he died that even if you don't know exactly what it meant to be scourged or exactly what happened when he was beaten, you get the picture that unimaginable cruelty was inflicted on him. Jesus had worked as a carpenter; so, it's perfectly logical to believe that he was a healthy and strong young man to be able to do such a work in times when there were no modern tools to make the work easier. We also remember that in St. John 2:15 we are told of a time when Christ made a whip that he used to literally drive money changers out of the temple. The passage tells us that he overthrew tables as he forced the people to leave. We have a scene of one man physically driving out many adult males and then overthrowing tables that, in those days, would not have been made out of plastic or pressed board, but solid wood. Clearly, Jesus the man was not physically unhealthy, weak or puny, neither was he afraid to take a whip to confront and drive out men who outnumbered him. Again, if we pay attention to scripture, much is revealed.
We know that Christ was both scourged and beaten before being crucified. We read, "...And when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified. Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the common hall and gathered unto him the whole band of soldiers. And they stripped him, and put on him a scarlet robe. And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand, and they bowed the knee before him and mocked him, saying, 'Hail, King of the Jews!' And after that they had mocked him, they took the robe off from him and put his own raiment on him, and led him away to crucify him." (St. Matthew 27:26-31).
We learn that Christ was scourged, beaten, and mocked before being crucified; but, we also learn what that scourging, those beatings and mocking did to him even without knowing the medical view of the crucifixion of Jesus or what life was like in ancient Rome. How? The scripture of Luke 23:26 is just one in the four gospels that lets us know that, when they finished with Christ, he didn't have enough strength to carry his cross all the way to Golgotha, the place of his crucifixion. A man named Simon, at some point, was compelled by the Romans to carry the cross the rest of the way. Also, the beatings he received must have been a full unleashing of the furry of his arch enemy, Satan, and an awful display of the vileness of sin. They left Christ so physically disfigured that he was beyond recognition.
Messianic passages in the Bible such as Isaiah 52:14 reveal that, "...His visage (face) was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men." Some have suggested that Isaiah 52:14 is letting us know that Jesus didn't even look fully like a person after his torture. The scripture of Isaiah 50:6 foretold the whipping and mistreatment of Jesus including the pulling out of his beard. Finally, king David, in Psalm 22:14-18 described the death of Jesus while under the Spirit of God. Thanks to scholars of the Bible, we know that what David described as happening to himself was the crucifixion of Jesus. David did not die by crucifixion nor should he have been able to describe such a form of capital punishment unknown to Israel in his day. He wrote the words of the Lamb of God who gave us a glimpse into his agony when he said, "I am poured out like water and all my bones are out of joint. My heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels. My strength is dried up like a potsherd and my tongue cleaveth to my jaws; and thou hast brought me into the dust of death. For dogs have compassed me; the assembly of the wicked have enclosed me. They pierced my hands and my feet. I may tell all my bones; they look and stare upon me. They part my garments among them and cast lots upon my vesture."
Jesus tells of all of his strength being gone from him; he probably felt like his heart was literally going to burst, which some medical doctors suspect actually could have happened under that kind of stress. He speaks of the awful dehydration he suffered so much that his tongue stuck to his jaws as he had no water to drink. He tells of the piercing of his hands and feet and the dogs or wicked men with dog-like spirits who surrounded him and hanging on the cross literally pulled his bones out of joint.
The Good Christmas Gift from God
The meek and humble Lamb of God was the final sacrifice for all time; the work of the cross of Jesus is over. Christ overcame all of the Satanic power behind the most vicious war ever unleashed on Earth against the throne of God. Even the very last enemy of man--death, was defeated as the Savior rose from the grave, returned to sit at the right hand of God in glory, and is King for eternity. Satan lost the war that he started against God in heaven (Isaiah 14:12-15) and he again lost his war against Jesus on Earth (Colossians 2:15, Matthew 28:18, 1 Corinthians 15:54-57). The next time Christ returns to Earth, it will not as before; rather, he will establish his kingdom perpetually and all opposition to his sovereignty will be crushed forever.
Meanwhile, the Lord continues to offer his good Christmas gift to the world--his Son, a gift that anyone can receive if he wants to once he understands what the present is. That present is salvation and a genuine relationship with the living God who can and will do for us far above what we can imagine being possible. We learned that the shedding of blood is required for the remission of sins which is why Jesus was sent. We also learn that everyone has sinned and is in need of the Savior for the remission of those sins (Romans 3:23). The scripture of 1 John 1:9 instructs us all to confess our sins and know that God is faithful to forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness however dark that unrighteousness may be. Salvation is the free gift of God; it cannot be earned by good works nor can it be received by anyone who refuses to repent. When we truly repent, we don't continue to willingly live in sin; rather, we turn away from what is disobedience to God.
While there are printed prayers to lead a person in the "sinners" prayer, they are not necessary because all that the Father requires is that we turn to him confessing our sins and asking him to forgive and cleanse us in Jesus' name. We tell him that we accept his Son as Savior and Lord, and we thank him for the good Christmas gift he gave. True acceptance of Christ as your God is the Christmas present that you can choose to give to the Lord--yourself, your true worship and your true love which will compel obedience to him.
Yes, the birth of Jesus is the reason for the season. The crucifixion of Jesus was the final sacrifice. The true Christian message is, "...God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life."
Note: There is an audio version of "The Crucifixion of Jesus, the Good Christmas Gift of God: An Easter or Christmas Message?" by Ana Kirk.
Based on true events, The Third Man by Angela Sheffield, brings the Bible up close and personal as the characters face real issues of life: Betrayal, deceit, romance, bitterness, anger against God, hopelessness, will power, perplexity, triumph, unforgiveness, mental illness, and the "Alcohol made me do it" excuse. Read chapter one FREE now.
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