LESSON 13 *September 21–27

The Risen Lord

The Risen Lord

Sabbath Afternoon

Read for This Week’s Study: Mark 15:42–47, Mark 16, Col. 2:10–12, 1 Cor. 15:1–8, Dan. 9:24–27, John 20:11–18.

Memory Text: “But he said to them, ‘Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid Him’ ” (Mark 16:6, NKJV).

The crucifixion of Jesus destroyed the hopes and faith of His disciples. It was a dark weekend for them as they not only grappled with their Master’s death but feared for their own lives, as well (John 20:19).

In Mark 16, the final chapter in this Gospel, we will look at what followed His death.

First, we will look at the timing of Jesus’ resurrection and why the women came to the tomb on that Sunday morning. Adventists have sometimes shied away from resurrection morning because of the way it is misused to support Sunday sacredness. We will instead see how we can rejoice in the Sunday resurrection, despite the false theology that has, unfortunately, arisen from it.

Second, the lesson explains the first verses of Mark 16, linking these words to a theme that runs through the entire book. Our studies on Monday and Tuesday will look at these concepts.

Third, Wednesday and Thursday will examine the rest of Mark 16 and consider the mission it sets before us. This study will close with a challenge to the reader of Mark to take the gospel throughout the world.

* Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, September 28.


Sabbath Afternoon, September 21

Lesson 13 - The Risen Lord

In the garden, Mary had stood weeping, when Jesus was close beside her. Her eyes were so blinded by tears that she did not discern Him. And the hearts of the disciples were so full of grief that they did not believe the angels’ message or the words of Christ Himself.

How many are still doing what these disciples did! How many echo Mary’s despairing cry, “They have taken away the Lord, . . . and we know not where they have laid Him”! To how many might the Saviour’s words be spoken, “Why weepest thou? whom seekest thou?” He is close beside them, but their tear-blinded eyes do not discern Him. He speaks to them, but they do not understand.

Oh that the bowed head might be lifted, that the eyes might be opened to behold Him, that the ears might listen to His voice! “Go quickly, and tell His disciples that He is risen.” Bid them look not to Joseph’s new tomb, that was closed with a great stone, and sealed with the Roman seal. Christ is not there. Look not to the empty sepulcher. Mourn not as those who are hopeless and helpless. Jesus lives, and because He lives, we shall live also. From grateful hearts, from lips touched with holy fire, let the glad song ring out, Christ is risen! He lives to make intercession for us. Grasp this hope, and it will hold the soul like a sure, tried anchor. Believe, and thou shalt see the glory of God.—The Desire of Ages, p. 794.
 

We have a living Saviour. He is not in Joseph’s new tomb; He is risen from the dead and has ascended on high as a Substitute and Surety for every believing soul. “Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1). The sinner is justified through the merits of Jesus, and this is God’s acknowledgment of the perfection of the ransom paid for man. That Christ was obedient even unto the death of the cross is a pledge of the repenting sinner’s acceptance with the Father. Then shall we permit ourselves to have a vacillating experience of doubting and believing, believing and doubting? Jesus is the pledge of our acceptance with God. We stand in favor before God, not because of any merit in ourselves, but because of our faith in “the Lord our righteousness.”—Faith and Works, p. 107.
 

Stormy times are before us. The earth is corrupt, and will increase in corruption. But you may have perfect trust in Christ. Notwithstanding the violence, the crime, the appropriation by men of money to which they have no right, there is a God who is King over the universe. We are His children, not the subjects of capricious fate. We have, yes, you have, as you read the words of encouragement spoken by Christ, the sacred promise that will renew the springs of hope. You may rejoice in a living Saviour. He is our risen Lord. His promises are for all who will receive Him.—This Day With God, p. 91.

SUNDAY September 22

Rejoicing in the Resurrection

Read Mark 15:42–16:6. What happens here, and why is this story so relevant to the resurrection narrative?

* Your notes will not be saved!

