Even Caesar Confirmed the Resurrection

After Christ’s Resurrection, a Roman Emperor issued a decree for people to stop stealing bodies from Judah’s sepulchers. Without realizing it, he was confirming Christ’s Resurrection! The Nazareth Inscription is a powerful piece of extrabiblical evidence that Christ’s Resurrection was already being proclaimed shortly after He was raised.

The inscription is on a marble tablet written in Greek. Since the discovery was published in 1930, no scholar has produced evidence to disprove its authenticity. It’s an abridged decree by either Tiberius (14-37 AD) or Claudius (41–54 AD), pronouncing the death penalty in Israel for anyone caught robbing bodies from tombs. (Normally, grave robbers stole valuables, not bodies!) It refers specifically to “sepulcher sealing tombs,” a special type used in Israel.

This “Decree of Caesar” is known as an imperial rescript, having the force of law. Rescripts frequently dealt with unusual legal, religious, or political issues arising in a specific region. The text fits both the style and structure of other rescripts of Claudius. Matthew records one of the first responses to reports of Jesus’ Resurrection. The Jewish authorities invented a lie that the disciples had stolen the body (Matt. 28:13). Their goal was to spread an alternative story explaining why the body was missing and the tomb was empty. The Nazareth Inscription is very likely the Roman response to that very same problem.

In his dialogue with a nonbelieving Jew, Justin Martyr (AD 100–165) also refers to these early attempts to explain away the empty tomb of Jesus: “Yet you not only have not repented, after you learned that He rose from the dead, but, as I said before you have sent chosen and ordained men throughout all the world to proclaim that a godless and lawless heresy had sprung from one Jesus, a Galilean deceiver, whom we crucified, but his disciples stole him by night from the tomb, where he was laid when unfastened from the cross, and now deceive men by asserting that he has risen from the dead and ascended to heaven.”

The Nazareth Inscription forces skeptics to deal more deeply with the two major competing views of events: believing in the Resurrection of Christ or believing that His disciples stole His body from the tomb to perpetrate a great religious fraud. The account of Christ’s Resurrection was first circulated by the Apostles themselves, according to Scripture, and it was not a later invention by Christians of the post-apostolic period. The inscription is excellent evidence confirming this truth, and it brings to mind Paul’s statement, “If Christ is not risen … your faith is in vain” (1 Cor. 15:14). (Henry B. Smith, Answers in Genesis, April 1, 2015)  www.makinglifecount.net www.kentcrockett.blogspot.com  

Do You See What Actually Happened There?

The following comes from my book, MORE Amazing Stories & Daily Devotionals

The Archbishop of Paris was preaching to a large congregation in Notre Dame cathedral. He told the story of three rebellious young men who wandered into the cathedral one day. Two of the men made a bet with the third man that he would not make a fake confession to the priest. He accepted the bet and went to the priest for confession, making up a story about a sin he had committed.

When he finished, the priest said, “Go to the crucifix over there, kneel down before it, and repeat three times, ‘All this you did for me and I don’t really care.’” The young man knelt before the crucifix, looked up at the face of Jesus on the cross and said, “All this you did for me, and I …”

He choked up and tried again. “All this you did ...” He couldn’t go any further. His heart broke and he started sobbing. For the first time in his life, he understood what Jesus had done for him by sacrificing His life. The archbishop finished his sermon by saying, “You might think I made up this story, but it’s true. I was that young man!”

What should we see when we look at the cross? We see Jesus taking our sins upon Himself. “He Himself bore our sins in His body up on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live for righteousness” (1 Peter 2:14). We see Him opening the door into heaven “so that He might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18). Jesus didn’t have to die for us, but He did, so that we could spend eternity with Him. 

People who look at the cross and walk away unchanged do not see what happened there. Do you see it? Do you see what actually happened at the cross? Most people don’t see it. I hope you do. www.makinglifecount.net www.kentcrockett.blogspot.com  

He Survived Jumping Off the Golden Gate Bridge

The following comes from my book, MORE Amazing Stories & Daily Devotionals

Kevin Hines was depressed and decided to end his life by jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge. Miraculously, he survived. Hines said, “The millisecond my hands left the rail and my legs cleared it, I had instantaneous regret for my actions.”

