what we learned about spiritual battle by walking on …

a conversation on life and faith

OPERATION OVERLORDA historical recount of the famous D-Day operation in

Normandy, France.

DROPS OF BLOODLee Strobel answers the

question of whether or not Jesus actually sweating drops of blood while praying in Gethsemane.

WHY JESUS NEEDEDTO DIE ON THE CROSS

Pastor Bill examines why Jesus had to endure the

torture of the cross.

DID JESUS REALLY RISEFROM THE DEAD?

A message transcript from world class apologist Josh

McDowell on the evidence for the physical resurrection of

Christ.

STANDINGON THE SHORESOF HISTORYWHAT WE LEARNED ABOUT SPIRITUAL BATTLE BY WALKING ON THE SHORES OF NORMANDY, FRANCE.

MARCH /APRIL 2013 ISSUE NO. 33

A PUBLICATION OF CENTRAL COMMUNITY CHURCHONLINE AT WWW.CENTRALCC.CA

2 THE LOOP - A MAGAZINE OF CENTRAL COMMUNITY CHURCH

DEPARTMENTS

08 | EDiToRiAl by Andrew Plett

Beachhead. What it is and how this issue of TheLoop can help you establish one in your spiritual life.

12 | ThE big PicTuRE by Bill Markham

Standing on the shores of history.

14 | DiSciPlEShiP by Brenda Drost

A preview of our upcoming Encounter weekend where all of our teaching surrounds the person of the Holy Spirit.

28 | VoluNTEERiNg by Karlene Markham

Establishing a beachhead of serving in your life.

34 | bEhiND ThE lENS by Andrew Plett

Behind the scenes of our Easter shoot in France.

44 | cENTRAl youTh by Gianpaolo Galessiere

Details of our upcoming mission trip to LA.

CONTENTS

ON THE COvER:

On location for our Easter video shoot. Juno Beach, Normandy, France. The historical beachwhere Canada’s brave soldiers and allied forces established a beachhead and advanced inland as part of Operation Overlord on D-Day, June 6, 1944.

PhoTo: ERiN TRAPASSo

FEATuRES

10 | oPERATioN oVERloRD by Mike Goertz

A brief history of the famous battles of D-Day in WWII.

16 | DiD JESuS REAlly RiSE FRoM ThE DEAD? by Josh McDowell

Understanding the evidence for the physical resurrection of Jesus as recorded by the Bible.

24 | why MEMoRizE ThE biblE? by John Piper

Explore the profound benefits of memorizing scripture.

26 | No PRAyER. No PowER by John Piper

The difference between praying, and living in prayer.

30 | why JESuS NEEDED To DiE oN ThE cRoSS by Bill Markham

The truth of why Jesus had to die on the cross.

32 | DRoPS oF blooD by Lee Strobel

Medical evidence that explains how Jesus could actually sweat drops of blood in the Garden of Gethsemane.

iNFoRMATioN

48 | coNTAcT iNFoRMATioNCentral’s staff directory.

50 | cAlENDARMarch 2013 events across all campuses.

COPY EdITORS:

The Loop is edited by a team of volunteers.liNDSAy MoRToNSuSAN gERbESMARilyNN bERTibARRy willS

PROdUCTION:

The Loop is printed by Bertie Printers, Stevensville, ONbertieprinters.com

TowneHallCASTING VISION FOR THE FUTURE

WILL WE STAY HERE AT 240 SCOTT ST. OR ARE WE GOING SOMEWHERE ELSE?

WE’vE BEEN WORKING ON OUR STAFFING STRUCTURE. SEE WHERE WE’vE LANdEd.

HEAR OUR vISION FOR THE FUTURE OF THE CHURCH.

SUNDAY APRIL 7th6PM (SCOTT ST.)


Our sermon series this month is an orig-inal series called Beachhead, and it’s all about the kinds of practices that Jesus cultivated in His own life to equip Him for battle and prepare Him for the cross.

In military terms, when you establish a beachhead, you land on the shore

and begin to defend an area, allowing reinforcements to move in and secure enough ground for larger units to move in and advance beyond the enemy lines.

While standing on the shores of Juno and Omaha beach in Normandy, France, you see first-hand, the Nazi bunkers, pillboxes and massive gun batteries that would have loomed in the distance as the soldiers approached by boat that morning. It was evident that nothing was going to come easy for the men who landed on those beaches, but without securing that beachhead, there was no way to drive back the Nazi war machine.

Throughout March, we are going to examine Jesus’ life and how He cultivated specific spiritual disciplines to establish a spiritual beachhead in His life and in eternity through His death and resurrection. Paul writes in his letter to the Colossians that “He [Jesus] disarmed the spiritual rulers

and authorities. He shamed them publicly by His victory over them on the cross.”

Everything in our Christian faith hinges on the reality of the death and resurrection of Jesus. If they had not hap-pened, then what we believe, according to Paul, is useless. (1 Corinthians 15:12-20)

If you are skeptical about the claims the Bible makes regarding the death and resurrection of Jesus, our hope is that the content in this issue will serve to challenge your thinking and show rational, intelligent arguments for the claims of the Bible.

If you do believe, our hope is that the content in this issue serves to strengthen the foundation of your faith, arm you with a response to the claims of the Bible concerning Easter and encourage you to dig deeper into other important issues of Christianity.

Lastly, there are special sections entitled “Pastor Bill’s Practical Steps To...” that are designed to be a very prac-tical how-to guide for some of the topics he will cover over the course of the month. These are intended to assist you in establishing the kinds of beachheads that Jesus did in His own life. They are not exhaustive, but rather intended to point you in the right direction so that you can take full control of your own spiritual life.

by Andrew Plet t

EDiToRiAl

bEAchhEADbEAchhEADWHAT IT IS ANd HOW THE LOOP CAN HELP YOU ESTABLISH ONE IN YOUR SPIRITUAL LIFE


Today, green fields and manicured beaches greet the eyes along the cliff faces as big guns in pillboxes rest in silence. Graveyards with perfectly aligned and spaced white crosses stand at attention, row after row, marking where those who paid the ultimate sacrifice now rest. The rusting hulls of old landing vessels and battle equipment dot the beaches shadowing in a small way what happened here in Normandy on June 6, 1944.

In early 1944, the Allied Commanders developed a plan to take an 80km section of France along the English Channel that was being defended by the Nazi German forces. The objective of this plan was to first establish a beachhead, and once established to move 16km inland and establish a bridgehead that could be well defended against the Nazi counter insurgence. From this position the Allied forces could then maintain a foothold in mainland Europe from which to battle the Nazi forces and win back Europe’s freedom.

The Nazi German army, having met very little resistance when they first entered France, utilized slave labor to construct a continuous defensive wall along the coast of Normandy. The wall consisted of razor sharp barbed wire, pillboxes with large guns, machine guns, mines, and underwater pilings with explosives mounted on them to sink incoming vessels. The Nazi troops selected to defend this coastline barricade were highly trained and seasoned fighters, many having served on the Russian front. The Allied commanders were gravely concerned about this as

the majority of their infantry divisions were between the ages of 18 and 23 and had never been in combat. Despite this fact, the decision was made to proceed with Operation Overlord, the codename for this D-Day military operation.

To help the mission’s success, the Allies began Operation Fortitude and Operation Bodyguard, as a means of deceiv-ing the Nazis into believing the Allied forces would attack much further north, in Norway. Fake radio chatter, fake battle equipment and even fake military encampments were set up as part of the decoy mission. To further assist with this deception two squadrons of Allied planes flew out to the North of Le Havre two days before the invasion of Normandy. The Allied squadron’s dropped foil “windows” (large floating frames lined with metal foil) at night, leading the German radar operators to believe a large naval brigade was heading north to Pas de Calais near the Belgium bor-der. These operations caused the Germans to move their reinforcements away from Normandy and to set up further north. The time for the Allied forces to capture Normandy as a beachhead was now.

On June 5, 1944 at 4:15 p.m. Supreme Allied Commander, General Dwight D. Eisenhower, gave the go-ahead for Operation Overlord. With this command 150,000 soldiers, 5,300 ships and landing vehicles, 50,000 vehicles, and nearly 11,000 planes were orchestrated for the invasion. On June 6, 1944 at 6:00 a.m. began what Winston Churchill has called “the most difficult and complicated operation that has ever taken place”...D-Day.

At 6:00 a.m. on June 6, 1944 in heavy fog the Allied aircraft began bombing the Nazi front with the goal of dramatically weakening the German defenses. The fog and cloud cover was so heavy that the Allied bombers could not see the targets they were instructed to bomb. The unfortunate result of this was several Allied bombs struck the homes and villages they were trying to protect. The goal of weakening the Nazi defenses along the beachhead failed.