All the Gospel writers agree that Jesus died on the day that they identify as the “preparation” (Matt 27:62; Mark 15:42; Luke 23:54; John 19:14, 31, 42). Most commentators understand this as a reference to sunset Thursday through sunset Friday. Jesus died late on Friday afternoon and was then quickly buried before sunset.

During the Sabbath, the Lord rested in the grave, and all of Jesus’ disciples rested, as well. “And they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment” (Luke 23:56, NKJV), a rather strange action if, in fact, Jesus had lessened, at least in their minds, the obligation to keep the fourth commandment.

On Saturday night, the women bought spices, and on Sunday morning, they went to the tomb with the desire to complete the typical burial process. Of course, Jesus was not there!

As early as the second century, Christians saw significance in the fact that Jesus rose on Sunday. This became the basis for Sunday sacredness. But is that what the New Testament teaches?

Read Colossians 2:10–12. What is the New Testament memorial of Jesus’ resurrection?

Not a word in the Bible hints at Sunday sacredness as a memorial of the Resurrection. That memorial is baptism. “Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life” (Rom. 6:4, NKJV).

Regardless of the false theology regarding Sunday worship, as Adventists we must rejoice in the Sunday morning resurrection of Jesus. Jesus has triumphed over death, and in His resurrection, we have the surety of ours.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Pet. 1:3, NKJV). Look at the certainty Paul had about the resurrection of Jesus. How can we have that certainty, as well?


Sunday, September 22

Rejoicing in the Resurrection

The women who had been Christ’s humble followers while He lived, would not leave Him until they saw Him laid in the tomb and a stone of great weight placed before the door, lest His enemies should seek to obtain His body. But they need not have feared; for I saw that the angelic host watched with untold interest in the resting place of Jesus, earnestly waiting for the command to act their part in liberating the King of glory from His prison house.

Christ’s murderers feared that He might yet come to life and escape them. They therefore asked of Pilate a watch to guard the sepul­cher until the third day. This was granted, and the stone at the door was sealed, lest His disciples should steal Him away and say that He had risen from the dead.—Early Writings, pp. 180, 181.
 

As the light of the angels shone around, brighter than the sun, that Roman guard fell as dead men to the ground. One of the angels laid hold of the great stone and rolled it away from the door of the sepulcher and seated himself upon it. The other entered the tomb and unbound the napkin from the head of Jesus. Then the angel from heaven, with a voice that caused the earth to quake, cried out, “Thou Son of God, Thy Father calls Thee! Come forth.” Death could hold dominion over Him no longer. Jesus arose from the dead, a triumphant conqueror. In solemn awe the angelic host gazed upon the scene. And as Jesus came forth from the sepulcher, those shining angels prostrated themselves to the earth in worship, and hailed Him with songs of victory and triumph.

Satan’s angels had been compelled to flee before the bright, pene­trating light of the heavenly angels, and they bitterly complained to their king that their prey had been violently taken from them, and that He whom they so much hated had risen from the dead. . . . As Jesus walked forth from His prison house a majestic conqueror, Satan knew that after a season he must die, and his kingdom pass unto Him whose right it was.—Early Writings, p. 182.
 

The resurrection of Jesus was a sample of the final resurrection of all who sleep in Him. The risen body of the Saviour, His deportment, the accents of His speech, were all familiar to His followers. In like manner will those who sleep in Jesus rise again. We shall know our friends even as the disciples knew Jesus. Though they may have been deformed, diseased, or disfigured in this mortal life, yet in their resurrected and glorified body their individual identity will be perfectly preserved, and we shall recognize, in the face radiant with the light shining from the face of Jesus, the lineaments of those we love. . . .

Until that triumphant hour, when the last trump shall sound and the vast army shall come forth to eternal victory, every sleeping saint will be kept in safety and will be guarded as a precious jewel, who is known to God by name.—That I May Know Him, p. 362.

MONDAY September 23

The Stone Was Rolled Away

Read Mark 16:1–8 and 1 Corinthians 15:1–8. What do these passages have in common?

