ON WHAT DAY WAS JESUS CRUCIFIED?

This is a subject that has been debated for many years, and today the church is still divided on this doctrine. The majority of Christians today believe Jesus was crucified on Friday. That’s why many celebrate Good Friday, every Easter weekend. Still, there are many who believe he died on Wednesday, while a few think it was Thursday. Which was it? Does it even matter?

Well, some say it doesn’t matter because it’s not an issue of salvation. It bothers me when people say something in God’s word is not important. Everything in the Bible is important or God would not have inspired holy men to write it down.

Bible doctrine is like a chain. Each subject is a link to another. If we have a wrong understanding of one subject, then the chain is broken, because that link doesn’t fit. Then other connected doctrines are harder to reconcile or understand properly when some information is missing or misunderstood. That’s one reason we have so many denominations today. As you know, I believe the Bible is the inspired word of God, and it can be trusted.

2 Timothy 3:16 says, "ALL scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in righteousness:"

If you doubt that the Bible is God’s word, go read the article entitled “Is The Bible Really God’s Word?” Now, let’s see if the Bible is specific about which day Jesus was crucified.

The Bible says Jesus died about the ninth hour which would have been between three and four in the afternoon (Luke 23:44-46) and he was buried just before sundown the same day (Mark 15:42-47). The Bible says he rose early on the first day of the week (Mark 16:9). The first day of the week is Sunday. 

If he had died and was buried on Wednesday, three days would have ended just before sunset on Saturday, not Sunday morning as the Bible says. He would have been in the tomb longer than seventy-two hours. If he was buried just before sundown on Thursday, three days would have ended just before sundown on Sunday, not on Sunday morning as the Bible says. Still more than three whole days. 

If he was buried Friday evening, Sunday morning would not have been three whole days. So, no matter which day we believe Jesus was crucified, there’s no way to calculate it to where he was in the tomb for exactly seventy-two hours. So, let’s all drop that argument and look at what we can actually prove from God’s word.

In Mark 15:42 we see that Jesus was crucified on the PREPARATION DAY. That same verse also says it was the day BEFORE the SABBATH. Then, a few verses later, in Mark 16:1-2 we see the NEXT DAY was the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK. That’s three consecutive days in a row from his death to his resurrection. The PREPARATION DAY, the SABBATH DAY, and the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK. We’ll see this same evidence in the next few passages. Again, it’s not a full seventy-two hours, but the rest of the study will explain that.

Look at Luke 23:52-56 continuing on into chapter 24:1-3.

Luke 23:52-Luke 24:3
52 This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. 
53 And he took it down, and wrapped it in linen, and laid it in a tomb that was cut in stone, where no one had been buried before.  
54 And that day was the PREPARATION DAY, and the SABBATH drew near. 
55 And the women also, who came with him from Galilee, followed after, and saw the tomb, and how his body was laid. 
56 And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments, and rested the SABBATH DAY according to the COMMANDMENT.

Luke 24-1-3
1 Now on the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK, very early in the morning, they came to the tomb, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them. 
2 And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb. 
3 And they went in but did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.

In Luke 23, we see again that Jesus was crucified on the PREPARATION DAY. That was the day before the SABBATH. It’s clear this was the weekly Sabbath because the Bible plainly says, they “Rested the Sabbath Day According To The Commandment” (the 4th of the 10 Commandments).

In Mark 15:42-16:2, and in Luke 23:52-24:3 we can see the timeline very clearly, from the death of Jesus to his resurrection. It spans only three days. Again, they are the PREPARATION DAY, the SABBATH DAY, and the FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK which is Sunday. Most Bible believers agree he rose from the grave on Sunday morning. That’s why many Christians celebrate Easter Sunday. We also celebrate GOOD FRIDAY two days before Easter Sunday. Clearly, these are the 6th day, the 7th day, and the 1st day, or Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Jesus was crucified on Friday (the Preparation Day), rested in the grave on Saturday (the Sabbath), and rose on Sunday (the First Day of the week). If that’s not clear enough, we’ll look at a few more scriptures to cement the argument.

