Category: Resurrection

Why did He not take the wine mixed with myrrh?

9/1/2013

"And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh: but he received it not." (KJV)

In Mark 15: 23, we read that the Lord, when he was hanging on the cross, was offered a mixture of wine and myrrh, but he refused to drink it. We know by reading the previous verses that he suffered terrible physical pain from the beating of the soldiers before His crucifixion. Normally, any man who suffers an excruciating pain would gulp the liquor. But the Lord received it not. Have you ever asked yourself why?

Let me tell you what this particular verse tells me.

First, by refusing it, He proved that He was in total control of the situation. He did not lose sight of the reason why He was there on the cross.

Second, He did not want to kill the pain. The purpose of the wine was to intoxicate the body so that it will lessen the pain and misery. The Lord wanted to feel every pain and burden of the cross. He tasted death with each drop of blood and without any distraction. He showed that he did not need any outward means to cheer him, nor he had any desire to alleviate his sorrows. He was not afraid to meet death in all its terrors. He was indeed the perfect sacrifice for our sins.

Finally, this act further proves that the Lord Jesus was not an ordinary human being like all of us who would normally drink the wine to get rid of the awful pain. He is the Son of God; God manifested in flesh.

The Lord Jesus was crucified for a purpose. Bringing us to Heaven was His main focus.
Nothing could ever distract Him. His eyes were occupied and set on His goal. He could only see the effect of his death, the brighter side of the resurrection. He endured in behalf of us what we could not do.

When I look at the cross, I could only see a PERFECT JOB!

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Understanding Matthew Better

8/16/2013

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The gospel of Matthew can be divided into two: (1) the earthly ministry of Jesus for Israel and (2) the seven years tribulation for Israel until the millennium. Jesus’ ministry as a Jew was for the Jews to fulfill all the demands of the Law and the prophecies spoken about Him Luke 24:44.

Everything in the gospel of Matthew is Jewish. To name a few, chapter 1 talks about the genealogy of the King, chapter 3 narrates John the Baptist introducing Jesus to the people of Israel, chapter 10 shows the Lord commanding His disciples, “Don’t go to the Gentiles”, and chapter 15 the Lord Himself “I was sent only to help God’s lost sheep—the people of Israel.” Nothing is mentioned about the assembly (church) except for a short glimpse in Matthew 16 “I will build my Assembly (church)” which is in the future tense pointing to later events in Acts 2. Therefore, it is improper for Christians to base their teachings on the gospel of Matthew because it is not directed to Christians but to Jews.

In the gospel of Matthew, the Lord Jesus did not reveal the assembly (church) period to the nation of Israel. Everything He has said and done was all directed to the nation of Israel. At that time, none of the disciples knew about the assembly (church) period for it was hidden from them until Acts 1 and 2. For instance, in Matthew 24 He told His disciples, omitting the assembly (church) period, about the seven years tribulation prophesied in Daniel 9:26. The disciples, being Jews, were concerned about the earthly kingdom, the blessing from King David. Becoming the head of all nations was a promise to them which is still to be fulfilled.

The Lord explained to His disciples everything concerning the nation of Israel by using many illustrations: the ten virgins, the fig tree, the temple destruction, the wheat and tares, the fishing net, the landowner, the unforgiving debtors, the Son of Man coming for Israel, the sheep and goats, etc. The disciples received all the teachings for the present and the future seven years great tribulation and the establishment of the Jewish kingdom on earth before the Lord’s crucifixion. They were told in advance what would happen to their nation from the plan of the Lord Himself.

After the resurrection, the Lord seemed not to go away from the disciples. But he told them that He will be with them until the end of the age. Note, however, that in Matthew 28 there is no mention of the Holy Spirit coming down and no mention of the ascension of the Lord to heaven. But those who were with Him were worshipping Him as their King. This is a little prelude of the time when the nation of Israel will finally recognize Him at the end of the great tribulation. He told the disciples to go and teach all the nations, making them their pupils, and baptizing them into the Triune God—the Trinity. Matthew 28:18-19,“Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth.19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations,[b] baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”This commission refers to the one mentioned in Revelations 7 about the 144,000 preachers. The 144,000 will preach to the whole world a unique message on entering the kingdom on earth, and Israel as a nation will be delivered through the coming of the King, the Lord Jesus at the very end. “Until the end of the age” refers to the time when everything is done and the promise to Israel is fulfilled. Though the commission was told to the disciples in Matthew 28, it was not for them to walk through. It was for those who will read the letter of Matthew during the great tribulation. (Read Gill's and Darby's Commentaries on Matthew 28:18-19).

