Inspiration And Encouragement – April 2018

Scripture Quote

Matthew 28:6-7 “He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead; and, behold, he goeth before you into Galilee; there shall ye see him: lo, I have told you.”

A Merry Heart

A Sunday school teacher was asking her six-year-olds about the meaning of Easter. “Children,” she said, “Do you know why we celebrate Easter?”

A little girl raised her hand.

“Yes Jenny,” said the teacher.

Jenny said, “Is Easter when we put on costumes and go trick-or-treating?”

“No, Jenny. That’s Halloween. Does anyone else know?”

A little boy yelled, “It’s when we set off fireworks!”

“No Jimmy, that’s Independence Day. Anybody else?”

A shy little girl in the back said, “Easter is when Jesus died.”

The teacher replied, “That’s right, Shauna. And what happened to Jesus that makes Easter special?”

“Well, he died and got buried. And every Easter he comes out. And if he sees his shadow there’s 6 more weeks of winter.”

Your IQ (Inspirational Quotes)

“The resurrection is a fact better attested than any event recorded in any history, whether ancient or modern.” – Charles Spurgeon

“We understand and acknowledge that the resurrection has placed a glorious crown upon all of Christ’s sufferings.” – A.W. Tozer

Fresh Manna

The Easter Triumph by A.W. Tozer

I do not mind telling you that within me I find the Easter message and the reality of the Resurrection more beautiful and glorious than the Christmas scene. Christmas tells us that Jesus was born, that He was born for the humiliation of suffering and death and atonement. But Easter is the radiant and glory-filled celebration of Christ’s mighty triumph over the grave and death and hell! When Easter comes, our voices are raised in the triumphant chorus: The three sad days had quickly sped; He rises glorious from the dead! There is the real beauty! This is more than the beauty of color; more than the beauty of outline or form, more than the beauty of physical proportion. In the living Christ is the perfection of all beauty, and because He lives, we too shall live in the presence of His beauty and the beauties of heaven, forever!

More than Conquerors

He Really Understood

Little Philip, born with Down’s syndrome, attended a third-grade Sunday School class with several eight-year-old boys and girls. Typical of that age, the children did not readily accept Philip with his differences, according to an article in Leadership magazine. But because of a creative teacher, they began to care about Philip and accept him as part of the group, though not fully. The Sunday after Easter the teacher brought Leggs pantyhose containers, the kind that look like large eggs. Each receiving one, the children were told to go outside on that lovely spring day, find some symbol for new life, and put it in the egg-like container. Back in the classroom, they would share their new-life symbols, opening the containers one by one in surprise fashion. After running about the church property in wild confusion, the students returned to the classroom and placed the containers on the table. Surrounded by the children, the teacher began to open them one by one. After each one, whether flower, butterfly, or leaf, the class would ooh and ahh. Then one was opened, revealing nothing inside. The children exclaimed, “That’s stupid. That’s not fair. Somebody didn’t do their assignment.” Philip spoke up, “That’s mine.” “Philip, you don’t ever do things right!” the student retorted. “There’s nothing there!” I did so do it,” Philip insisted. “I did do it. It’s empty. the tomb was empty!” Silence followed. From then on Philip became a full member of the class.

He died not long afterward from an infection most normal children would have shrugged off. At the funeral this class of eight-year-olds marched up to the altar not with flowers, but with their Sunday school teacher, each to lay on it an empty pantyhose egg.

This young boy did understand what the Easter was all about. It is faith in Jesus the resurrected savior and that is why the tomb is empty. Every person has a choice to make to accept the gift of God or to reject it. If you have never done so receive God’s gift of eternal life today. Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” A gift is free to us, but the it does cost the giver. If we receive the gift it is ours, but if we reject it then we then do not possess it. The greatest gift ever offered is eternal life by Jesus.

A Father’s Example

I read about a small boy who was consistently late coming home from school. His parents warned him one day that he must be home on time that afternoon, but nevertheless he arrived later than ever. His mother met him at the door and said nothing.

At dinner that night, the boy looked at his plate. There was a slice of bread and a glass of water. He looked at his father’s full plate and then at his father, but his father remained silent. The boy was crushed.

The father waited for the full impact to sink in, then quietly took the boy’s plate and placed it in front of himself. He took his own plate of meat and potatoes, put it in front of the boy, and smiled at his son. When that boy grew to be a man, he said, “All my life I’ve known what God is like by what my father did that night.” (J. Allan Peterson)

Note: John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” God loves you very much and he offers us the free gift of eternal life. If we by faith are willing to receive that gift we will have an eternal home in heaven.