Easter

 SORRY TO RAIN ON YOUR PARADE

The word "Easter" appears in the Authorized King James Version of 1611 (hereafter KJV) one time in Acts chapter 12, verse 4, which follows: "And he [Herod] had apprehended him [the apostle Peter], he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quarterions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people."  The translators of the KJV were led to translate the Greek word πάσχα = pasha as Easter in keeping with the context, which was that Herod  the king was a pagan leader of a thoroughly pagan nation that religiously observed the annual celebration of spring by worshipping the goddess of fertility, Eostre (Easter in English). The pagan celebration just happened to correspond with the Jewish observance of Passover.  It was the pagan celebration that mainly concerned Herod, not the Passover observed by the Jews.  Additionally, it should be noted there is no reliable record that early believers memorialized Jesus' crucifixion or resurrection at that early time in church history.  Easter practices didn't gain entrance into Christendom until A.D. 325, nearly 300 years after Jesus Christ's death and resurrection!

The Encyclopaedia Britannica tells us: "At Easter, popular customs reflect many ancient pagan survivals—in this instance, connected with spring fertility rites, such as the symbols of the Easter egg and the Easter hare or rabbit" (15th edition, Macropaedia, Vol. 4, p. 605, "Church Year").

"Bede [an early medieval monk] noted that in eighth-century England, the month of April was called Eosturmonath, or Eostre Month, after the goddess Eostre. He wrote that a pagan festival of spring in the name of the goddess had become assimilated into the Christian celebration of the resurrection of Christ." (The Ancient Origins of The Easter Bunny, History - Smithsonian Magazine)

The Easter bunny and colored eggs are directly linked to paganism, and had nothing to do with anything practiced by first century Christians.

It is not unreasonable or unkind to ask, why then are socalled Christian churches teaching their children about the Easter bunny, colored eggs and participating in Easter egg hunts in the grassy areas of church grounds?  With all the talk these days of children being groomed for depravity, why then should children of Christian families be exposed to an ancient celebration used to worship the false goddess, Eostre (Easter), pretending it has anything to do with our Lord Jesus Christ and His sacrificial death, burial and resurrection? (Hm?  What did Hugh Hefner call women who adorned his mansion?  Let's move on.)

I propose there are at least four reasons why pastors lead their congregations to participate in such unbiblical events.  

1) They are ignorant of the origin of these unbiblical practices, and aren't familiar with scriptures that address such observances by believers (Deuteronomy 12:30-32, etc.)

2) They want to increase their church attendance by sponsoring big events children will enjoy; thereby bringing parents to the church property as well.  This may seem like a good motive, but since when is it okay to do something wrong, in order to accomplish something right - especially when it comes to Christian practice?  The end justifies the means, in other words.  (Compare Romans 3:8!).  

3) They simply aren't that much into what the Bible actually has to say and they don't view it as a book that has application in ALL areas of the believer's faith and practice.  After all, they reason, we live in a modern age and to reach people you must be "relevant" and "progressive" -  two popular catch phrases in both religious and political circles these days.

4) They justify it by saying it is no longer a pagan practice, because we've Christianized it?

I wrote the above while having breakfast in a McDonald's restaurant, within earshot of screaming, frolicking children enjoying the enclosed Play Place, who are sheltered from the heavy rainfall outdoors.  As I checked my text messages, I noticed one from a church my wife and I once frequented.  It informed me that due to the weather, the annual Easter egg event would be held indoors.

Hence, this article.

I'm sorry to rain on your parade.

- David J. Cosma, 

Good Friday or Bad Wesnesday?

 I have believed and taught this truth for 50 years. I even wrote a tract about it and hundreds were distributed back in the late 1970s. It was also published in a Christian periodical.

Some would say, "What's the big deal? Why does it matter if I observe Good Friday and participate in a moving Sunrise Service on Sunday morning at sunrise?"

If what the word of God has to say is the truth and we are expected to believe and follow it, then wouldn't you agree that truth, God's Truth matters?

Jesus condemned following the doctrines of men, which make VOID the word of God. That's no small matter!

