What do you believe about Easter?

That may seem like an odd question, but have you ever been talking to someone who believed differently from you - and weren't sure how to answer questions about Jesus' resurrection?

While there is no doubt that we are saved by grace, through faith & faith alone (Eph 2:8-9) - did you also know that there is a lot of external historical evidence for the resurrection?  The following article by Lee Strobel contains a few highlights that I wanted to share with you this Easter season.  So whether you are talking to friends, co-workers or even your own children - hopefully you can be even more confident in knowing what you believe and why. 

Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.  ~ Philippians 3:12

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Why I'm Celebrating my 30th Easter

By Lee Strobel

How do we know Jesus rose from the dead? Here's a snapshot of the kind of evidence that led me to abandon atheism and embrace Christ

I had seen plenty of dead bodies as a reporter for the Chicago Tribune, but I never saw anyone come back to life. That's why I was a skeptic about Easter - until my agnostic wife's conversion to Christianity prompted me to spend two years investigating the historical evidence for Jesus' resurrection.

What I encountered turned me from atheism to faith - and what I've learned since then has only cemented that decision:

First, there's persuasive evidence Jesus was executed. In addition to multiple early reports in the ancient records that make up the New Testament, we also have confirmation outside the Bible. Atheist historian Gerd Lüdemann called Jesus' death by crucifixion "indisputable."

Second, there are resurrection accounts that date back so early they can't merely be legendary. A.N. Sherwin-White of Oxford said the passage of two generations was not even enough time for legend to grow up in the ancient world and wipe out a solid core of historical truth.

Yet we have a creed of the early church (recorded in 1 Corinthians 15:3ff) that confirms Jesus died for our sins, was buried, rose and appeared to named eyewitnesses, including skeptics. This creed dates back to within a few years of Jesus' death - and therefore its underlying beliefs go back even further. It's like a historical news flash!

Concluded historian James D. G. Dunn: "This tradition, we can be entirely confident, was formulated as tradition within months of Jesus' death." To me, this devastates the claim that the resurrection is simply a legend.

Third, there’s the empty tomb, which is implicit in the early creed and explicit in the earliest Gospel.

Scholar William Lane Craig said that the site of Jesus’ tomb was known to Christians and non-Christians alike. Therefore, if it weren’t empty, it would have been impossible for a movement founded on the resurrection to have exploded into existence in the same city where Jesus had been publicly executed just a few weeks earlier.

Also, the unanimous testimony that the empty tomb was first discovered by women argues for the authenticity of the story, because in that culture a woman’s testimony was considered untrustworthy. If the writers were merely making up the story, they would have claimed men made the discovery, thus boosting the credibility of their tale among their first-century audience.

Moreover, the empty tomb was implicitly admitted in the claim that the disciples had stolen the body. Why would Jesus’ opponents manufacture a cover story like that unless they were trying to explain away the inconvenient truth that the tomb was empty?

Nobody had a motive for stealing the body, especially the disciples. They wouldn’t have been willing to die brutal martyrs deaths if they knew this was all a lie.

Finally, historians Gary Habermas and Michael Licona have summarized multiple sources confirming the apostles’ conviction that the resurrected Jesus appeared to them:

• Scholars agree Paul wrote First Corinthians. There, Paul says he met with the apostles and confirmed they, like him, had encountered the risen Christ.
• The early creed confirms the disciples (and 500 others!) saw the risen Jesus; indeed, many scholars believe two eyewitnesses cited in the creed, Peter and James, were the ones who gave the creed to Paul.
• Most scholars concede that Acts summarizes the teaching of the early church. Acts describes Peter telling a crowd in Jerusalem just weeks after Jesus’ execution that “God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of it.” Acts reports that 3,000 people agreed and the church was born.
• The Gospels confirm Jesus’ post-resurrection appearances. (Even if you discount the ending of Mark as being a later addition, Mark still reports a resurrection, features an empty tomb and foreshadows Jesus’ appearances.) New Testament scholar Craig Evans, who has lectured at Oxford and Cambridge, told me: “There’s every reason to conclude the Gospels have fairly and accurately reported the essential elements [of the resurrection].”
• The early church father Clement knew the apostles, having been ordained personally by Peter. In a first-century letter, he said the apostles had “complete certainty” about the resurrection.
• Another early church leader, Polycarp, who studied under the apostles and was appointed by John, repeatedly referred to the resurrection and affirmed “the apostles loved Jesus who was raised.”