“I fell nearly 250 feet, 25 stories, closing in on 80 mph nearing the speed of terminal velocity in 4 seconds. In those 4 seconds, I said to myself, What have I just done? I don’t want to die! God, please save me! I realized I made the greatest mistake of my life. And then I hit the water.”

He crushed three vertebrae on impact, and then started drowning. He prayed, “I don’t want to die, God, I made a mistake.” A sea lion kept pushing him to the surface until the Coast Guard rescued him. He’s one of 35 people who’ve survived that jump while 1,800 others have died in the San Francisco Bay since the bridge was opened in 1937. Hines’s story is chronicled in a documentary, The Ripple Effect.

In Acts 16:25-31, we find another man who wanted to end his life. Paul and Silas had been arrested and were singing praises to God in jail. The Lord sent an earthquake, which opened all the prison doors. The jailer thought the prisoners had escaped, so he drew his sword and was about to fall on it. Paul cried out, “Do yourself no harm, for we are all here!” The jailer, realizing something supernatural just happened, asked, “What must I do to be saved?” Paul said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus and you will be saved.”

If you’ve thought about ending your life, God says to you, “Do yourself no harm! I have a plan and a purpose for your life.” Psalm 42:5 (NLT) says, “Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise Him.” That’s the answer. Put your hope in the Lord and praise Him. He’s the one who can give you a reason to live.

BIBLE STUDY: End Times & Bible Prophecy

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When Failure Was Actually a Success

Dale Bourke was attending a publishing conference when her friend, Bruce, offered to give her a ride to the airport. As they were about to leave, the hotel doorman told them the hotel shuttle bus had broken down and if they could take another passenger to the airport. They said they would and the man jumped in the back seat.

Bruce asked the man where he worked. The back-seat passenger mentioned the name of a Christian publishing house, which was affiliated with a campus organization. Bruce said, “I have fond memories of that campus ministry because I attended a retreat by them in 1972 in New Hampshire. I became a Christian at that retreat.”

Bruce went on to explain that a year later, when he gave his testimony, his entire family came to the Lord. His sister eventually became a Wycliffe missionary and translated Scripture for a people group in Africa.

But he wasn’t finished explaining the domino effect of the retreat. Bruce’s parents became publishers of Christian books and published some of the most popular Christian books over several decades. Bruce later became a publisher of a major Christian publishing house that has printed and distributed books in numerous countries. The impact of that one retreat had reverberated throughout the world!

The man in the back seat was stunned. Then, he timidly admitted, “I led that retreat. It was my first time as a conference leader and I felt like a total failure. Until this moment, I’ve always believed it was one of the biggest failures in my life.”  (Dale Hanson Bourke, Second Calling, Integrity Publishers 2006, 208-209).

The conference leader felt like a total failure because he was looking at his own inadequacy instead of God’s ability to cause the increase (1 Cor. 3:6). One apple seed can produce an apple tree, which can produce an apple orchard.

We can learn a valuable lesson through this. We usually can’t see how God will use our obedience to reach people we don’t even know. If you’ll serve the Lord with gladness (Psalm 100:2) and leave the results to Him, you’ll never feel like a failure.  

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The Copy Cats

This comes from my book, MORE Amazing Stories & Daily Devotionals

President Calvin Coolidge once invited some friends to dinner at the White House. The guests didn’t know how to behave with the proper table manners, so they decided to just copy whatever the President did. 

When the coffee was served, Coolidge poured his into a saucer. The guests pulled out their saucers and did the same. Coolidge poured some cream and sugar in the saucer, so the guests added cream and sugar to theirs. Then Coolidge bent over, placed his saucer on the floor, and called for his cat.

If you choose to be a copycat, make sure you’re copying the right cat. Romans 12:2 says, “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.” Some people spend their lives trying to become like the celebrities and movie stars they worship.