Allied forces also began flying sorties behind enemy lines where the parachute battalions were dropped, in order to provide support from the rear and to help hold off Nazi reinforcements. The same weather that caused the bombing raids to fail allowed these sorties to be highly successful.

By 7:00 a.m. the first landing craft were on their way to the beachhead they hoped to conquer. With very little damage to their defenses, nearly the full might of the Nazi defense awaited their arrival. Casualties were high for the initial Allied landing forces - the beaches still had mines, and the Nazi machinegunners targeted the Allied troops as they disembarked from their landing craft. In spite of this horror, the Allied forces refused to quit and they battled their way

to the walls and pillboxes to overpower the defensive forces of the Nazis. By 9:00 a.m. the Nazi forces were decimated and the beachhead was secure.

The Allied forces continued to move inland to their tar-get of securing the bridgehead. By June 30, 1944 (D+24) the Nazis had been pushed back and the bridgehead was secure. From here, the push across the Seine and into Paris began; the Allied forces had established a solid foothold in Normandy. There was a high price for this beachhead with a payment of approximately 12,000 casualties, including more than 4,000 Allied forces killed on D-Day.

Sheep now graze in meadows by the sea in Normandy, as the shadows of barbed wire and machine gun towers that had stretched along these same grasslands slowly fade from memory. What does not fade is the resolute gratefulness of the aged in these communities, for the courage, fierce determination and sacrifice of the young men who fought for and won that D-Day beachhead on behalf of the freedom that still burns strong today. Without that beachhead victory, that very freedom may have been lost.

by MIKe GOertZ

hiSToRicAlcoNTEXT

oPERATioNoVERloRDoPERATioNoVERloRD

A BRIEF HISTORICAL LOOK AT THE FAMOUS d-dAY OPERATION OvERLORd MISSION


It’s one thing to hear or learn about a geographic location with huge historical signifi-cance, but there is some-thing completely different about actually experien-cing the place that makes it transcendent. This is

what I felt last month as we traveled to Juno Beach, in Northern France, to film my message for our upcoming Easter Service.

All my life I have heard about the sac-rifice that was made by our Canadian troops in WWII on the shores of Normandy, and to actually stand where soldiers gave their lives was life changing. While cold winter winds blew from the English Chanel my thoughts returned to every war movie I had ever seen and I reflected again on the brave men who died on the very sand under my feet.

It was with reverent thanks that I stood on soil that had been stained with the blood of many men so that tyranny and evil would not win the day. I was deeply aware of the incredible sacrifice that was made for my freedom.

As awe inspiring as that moment on Juno Beach was, as I spoke the words you will hear this coming Easter

ThE bigPicTuRE

Sunday, I was reminded of an even greater sacrifice with even great-er stakes. The story of Easter is not something that is sufficient to only hear about, it is something that must be experienced. Easter is not about head knowledge, it is about heart transformation.

This Easter, it is our prayer that we not only hear the Easter story, but that through creative presentation and imagery we will actually experience the greatest cosmic rescue mission ever undertaken. It is a story about how God actually broke through into enemy territory, and at great personal cost, He won the battle over evil. It is our prayer, that this Easter you will not be satisfied with passive observation, but rather, you would actively be a part of what God wants to do in your life and in our community.

It is also my prayer that this participa-tion will include inviting at least five people, who don’t usually go to church anywhere, to join you this Easter. The reason is simple: we would like them to hear this amazing message as well. We are not going to use gimmicks or manipulation; we simply want to tell the greatest story that has ever taken place in a way that is engaging and inspiring.

My dream is to see five hundred guests make the decision to say “yes” to the invitations of our church family. As a further step, why not agree to pick them up (this will alleviate congestion in the parking lot) and even take them out for lunch afterwards?

We are going to have three servi-ces this year (9AM, 10:30AM, and 12:00PM) If you call Central home, we are graciously asking if you would commit to attend the 9AM or 12PM service. We really want this to be a great experience for everyone who comes, and your partnership together with us will help to ensure we have the space we need for everyone to hear the power of the Easter message.

I am believing that this Easter is going to be a great celebration that we can share with our family and friends as we talk about a God who loves us so much that He was willing to sacrifice everything... to rescue us.

standing on the shores of

hiSToRyhiSToRybIll MArKHAM: leAd PAStOr

BILL MARKHAM, Lead Pastor, Central Community Church

web: centralcc.ca twitter: @billmarkham

PHOtO: erIn trAPASSO [junO beAcH, nOrMAndy, FrAnce]


I can remember many times throughout my life where I faced situations that felt beyond my con-trol and more than I could bear. In those times, the greatest source of help, comfort and support to me was the Holy Spirit.

As I have grown on my faith journey, the encour-agement and guidance of the Holy Spirit has been like that of a trusted old friend. I want you

to experience the same friendship and power in your life, so we have created a unique environment for you to learn more about the truth of the Holy Spirit.

On March 23 & 24, we will be hosting an Encounter Weekend, which will demystify the common misconcep-tions about the Holy Spirit. Through personal stories and Biblical fact, we will teach you how to know and hear the voice of the Holy Spirit and evoke a deeper, more passionate relationship with God.

Modern writers have referred to Him as the “Forgotten God” or “The God I Never Knew”, indicating that many people find it hard to grasp concepts of the Spirit and feel it’s all rather mystical and confusing. The Holy Spirit was never intended to be aloof. In fact, He was meant to be

DiSciPlEShiP

our ultimate source of truth and comfort. He is an integral and empowering part of the Holy Trinity, promised to us as Helper and Guide. He is the third and final piece of our complete redemption and leads us into a closer personal relationship with God Himself.

If you are new to faith, that weekend will be an exciting way to learn more about who the Holy Spirit really is, and His purpose. Most importantly, we will unpack the life-changing principles of how He is a relevant and powerful force in your life today.

Even if you have been a Christian for years, there is always room to grow in your knowledge of the Holy Spirit and to experience Him working in your life in an even greater capacity!

Join us for a Saturday morning breakfast with teaching ses-sions, question and answer segments and personal ministry time. The weekend will culminate at our Sunday Night Encounter Service, where we will dive deep into discovering the power that living with the Holy Spirit brings into our lives, and how to use this great resource to help us in our modern day context.

learning about the person of the

holy SPiRiTholy SPiRiTbrendA drOSt: lIFeGrOuPS PAStOr

OUR UPCOMING ENCOUNTER WEEKENd IS dEdICATEd TO TEACHING YOU ABOUT THE HOLY SPIRIT


She stands a few feet away sobbing as her son hangs, nailed to a rugged cross. John stands beside Mary trying to comfort her. Moments later Jesus took one last breath and said, “‘It is finished!’ Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit” (John 19:30). Joseph of Arimathea and few women lower Jesus’ lifeless body from the cross and prepare him for burial. After placing their dead Messiah in the tomb they rolled the large stone in place

to seal him away for good, or so many thought.

Imagine a conversation of two observers of Jesus and his disciples imme-diately after the Messiah’s death. “I thought this Messiah Movement was going to last,” Hamon states dryly. “Yeah, me too,” agreed Benjamin. “I wonder what his disciples are going to do now?” “Oh, I think it will be difficult,” Hamon responds, “but they can still keep things going.” “How?” Benjamin asks skeptically. “Without their Messiah they don’t have a message!” “Sure they do,” Hamon argues. “Of course, Jesus can’t marshal an army to overthrow the Romans since he’s dead, but his disciples can still propagate all his great teachings.” The two men ponder a moment. Finally Benjamin says thoughtfully, “Yeah, they have lost their charismatic speaker and miracle worker, but they still have a solid teaching of ‘love your neighbor as yourself’ theme. That should keep things going. Maybe they’ll be just fine.”

Hamon and Benjamin have a good point if Jesus came to earth just to offer a “love your neighbor” message. But that wasn’t Jesus’ prima-ry mission. “Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone” (Romans 5:12). Far more than the fate of Jesus’ teachings or an earthly


Continued from page 17 death, but also upon his resurrection. “If Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless, and you are still under condemnation for your sins [and] we are the most miserable people in the world...BUT the fact is that Christ has been raised from the dead” (1 Corinthians 15:17-20).

It is an historical reality that Jesus’ body was raised to new life and because of it, we have new life! “God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even while we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead” (Ephesians 2:4-5). Therefore, we believe the truth that Jesus died on the cross as a sacrifice for our sins and on the third day bodily rose to life again in order to transform our lives and secure our eternal salvation.

God took an apparent disastrous Friday and turned it into Good

Friday—because death had no power over the righteous Son of the sovereign God. Jesus broke the power of death by rising from the grave on the third day, and in doing so pierced the kingdom of darkness with a penetrating light. What seemed to be the destruction of Christ and a hopeless situation for the human race proved to be the very means of the hope of eternal life.

