From The Crucifixion To The Resurrection

From the Crucifixion to the Resurrection

It will take some concentration and honest truth seeking to understand this. I did leave a conclusion as to what this means to Christianity as a whole and secondly, why it is important. First of all let us establish the facts from the beginning. Genesis 1:5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. AND THE EVENING AND THE MORNING WERE THE FIRST DAY. Genesis 1:8 And God called the firmament Heaven. AND THE EVENING AND THE MORNING WERE THE SECOND DAY. Genesis 1:13 AND THE EVENING AND THE MORNING WERE THE THIRD DAY. In Genesis we see how God defined the days. In the Old Testament the Israelites were commanded by God to observe the Sabbath from evening (sunset) to evening (sunset), which was the seventh day. We today would think of this as evening on the sixth day of the week until evening on the seventh day of the week. (Friday Evening to Saturday Evening) Leviticus 23:32 It shall be unto you a sabbath of rest, and ye shall afflict your souls: in the ninth day of the month at even, from even to even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath. This verse in Leviticus reiterates the idea of an evening to evening measurement of the day according to the Bible. If you read before this verse in the 23rd chapter you will see that it is describing the day of Atonement. More importantly it is one of the examples of a sabbath for the Israelites that was not the seventh day sabbath. This shows how the Israelites had many Sabbaths (days which were Holy in which they were to abstain from regular work) not just the seventh day sabbath. This is an important point that will come into relevance later on. Other examples of Sabbaths that are not the seventh day include Leviticus 16:31, Leviticus 23: verse 24, and verse 32. Many holy days of the children of Israel were called the Sabbath, not just the seventh day of the week. So there could be a Sabbath day on any day of the week according to when the Israelites holy days fell (they are marked by certain days of the month on a Jewish calendar and the months are marked by the cycles of the moon). The Passover in Exodus chapter 12 was when the homes of the Israelites were Passed-over by the Lord because the blood of a lamb was over their door-posts. The Lord killed the first born of men and cattle in the Egyptians' homes since the blood of a Lamb was not over their door-posts. After this plague the Egyptians allowed the Israelites to leave their captivity in Egypt. The Israelites left in such haste in the middle of the night that their bread was not yet leavened. Hence the celebrations of Passover and the feast of unleavened bread are to remember when God through Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt. The Next two verses are the commandment for the Israelites to celebrate Passover. Numbers 28:16-18 And the fourteenth day of the first month is the Passover of the Lord. And in the fifteenth day of this month is the feast: seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten. In the first day shall be a holy convocation; ye shall do no manner of servile work therein: Leviticus 23:5-8 In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the Lord's Passover And in the fifteenth day of the same

month is the feast of unleavened bread unto the Lord: seven days ye must eat unleavened bread. In the first day ye shall have an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein. But ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord seven days: in the seventh day is a holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein. Here I will summarize the Passover and the feast of unleavened bread. The 14th day of the first month is Passover, the 15th day is the first day of unleavened bread, and also a feast, as well as a Sabbath. The seventh day of eating unleavened bread is also a Sabbath, you can see the 1st and 7th days are Sabbaths because of the phrase "ye shall have an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein." Note that the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 6th days, as well as the first day of Passover are not Sabbaths. Sometimes the Feast which is the day after the Passover is considered the feast of the Passover or the second day of the Passover. Furthermore sometimes the Passover is considered the first day of unleavened bread, but when this is done there are eight days of the days of unleavened bread; and the second and eighth days are Sabbaths. This is merely grouping the Passover in with the days of unleavened bread. Also, in Exodus the Israelites were instructed to not break the bones of the lamb they killed and ate for the Passover. This is important symbolism as Jesus Christ was our Passover lamb and he was crucified on Passover and none of his bones were broken. Below we have three references to the Feast of Passover which was a Sabbath, according to scripture. In Mark 15:1-15 we read of the chief priests turning Jesus Christ over to the Pilate in the morning and how it is customary at the Feast (referring to the Passover feast) to turn one prisoner free. John 19:14 And it was the preparation of the passover, and about the sixth hour: and he saith unto the Jews, Behold your King! John 19:31-36 The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation, that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the Sabbath day, (for that sabbath day was a high day,) besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs of the first, and of the other which was crucified with him. But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs: But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water. And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith is true, that ye might believe. For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken. So the evening Jesus and his disciples celebrated Passover was the beginning of the Passover - the Passover lasted until the next day (as we measure time) in the evening. From these verses we can clearly see that Jesus was crucified the day of Passover, which was the day of preparation for the feast of the Passover. (The feast of the Passover was the first day of the days of unleavened bread and was a Sabbath). One thing to question is the phrase "for that sabbath day was a high day" if this verse was referring to a regular seventh day sabbath why would it have this phrase? Answer: It would not. In Matthew 27:57-62 we also see that Jesus was buried on Preparation day for the Sabbath around evening. Evening would mark the beginning of the Jewish Sabbath which was why Jesus had to be put in the tomb before the Sabbath began. Remember that this Sabbath after the Passover was for the day of the feast, not the seventh day Sabbath. (According to scripture) So after the day of the feast (The Sabbath) was Friday and then the Seventh day Sabbath. The following verses show another important point.