The story of the resurrection appears in each of the Gospels. Each Gospel writer presents the story from a different perspective, but they all contain the core concepts that appear also in 1 Corinthians 15:1–8.

Four ideas appear again and again—died, buried, risen, seen. In Mark, “died” and “buried” are in chapter 15. The “risen” and “seen” appear in chapter 16, but with a twist. Mark 16:7 speaks of a meeting in Galilee, and there you will see Him (see John 21).

Some people find it incredible that Christians believe in a risen Lord. But the evidence for His resurrection is substantial and consistent with reason.

For starters, all one has to do is believe in God as the Creator (see Genesis 1 and 2) and the idea of the resurrection, of a miracle, becomes reasonable. The God who created the universe, and then life on earth, certainly had the power, if He chose, to resurrect Jesus. The existence of God doesn’t make the resurrection of Jesus inevitable, only reasonable.

Next, the tomb was definitely empty. Even atheist historians accept that fact. If it were not, the claim about His resurrection would fail right from the start because the existence of His body there would destroy any claims of His having risen.

Next, the explanation that His disciples stole the body does not work. The disciples surely couldn’t have gotten past the guards. And even if they had done so and got the body, why were the disciples never arrested for stealing it? The answer is that the religious leaders knew that the disciples had not done it.

Also, numerous people testified that they saw the risen Christ. Many, including the disciples, did not at first believe. And one very solid enemy, Paul, not only claims to have seen the risen Lord but that this experience changed the whole trajectory of his life—in very radical ways, too.

Finally (though there are many other reasons), how does one explain the rise of the Christian church, founded by people who claimed to have seen the risen Lord? Why would these people have been willing to die for what they knew was a lie? Their consistent testimony, both right after His death (Acts 3:15) and years later (1 Pet. 1:3), provides powerful evidence for His resurrection.

What would you say if someone were to ask you, What evidence do you have for Christ’s resurrection?


Monday, September 23

The Stone Was Rolled Away

The enemies of the disciples could not but be convinced that Christ had risen from the dead. The evidence was too clear to be doubted. Nevertheless, they hardened their hearts, refusing to repent of the terrible deed they had committed in putting Jesus to death. Abundant evidence that the apostles were speaking and acting under divine inspiration had been given the Jewish rulers, but they firmly resisted the message of truth. Christ had not come in the manner that they expected, and though at times they had been convinced that He was the Son of God, yet they had stifled conviction, and crucified Him. In mercy God gave them still further evidence, and now another opportunity was granted them to turn to Him. He sent the disciples to tell them that they had killed the Prince of life, and in this terrible charge He gave them another call to repentance. But feeling secure in their own righteousness, the Jewish teachers refused to admit that the men charging them with crucifying Christ were speaking by the direction of the Holy Spirit.—The Acts of the Apostles, p. 61.
 

Some [of the Corinthian believers] had gone so far as to deny the doctrine of the resurrection. Paul met this heresy with a very plain testimony regarding the unmistakable evidence of the resurrection of Christ. He declared that Christ, after His death, “rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,” after which “He was seen of Cephas, then of the Twelve: after that, He was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. After that, He was seen of James; then of all the apostles. And last of all He was seen of me also.”

With convincing power the apostle set forth the great truth of the resurrection. “If there be no resurrection of the dead,” he argued, “then is Christ not risen: and if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain. . . . and if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain. . . . But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the first fruits of them that slept.”—The Acts of the Apostles, pp. 319, 320.
 

On whose side are we? The world cast Christ out; the heavens received Him. Man, finite man, rejected the Prince of life; God, our Sovereign Ruler, received Him into the heavens. God has exalted Him. Man crowned Him with a crown of thorns; God has crowned Him with a crown of royal majesty. We must all think candidly. Will you have this man Christ Jesus to rule over you, or will you have Barabbas? The death of Christ brings to the rejecter of His mercy the wrath and judgments of God, unmixed with mercy. This is the wrath of the Lamb. But the death of Christ is hope and eternal life to all who receive Him and believe in Him.—Testimonies to Ministers and Gosper Workers, p. 139.