Before his death, Jesus had said he would rise again ON the third day after his death.

Matthew 16:21
21 From that time forth Jesus began to show his disciples, that he must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders, and leading priests, and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.

Matthew 17:23 
23 And they will kill him, and the third day he will be raised again.

Matthew 20:19
19 And they will deliver him to the Gentiles to mock, and to beat, and to crucify, and the third day he will rise again.

Mark 10:34
34 And they will mock him, and beat him, and spit on him, and kill him, and the third day he will rise again.

Luke 9:22
22 Saying, The Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and leading priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.

Acts 10:40
40 God raised him up the third day, and showed him openly;

1 Corinthians 15:4
4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

Again, Jesus said he would rise from the dead ON the third day and he did.

Another thing of interest is recorded in Luke 24:13-21. It happened late that Sunday afternoon, the same day Jesus was resurrected. Cleopas and another disciple were on the road to Emmaus when Jesus joined them. They didn’t recognize him, so they brought him into the conversation they had been having about the death of the Messiah. Notice carefully what they said.

Luke 24:21
21 But we trusted that it had been he who would have redeemed Israel, and besides all this, TODAY IS the THIRD DAY since these things were done.

There it is, plainly. Sunday was the THIRD DAY since he was crucified, and he rose from the grave ON the third day. Saturday would have been the SECOND DAY since his death, so clearly, Jesus was crucified on Friday.

We can even be more specific than that. In Daniel chapter 9 we have the prophecy of four hundred and ninety years. This time period stretched from the decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem, all the way down to the time of the Messiah. It foretold that he would die for others, and he did. This prophecy tells the exact year of the death of the Messiah. Jesus fulfilled this prophecy in every detail over five hundred years after it was written down. 

By using this prophecy, and the gospel accounts of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, along with the dates of the Jewish feast days, we can pinpoint the exact year, month, day, and hour that Jesus died. He died in the hour between 3:00 and 4:00 pm on Friday, April 3rd, AD 33.

———————————————–
My Blogs
https://teddylynn.blogspot.com
https://teddylynn.wordpress.com

© 2015 Teddy Lynn – All Rights Reserved

My books are available in paperback and digital format on Amazon @
https://www.amazon.com/Teddy-Lynn/e/B01MZDB6L6

BITTERNESS

Allison was four years old and was complaining about a stomach ache. This went on for a few hours as her parents tried several things to alleviate her pain. When their efforts had failed, and Allison was not feeling any better, they took her to see a doctor.

After a few tests and X-Rays, the doctor came and told the parents what he had found. It seems that Allison had swallowed a few things she shouldn’t have. She had swallowed some toy beads, a dog’s chew bone, a deflated balloon, eight coins, some birdseed, and several leaves.

As I read this news story, I thought to myself, “Kids do the dumbest things.” After thinking about it for a few minutes, I concluded that adults do some pretty dumb things sometimes, too. We may not swallow strange things like Allison did but, we do a lot of things that bring pain and suffering on ourselves. I call this “Self-Inflicted Suffering.”

There are many things we do that bring us pain and suffering. One of them is to allow BITTERNESS to take over our lives. Bitterness is a result of keeping a record of wrongs done to us. Bitterness comes over a period of time as we refuse to forgive those who have wronged us. We relive those wrongs over and over. We hang on to them, and they grow and grow until we become bitter. I’ve been there, and it’s not a happy place to live.

Unwillingness to forgive comes from our pride. We’re not willing to humble ourselves and forgive others. Studies have shown that people who are forgiving have less stress in their lives. Bitterness causes stress, which causes emotional problems, and that can cause us physical pain, and can even lead to diseases, like high blood pressure, strokes, and heart problems. Our emotional wellness is directly linked to our physical wellness.

Our emotional and physical wellness are also connected to our spiritual wellness. When we suffer in either one of these areas, it affects us in the other two as well. So bitterness affects our relationship with God. The Holy Spirit cannot live in a heart that is full of bitterness.