So convinced were the disciples that they were willing to die for their conviction that Jesus had risen — not because they had faith in it, but because they were in the unique position to know for sure that it was true.
Even atheist Lüdemann conceded: “It may be taken as historically certain that Peter and the disciples had experiences after Jesus’ death in which Jesus appeared to them as the risen Christ.”

He would claim these were hallucinations or visions, yet I don’t find that credible. Hallucinations occur in individual brains, like dreams, yet Jesus appeared to groups three different times – including 500 people at once.

Were these visions prompted by the apostles’ grief over their leader’s execution? This wouldn’t explain the conversion of Saul, an opponent of Christians, or James, the half-brother of Jesus and a skeptic. Neither was primed for a vision, yet each died proclaiming Jesus had appeared to him. Besides, if these were visions, the body would still have been entombed.

My books analyze the various objections that skeptics have raised. None, in my view, overcome the affirmative evidence. So I reached the verdict that the resurrection really happened – and that this event vindicated Jesus’ claim that he is the unique Son of God (John 1:12).

That’s why this year I’m celebrating my 30th Easter as a follower of Jesus.

Easter@Home

On Easter Sunday, we remember the pinnacle of our Christian faith: Jesus' resurrection from the dead.  His victory assures us of forgiveness from sin and eternal life in heaven - two things worth celebrating!  You can use the Easter message as a backdrop to share the good news with your kids and grand-kids all year long.  Let your kids or grand-kids know that Jesus is a "friend that sticks closer than a brother" and lets them live forever in heaven with Him if they will believe.

Here are some simple tips to carry with you throughout this very special holiday:

• Realize that kids understand God - and Easter - in vivid, literal images.  Don't dismiss tough questions.  Instead, read the Bible together.  Start with Matthew 28.
• Tweak your traditions.  Turn your usual Easter celebrations into opportunities to learn more about God and His Word.  If your family enjoys a sunrise experience, reenact the morning that Jesus' friends came to find the tomb empty.  For your egg hunt, fill plastic eggs with Scripture verses or Bible story pictures as well as candy.
• Know that it's never too early to share the good news of the Gospel.  Don't wait until your kids can communicate to tell them about Jesus and all He has done for us.  Remember that children can discover God from infancy (see 2 Timothy 3:14-15)

Here are some other insights to keep in mind at this very important time of year:

• In a 2010 survey, two-thirds of Americans said they knew that Easter is a religious holiday.  But only 42% connected its meaning to Jesus' resurrection.  And only 2% said they would describe Easter as the most important holiday of their faith (Barna Group).
• Another Barna Group study found that children are most likely to become Christians for a lifetime from ages 5 to 13.  In addition, children's moral development is largely complete by age 9.

For some great ideas on how to celebrate Easter with your family, please check out Celebrate Easter: A Family Guide for Holy Week

Let's take time this Holy Week to impress the truths of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ onto the hearts and minds of our kids and grand-kids.  May His good news reverberate throughout our homes and cities this joyous holiday...He is risen!  Happy Easter!

Rediscovering Worship as a Family Activity

Charles Spurgeon once said “If we want to bring up a godly family, who shall be a seed to serve God when our heads are under the clods of the valley?  Let us seek to train them up in the fear of God by meeting together as a family for worship” (C.H. Spurgeon, “A Pastoral Visit” 362-363).

Scripture has many examples of parents and grandparents setting an example of worship in the family:

• Genesis 22 - Abraham worshiping God, even willing to sacrifice Isaac
• Deuteronomy 6:4-9
• Psalm 78:1-8

The broader definition of worship goes beyond singing songs. Worshiping God includes all acts dedicated to thanking God for who He is—prayer, reading the Word, singing, giving, bowing before, etc.  Acknowledging God in all your ways is a form of worship. “Trust in the Lord with all of your heart and lean not on your own understanding. Acknowledge Him in all your ways and He will direct your steps” (Proverbs 3:5,6).  Presenting our bodies as a living sacrifice is the ultimate expression of worship and surrender to His lordship.   "Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.  Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." (Romans 12:1-2)

Webster defines worship (noun) as: “worthiness, respect, reverence paid to a divine being, worthiness, respect; reverence offered a divine being or supernatural power ; an act of expressing such reverence; extravagant respect or admiration for or devotion to an object of esteem."  Webster also defines the word worship (verb) as: "to honor or reverence a divine being or supernatural power; to regard with great or extravagant respect, honor, or devotion."