TUESDAY September 24

The Women at the Tomb

“The women who had stood by the cross of Christ waited and watched for the hours of the Sabbath to pass. On the first day of the week, very early, they made their way to the tomb, taking with them precious spices to anoint the Saviour’s body. They did not think about His rising from the dead. The sun of their hope had set, and night had settled down on their hearts. As they walked, they recounted Christ's works of mercy and His words of comfort. But they remembered not His words, ‘I will see you again.’ John 16:22.”—Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, p. 788.

Read Mark 16:1–8. What happened, and how did the women first respond?

From the beginning of the Gospel, the reader knows that Jesus is the Messiah. But in the text itself, the first non-demon-possessed person who proclaims Him the Messiah is Peter in Mark 8:29. And this profession doesn’t happen until halfway through the book.

All throughout Mark’s Gospel, Jesus tells people to keep quiet about who He is or about a healing that He did for them. In Mark 1:44, He tells a leper to tell no one of his healing. In Mark 5:43, He tells Jairus and his wife to tell no one of the raising of their daughter. In Mark 7:36, He tells a group not to tell people about His healing of a deaf and mute man. And then He commands His disciples not to tell people that He is the Messiah (Mark 8:30; see also Mark 9:9). No doubt the main reason for Jesus’ telling them to be silent was to allow Himself the time to finish His ministry according to the time prophecies of Daniel 9:24–27.

Now, in this scene, even after they had been told that Jesus had been raised, the women, fearful and amazed, fled from the tomb and, at least at first, didn’t talk about what had happened either.

The silence, however, didn’t last long. By the time we reach the end of the book of Mark, we read this: “And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by accompanying signs” (Mark 16:20, ESV).

Thus, the motif of being silent about Jesus and about who He is and what He has done is shattered. The book ends with them preaching “everywhere.”

Why must we not keep silent about Jesus and what He has done? Who can you tell today about Jesus and the plan of salvation?


Tuesday, September 24

The Women at the Tomb

Mary had not [yet] heard the good news. She went to Peter and John with the sorrowful message, “They have taken away the Lord out of the sepulcher, and we know not where they have laid Him.” The disciples hurried to the tomb, and found it as Mary had said. They saw the shroud and the napkin, but they did not find their Lord. Yet even here was testimony that He had risen. The graveclothes were not thrown heedlessly aside, but carefully folded, each in a place by itself. John “saw, and believed.” He did not yet understand the scripture that Christ must rise from the dead; but he now remembered the Saviour’s words foretelling His resurrection.—The Desire of Ages, p. 789.
 

Mary had been looked upon as a great sinner, but Christ knew the circumstances that had shaped her life. He might have extinguished every spark of hope in her soul, but He did not. It was He who had lifted her from despair and ruin. Seven times she had heard His rebuke of the demons that controlled her heart and mind. She had heard His strong cries to the Father in her behalf. She knew how offensive is sin to His unsullied purity, and in His strength she had overcome.

When to human eyes her case appeared hopeless, Christ saw in Mary capabilities for good. He saw the better traits of her charac­ter. The plan of redemption has invested humanity with great pos­sibilities, and in Mary these possibilities were to be realized. Through His grace she became a partaker of the divine nature. The one who had fallen, and whose mind had been a habitation of demons, was brought very near to the Saviour in fellowship and ministry. It was Mary who sat at His feet and learned of Him. It was Mary who poured upon His head the precious anointing oil, and bathed His feet with her tears. Mary stood beside the cross, and followed Him to the sepulcher. Mary was first at the tomb after His resurrection. It was Mary who first proclaimed a risen Saviour.—The Desire of Ages, p. 568.
 