Bitterness changes us. It changes us in several different ways. It even changes our physical appearance. Did you know that? A bitter person ages more quickly. They look tired and unattractive. Bitterness actually makes a person ugly. You can see the effect that holding grudges has on them. It’s sad to see a person in that situation.

Bitterness also ruins relationships. Bitter people are no fun to be around. Whatever we focus on all the time, comes out in our daily conversions. When bitter people talk, they talk about what they have been focusing on. Their anger, hatred, and whatever bad feelings they have for others. It’s not pretty.

Ephesians 4:31 says, “Put away all bitterness, hate, anger, crying, evil speaking, and all vengeance. Be kind and compassionate to each other. Forgive each other, just as God forgave you because of Christ.”

The Bible tells us to “Put bitterness away from us.” So let’s do that. Let’s put it as far away from us as we possibly can. To be bitter, or to not be bitter, is a choice. God has told us, in Hebrews 10:20, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay.” If someone hurts us, we should leave it in God’s hands, and get some rest. After all, we need our beauty sleep.

———————————————–
My Blogs
https://teddylynn.blogspot.com
https://teddylynn.wordpress.com

© 2015 Teddy Lynn – All Rights Reserved

My books are available in paperback and digital format on Amazon @
https://www.amazon.com/Teddy-Lynn/e/B01MZDB6L6

UNDERSTANDING BIBLE TRUTH

I’ve been reading the Bible since I was very young. I’ve known it was God’s book for a long time, but I didn’t really understand exactly what that meant. When I got older and learned how to properly study the Bible, it came alive to me. I realized that what I once thought was a big book of collected stories from many different writers, is actually one big book containing one story about God and his people, and although the words were written down by over forty different men, it all came from one source, God himself.

It’s not only a history book, but a book of promises for us, now, and for the future. It’s an instruction book on how God wants us to live and treat each other. As anyone can see, many who don’t follow God’s instructions, contained in the Bible, do whatever they want, violate every command given by God, and cause countless innocents to suffer.

What’s even worse, there are many who claim to follow biblical teaching, but often have the same mindset as those who don’t. Part of the problem is the interpretation, or should I say, the “misinterpretation” of scripture. This leads to all kinds of problems; from simple disagreements, to split congregations, new denominations, split families, and even total rebellion against God.

Everyone thinks their interpretation is right, and that’s understandable, but most will not even consider the possibility they might be wrong, even when shown from the holy word of God. Almost every denomination believes it’s the only one who has the truth.

In giving Bible studies, I’ve studied with and talked to many people over the years. I’ve studied different denominations and what they believe, and I’ve arrived at one conclusion. No denomination that I know of has all the truth. Most of them have some true doctrines, and some have mostly true doctrines, but they all teach something that is contrary to the Bible. It seems the Truth is scattered throughout the earth.

Before I go any further, let me say that I’m not a Bible scholar, and I don’t know everything there is to know. I’m not claiming to be perfect, nor to have divine wisdom. I’m a sinful wretch saved only by the grace of God. I have believed strongly in certain Bible teachings only to discover I was wrong, and as I continue learning, I expect to find more things in God’s word that I didn’t know or maybe even misunderstood. I’m not claiming to be smarter than anyone else, but when the Bible clearly teaches something, and a church or an individual is doing and saying something totally opposite, it doesn’t take a scholar to see the contradictions.

So what should we do, stop going to church? No. The religious leaders in Jesus’ day didn’t have everything right either, but that didn’t stop him from going. Sometimes it may be serious enough that we have to move to a different congregation or even change denominations, but we have to realize that God’s true Church is not a certain building, or denomination anyway.

The true church is made up of believers all over the world who have been born again; Those who follow God wherever he leads, and obey his Commandments (Luke 17:21). They pray and study his word every day. That’s the key. Bible Study; Not just reading, but studying; Treating the entire Bible as one book, comparing scripture with scripture (Isaiah 28:10), and being willing to change our minds when we see we are wrong. That’s called growing.