Was Jesus crucified on a Friday? No.

Did Jesus really spend 3 days and 3 nights in the heart of the earth, as stated in the Bible? Yes.

So no one would miss it, Jesus used the familiar account of Jonah in the Old Testament as a type of His own death, burial and resurrection.

So how many days and nights was Jonah in the belly of the whale? That's right! 3 days & 3 nights. We learned that in Sunday School. But there's a problem. You can't get 3 days and 3 nights if you claim Jesus was crucified on a Friday. Do the math.

**Jesus was crucified on BAD Wednesday, not Good Friday. The darkest day in history!**

Jesus rose from the dead at sunset on SATURDAY evening. (The Jews followed the reckoning of time as recorded in Genesis chapter one: and the evening and the morning were the first day, and the evening and the morning were the second day, etc.) The Jewish day is reckoned different from the manner that we practice today. Our new day (AM) begins at midnight, while a new day among the Hebrew people begins at sunset. The Jews would say, evening and morning; we say morning and evening. Keeping this in mind is helpful in understanding the time Jesus spent in the tomb.

Two Sabbaths That Week

It is also vital to know that during the passion week leading up to His crucifixion, there were actually TWO sabbaths observed, one of which fell on a different day each year. The year of Christ's crucifixion the annual sabbath fell on a Thursday and the weekly sabbath was on Saturday as usual, making two sabbaths observed by the Jews on that week.

In John 19:31 we read, "The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation [for the sabbath], that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the sabbath day, (for THAT sabbath day was AN HIGH DAY) [In other words, NOT the regular weekly sabbath; it was a sabbath that week prior to that Saturday sabbath, but on a Thursday that year.] besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.")

To observe Good Friday and Easter Sunrise Service is to follow the doctrine of men and not God's revealed truth.

"Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. For LAYING ASIDE the commandment of God, ye hold the TRADITION OF MEN, as the washing of pots and cups: and MANY OTHER SUCH LIKE THINGS ye do. And he said unto them, Full well ye REJECT the commandment of God, that ye may keep YOUR OWN tradition."

(Mark 7:7-9, truth matters to God).

The death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ is vital to believe, because it is belief in THAT GOSPEL that results in salvation available during this age of grace. Don't mess with God's message of salvation by polluting and mixing it with the doctrine of men.

1 Corinthians 15:1-4- Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you THE GOSPEL which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; By which also ye are SAVED, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ DIED for our sins according to the SCRIPTURES; And that he was BURIED, and that he ROSE again the third day according to the scriptures:

God is glorified and well pleased when His children care to follow His revealed word.

- David J. Cosma,

For more information, read this.

Wherever You Are (song)

Fascinating Fabrics

 In the Old Testament, the Jews had a lot of different rules they had to follow. There was one that I always wondered about but until now I never really had an answer as to why. The Jewish people were told not to mix their fabrics, and two in particular were listed- linen and wool.

Deuteronomy 22:11- Thou shalt not wear a garment of divers sorts, as of woollen and linen together.

Well, first I have to explain to you about matter. All matter has a vibration frequency. We all know from Science class that molecules vibrate and move about sliding past each other constantly, and we learned that a gas moves faster than a liquid, and a solid moves much slower than either of them.

The movement of these molecules is a vibration. If you could match your vibration to that of a wall, you could theoretically pass through the wall. I believe this is what happened when Christ appeared in his resurrected body to the disciples.

John 2:26- And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you.

I think that the Lord was able to control the vibrational frequency of either his body, the wall or door, or both, enabling him to walk through the solid object and appear in a physical form. We know he wasn't a spirit because he told Thomas to touch him.

John 2:27- Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.

"This has been studied previously. Dr. Royal Raymond Rife spent decades studying specific vibrational ‘kill’ frequencies against hundreds of microorganisms. As far back as 1920, Rife theorized that disease-causing microorganisms vibrated at specific oscillation rates, and that if these were better understood, they might be safely eliminated by an opposing rate of vibration.
He determined that the average frequency of a healthy human body was between 62 and 72 Hz and that when the frequency drops below this average it signifies a compromised immune system. … essential oils can register as high as 320 Hz. … Rife meticulously mapped out a living mosaic of energy vibration, but he was simply too far ahead of his time to be appreciated for his contribution.” -Pages 19-20 of Whole Health, by Mark Mincolla Ph.D.