Worship is not only an act, it is a lifestyle.  

What better place is there for children and grandchildren to learn this lifestyle than from their own family at home?  Why not start this weekend on Saturday or Sunday evening.  All it takes is for someone in the home to take charge and lead the family in a simple time of reading the Word, prayer, and maybe even a quick song of praise.  We recommend the  Family Reading Bible by Zondervan publishing. You can find a copy in our faith@home center.  This is a great family resource for family worship times. 

“All the ends of the earth
   will remember and turn to the LORD,
and all the families of the nations
   will bow down before him”  Psalm 22:27

“Children are living messages that we send to a time we will not see.” (John Whitehead)  What message will you be sending into the future?

“What happens at church is important.  What happens at home is even more important.” What are you doing at home to demonstrate this truth?

“They will already have been worshiping God as a way of life the previous six days in both private and family worship, and public worship will be a natural outflow.” (Jerry Marcellino, “Rediscovering the Lost Treasure of Family Worship, p.6)  

Is worship truly a way of life for your family?  If not, why not?  Begin to lead your family in rediscovering worship as a family activity today!  You will find it time well spent and an investment that will deliver rewards for generations to come.

Leading Your Kids to Christ

The desire to see kids come to know Christ can place pressure on parents to “say the right things” and not make any mistakes.  We could all take heart from these words... “and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:4-­5)  Even Paul the Apostle had a clear understanding that he was simply the messenger, delivering a truth by the power of the Holy Spirit who alone changes hearts forever.

• God moves…through consistent teaching of Scripture. God helps kids begin to put things together.  For some, it will happen at school, others in the back seat of the car at Sonic, and still others, sitting at the supper table.  God will guide their minds to make all the connections at the right time.  When they verbalize these connections, it becomes a God Moment in which we can join His work "already in progress"

• Parents pray…teaching our kids the truth has a partner called prayer.  Parents interceding for their kids in prayer is the most powerful tool you could ask for.  In John 17:20, Jesus prays, "I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe through their word, that they may be one, just as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me."  Jesus prayed for the generations that would tell the next generation, and so on.  The prayers that we pray for our own children will not only impact them directly, but also the generations to follow. 

WARNING:  Important Note to Parents.  Salvation is not a box to check or a line to draw on their growth chart. It's the beginning of a lifelong relationship with Jesus Christ.  Often with good intentions, parents can force their kids into spiritual decisions they aren't ready to make.  Children need to make this decision with a good understanding of the truth and at the Holy Spirit's prompting in their life.  If your child doesn't receive Christ during the grade school years, continue praying and teaching.  Continue investing through Faith Talks, God Moments and celebrating Milestones.  The path doesn't always look the same for every child.

To learn more about how to lead your kids to faith in Christ or talk with them about Baptism, the Lord's Supper, please make plans to join us for Milestone 2: Salvation & Baptism class for Parents.

Even Stouffers Knows!

The other night we made lasagna for dinner.  Technically, we bought it frozen at the store and then warmed it up for dinner.  But the surprise wasn't in the meal itself, but rather in the packaging:

Right there on plastic film were multiple comments about the importance of families eating together - and the potential impact upon our youth.  Of course it didn't have any spiritual content, but I thought it was great that even corporate America was starting to realize the critical role that parents have with their kids.  In a day and age where society seems to idolize chasing after the elusive 'American Dream', it was refreshing to see a different perspective of what is really important.

All of us live very busy lives trying to juggle work commitments, the kids activities, social engagements, etc... - the list goes on and on and on.  But let me encourage you to assess what really matters in your life.  Is it your job?  Will spending another night at the office really make a difference 10, 20, 30 years from now? How about catching that game with your buddies?  Will you even remember it a year from now?

Invest in the lives of your kids.  You only have them in your house for a limited time, so do everything you can to take advantage of every opportunity with them.  So many of us make the mistake of "waiting for the weekend" - only to see the weekend fly right by.  Did you know, if your child is 6 yrs old, you've likely got less than 700 weekends left with them before they leave home.  If your child is 14, that drops to under 300.  Or maybe your child is a junior in high school and you realize that you have less than 100 weekends left to spend with them.