Jesus’ promise of sins forgiven and an eternal relationship with God is noth-ing but a fantasy, a false hope, unless Jesus literally did rise from the dead. Jesus’ death was an atoning necessity and his resurrection was an historic necessity if our salvation is to mean anything at all. Our confidence in this

truth is in knowing that Christ’s res-urrection is actually, factually true.

KNOWING WHY: Believing the Truth with Confidence that Jesus Bodily Rose from the Dead

Even Gerd Ludemann, an atheist scholar who has criticized Christianity for its supernatural claims, admits to the importance of Jesus’ resurrec-tion to the Christian faith. He states, “The resurrection of Jesus is the cen-tral point of the Christian religion...Evidently everything quite simply depends on the event of the resurrec-tion of Jesus.” Ludemann is right about that, everything does depend on the event of the resurrection. Christ’s sac-rificial death for our atonement would have been meaningless without his bodily resurrection.

THE EMPTY TOMBIt was early in the morning on the

first day of the week when sev-eral women approached the tomb where Jesus had been buried. Because Jesus was placed in the tomb late on Friday, which was the beginning of the Sabbath, the women had not fully complet-

ed anointing the body of Jesus. But there was a big problem. The stone in front of the tomb was rolled away and after looking inside they discov-ered that Jesus’ body was gone. Two men appeared dressed in clothes that gleamed like lightning and said: “Why are you looking in a tomb for someone who is alive? He isn’t here! He has risen from the dead! Don’t you remember what he told you back in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be betrayed into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and that he would rise again the third day?’ Then they remembered that he had said this. So they rushed back to tell his eleven dis-ciples—and everyone else—what had happened. The women who went to the tomb were Mary Magdalene, Joanna,

Mary the mother of James, and several others. They told the apostles what had happened, but the story sounded like nonsense, so they didn’t believe it.” (Luke 24:5-11)

Perhaps as much as Jesus’ disciples wanted to believe that the Messiah rose from the dead, they didn’t. But soon they would see for themselves. When the disciples were meeting together Jesus appeared. “As he spoke, he held out his hands for them to see, and he showed his side” (John 20:20). But Thomas, one of Jesus’ disciples, wasn’t at the meeting. When they told him what they saw with their own eyes he said, “I won’t believe it unless I see the nail wounds in his hands, put my fin-gers into them, and place my hand into the wound in his side” (John 20:25).

Eight days later, sure enough, Jesus showed up at a meeting with Thomas in attendance. He offered him to put his fingers in his hand and side and said, “‘Don’t be faithless any longer. Believe!’ ‘My Lord and my God!’ Thomas exclaimed” (John 20:27-28). The evidence was clear—Jesus was the risen Lamb of God!

For those who saw Jesus after his res-urrection had physical proof that he was alive. Yet the fact that his tomb was empty was also undeniable. It is significant that after the resurrection, the suddenly emboldened disciples of Christ did not go off to Athens or Rome to preach that he had been res-urrected; they went right back to the city of Jerusalem where, if what they were claiming was false, their message would have been easily disproved. The resurrection claim could not have been maintained for a moment in Jerusalem if the tomb had not been empty.

Philosopher Stephen Davis observes, “Early Christian proclamation of the resurrection of Jesus in Jerusalem would have been psychologically and apologetically impossible without safe evidence of an empty tomb...in other words, without safe and agreed-upon evidence of an empty tomb, the apos-tles’ claims would have been subject to massive falsification by the simple presentation of the body.”

Both Jewish and Roman sources and traditions acknowledge an empty tomb. These sources range from the Jewish historian Josephus to a compilation of fifth-century Jewish writing called the Toledoth Jeshu. Author and writ-er Dr. Paul Maier calls this “positive evidence from a hostile source, which is the strongest kind of historical evi-dence. In essence, this means that if a source admits a fact decidedly not in its favor, then that fact is genuine.”

One of the most compelling evidenc-es showing that the empty tomb story was not an apologetic device is the fact that it was first discovered to be empty by women. In first-century Palestine, women had a low status as citizens or legal witnesses. Except in rare circum-stances, Jewish law precluded women from giving testimony in a court of law. Why would those who wanted to advance Christianity have contrived a story that embarrassed the disci-ples—the essential proponents of the new faith—by having them flee during the crucifixion and yet have women courageously approaching the tomb and providing the first witness to its vacancy? Such a story would not have served the purpose of advancing the cause. Common sense tells us that the only reason the women were reported as the first witnesses was because it was the truth.

Dr. Paul Maier accurately observes that “if the resurrection accounts had been manufactured...women would never have been included in the story, at least, not as first witnesses.”

The empty tomb of Jesus stands as a clear witness that as the angel said, “He isn’t here! He has risen from the dead” (Luke 24:5). While your faith in Jesus’ resurrection, evidenced by an empty tomb, may be secure, knowing why you believe that truth with confi-dence can reinforce your trust in Jesus as the perfect Lamb of God and Savior of the world. So consider the remaining chapter as an opportunity to add even more of a foundation to your faith.

There have been various alternative theories offered as explanations for the events surrounding the days and

weeks after Jesus’ death—theories that attempt to explain what happened other than Jesus’ bodily resurrection. We will cover two such theories here and three more in Chapter 21.

Note: A more exhaustive treatment of Christ’s resurrection can be found in the author’s book entitled Evidence for the Resurrection published by Regal Publishing.

THE STOLEN-BOdY THEORYThe evidence of an empty tomb fol-lowing the crucifixion and burial of Jesus does not by itself prove that he rose from the dead. Yet it does require explanation. One explanation that was offered within hours of the empty tomb’s discovery was the theory that the disciples of Jesus stole the body. Matthew reports: Some of the men who had been guarding the tomb went to the leading priests and told them what had happened. A meeting of all the religious leaders was called, and they decided to bribe the soldiers. They told the soldiers, “You must say, ‘Jesus’ dis-ciples came during the night while we were sleeping, and they stole his body.If the governor hears about it, we’ll stand up for you and everything will be all right.” So the guards accepted the bribe and said what they were told to say. Their story spread widely among the Jews, and they still tell it today. (Matthew 28:11-15)

The possibility that Jesus’ tomb was empty because the disciples stole his body may seem plausible at first glance. However, the most cursory consideration will quickly show that the stolen-body theory creates more problems than it solves. For example:

If the guards were sleeping, how could they know whether the disciples—or anyone—stole the body? Sleeping sen-tinels can’t reliably report what hap-pened while they slept. Roman soldiers were executed for sleeping on guard duty (which explains Matthew’s report of the religious leaders telling the guards, “If the governor hears about it, we’ll stand up for you and everything will be all right”). How plausible is it that all the guards at the tomb would have decided to take a nap, knowing that it could cost them their lives?

Messiah Movement hung on the cross that day. The fate of the entire human race hung with him.

Jesus, as the Holy Lamb of God, was the perfect sacrifice for sin. His death was an atoning necessity. No other sac-rifice would do. But there was also the need of a holy and blameless High Priest to offer the blood of the Holy Lamb on the altar before God. For if Jesus did not break the power of death over his own body by raising to life, he could not enter the Most Holy Place, offer his blood on our behalf, and can-cel our death sentence (see Hebrews 9:11-12). Jesus’ bodily resurrection was an historical necessity. “Because God’s children are human beings—made of flesh and blood—Jesus also became flesh and blood by being born in human form. For only as a human

being could he die, and only by dying could he break the power of the Devil, who had the power of death” (Hebrews 2:14). Jesus literally had to bodily rise from the dead “so that he could be our merciful and faithful High Priest before God. He then could offer a sac-rifice that would take away the sins of the people” (Hebrews 2:17). That is why Paul the apostle was so emphatic about the bodily resurrection of Jesus being the foundation of our faith. He said, “If Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith” (1 Corinthians 15:14). Jesus’ promise to forgive us of our sins and be the atoning sacrifice that would allow us to have a relationship with God was based, not only upon his

“What seemed to be the destruction of Christ and a hopeless situation for the

human race proved to be the very means of the hope of eternal life.”


heard the news of the empty tomb. From all indications, they were not expecting an empty tomb, much less plotting to steal Jesus away.

Why would a group of men who had run and hidden when Jesus was alive suddenly decide to courageously steal his body and begin propagating a story that would certainly bring on them the very treatment (arrest, beatings,

even death) they had fled just three days earlier?