When Kay Kent of London was eighteen, she wanted to look exactly like Marilyn Monroe. She bleached her hair platinum blond, had plastic surgery, and hired makeup artists to fix her face like Marilyn. With the growth of her obsession, she learned to talk like Marilyn, walk like Marilyn, and dress like Marilyn. She turned herself into a carbon copy of Monroe. The Lookalikes Agency in London gave her a contract in 1982 and she was soon making $100,000 per year. She later became depressed and turned to liquor and pills. On June 12, 1989, she died of an overdose, just like Marilyn Monroe. She chose the wrong cat to copy.

Paul copied Jesus. He said, “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ” (1 Cor. 11:1). Paul followed Him. He acted like Him. Suffered like Him. And we’re also to follow in His steps (1 Pet. 2:21). Don’t copy the wrong cats. There’s only one cat worth copying and that’s the Lion of Judah (Rev. 5:5).

BIBLE STUDY: Frequently Asked Bible Questions

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The Polish Swimmer at the Olympic Trials

The following comes from my book, MORE Amazing Stories & Daily Devotionals  

In the 1930s, a Polish immigrant’s son lived in a dreary apartment in Chicago. Because the boy only spoke broken English, he had no friends and no one to encourage him.

One day as the youngster was walking home, a man standing outside the YMCA called out to him. He worked at the facility and invited him inside to see the Olympic-sized indoor swimming pool. He asked the young man if he could swim. The boy said he could not. “Would you like to come here after school and learn how to swim?” the man asked.

The boy accepted his offer, learned to swim, and spent hours every day at the pool. As the months passed, the young man became a proficient long-distance swimmer. He entered a swimming contest and won the competition.

A few weeks later, the teenager won again. Two years later, after becoming the best distance swimmer in Illinois and then in the Midwest, he was excited to receive a letter bearing the Olympic seal. It was an invitation to join twenty of the nation’s best swimmers to compete to represent the USA in the upcoming Olympics! The two fastest swimmers would receive spots on the team.

On the day of the competition, the swimmers waited for the start signal and dove into the pool. As the swimmers swam their laps, the young man from Chicago kept up with the leaders for most of the race. However, he slowly slipped behind and was unable to keep up with the fastest swimmers. He finished in 4^th place, which meant he would not be going to the Olympics.

But if you think about it, finishing in 4^th place is nothing to be ashamed of. Not for someone with only one arm.

The apostle Paul wrote, “Whatever you do, do it wholehearted as though you were doing if for the Lord and not for people” (Col. 3:13). The Lord calls you to do your best, even if you have a disability such as only having one arm. In God’s eyes, finishing in 4^th place can be the same as winning a gold medal in the Olympics.

RECEIVE THESE DEVOTIONALS FREE by EMAIL: You can subscribe in the box on the right at www.kentcrockett.blogspot.com  NOTE: The subscription box will NOT usually appear on your smart phone, but it can be seen on your computer (or by opening the “desktop site” feature on your phone.) www.makinglifecount.net  

The Pressure That Sank the Submarine

The following comes from my book, MORE Amazing Stories & Daily Devotionals.

On April 10, 1963, the nuclear submarine Thresher went too deep into the ocean and was crushed by the pressure of the surrounding water. A submarine needs thick steel bulkheads to withstand the pressure of the water as it dives, but few walls can withstand the pressure of the deepest oceans.

Amazingly, in those same deep waters where that steel submarine had been crushed, little fish swim without a care in the world. How is that possible? Why aren’t they crushed since they only have a thin layer of skin? God created the fish with an internal pressure that’s perfectly balanced with the pressure from the outside. The Lord gave them what they need to live at that depth.

We are all surrounded by the pressures of life. Financial pressures. Strained relationships. Stress at work. Traumatic events. Illnesses. As the pressures accumulate, how is it possible to keep from being crushed?

God will give us what we need to live at that depth. Jesus said, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart, I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). He’s talking about the stressful issues of life that can crush us. Sure, Jesus overcame the world and its pressures at that time, but what about today?

Suppose Jesus could enter into us and neutralize the pressures of life, just like the fish isn’t crushed by the pressure of the water. That’s exactly what He wants to do. The peace of God that’s in Christ, which surpasses all understanding (Phil. 4:7), counteracts the stress of life’s difficulties. The pressures are still real, but they don’t affect us like they do other people because the Spirit living inside us is greater than the pressures trying to crush us.

BIBLE STUDY: What is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit?

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