Whatever that number is, take every opportunity possible to invest in their lives.  James reminds us of this in James 4:14: "Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes."  So lets be intentional about making the most of every opportunity with our families.  Even Stouffers knows we should do that!

Parent & Baby Dedication

Four times each year we celebrate the Campus Event for Milestone 1: Parent & Baby Dedication at Cottonwood Creek Baptist Church.  This is a special day for each family who will be coming forward and a spiritual milestone in the lives of both children and parents.  It is a day for parents to commit to becoming the primary faith trainers in the lives of their precious children, and a day for our church to commit unyielding support through prayer and partnership.

In preparation for this special day and with Deuteronomy 6:4-9 as our backdrop, we would exhort parents to ask and answer the following questions: 

• “Will you chose this day to live with the commands of God on your own hearts?”
• “Do you accept responsibility as your child’s primary faith trainer to impress the truth and love of God on her as you live life together?”
• “Will you love this child with the unconditional love of Christ?”
• “Will you pray for her to know Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior?”

Our hope would be that your answer to each and every one of these questions would be an enthusiastic “yes, we will”.

We would ask every member of the church to ask and answer the following questions:

•  “Will you partner with these parents by praying for them as they lead their children spiritually?”
•  “Will you partner with these parents by teaching their children at church and modeling a Christ-like lifestyle in support of what the parents are teaching and modeling?”

Our prayer would be that every member of our community would answer with a resounding “yes, we will”.  Suddenly the family and the church gain perspective on the order of spiritual formation as God intended it. Parents take the lead in the spiritual development of a child. The church helps to equip parents and supports them along the way. That is Milestone 1, the beginning of walking this path toward authentic faith@home.

What's Your Legacy?

As with any goal in life, it helps to start with the end in mind.  If I were going to go on a trip, I would first identify where I wanted to go - and then I would find a map to figure out how to get there.  (because I'm a guy, so stopping and asking for directions is out of the picture!)  The same is true if I wanted to build something: I would first determine what I wanted to build - and then I would figure out what I needed to get it done.  It's a pretty straight forward process that we apply to most things in our lives - from retirement plans to extracurricular activities.  Unfortunately, we usually do not follow that same approach when it comes to our spiritual lives.

If I asked you what your spiritual plans are for you and your family, how would you answer?  Most of us would probably give some sort of generic answer like: "I want to grow closer to God" or "I want my kids to grow up to be good people".  But those aren't really plans, are they?

It's ironic that the thing that should be most important in our lives - our relationship with God - is often the last thing on our minds.  Oh, we have great intentions as we plan and schedule everything else under the sun, but somehow we assume that we'll be able to fit in time with God somewhere along the way.  But it never happens that way, does it?  Just like my trip - I may want to go to a specific destination but without intentional efforts to help me get there, the odds are that I'll never make it.

If we apply this principle to our spiritual lives, let's fast forward to the end to see where we want to go. (For the sake of this post, I'm going to assume that you've already taken care of the salvation issue between you God.  But if not, do that first - before proceeding any further!)  Imagine yourself listening in at your own funeral.  What do you think your friends and family would say about you? That you were a good person - or always had the coolest car?  Maybe you were funny or made a lot of money (to leave behind)?

Now think about what you wish they would say.  That you loved God and had a positive impact on every person you came into contact with?  That it was very evident that you loved your family/friends and always made time for them?  It's funny how our priorities can change so suddenly when we think about life from an eternal perspective!

If you died today, how satisfied would you be with the legacy that you left behind?  If we're honest, I think most of us would say that we're not satisfied at all.  James 4:14 says, "Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes."  The reality is that this world is not our home.  God has place in store for us that is beyond anything we can think or imagine!  But yet, so often we live our lives as if this world is all that matters.

Let me challenge you to take time today to think about your legacy. But don't stop there!  Once you determine where you want to go, start making plans to help you get there.  It won't happen by chance - and Satan will do everything in his power to try to distract you from what's really important.  But if you persevere and follow your plan, it will make a world of difference (actually, an eternal difference!) - both for yourself as well as for your family and friends.