But if the disciples did not steal the body of Jesus from his tomb, where did it go? The historical record asserts that mere weeks after the death of Jesus, his followers were publicly preaching the news of his resurrection. During the week of Pentecost, in fact, thousands

Even if the Roman guards had slept, consider what it would have taken for thieves to remove the body from the tomb. The circular stone used to seal the tomb would have weighed between one and two tons! Thieves would have had to sneak past the guards, roll the large stone up a grooved incline, enter the dark tomb, and exit with the body . . . all without waking a single member of the detachment! The notion that the disciples stole the body while the Roman guards slept cer-tainly strains the bounds of believability.

THE CASE OF THE STOLEN BOdYThe detachment of Roman sol-diers is not the only problem with the stolen-body theory. It’s also difficult to imagine the followers of Jesus as the ones who would steal his body. Consider this:

It would have taken consider-able bravery—even daring—to go up against a detachment of Roman soldiers, whether they were asleep or awake. Yet the historical record shows that the disciples, in the days following the death of Jesus, were a depressed and coward-ly group, running away at the first sign of trouble, denying any association with Jesus, and cowering behind locked doors—hardly the picture of a group that would risk arrest to steal their dead teacher’s body (see Mark 14:50; Luke 22:54-62; John 20:19)!

One of the first witnesses on the scene of the empty tomb reported that Jesus’ gravecloth was neatly folded and arranged on the burial slab (see John 20:5-8). Can you imagine grave rob-bers taking the time to meticulously unwrap the body and neatly arrange the cloth on the stone slab? On the contrary, if the body had been stolen, the burial wrappings would certainly have been removed with the body.

According to the historical accounts, the disciples were skeptical when they

were “baptized and added to the church” as a result of this preaching (Acts 2:41).

But if Jesus’ body hadn’t been resur-rected and the religious and politi-cal leaders of the day had stolen his body, they could have quickly and effectively quashed the rising sect of Christians by wheeling Christ’s corpse through the streets of Jerusalem. This

would have been undeniable evidence that would have destroyed Christianity prac-tically before it started. But that never happened, which further bolsters the case for Jesus’ resurrection.

The enemies of Jesus had every reason to produce his body. There’s no reason to believe that the followers of Jesus could or would have stolen his body. It seems clear that subscribing to the stolen-body theory means climbing a mountain of implausibilities. In short, while “the difficul-ties of belief may be great,” as noted author George Hanson points out in The Resurrection and the Life, “the absurdities of unbelief are greater.”

THE SWOON THEORYSome people have tried to explain the empty tomb by suggesting that Jesus never really died. The swoon theory, as it’s come to be called, sup-poses that Jesus was indeed nailed to the cross and suf-fered tremendous pain and loss of blood. But when he was removed from the cross, he wasn’t quite dead; he was merely in shock.

Some proponents of this view even cite the New Testament record for evidence, showing that even “Pilate couldn’t believe that Jesus was already dead” (Mark 15:44).

They surmise that the disciples—aided by Joseph of Arimathea—took down the still-living Jesus from the cross and laid him in the tomb (Hugh J. Schonfield, author of the bestseller

The Passover Plot, even suggested that Jesus planned all this!).

Then—so the theory goes—Jesus, aided by the cool air of the tomb, by the reviving effects of the burial spices he was wrapped in, and by a day-and-a-half of rest, rose from his own burial slab, cast off his shroud, and left the tomb. When he met his disciples, they mistakenly thought he had risen from the dead (when, in fact, it was nothing more than a surprising resuscitation).

But the swoon theory has several fatal flaws.

THE “dEATH CERTIFICATE”Jesus had undergone a vicious beating. It was typical for Romans to use an instrument known as a flagrum, which often ripped the victim to shreds (many prisoners died before they could be executed, as a result of this scourging). Jesus was then nailed by his hands and feet to a cross.

Then, because the next day was the beginning of the Jewish Passover and Jewish law did not allow them to leave a victim hanging on the cross overnight, the religious leaders asked Pilate to hasten death by ordering that the prisoners’ legs be broken (see Deuteronomy 21:22-23; John 19:31). This action usually resulted in death by asphyxiation, as the victim, unable to push up on his feet to relieve the constriction caused by the weight of his body on his lungs and breathing passages, slowly suffocated.

When the crucifixion detail came to break the legs of Jesus, however, they discovered that he was already dead. Nonetheless, to be sure, “one of the soldiers . . . pierced his side with a spear, and blood and water flowed out” (John 19:34). Soon thereafter, when Joseph of Arimathea requested custody of the body, the Roman gover-nor expressed surprise that Jesus was already dead and demanded confirma-tion. Only after receiving a firsthand report did Pilate release the body into the hands of Joseph, thus fully verify-ing the fact that Jesus was dead before he was buried.

THE GRAvECLOTHS

Jesus’ followers prepared his body according to Jewish burial customs. Nicodemus provided “about seven-ty-five pounds of embalming ointment made from myrrh and aloes. Together [Nicodemus and Joseph] wrapped Jesus’ body in a long linen cloth with the spices” (John 19:39-40).

The custom was to wrap the body tight-ly from the armpits to the ankles, layer-ing the spices—often of a sticky, grimy consistency—between the wrappings. The spices served a dual purpose, preserving the body and acting as an adhesive for the gravecloths. The head was also wrapped in a turban-style cloth.

Yet the historical records report that when the empty tomb was discovered on the first day of the week, the wit-nesses on the scene saw “the linen wrappings lying there, while the cloth that had covered Jesus’ head was folded up and lying to the side” (John 20:6-7).

Accepting the swoon theory would require us to believe that Jesus, hav-ing suffered the unspeakable torture of crucifixion, awoke in a dark tomb, maneuvered himself out of the tightly wound cloths and spices, folded the cloth, laid it on the burial slab, and

exited the tomb . . . naked.

Nineteenth-century theologian David Strauss was one of the most bitter of all opponents of the supernatural elements in the Gospels and a man whose works did much to destroy faith in Christ. This man, despite all of his vicious criticisms and firm denials of

anything involving the miraculous, said this about the theory that Jesus revived from a swoon:

“It is impossible that a being who has been stolen half-dead out of the sepulcher, who crept about weak and ill, wanting medical treatment...could have given to the disciples the impression that he was a Conqueror over death and the grave, the Prince of Life, an impression which lay at the bottom of their future ministry.”

THE STONENot only was Jesus tightly encased in burial cloths and spices, he was also buried in a rock tomb whose entrance was blocked by a stone weighing per-haps as much as one to two tons.

Let’s assume Jesus had been taken from the cross in a “swoon,” and the cold, damp tomb revived him some-time later. Let’s also assume that he managed to extricate himself from the unyielding encasement of his burial clothes. We must next assume that once free of those constraints, he managed—from the inside of a tomb designed to be opened only from the outside—to roll a two-ton circular stone up the slotted incline (a diffi-cult job for several men), while some-

how propping the stone to prevent it from rolling down again and closing the tomb.

All this had to be done by a man who hours before had been flogged, pierced with a crown of thorns, hanged on a cross by nails through his hands and feet, and stabbed in the ribs with a

“The circular stone used to seal the tomb would have weighed between one and two tons! Thieves would have had to sneak

past the guards, roll the large stone up a

grooved incline, enter the dark tomb, and

exit with the body . . . all without waking a single member of the

detachment!”

“The reality of Jesus’ resurrection had a profound impact on the disciples. They were transformed from cowards to bold preachers, whom most gave their very lives for their risen Lord.”

Continued from page 19


Roman spear. And it had to be done so quietly as to escape the notice of the soldiers who were guarding the tomb, allowing him to slip away unnoticed.

THE APPEARANCESOn the same day on which Jesus sup-posedly resuscitated in a cold, damp, dark tomb, unwrapped himself from the gravecloths, rolled a two-ton stone uphill, and snuck by Roman sentinels guarding the tomb, he also walked more than seven miles from Jerusalem to Emmaus. Luke 24 records Jesus’ appearance to two of his followers who were on the road to Emmaus, a seven-mile trek from Jerusalem. They didn’t recognize Jesus until they reached their destination and invited him to eat with them. When he broke the bread in his customary way, “their eyes were opened, and they recognized him” (Luke 24:31). Walking seven miles to Emmaus is hardly the kind of activity you would expect from a man who had been removed from an executioner’s cross and laid in a tomb for more than thirty-six hours.

Yet the appearance of Jesus on the road to Emmaus is only the first in a string of appearances (within days of his brutal experience on the cross) that convinced Jesus’ followers that he had defeated death and risen from the dead. Another record of Christ’s appearing after the resurrection is made by Paul in 1 Corinthians. “I passed on to you what was most import-ant and what had also been passed on to me—that Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said. He was bur-ied, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the Scriptures said. He was seen by Peter and then by the twelve apostles. After that, he was seen by more than five hundred of his followers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died by now. Then he was seen by James and later by all the apostles.” (1 Corinthians 15:3-7)

In these verses, Paul appeals to his audience’s knowledge of the fact that Christ had been seen by more than five hundred people at one time. Paul reminds them that the majority of these people was still alive and could be

questioned. This statement is as strong evidence as anyone could hope to find for something that happened 2,000 years ago.