Christ has given to the church a sacred charge. Every member should be a channel through which God can communicate to the world the treasures of His grace, the unsearchable riches of Christ. There is nothing that the Saviour desires so much as agents who will represent to the world His Spirit and His character. There is nothing that the world needs so much as the manifestation through hu­manity of the Saviour’s love. All heaven is waiting for men and women through whom God can reveal the power of Christianity.

The church is God’s agency for the proclamation of truth, empowered by Him to do a special work; and if she is loyal to Him, obedient to all His commandments, there will dwell within her the excellency of divine grace. If she will be true to her allegiance, if she will honor the Lord God of Israel, there is no power that can stand against her.—The Acts of the Apostles, p. 600.

WEDNESDAY September 25

Appearing to Mary and Others

Read Mark 16:9–20. What do these verses add to the Resurrection story?

Almost all of Mark 16:9–20 has parallels to other passages in the New Testament—Mary Magdalene at the tomb seeing Jesus (Matt. 28:1, 9, 10; John 20:11–18; compare with Luke 8:2); two disciples see Him in the countryside (Luke 24:13–35); the 11 disciples are commissioned (Matt. 28:16–20, Luke 24:36–49, John 20:19–23).

The first person to see Jesus alive was Mary Magdalene (John 20:11–18). Other women saw Him, as well (Matt. 28:8–10). It is significant that the first people to see the risen Lord were women. Because women in the ancient world did not have high status as witnesses, if the story were fabricated, it would have been much more likely to name men as the first witnesses. But it is not men, not the Twelve, but a woman. She goes to tell the good news to the disciples, but, not surprisingly, they do not believe her testimony, most likely because it seemed fantastic and also, unfortunately, because Mary was a woman.

Apologists for the resurrection story of Jesus have used this fact, that of women being the first ones to have seen Jesus, as powerful evidence for the veracity of the story.

What happens in Mark 16:14 that makes no sense if this story were a fabrication?

Of course, if they were making the story up, why would they have made themselves look so bad? Jesus had to rebuke them for their “hardness of heart.” The Gospel accounts, from the time of His arrest to His appearances after the Resurrection, depict the followers of Jesus in a very negative light—fleeing, denying, disbelieving, and so forth. This would make no sense if the story were made up.

In contrast, their later bold and unwavering proclamation of the risen Christ, and the hope it offers everyone, presents powerful evidence for the veracity of their claims.

How can we protect ourselves from falling into the spiritual trap of doubt and unbelief? Why must we daily link ourselves to the risen Christ?


Wednesday, September 25

Appearing to Mary and Others

A light was shining about the tomb, but the body of Jesus was not there. As they [the women] lingered about the place, suddenly they saw that they were not alone. A young man clothed in shining garments was sitting by the tomb. It was the angel who had rolled away the stone. He had taken the guise of humanity that he might not alarm these friends of Jesus. Yet about him the light of the heavenly glory was still shining, and the women were afraid. They turned to flee, but the angel’s words stayed their steps. “Fear not ye,” he said; “for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. 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.” . . .

He is risen, He is risen! The women repeat the words again and again. No need now for the anointing spices. The Saviour is living, and not dead. They remember now that when speaking of His death He said that He would rise again. What a day is this to the world! Quickly the women departed from the sepulcher “with fear and great joy; and did run to bring His disciples word.”—The Desire of Ages, pp. 788, 789.
 

Christ’s first work on earth after His resurrection was to convince His disciples of His undiminished love and tender regard for them. . . . Go tell My brethren, He said, that they meet Me in Galilee. . . .

But even now they did not rejoice. They could not cast off their doubt and perplexity. Even when the women declared that they had seen the Lord, the disciples would not believe. They thought them under an illusion. . . .

Often they repeated the words, “We trusted that it had been He which should have redeemed Israel.” . . . They met together in the upper chamber, and closed and fastened the doors, knowing that the fate of their beloved Teacher might at any time be theirs.

And all the time they might have been rejoicing in the knowledge of a risen Saviour. In the garden, Mary had stood weeping, when Jesus was close beside her. Her eyes were so blinded by tears that she did not discern Him. And the hearts of the disciples were so full of grief that they did not believe the angels’ message or the words of Christ Himself.—The Desire of Ages, pp. 793, 794.
 