To show the difference between the commission of Matthew 28 and the commission for the Assembly (church), let us look at Acts 1. When the disciples were with Jesus (Acts 1:6), they kept on asking him, “Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore your kingdom?” He replied to them, “The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know.”But in verse 8 He told them, “…you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. (Acts 2:1) And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” So we can see that what was given to them in Matthew 28 was for another dispensation. It is not the same for the assembly (church) period.

Aside from narrating Jesus’ ministry on earth, the gospels of Matthew and Mark could also be alike in the sense that they do not introduce the assembly (church) period in their endings. Some manuscripts of Mark end with chapter 16 verse 20, but earlier manuscripts omit the verses 9 to 20 which talks about the ascension of the Lord Jesus to heaven. So, for instance the gospel of Mark does not have the ascension (verses 9-20), it will be just like the gospel of Matthew. Only the gospel of Luke introduces the Assembly (church) at the end of chapter 24, which is interesting because Luke is also the author of Acts which notes the beginning of the assembly (church) period. But if we take the longer version of Mark with the ascension (verses 9-20), we will have Matthew strictly for the Jews but Mark and Luke introducing the assembly (church) period. The gospels of Mark and Luke, having the same ending, would emphasize the credibility of two witnesses, a Jew and a Gentile, used by God to reveal the assembly (church) period.

Mark 16:8- The most reliable early manuscripts of the gospel of Mark end at verse 8. Other manuscripts include various endings to the gospel. A few include both the “shorter ending” and the “longer ending” immediately after verse 8.

Remember, however, that all these three gospels are strictly in Jewish context except for the small parts, particularly Matthew 16 and the ending of Luke and probably Mark, introducing the assembly (church) period. Do not be mislead by others who use verses from Matthew for the assembly (church) because they end up misunderstanding the whole thing especially their own Salvation. For example many believers, sad to say, take Matthew 24:13 to say that if one does not endure until the end, that person will lose his/her salvation, and believe that the caught up for the church will happen at the end of the great tribulation (Matthew 24:40). That’s what happens when someone takes the gospel of Matthew as the teaching of the Assembly (church).

It would be better not to read the three gospels—Matthew, Mark, and Luke—with the New Covenant Assembly (church) teachings. Instead, read them and link them with the Old Testament. For the New Covenant Assembly (church) teaching, it’s better to start with Acts until Revelations 1, 2, 3 and jump to Revelations 21 and 22. The Old Covenant pauses with the death of Jesus the Anointed One and continues with Matthew 28:19 and Revelations chapters 4 to 21 with the New Earth. (Read more on Universal Assembly)

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Resurrection of the Body

4/27/2013

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3...Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. 4 He was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said. 5 He was seen by Peter and then by the Twelve. 6 After that, he was seen by more than 500 of his followers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. 7 Then he was seen by James and later by all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as though I had been born at the wrong time, I also saw him. --1 Corinthians 15:3-8

And assuming that Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile. You are still in your sins. --1 Corinthians 15: 17

Christ rose from the dead! His resurrection was a proclamation of His victory over death and His exaltation in heaven. It proclaimed God's acceptance of His work in Calvary. God the Father was well pleased with what He did and took Him at His right hand-- the place of honor.

But there were people in Corinth, and there are still some today, who believe that there is no resurrection of the dead. Paul, in his first letter to the Corinthians (chapter 15), rebutted them plainly and clearly:

20 But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died.

21 So you see, just as death came into the world through a man, now the resurrection from the dead has begun through another man. 22 Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life. 23 But there is an order to this resurrection: Christ was raised as the first of the harvest; then all who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back.