Likewise, author C.H. Dodd has observed, “There can hardly be any purpose in mentioning the fact that most of the five hundred are still alive, unless Paul is saying, in effect, “the witnesses are there to be questioned.”

This is why apologist William Lane Craig claims that “it is nearly indis-putable that this appearance took place.” Paul never could have claimed that Jesus appeared to five hundred witnesses so soon after the event if the event had not actually occurred.If each of these five hundred people were to testify in a courtroom for only six minutes each, including cross-ex-amination, you would have an amaz-ing fifty hours of firsthand eyewitness testimony. Add to this the testimony of the many other eyewitnesses and you could well have the largest and most lopsided trial in history.

THE ASCENSIONIf Jesus revived from a deathlike swoon, there is no reason to believe that he later ascended into heaven, as Mark and Luke record. But if Christ didn’t ascend, where did he go? Is it reasonable to believe that Jesus with-drew from his followers, to live out the rest of his life in seclusion and die in obscurity? Such a theory would necessitate the belief that while the young church was preaching the news of Christ’s resurrection, Jesus himself lived in some solitary retreat, unknown to even his closest followers, while his absence perpetuated the legend of Christianity. This scenario would make Jesus Christ—whose teach-ings extolled the highest standards of morality—the greatest deceiver of all time and his resurrection the greatest hoax in history. That would require believing that Jesus knowingly pursued an insane course of action: contriving his own resurrection to gain a renown he would never witness or enjoy.

THE REALITY OF THE RISEN LORd

The reality of Jesus’ resurrection had a profound impact on the disciples. They were transformed from cowards to bold preachers, whom most gave their very lives for their risen Lord. When the authorities captured Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, the Bible tells us that “all the disciples deserted him and fled” (Matthew 26:56; see Mark 14:50). During Christ’s trial, Peter went out and three times denied that he even knew Jesus (see John 18:15-27; Mark 14:66-72). After Christ was crucified, the fearful disciples hid themselves in an upper room and locked the doors (see John 20:19). These disciples were also skeptical when they first heard about the empty tomb. One of them refused to believe until he personally touched Jesus’ wounds. And two dis-ciples on the road to Emmaus doubted while they personally talked to Jesus!

But within days something happened to utterly change this group of cowardly followers into a bold band of enthusi-asts who were willing to face a life of suffering for the cause of Christ. What was it? What transformed these disap-pointed followers into true believers? It was the reality of the risen Christ. They accepted Jesus as the risen Lord and the offering of his blood before God as their High Priest secured their salvation forever (see Hebrews 9:12). And in the days to follow they propa-gated this Good News from Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and eventually to the ends of the earth. That truth is for us as well. We can equally trust our eternal salvation in the risen Christ.

“And so, dear friends, we can bold-ly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus. This is the new, lifegiving way that Christ has opened up for us through the sacred curtain, by means of his death for us. And since we have a great High Priest who rules over God’s people, let us go right into the presence of God, with true hearts fully trusting him.” (Hebrews 10:19-22).

Used By Permission. By Josh McDowell. ©2012 Josh McDowell Ministry.

Continued from page 21

THE BIBLEAN EPIC 10-HOUR - fIvE-PART DOCUDRAMA PREMIERES SUNDAY, MARCH 3 ON HISTORY.Created and executive produced by renowned producer Mark Burnett (The Voice, Survivor, The Apprentice, Shark Tank) and Roma Downey (Touched by an Angel), the series promises to be a landmark television event, combining one of the greatest collections of stories ever assembled with live action and state-of-the-art CGI.

THIS IS AN INCREDIBLE OPPORTUNITY TO INVITE YOUR FRIENDS OVER, WATCH THE BIBLE COME TO LIFE, AND TALK ABOUT THE GREATEST STORIES OF ALL TIME.


Pastor bill’s Practical Steps To bible Reading:

1. dEvELOP A PLAN: Start small - most people are overly ambitious in their initial attempts at reading the Bible. Pick manageable portions (I would suggest five to twenty verses a day to start) and begin in a book that is easy to understand (I would suggest Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John). This is not about how much you read but rather how much you gain from what you read. Take advantage of existing reading plans - there are a lot of good resources out there to help you. One resource I like is YouVersion.com.

2. PRAY BEFORE YOU REAd: The Bible is a spiritual book and so it is a good idea to take a few minutes to ask God to help you understand what you are about to read.

3. TAKE NOTES: I have learned that circling or writing out the key words in the passage helps me understand what is important to the reader. Ask questions like, What does this teach me about God? What does this teach me about humanity? What is the author trying to tell me?

4. dO SOME RESEARCH: For the serious student, there are some great resources that will help you take a deeper look at what the author is saying. Here are my favorites: For Beginners - biblegateway.com (there are commentaries where Bible scholars share their research). For Intermediates - preceptaustin.org (there is a lot of reading and this will help unpack key ideas from major scholars throughout history). For Veterans - bible.cc (this is where you get to “dig in” and study the original languages for yourself)

5. MAKE THE APPLICATION: This is perhaps the most important step in remembering what you have read. You need to ask yourself how what you have just read make a difference in your life right now. This is sometimes difficult, yet it becomes easier over time. I have also learned that if I share what I am learning with someone else, it not only sticks, but it also gets clarified as they add their ideas to my thought processes.

FIRST.A FEW TESTIMONIES:

I have it third hand, that Dr. Howard Hendricks of Dallas Seminary once made the statement (and I paraphrase) that if it were his decision, every student graduating from Dallas Theological Seminary

would be required to learn one thousand verses word perfect before they graduated.

Dallas Willard, professor of Philosophy at the University of Southern California, wrote, “Bible memorization is absolutely fundamental to spiritual formation. If I had to choose between all the disciplines of the spiritual life, I would choose Bible memorization, because it is a fundamental way of filling our minds with what it needs. This book of the law shall not depart out of your mouth. That’s where you need it! How does it get in your mouth? Memorization” (“Spiritual Formation in Christ for the Whole Life and Whole Person” in Vocatio, Vol. 12, no. 2, Spring, 2001, p. 7).

Chuck Swindoll wrote, “I know of no other single practice in the Christian

life more rewarding, practically speak-ing, than memorizing Scripture. . . . No other single exercise pays greater spir-itual dividends! Your prayer life will be strengthened. Your witnessing will be sharper and much more effective. Your attitudes and outlook will begin to change. Your mind will become alert and observant. Your confidence and assurance will be enhanced. Your faith will be solidified” (Growing Strong in the Seasons of Life [Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1994], p. 61).

One of the reasons Martin Luther came to his great discovery in the Bible of justification by faith alone was that in his early years in the Augustinian monastery he was influenced to love Scripture by Johann Staupitz. Luther devoured the Bible in a day when people earned doctorates in theol-ogy without even reading the Bible. Luther said that his fellow professor, Andreas Karlstadt, did not even own a Bible when he earned his doctor of theology degree, nor did he until many years later (Richard Bucher, “Martin Luther’s Love for the Bible”). Luther knew so much of the Bible from mem-ory that when the Lord opened his eyes to see the truth of justification in Romans 1:17, he said, “Thereupon I ran through the Scriptures from mem-ory,” in order to confirm what he had found.

So here are a few reasons why so many have viewed Scripture memorization as so essential to the Christian life.

1. CONFORMITY TO CHRISTPaul wrote that “we all, . . . behold-ing the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another” (2 Corinthians 3:18)) If we would be changed into Christ likeness we must steadily see him. This happens in the word. “The Lord revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the word of the Lord” (1 Samuel 3:21). Bible memori-zation has the effect of making our gaze on Jesus steadier and clearer.

2. dAILY TRIUMPH OvER SIN“How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. . . . I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you” (Psalm 119:9, 11). Paul said that we must “by the Spirit . . . put to death the [sinful] deeds of the body” (Romans 8:13). The one piece of armor used to kill is the “sword of the Spirit” which is the word of God (Ephesians 6:17). As sin lures the body into sinful action, we call to mind a Christ-revealing word of Scripture and slay the temptation with the superior worth and beauty of Christ over what sin offers.

3. dAILY TRIUMPH OvER SATANWhen Jesus was tempted by Satan in the wilderness he recited Scripture from memory and put Satan to flight (Matthew 4:1-11).