Every expression of doubt strengthens unbelief. Every thought and word of hope, courage, light, and love strengthens faith and fortifies the soul to withstand the moral darkness that exists in the world. Those who talk faith will have faith, and those who talk discouragements will have discouragements. By beholding we become changed.—Letter 16, March 24, 1880, to James White.

THURSDAY September 26

Go Into All the World

Read Mark 16:14–20. What did Jesus say to His disciples when He appeared to them, and what do these words mean to us today?

The first words of Jesus to His disciples are recorded only in indirect discourse in Mark 16:14. He rebukes them for their unbelief and hardheartedness. This question of unbelief is not simply a modern problem. As we already have seen, the original disciples of Jesus struggled with belief (Matt. 28:17, John 20:24–29), and they were with Jesus in the flesh and saw, again and again, the miracles.

But by various proofs, He demonstrated to them the reality of His resurrection. Then their testimony, combined with the evidence summarized in Monday’s study, forms a firm foundation for faith.

Jesus then commissions His disciples to take the gospel to the world. His command is expansive. They are to go to the entire world and proclaim the gospel to all creation. Jesus then explains the outcome of their work for weal and for woe—believers will be saved, unbelievers condemned.

Jesus also describes signs that will accompany the disciples’ work— casting out demons, speaking new languages, protection from harm, and healing the sick. Some people have mistakenly interpreted Mark 16:18 as an affirmation for Christians to show their faith by picking up poisonous snakes. No such presumptuous action is authorized here. What Jesus is describing is protection when one is involved in mission, such as Paul’s service for others, as in Acts 28:3–6.

Of course, the Bible does not teach that Christians will always be protected from harm. At times God sees fit to work a miracle to further the gospel cause. But sometimes Christians suffer because of their witness. In that circumstance their patient endurance is another sign to unbelievers of the power of faith.

And then, after doing all He did here, “He was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God” (Mark 16:19, NKJV). Jesus ascended to sit at the right hand of God, the place of supreme power, for Jesus had defeated all the forces of evil.

Notice the last verse. Though they went “everywhere,” preaching the gospel, they did not go alone. “The Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs. Amen” (Mark 16:20, NKJV). He was with them then and promises to be with us now as we continue the work they started.

“ ‘I am with you always, even to the end of the age’ ” (Matt. 28:20, NKJV). What comfort can, and should, we take from this promise as we, too, seek to proclaim the gospel “everywhere”?


Thursday, September 26

Go Into All the World

Jesus had several times attempted to open the future to His disciples, but they had not cared to think about what He said. Because of this His death had come to them as a surprise; and afterward, as they reviewed the past and saw the result of their unbelief, they were filled with sorrow. When Christ was crucified, they did not believe that He would rise. He had stated plainly that He was to rise on the third day, but they were perplexed to know what He meant. This lack of comprehension left them at the time of His death in utter hopelessness. They were bitterly disappointed. . . . If they had believed the Saviour’s words, how much sorrow they might have been spared!

Crushed by despondency, grief, and despair, the disciples met together in the upper chamber, and closed and fastened the doors. . . . It was here that the Saviour, after His resurrection, appeared to them.—The Acts of the Apostles, pp. 25, 26.
 

Before ascending to heaven, Christ gave His disciples their commission. . . . You have been witnesses of My life of sacrifice in behalf of the world, He said to them. . . . To you, My disciples, I commit this message of mercy. It is to be given to both Jews and Gentiles—to Israel, first, and then to all nations, tongues, and peoples. All who believe are to be gathered into one church.

The gospel commission is the great missionary charter of Christ’s kingdom. The disciples were to work earnestly for souls, giving to all the invitation of mercy.—The Acts of the Apostles, pp. 27, 28.
 