Matthew 12:39-40 But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall be no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas: For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whales belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. John 11:9 Jesus answered, Are there not twelve hours in the day? If any man walk in the day, he stumbleth not, because he seeth the light of this world. Matthew 27:62-63 Now the next day, that followed the day of preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees came together to Pilate, Saying, Sir we remember that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again. So Jesus knew there were twelve hours in a day, and he said he would be in the tomb three full nights and three full days - 72 hours - from the time of his burial until his resurrection. He said he would rise again after three days. There are about an equal amount of instances in scripture that say Jesus will rise on the third day. But even if it was only on the third day and not after three days, that would mean Jesus rose on Monday, assuming the Friday crucifixion. But if we examine the scriptures it is clear that Jesus had to be in the tomb three full days and nights. Also even in Genesis the wording of "the third day" refers to the period of time after three days had past, you can clearly see this by reading the Creation account. So what does this mean? Jesus Christ was buried in the tomb on Wednesday (a.k.a. Passover, and preparation day) around the evening (the evening which would mark the beginning of the Sabbath, the day of the feast) and rose again exactly 3 days later, as he said he would on the Sabbath (the seventh day Sabbath, which was Saturday) around sunset or twilight shortly before the Sabbath ended. (The sunset marked the beginning of the first day of the week and the end of the Sabbath). Now think about it. Christians have assumed what they have because they did not take into account the Jewish Holy days. But even so, if Jesus had been crucified on Friday and risen Sunday morning he would not have been 3 days and 3 nights in the heart of the earth- as he said he would be in Matthew 12:40. Furthermore in Mark 16:1 we read that after the Sabbath was past Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices to anoint Jesus. In Luke 23:56 we read that the women prepared spices and ointments and then they rested on the Sabbath day. This again shows that there were two Sabbath days that week. With thorough study the Wednesday crucifixion and Saturday resurrection is the explanation that best fits scripture. What does this mean to Christians, and why it is important? The good Friday Easter Sunday tradition cannot be justified by scripture. Therefore, it should not be observed by those who claim to be Christians. Furthermore there is no scriptural precedent to declare Sunday the “Christian Sabbath” nor to require Christian gatherings on that day in particular. Although many individuals and organizations will scour the Holy Bible and twist the scripture to fit their agenda, the truth remains. It should also be mentioned that nowhere in the Holy Bible does it say that Jesus rose on the first day of the week (Sunday). Nor does it say that he was crucified on the fifth day of the week (Friday) this has all been falsely assumed. Many falsified versions of the Bible actually say he was crucified Friday or rose on Sunday in contrast to the Greek scriptures. The best version I know of is the KJV, because it is translated from the “received text” a.k.a. the “Byzantine majority text”.

Also, the name Easter itself comes from the name of a pagan goddess, and there is no Biblical precedent to celebrate Easter. Christians should not celebrate anything called Easter and they should not follow the pagan customs associated with this holiday. The taking of communion, the bread and the cup, is the only “religious ceremony” or the closest thing to a holiday which Christ has instructed us to do in the scriptures. (As far as I can ascertain). We are to take communion “In remembrance of him”. Luke 22:19-20, 1 Corinthians 11:23-29 This is important because the Truth matters and the church cannot lie and propagate false doctrines without consequence. See Revelation 21:8 This writing is meant to bring Gods people back to him, to worship him only. It is not meant to judge but to edify. Those who love the Truth will receive instruction. See Hebrews 10:26 and 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12. I do not expect anyone to understand and believe this after reading it the first time. It took me many hours and days of researching (various internet and print sources) and studying the Old and New Testaments. I tried to present this so it can be understood as easily as possible, BUT IT IS UP TO THE READER TO PROVE THIS FOR THEMSELVES BY STUDING THE SCRIPTURES, HONESTLY SEEKING THE TRUTH. One may be quick to look at Bible dictionaries and commentaries, but remember that if one looks enough they can easily find commentaries that oppose each other. Scripture can be the only thing with which to prove scripture. And this is based on ones acceptance of that scripture as God's Holy Word. Ultimately, what is important is that Christ did indeed fully die and paid the penalty for our sins. For the wages of sin is death,(1) and without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins.(2) So the death of Christ was necessary to cleanse us. And his resurrection is equally important because without it our faith would be in vain, and we would remain dead in our sins.(3) But Christ did not remain in the grave, for he rose again just as he said he would (4) and appeared unto the disciples. He did not rise only in spirit as some claim but he rose in body as well, for he ate with the disciples after his resurrection (5) and appeared unto many prior to his ascension.(6) One’s entrance into the Kingdom of God does not, I believe, hinge on one’s belief as to which day Christ was crucified and resurrected, so long as we do believe these things prophesied of old (7) did indeed take place. However, everyone needs to question their motives and earnestly work out there own salvation with fear and trembling.(8) Traditions cannot take the place of God in our lives. We need to be sure we are following God, not the traditions of men. God cannot save us unless we repent. True repentance will change us. Romans 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. Romans 6:3-11 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin. Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 2 Timothy 2:11

It is a faithful saying: For if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him: 1 Corinthians 15:55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord. 1 Corinthians 15:26 The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. (1) Romans 6:23 (2) Hebrews 9:22, Matthew 26:28, Romans 3:24-25 (3) 1 Corinthians 15:17 (4) Matthew 28:5-7, John 2:19-21, 1 Corinthians 15:4, Luke 18:33, Matthew 27:63 (5) Acts 10:41, Luke 24:37-43 (6) Matthew 28:16-18, Mark 16, Luke 24, John 20 (7) Isaiah 53, Isaiah 9:6-7 (8) Philippians 2:12 Know Matthew 24:4-51, and 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 so that you will not be deceived in the end.

Started January 15, 2008 Finished March 5, 2008 Edited and Revised October 7, 2008, November 13, 2008, February 3, 2009, March 5, 2009, March 9, 2009, April 13, 2009, April 14, 2009, July 7, 2009 ALL GLORY BE TO GOD