4. COMFORT ANd COUNSEL FOR PEOPLE YOU LOvEThe times when people need you to give them comfort and counsel do not always coincide with the times you have your Bible handy. Not only that, the very word of God spoken sponta-neously from your heart has unusual power. Proverbs 25:11 says, “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver.” That is a beautiful way of saying, When the heart full of God’s love can draw on the mind full of God’s word, timely blessings flow from the mouth.

5. COMMUNICATING THE GOSPEL TO UNBELIEvERSOpportunities to share the gospel come when we do not have the Bible in hand. Actual verses of the Bible have their own penetrating power. And when they come from our heart, as well as from the Book, the witness is given that they are precious enough to learn. We should all be able to sum up the gospel under four main headings (1) God’s holiness/law/glory; 2) man’s

sin/rebellion/disobedience; 3) Christ’s death for sinners; 4) the free gift of life by faith. Learn a verse or two relating to each of these, and be ready in season and out of season to share them.

6. COMMUNION WITH GOd IN THE ENjOYMENT OF HIS PERSON ANd WAYSThe way we commune with (that is, fellowship with) God is by meditating on his attributes and expressing to him our thanks and admiration and love, and seeking his help to live a life that reflects the value of these attributes. Therefore, storing texts in our minds about God helps us relate to him as he really is. For example, imagine being able to call this to mind through the day:

The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in stead-fast love. He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever. He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniqui-ties. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his stead-fast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows com-passion to those who fear him. For he

knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust. (Psalm 103:8-14)

I used the word “enjoyment” inten-tionally when I said, “communion with God in the enjoyment of his person and ways.” Most of us are emotional-ly crippled—all of us, really. We do not experience God in the fullness of our emotional potential. How will that change? One way is to memorize the emotional expressions of the Bible and speak them to the Lord and to each other until they become part of who we are. For example, in Psalm 103:1, we say, “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name!” That is not a natural expression for many people. But if we memorize this and other emotional expressions from the Bible, and say them often, asking the Lord to make the emotion real in our hearts, we can actually grow into that emotion and expression. It will become part of who we are. We will be less emotionally crippled and more able to render proper praise and thanks to God.

There are other reasons for memorizing Scripture. I hope you find them in the actual practice.

Used By Permission. By John Piper. ©2012 Desiring God Foundation. Website: desiring-God.org

by jOHn PIPer

whyMEMoRizEThEbiblE?


“Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation.” (Mark 14:38)

I recently rearranged my study at home. But I did not remove the prayer corner or the prayer bench. I made it more private. All I have ever read and experienced teaches me that deep spiritual influ-ence for the good of sinners and the glory of God comes from men and women who give themselves to prayer and meditation.

I just read, for example, about the secret of Charles Simeon, who endured great hardships in his pow-erful 54-year pastorate in Cambridge (1782-1836). His friend, T. Housman, stayed with him for a few months and tells us something of this man’s devotion:

Never did I see such consistency, and reality of devotion, such warmth of piety, such zeal and love…Invariably he arose every morning, though it was the winter season, at four o’clock; and after lighting his fire, he devoted the first four hours of the day to private prayer and the devotional study of the Scriptures…Here was the secret of his great grace and spiritual strength. Deriving instruction from such a source, and seeking it with such diligence, he was comforted in all his trials, and prepared for every duty.

It is true for individuals. And it is true for churches. No prayer, no power. And we need spiritual power. Consider the first quote (above) from Mark 9. There are spiritual forces that Jesus says are very hard to overcome. His disciples asked, “Why could we not cast it out?” Jesus answered, “Insufficient prayer!”

What did he mean? Probably not that they hadn’t prayed over the demonized boy, but that they had not lived in prayer. They had been caught in a prayer-less period of life. Notice: Jesus cast out the demon without praying: “You dumb and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him, and never enter him again.” But Jesus had prayed. He lived in prayer. He was ready when evil came. But the disciples had become weak and negligent in their praying. And they were powerless in the face of strong evil forces. “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.”

In other words, without persistent prayer we have no offense. As a church we are meant to invade and plunder the strong-holds of Satan. But no prayer, no power. The same is true of defense. Look at the second quote (above) from Mark 14. If we are not vigilant we will enter into temptation. Our defense and our offense as a church is an active, persistent, earnest, believing prayer force.

Used By Permission. By John Piper. ©2012 Desiring God Foundation. Website: desiringGod.org

NO PRAYER

–NO

POWER

"this kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer."(Mark 9:29)

BY jOHN PIPER

Pastor bill’s Practical Steps To Praying:

1. FINd A QUIET PLACE ANd SET A REGULAR TIME: Be realistic - Often people feel guilty for not praying enough. I am convinced that quality is more important than quantity. Set a goal of 10 minutes a day to start. I often find that my mind wanders so I need a plan. In those ten minutes, focus on ten things that you are going to pray about. I also find it helpful with things that you do everyday, and use them as a reminder to pray. For example, pray in the car on your drive to work instead of listening to the radio. Pray in the shower, before a meal, before you go to bed, while you are drinking your first coffee...you get the idea.

2. TALK TO GOd: Don’t get hung up on using fancy words. Just talk to God. It is a conversation. I have found that praying out loud helps me stay focused. It is also important to remember that in a conversation you don’t only ask for things. Here is a simple way to stay balanced in your conversation: Start by thanking God for who He is and what He has done in your life; ask God to forgive you for anything that you’ve done that you should not have, and anything you didn’t do that you should have (ask Him to show you these things). Ask God to help you with specific needs in your life and in the lives of others around you. If you are really having a hard time getting started, read one of the prayers in the Bible. You can find some at biblegateway.com/blog/2012/05/five- biblical-prayers-that-teach-us-how-to-talk-to-god.

3. WRITE dOWN THOUGHTS: Conversation is never one way. God is actually going to speak back to you by inspiring your thoughts and triggering things for you to pray specifically about. Write these down. I also encourage you to write down your requests in one column and then mark the date when the prayer is answered in an adjacent column. God always answers our prayers; not always the way we want, but by marking it down we will see that it’s always in a way that helps us best.


It probably wouldn’t take too much convincing for most of us to admit that this solitary word has single-handedly become one of the most count-er-cultural concepts of our society. Check out the huge ads on every electronic screen you see, or if that’s not your speed, take a drive through the streets of our cities… it won’t be long before you get the message constantly being shouted out

in bold, bright, and yes – sometimes very attractive ways.

It’s a message making deafening demands on us that we deserve better; we should get out there and make sure we get what’s coming to us; ultimately, it’s all about ‘getting’, not ‘giving’. For those who swim against the current of mainstream culture, trying to maintain an attitude of serving

can be daunting – especially when the exact opposite is awarded such strong applause in so many public settings!

If you’ve ever found that you have conflicting emotions about serving… we want you to know that we get it! Maybe at times, when you’re looking around a place like Central, seeing so many vibrant, amazing people who serve in so many meaningful ways, you might feel like they must have everything all together, right? As fantastic as everyone is, the truth is that we all get to learn and grow together, because “…God has given each person a gift. That gift is something he can do. Each one should use his gift to help the others. In that way you all make good use of the many blessings God has given you.” (1 Peter 4:10) And that’s just the beginning!

the counter-cultural notion of

SERViNgSERViNgK Arlene MArKHAM: vOlunteer cOOrdInAtOr

HOW SERvING OTHERS CAN ESTABLISH A SPIRITUAL BEACHHEAd IN YOUR LIFE

VoluNTEERMiNiSTRy

:serve <surv>1.To bE iN ThE SERVicE oF (A PERSoN)2.To RENDER oR bE oF SERVicE To (A PERSoN, cAuSE, ETc.); hElP

Last Summer, our family had the incredible opportunity to travel overseas together. One of our stops was at ‘The Louvre’ in Paris. I freely admit that before this trip, I really had no idea of the sheer magnitude of this world-famous museum. Of course I knew it’d be good, but it didn’t take long to realize that we were standing in a place of incomparable value; a place filled with indescribably rare pieces of art, from nearly every civilization known to man! What made The Louvre even more significant, was the fact that all of the contents we were viewing were masterpieces in their own right; they were ‘originals’.

That experience illustrated something to me of far greater impact: There’s no greater masterpiece of the example of serving than the one found in Jesus’ life. It must have been incredible for His disciples to actually walk with Jesus and see firsthand how He intentionally lived to serve both God and others, every single day…. out of His genuine love for people! In the New Testament, when referring to Himself, Jesus says “… For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45)

As we journey together through our exciting Beachhead series this month, we’ll see this recurring theme: Jesus came to give. Period. He didn’t ever let his feelings dictate whether or not He served. We know Jesus also had struggles and temptations too. Still, He was so intent on establishing this Beachhead through serving in our world, He chose to

overlook what it would cost Him to show us the way. Just try to imagine God, voluntarily putting aside His own rights, to willingly become one of us, in order to feel what we feel, to experience what we experience, just so He could com-pletely relate to all of humanity. Knowing that Jesus came to serve not only in life, but also in death because of His incomparable love for us…what greater masterpiece of an example of serving could there possibly be?