As the light of the sun is light and life and blessing to all that live, so should Christians, by their good works, by their cheerfulness and courage, be the light of the world. As the light of the sun chases away the shades of night and pours its glories on valleys and hills, so will the Christian reflect the Sun of Righteousness which shines on him.

Before the consistent lives of Christ’s true followers, ignorance, superstition, and darkness will pass away, as the sun dispels the gloom of night. In like manner the disciples of Jesus will go into the dark places of the earth, disseminating the light of truth until the pathway of those in darkness shall be illuminated by the light of truth.—This Day With God, p. 92.
 

With such . . . a glorious hope, such a redemption that Christ has purchased for us by His own blood, shall we hold our peace? Shall we not praise God even with a loud voice, as did the disciples when Jesus rode into Jerusalem? Is not our prospect far more glorious than was theirs? Who dare then forbid us glorifying God, even with a loud voice, when we have such a hope, big with immortality, and full of glory? We have tasted of the powers of the world to come, and long for more. My whole being cries out after the living God, and I shall not be satisfied until I am filled with all His fullness.—Early Writings, p. 110.

FRIDAY September 27

Further Thought: Read Ellen G. White, “ ‘The Lord Is Risen,’ ” pp. 779–787; “Go Teach All Nations,” pp. 818–828, in The Desire of Ages.
 

“To the believer, Christ is the resurrection and the life. In our Saviour the life that was lost through sin is restored; for He has life in Himself to quicken whom He will. He is invested with the right to give immortality. The life that He laid down in humanity, He takes up again, and gives to humanity. ‘I am come,’ He said, ‘that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.’ ‘Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.’ ‘Whoso eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.’ John 10:10; 4:14; 6:54.

“To the believer, death is but a small matter. Christ speaks of it as if it were of little moment. ‘If a man keep My saying, he shall never see death,’ ‘he shall never taste of death.’ To the Christian, death is but a sleep, a moment of silence and darkness. The life is hid with Christ in God, and ‘when Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory.’ John 8:51, 52; Col. 3:4.”—Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, pp. 786, 787.

Even atheist historians, those who cannot accept the reality of the Resurrection, admit not only that Jesus had been killed but that after His death many people claimed to have seen the resurrected Christ, and as a result they began the nucleus of what became the Christian church. Some, in an attempt to explain why they claimed this, said that Jesus had a twin brother or that the early disciples hallucinated, thinking that they saw Jesus. Others said that Jesus never really died but only swooned and then, later, revived. Another person claimed that aliens came down and took the body. For a look at all these arguments and how they don’t work, see Clifford Goldstein, Risen: Finding Hope in the Empty Tomb (Nampa, Idaho: Pacific Press, 2021).

Discussion Questions:

  1. Why would the disciples have lied about the resurrection of Jesus? From all that we know, they faced nothing but hatred, alienation, and persecution for their belief. What would they have gained by making this story up?

  2. What evidence of Jesus’ resurrection is most convincing to you? Share your reasons with your class.

  3. Dwell more on the great hope that Jesus’ resurrection offers us. Read 1 Corinthians 15. How much importance does Paul put on the resurrection of Jesus?


Friday, September 27

For Further Reading

Selected Messages, “Look Beyond the Shadows,” book 3, pp. 326, 327;

The Desire of Ages, “Go Teach All Nations,” pp. 818–828.

INSIDE STORY

A Church Built on Garbage

By Andrew McChesney

Purna faced a seemingly impossible task. He had volunteered to plant a church in an unentered district of a major South Asian city, and he didn’t know where to start. He had moved to the district after volunteering to serve as a Global Mission pioneer. But how could he share his love for Christ with his non-Christian neighbors?

“God, please help,” he prayed.

Purna prayed for a week, but he still didn’t know where to start. But he did know one thing. He couldn’t stand the stench on the road outside his house. Piles of garbage and puddles of dirty rainwater mingled on the road. One morning, he saw that the garbage had blocked the gutters, and filthy water was overflowing onto the road. He decided to do something. Taking a long bamboo pole, he began picking away the trash from the gutters.