There’s only one Truth, and it’s there in God’s word for all of us to see. There are so many denominations today because there are so many different interpretations of God’s word. Too often, people will develop their own views, and when they come to the Bible, they look for evidence to support their beliefs. This is the wrong way to study the Bible.

Another mistake we make when studying God’s word is one that we often ignore because we don’t really think about it. When we read something, we understand it based on how we think and what we’ve learned. Even our understanding of word definitions color our thought process.

When reading the Bible, there are several things we need in order to understand it properly. One is a desire to know the truth. The other is an understanding that there are words and phrases in the Bible that meant something different when they were written than what they mean now. A good Bible Concordance will help with this. I also recommend the Free computer program called e-Sword, which has a Concordance, and a ton of other helpful Bible Study tools, including many free versions of the Bible. There’s also an app for iPhones and Androids which does cost a few dollars, but it’s worth every penny.

The Bible usually interprets itself, and the King James Version has a built-in dictionary. The more you study, the better you understand. We should always come to the Bible as little children, with humble, teachable spirits, and again, we must be willing to change our beliefs when they are different from God’s Truth. We should always pray and ask God to guide us in our understanding of scripture. Who better to help us understand the word of God than the One who inspired the men who wrote it (2 Peter 1:21).

When we do this we’ll see the Truth more clearly. The Bible will become to us the book that God intended it to be from the beginning, and we’ll join the ranks of those who make up the true church scattered throughout the entire world; The ones who know the Truth, and have been made free by it.

———————————————–
My Blogs
https://teddylynn.blogspot.com
https://teddylynn.wordpress.com

© 2015 Teddy Lynn – All Rights Reserved

My books are available in paperback and digital format on Amazon @
https://www.amazon.com/Teddy-Lynn/e/B01MZDB6L6

LAUGHTER IS GOOD MEDICINE

In this life, we all have pain and sorrow. We all have stress from our daily routines of work and other responsibilities. We all have times when we feel down. We all have days when we don’t feel good and days when we’re literally in pain.

The Bible tells us in Proverbs 17:22, that, “A merry heart does good like a medicine.” I’ve found this to be so true.

The word MERRY in this verse means cheerful, and the word HEART is just another word for MIND. So “A cheerful mind does good like a medicine,” or we could say, “being happy is good like medicine.” I like that verse, and it's completely accurate. When I’m feeling bad, and something makes me laugh, I actually feel better.

I don’t sleep well most nights and when I get up in the mornings, I usually don’t feel well at all. One morning when I woke up, I was feeling really, really bad. While I was trying to muster up the strength to get ready for work, I just happened to remember something funny from my childhood. It made me laugh out loud, and it actually made me feel a little better. I want to share that story with you, and maybe you can have a laugh, too.

I think I was around six years old, and my sister was four or five. Our older cousin was at our house visiting for the day. When he would come over he would entertain us with his wild stories. We loved his tall tales so we would listen intently as he tried to amuse us. I don’t know where he was going with this story, though because laughter interrupted his flow. All I remember is what my sister said just as he was getting started.

He said, “If you pull a hair out of your nose you’ll die.” My sister looked at him with her eyes as big as the moon. Then he calmly said, “I pulled a hair out of my nose one time.” Before he could say anything else, my sister gasped, as her eyes got even bigger, and with deep concern in her voice, she said, “Did you die?”

That’s still so funny to me, and no matter how many times it cycles through my memory, it still makes me laugh. I loved my early childhood, and I miss it. We didn’t have much at all, but we didn’t know it. Everything seemed so simple. We had no worries, no cares, and no big responsibilities, but we did have lots of love, and plenty of fun times to remember.

I hope you have plenty of good memories in your past. When you’re feeling bad, or sick, or a little down, try to remember one or two that will make you laugh or at least smile. I promise it’ll make you feel better.

———————————————–
My Blogs
https://teddylynn.blogspot.com
https://teddylynn.wordpress.com

© 2015 Teddy Lynn – All Rights Reserved

My books are available in paperback and digital format on Amazon @
https://www.amazon.com/Teddy-Lynn/e/B01MZDB6L6