When we really embrace this truth and start to understand what serving meant for Jesus, something has to shift in the very soul of our existence. We can’t take in a love like this without it becoming something that provokes a change within.

Isn’t that when true transformation takes place? When we begin to comprehend the beachhead of serving that Jesus modeled, our perspective begins to change and we look at serving through new eyes! Once realized, the power of this truth is life-transforming: it’s lived out in our very thoughts, actions and words. That truth, when held up to the light of Jesus’ life, our Original Example of serving, is truly a work of art. “…For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” (Ephesians 2:10) We were made for this!!

If you’d like to find out how you can really make a difference in someone’s life, we’d love to hear from you! Volunteer to make a difference today: [email protected]

Pastor bill’s Practical Steps To Serving:

1. UNdERSTANd THE WAY YOU ARE WIREd: Many people think that serving means doing something you hate to do. While this may be the case, I have learned that serving is often using a gift that you have to help someone else out. It doesn’t only mean doing menial things because you love a person, it also means finding creative ways to make the lives of those around you better. What do you do that makes you feel alive? How could you use that to serve those around you? For more ideas, here is a resource to help you discover your spiritual gifts: http://www.lifeway.com/lwc/files/lwcF_PDF_Discover_Your_Spiritual_Gifts.pdf

2. FINd A PRACTICAL NEEd ANd FILL IT: Instead of filling your time with things that meet your needs, why not ask God to open your eyes to see a real need in others? I know that there are so many needs and you can become paralyzed and overwhelmed by this fact, but start small. You may not be able to help everybody, yet we can all help somebody. If you get stuck, you can always check out organizations that are doing good things and ask how you can pitch in (we are always open to this question here at Central).

3. dISCIPLINE YOUR ATTITUdE: Serving does NOT come naturally. If you wait until you feel like serving, it will probably never happen. When you do serve, there will be times when you will want to quit, and this may rob you of some of the richest moments in life. I have learned that my greatest moments of joy have come when I have sacrificed my time, talent, and treasure in order to serve someone else. Now that is a feeling worth fighting for.


For many, the cross has become nothing more than a sym-bol that is worn around the neck or placed in the front of a church. What really happened on the cross? Why is it so important to Christians?

Here are some of the many reasons that explain why Easter is the most important event in history: 1. IT PROvES THAT GOd KEEPS HIS PROMISESThe Bible tells us that God created humanity, the first being Adam and Eve in a perfect world (Genesis 1). The only condition of this perfect existence was to follow the Universal Order that God had established. But, Adam and Eve chose to disobey God, believing that they would be better off without Him. This rebellion, called sin, severed the relationship between humanity and the Creator (Genesis 3). The consequence of this action was spiritual death, not because God was vindictive, but rather because we cannot exist without Him. Just like lungs were created with the need for oxygen, we were created with the need for God. God could have left us in this state, but instead, Love compelled Him to act. So, for hundreds of years before Jesus came to this earth, God promised that He would save His people. All of these promises, over three hundred recorded in the Old Testament, were fulfilled when Jesus came to this earth. The odds of Jesus only fulfilling eight of these prophecies is one times ten to the power of twenty eight. That is 1 x 10,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000! The death of Jesus, on the cross, reminds us that God defeats all the odds to rescue us! 2. IT IS THE REASON THAT jESUS CAMEJesus did not come primarily to set an example or teach us doctrine; He came to die for us. (Mark 10:45; Hebrews 2:9; 1 John 3:5). His death was not a tragic accident; it was a part of God’s incredible plan to redeem (a fancy word which

why JESuSNEEDED To DiE oN ThE cRoSS

means to ‘buy back’) humanity from the consequence of sin. The Bible tells us that sin holds us captive (Proverbs 5:22) and so the only hope we had was a Divine rescue plan.

3. IT IS HOW GOd RESCUES USIt was not enough to just say “sorry” to God for our sin. The relationship that had been severed in the garden, had to be repaired. This required payment, much like when you must pay the towing company after they separate you from your car for parking illegally. You can feel terrible, but there is still a price attached to the offense. (Romans 3:23). So Jesus paid the price...His life for ours (Romans 6:23). Only one man can pay the price for another and only God can pay the price for everyone.

4. IT SATISFIES jUSTICEThere are many who erroneously think that God is cruel. Clearly He is not, in that He is willing to forgive us even though we deserve the consequence of our rebellion against Him. We like justice when it suits us and we are on the right side of the equation. We are not so excited when we have to get what we deserve. I know there are many who would argue that their sin is not as bad as somebody else’s, but sin is not measured in quantity but in quality. What I mean is, sin kills no matter how much you have in your life. Think of it this way; arsenic kills you, whether you digest a spoonful or eat a whole bowl. It isn’t the amount but the property of sin that kills. Therefore we deserve death because of our sin. This is where God’s grace kicks in...He is willing, if we accept it, to forgive us. Further, if we accept what Jesus did on the cross, His death takes the place for our death.

5. IT OPENS THE dOOR FOR ETERNITYHow we respond to what happened on the cross has eternal consequences (2 Corinthians 5:10). It involves reconciliation with the Father’s heart and grants us access to an inheri-tance as His restored children. This impacts our existence here on earth as well as our eternal place in heaven.My prayer for you is that you would not only know the truth about the cross but that you would also experience the life-transforming effects of the cross. My prayer is, if you have already decided to be a follower of Jesus, that you would be reminded of what you have been saved from, and in turn, you would be willing to tell others the amazing story of God’s grace. If you have not yet made the decision to follow Christ, my prayer is that this Easter would be the turning point in eternity for you; that you would acknowledge your need and accept the gift from God demonstrated on the cross; that you would know His love and receive His power to be who He created you to be.

by bIll MArKHAM


Q: The New Testament says that Jesus sweat blood when he was praying in the Garden of Gethsemane. I’ve never heard of such a thing. Isn’t that just hyperbole that we shouldn’t take literally?

A: That’s what I thought when I was a skeptic. Then I went to California to interview Dr. Alexander Metherell, a physician, former research scientist and expert on the crucifixion of Jesus.

“This is a known medical condition called hematidrosis. It’s not very common, but it is associated with a high degree of psychological stress,” he told me.

“What happens is that severe anxiety causes the release of chemicals that break down the capillaries in the sweat glands. As a result, there’s a small amount of bleeding into these glands, and the sweat comes out tinged with blood. We’re not talking about a lot of blood; it’s just a very, very small amount.”

Interestingly, it was Luke, a physician, who notes this phe-nomenon. He said of Jesus, in Luke 22:44: “And being in

anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.”

Jesus’ anguish and passionate prayers over his impending torture could certainly have been enough to trigger this medical phenomenon. A 1996 article in the Journal of Medicine analyzed 76 cases of hematidrosis and concluded that the most common causes were acute fear and intense mental contemplation.

I asked Dr. Metherell what affect this bloody sweat would have had on Jesus. “What this did,” he replied, “was set up the skin to be extremely fragile so that when Jesus was flogged by the Roman soldier the next day, his skin would have been very, very sensitive.”

What could have prompted Jesus to willingly endure the misery of Gethsemane, the brutality of the flogging and the unspeakable torment of the cross?

“Well,” said Dr. Metherell, “I suppose the answer can be summed up in one word – and that would be love.”

iNTERESTiNgThoughT

DRoPS oFblooD

DRoPS oFblooD

Atheist-turned-Christian Lee Strobel, the former award-winning legal editor of The Chicago Tribune, responds to a question on whether or not jesus could have actually sweat drops of blood while praying in the Garden of Gethsemane.

HymnSingTIMELESS WORSHIP

SUNDAY MARCH 3rd & 17th6PM (SCOTT ST.)

Don’t miss this wonderful opportunity to join in uplifting worship and meaningful connection with one another! Our HymnSing is an evening of worship with the classic hymns that have been an

inspiration to the church for generations.


bEhiNDThElENS

bEhiNDThElENS

A GLIMPSE INTO THE FILMING OF OUR TRIP TO FRANCE TO FILM AT jUNO BEACH, NORMANdY

cREATiVEbRiEF

A few months ago our creative team were praying through, and planning for the upcoming Easter weekend here at Central. Pastor Bill had previously been praying about the series that he felt should lead up to Easter weekend. He felt it should be called Beachhead.

When we first saw that series title and the description he sent along with it, we were a bit perplexed and struggled to understand exactly what a beachhead was and how it related to anything in the Bible. So, we approached Pastor Bill to clarify exactly where he felt God was leading us with this series, and what he felt the Holy Spirit wanted to do through the teaching.