As he worked, the neighbors noticed.

“Did the city government send you to clean the road?” someone asked.

Purna replied that he had not been hired to clean the road and that he simply lived on it. The neighbors were impressed. Nobody had ever cleaned the road before.

“You’re a good man,” a neighbor said. “We need you here.”

“Don’t ever leave here,” another said.

As he cleaned the road, Purna became a local celebrity. Everyone knew him and was talking about him. People invited him into their homes.

As he met the neighbors, he learned that one man was paralyzed on his left side. Purna, who had been trained in massage, offered to help. The man agreed, and Purna began to give massages. Every time they met, Purna prayed and then gave a massage. The man recovered fully.

Neighbors were amazed to see the man in such good health.

“Who healed you?” they asked.

“Oh, it was the good man who cleans our road!” the man replied.

Then the neighbors really wanted to get to know Purna. They began to ask for prayers and massages.

Today, Purna has accomplished the seemingly impossible and planted a church. Eleven people have been baptized, and 20 others are studying the Bible. “Please pray for God to help us serve Him more and more,” Purna said. “Even today, I am cleaning the road. If I see garbage stuck in the drains, I clean it up.”

Purna lives in a veiled country that Adventist Mission is not identifying so as to protect his work among a population often hostile to Christianity. Learn more about Global Mission pioneers on the Adventist Mission website: bit.ly/GMPioneers.

Provided by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission, which uses Sabbath School mission offerings to spread the gospel worldwide. Read new stories daily at AdventistMission.org.

2024 Bible Study Guide - 4th Quarter

During this quarter, we will be studying the Gospel of John, a finely crafted masterpiece. It is the Word of God, as artfully expressed by the apostle John.

It is unique among the four Gospels, often focusing attention on the personal interactions between Jesus and just one or two people. Many of these stories appear only in John.

As with the entire Bible, the Gospel came by the will of God rather than by the will of humanity. John was merely the willing instrument whom the Holy Spirit used to convey many crucial themes: the Word (logos), light, bread, water, the Holy Spirit, oneness, signs, testimony, and prophecy. These themes mutually enhance and illuminate one another throughout the Gospel.

But let us not miss the big picture while examining the details. May our study of John’s Gospel, written by E. Edward Zinke and Thomas Shepherd, carry us back to the life and ministry of Jesus Christ, whom to know is life eternal. The details have a role, which is to point us toward the big picture, and in John that big picture is a divinely inspired revelation of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.

Lesson 1—Signs That Point the Way

The Week at a Glance:

Sunday: The Wedding at Cana (John 2:1–11)

Monday: The Second Sign in Galilee (John 4:46–54)

Tuesday: The Miracle at the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:1–9)

Wednesday: Hard Hearts (John 5:10–16)

Thursday: Jesus’ Claims (John 5:19–47)

Memory Text—John 20:30, 31, NKJV

Sabbath Gem: John calls Jesus’ miracles “signs”—miraculous events that point toward the deeper reality that Jesus is the Messiah.

Lesson 2—Signs of Divinity

The Week at a Glance:

Sunday: The Feeding of the Five Thousand (John 6:1–14)

Monday: “Surely, He Is the Prophet” (John 6:14)

Tuesday: The Healing of the Blind Man: Part 1 (John 9:1–16)

Wednesday: The Healing of the Blind Man: Part 2 (John 9:17–34)

Thursday: The Resurrection of Lazarus (John 11:38–44)

Memory Text—John 11:25, 26, NKJV

Sabbath Gem: Jesus not only said things that revealed His divinity but backed up His words with works that manifested His divinity.

Lessons for People Who Are Legally Blind The Adult Sabbath School Bible Study Guide is available free in braille, on MP3 disc, and via online download to people who are legally blind individuals who cannot hold or focus on ink print. Contact Christian Record Services, Inc., Box 6097, Lincoln, NE 68506-0097. Phone: 402-488-0981, option 3; email: info@christianrecord.org; website: www.christianrecord.org.