Also, John wrote in 1 John 4: 1-3 says:

...many false prophets are gone out into the world. In this you know experientially the Spirit of God. Every spirit who agrees [to the doctrinal statement] that Jesus Christ has come in the sphere of the flesh [i.e., in incarnation] and still remain incarnate [in human form] is of God; and every spirit who does not confess this aforementioned Jesus is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist...

"Remain incarnate" means that the Lord is in heaven with His human body, the same body that he took when He came on earth through the virgin Mary.

Still, there are some cults who use verse 29 to say that people should be baptized to save their dead ones who were not saved before they died.

29 If the dead will not be raised, what point is there in people being baptized for those who are dead? Why do it unless the dead will someday rise again?

But by reading closely, the context tells us that believers do not get baptized for their dead ones to save them. Paul was referring to believers who died fighting the fight of faith--already saved before they died. (The same way he faces death everyday for preaching the Good News). Believers who are still alive get baptized to associate with those who are dead (asleep) and to continue the battle. Like in the military, when the front row falls down, the second assumes the first row and so on.

Being baptized like the dead believers, it is proclaiming that we believe the same thing they believed. They believed about the resurrection. They believed that grave is not the end of it all. Our baptism shows our hope that there will be life after death. We believe that the dead believers are gone but not lost. If we did not believe in the resurrection, we would stop getting baptized. But knowing that the dead body would come back alive, we still replace those who are gone by continuing the practice of baptism. We associate with them while waiting for the resurrection of the body.

The Lord promises us bodies that will never die--heavenly immortal bodies. Now, we have the frail earthly body, but when are bodies are transformed and the nature of sin gone, we will be in His likeness. Amen.

49 Just as we are now like the earthly man, we will someday be like the heavenly man.

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If Christ has not been raised...

4/24/2013

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"And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins. In that case, all who have died believing in Christ are lost! " 1 Corinthians 15:17-18 (NLT)

The world at large does not believe the Lord's resurrection. The Muslims do not believe that he died. The Catholic people deny it by believing the purgatory. The Pentecostals see the speaking of tongues as a proof of salvation. The Jehovah's witnesses say that the Lord Jesus did not raise again but He disappeared into gas. The Buddhists deny the complete story of the cross. The whole world is in darkness and remains there not understanding the resurrection; the whole world do not have the light of the truth of the gospel in their hearts.

People say religious people let go easily when they come close to death, but irreligious people are afraid and tend to resist with all their strength not to go. The reason for the latter is they don't know what is next after they die. All their lives they were self-centered and earthly, loving sins or for them-- loving their lives to its fullest; but they did not prepare to meet their Creator.

But for us, believers, we posses and reflect the glory of Christ being luminaries to this world. We stand on the ground of the Lord's resurrection. And that makes all the difference from darkness to light, from the kingdom of the devil to the kingdom of God's Son. We can face tomorrow with all confidence, no fear nor uncertainty. We can face even death in a whole new attitude knowing that it is only a transition to the life ahead with our Lord. The grave will be a smooth passage to the other side into the arm of the Lord Jesus.

The Lord is the first to cross the impenetrable region with His human body. This is the resurrection. He did not leave His body behind the tomb to return to dust, but fought the good fight and delivered it out. The Lord gave a blow to the Devil by crushing his head not only at the cross, but also when he delivered Himself through the resurrection.

We know that our salvation rests not only on the fact of the death of Christ, but also on His resurrection. The Lord's resurrection became an assurance that if we belong to him, we can sleep (die) in peace. It is His resurrection that delivered us out completely from our sins.

"...if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins" mean that we, believers, are no longer in sin but are in Christ for the Lord was raised from the dead! We don't have any sin to deal with after we pass away; neither do we have judgement to come on us. After we pass away from this world, we will not be lost. In Christ all shall be made alive.

The negativeness of the above mentioned verses bring us the stronger positiveness of our salvation from the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. We live because He lives! Amen.

"But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died" (verse 20).

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Why did He not take the wine mixed with myrrh?

Understanding Matthew Better

Resurrection of the Body

If Christ has not been raised...

Gaetan Robichaud

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