As he began to expand on what he was wrestling with, light bulbs started going off for us and the idea of going to France to film on Juno beach came up. We all stopped and laughed at the idea. Four weeks later, I was sitting on a plane bound for Paris, reviewing content Pastor Bill had written for the messages he was about to preach. It’s funny

ANDREwPlETTdIRECTOR OF PRINT COMMUNICATIONS,GRAPHIC dESIGNER, EdITOR OF THE LOOP,PASTOR OF PRETTY PICTURES

PHOtOS by: Andrew Plet t

how God seems to take what seems impossible and make something of it that could only glorify Him. That’s what our desire for Easter weekend is, that God is glorified and that many people come to know Him as their Saviour for the first time.

We show you these behind-the-lens shots because we want you to feel as though you are a part of the process, part of the story that we are telling. The remarkable full frame shots through the next few pages are our attempt to bring you there with us and to get you excited for an incredible Easter weekend this year.

There is an amazing amount of thought, prayer, discernment and preparation that goes into all of the creative content for our church, not for creativity’s sake, but as a tool to reveal Jesus to our broken world.


PHOtO: erIn trAPASSO [OMAHA beAcH, nOrMAndy, FrAnce]


From March 10 - 19 a group of twen-ty-two students from Central Youth will be embarking on a missions trip to the Dreamcenter in downtown Los Angeles. For nine days, alongside the Dreamcenter, we will work with the city’s marginalized population. Last year was an incredible experi-

ence and we are trusting that God will radically meet

us again this year. While we are away, we would love

for you to pray for our team. All of the team members’

names are here for you to pray for, individually or as a

group. We are excited to see what God is going to do

in our lives and through our ministry in Los Angeles!

cENTRAlyouTh

MATEO dELdUCA, jORdAN dICK, GP, BROOKLYN HACKNER, jOLENE HARdER,

MARTIN HARdER, dANIEL HOFLANd, BRAEdEN LANGELAAN, dAvE LOFORTI,

TESSA MARKHAM, TARA MILLER, KAITLYN MULLALLY, ABBY PETERS,

BROOKE REIMER, NOAH RIKKERINK, NATHANIEL RUSTENBURG,

dAvId RUSTENBURG, SPENCER SCHROEdER, TOM TURNER, STARLA jOHNSON,

MARY jANE MCNEIL, TESSA FAST

$75 EARLY BIRD PRICE (UNTIL MARCH 13)

$85 REGULAR REGISTRATION (UNTIL APRIL 10)

$95 LATE REGISTRATION (UNTIL MAY 8)

APPLICATIONS AVAILABLE MARCH 3RD AT CENTRAL CONNECT

CYM dREAM CENTER MISSION TRIP 2013


Kids Camp is only 5 months away and we are gearing up to make this the best year ever! Get ready to join us as we discover the treasure God has for you through our Pirates of Treasure Cove!

IMPORTANT DATES: Early Registration: Apr 6&7 Regular Registration: May 4&5 Late Registration: June 29&30

Registration Closes: July 13&14

IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN VOLUNTEERING THIS YEAR WE HAVE A GREAT ROLE FOR YOU! PLEASE CONTACT GP OR PICK UP AN APPLICATION FORM AT CENTRAL CONNECT.

48 ThE looP - A MAgAziNE oF cENTRAl coMMuNiTy chuRch

lead TeamLead Pastor

BILL MARKHAMExt. [email protected]

Creative Communications

AdAM FRYExt. [email protected]

Mission + Collide

jEFF PRICEExt. [email protected]

Executive Operations

MIKE HICKSExt. [email protected]

Pastoral TeamCampus Pastor, Downtown

SHAWN [email protected]

Campus Pastor, Niagara Falls

jUSTIN [email protected]

Pastoral Care

dAvId TOPPINGExt. [email protected]

Worship Leader

GREG SYKESExt. [email protected]

Worship Leader

BECCA [email protected]

Worship Leader

MELANIE [email protected]

LifeGroups

BRENdA dROSTExt. [email protected]

Professional Counselor

AGNES vRIEzE,MSw, RSwExt. [email protected]

Emerging Generations Pastor

GIANPAOLO GALESSIEREExt. [email protected]

Youth Pastor

ALEx SMETHURSTExt. [email protected]

Sr. Kids’ Pastor

jESSICA SMETHURSTExt. [email protected]

Jr. Kids’ Pastor

KATHRYN HICKSExt. [email protected]

Kids’ Pastor, Niagara Falls

jESSE [email protected]

Kids’ Pastor, Downtown

CATHARINE [email protected]

Red Frogs

KEITH HAMILTON-SMITHExt. [email protected]

Print + Graphic Design

ANdREW PLETTExt. [email protected]

Media Director

SCOTT TRAPASSOExt. [email protected]

Production Director

dARRICK vANdERWIERExt. [email protected]

Support TeamExec. Assistant To Lead Pastor

jOLENE HARdERExt. [email protected]

Assimilation Director

EMILY SLUYSExt. [email protected]

Director Of Accounting

MONTE MILLARExt. [email protected]

Reception+Admin Assistant

LINdSAY MORTONExt. [email protected]

Building Superintendent

GREG BURNSExt. [email protected]

Volunteer Coordinator

KARLENE MARKHAMExt. [email protected]

Central Catering

IRIS REGIER + CHRIS FANNELExt. 230

STAFF coNTAcTiNFoRMATioN

Emerging generations Team

creative & Production Team

SCO T T SCHULT z SHARON HAUCKjOE CARUSO jAMIE IdzENGABARRY WILLS PAUL OL AdIPOjOHN SCHROEdER QUINN HOFL ANdRICK RIK K ERINK

The board

CENTRAL COMMUNITY CHURCH240 Scott St.St. Catharines, ON L2N 1H6905.937.5610

50 ThE looP - A MAgAziNE oF cENTRAl coMMuNiTy chuRch

SUNdAY, MARCH 3 HymnSing (6pm - Scott St.)

TUESdAY, MARCH 5 60’s Plus Luncheon(12pm - Scott St.)

SUNdAY, MARCH 10-17 CYM L.A. Mission Trip (Please pray for the team)

SUNdAY, MARCH 17 HymnSing (6pm - Scott St.)

SATURdAY, MARCH 23 Encounter Weekend (9am - 12:30pm Scott St.)

SUNdAY, MARCH 24 Encounter Weekend (6pm Scott St.)

MONdAY, MARCH 25-28 Week Of Prayer (Mon-Thu - 12-1pm Scott St.)

FRIdAY, MARCH 29 Good Friday Baptism(9am & 10:30am Scott St.)

wEDNESDAySMorning Prayer (7:15am - Scott)Drop-In (9am - Downtown)TheWell (9:30am - Scott)Central 101 (7pm - Scott)CYM (6:30pm - Scott)

TuESDAySDrop-In (9am - Downtown)Women/Men LifeGroup (7pm - Downtown)Single Moms Group (7pm - Scott)

LifeLessons (7pm - Scott St. Campus)AlphaLifeFinancial PeaceHome With A HeartSteps To FreedomGriefShare

ThuRSDAySNoon Prayer (12pm - Scott)CYM Niagara Falls (6:30pm - Falls)AlphaLife (6:30pm - Falls)Downtown Prayer (6:30pm - Downtown)

FRiDAySDrop-In (9am - Downtown)

MARchREcuRRiNg EVENTSThese are ministries that take place every week at the same time in the same location. Please note the campus reference beside the event to confirm which campus you need to attend for the event.

24 25 26 27 28 01 02

03 04 05 06 07 08 09

10 11 12 13 14 15 16

17 18 19 20 21 22 23

24 25 26 27 28 29 30

31 1 2 3 4 5 6

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday friday Saturday

MARchuNiQuE EVENTSThese are unique events for the month of March. They are indicated on the opposite page calendar with a grey circle around the date. Please note the campus reference beside the event to confirm which campus you need to attend for the event.

MARCH 2013PHOTO: ERIN BAKER-TRAPASSO [OMAHA BEACH MONUMENT, NORMANdY, FRANCE]


SCOTT ST. CAMPUS240 Scott St.St. Catharines, ON L2N 1H6P: 905.937.5610

SERvICE TIMESSunday Morning [9:30am & 11:15AM]

dOWNTOWN CAMPUS203 Church Street, St. Catharines, ONP: 289.271.1014

SERvICE TIMESunday Morning [10AM]

NIAGARA FALLS CAMPUS6970 Mountain Rd.Niagara Falls, ONP: 905.325.8224

SERvICE TIMESaturday Evening[6PM]

what we learned about spiritual battle by walking on …

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