Fabrics are in contact with human body all the time, unless you are naked. We can easily feel their softness or texture by running our fingertips over it. We cannot, however, discern the vibrational frequency of materials in the manner. 

In 2003, a study was done by a Jewish doctor, Heidi Yellen, on the frequencies of fabric.  According to this study, the human body has a signature frequency of 100, and organic cotton is the same – 100.  The study also showed that if the number is lower than 100, it puts a strain on the body, however,  if the fabric has a higher frequency, it gives energy to the body.

Nobel prize winning Dr.Otto Heinrich Warburg identified signature frequency numbers of the average human at 70-90. The discrepancy could be in the techniques or the health of the people used in the study. For ease of purpose, we will assume that a healthy human is around 100 mHz.

Organic cotton has a frequency range of 70 to 110 mHz. Non-organic cotton, bleached and/or dyed, has a frequency range of 40 to 70 mHz. Some studies have shown that cotton can have a much higher signature frequency, even up to 400 mHz, but I don't know the differences in the types of cotton or how they were processed to get this result.

The molecules of a living human body and a corpse move at different speeds as well, perhaps depending on the temperature each has reached.  A diseased, nearly dead person has a frequency of about 15, and that is where polyester, rayon, and silk register.

Linen and wool come in as super-fabrics.  Their frequency is 5,000. But, when mixed together, woolen with linen, the frequencies cancel each other out and fall to zero. Even wearing a wool sweater on top of a linen outfit in a study collapsed the electrical field.  Therefore, even fabrics made from natural compounds, if improperly processed, will disrupt the functioning of the immune system.

Dr. Philip Callahan discovered that flax cloth, as suggested in the Books of Moses, acts as an antenna for the energy. He found that when the pure flax cloth was put over a wound or local pain, it greatly accelerated the healing process.

Our body is greatly affected by the vibrational frequency of matter all around us. "Grounding" has become a big deal lately because people have realized that spending time outside changes the electrical current of the body in a positive manner. Likewise, what we wear for hours daily can have either a positive or negative effect on our health. Most forms of wave signals from these materials inhibit cell function. This causes the cells in the body to wear out prematurely. Such disorders cause serious chronic diseases.

Each disease has certain frequency parameters. When our clothing is similar to the frequency of certain diseases, our bodies can become disposed to contracting the disease because of the constant bombardment of wave emissions. Conversely, it is also possible to initiate our body's healing process through wave interactions with higher frequency fabrics.

God gives us a glimpse of the future in a few of the books of the Bible. The best known and most referenced is the book of Revelation. God puts an interesting verse in this book.

Revelation 19:18- And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

God stated that the priests were to wear linen clothing when working in the temple. Isn't it fascinating how God has put these gems into the Bible for us to find if we would only search!

Leviticus 19:19- Ye shall keep my statutes. Thou shalt not let thy cattle gender with a diverse kind: thou shalt not sow thy field with mingled seed: neither shall a garment mingled of linen and woollen come upon thee.

Just because you don't understand "why" God has said something doesn't mean you should ignore it. Science is still catching up to the Bible!

Romans 11:33- O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!

An A to Z Understanding of the Times (poetry)

Being a Christian man

And a preacher in this land,

It seemed to me appropriate

To help folks understand—

 

Understand like the children of Issachar

Who knew just what to do,

A people who knew the spirit of the age

While most others had not a clue.

 

So here, my friend, I offer

An alphabet for the wise,

An understanding of the times

For those with vigilant eyes.

 

A is for Apathy,

Because people are unconcerned

About the true state of America

And the lessons they should have learned.

 

B is for Big—

Big churches, big houses and things,

Big bills, big meals, big bellies,

But few big hearts for the King.

 

C is for the Cowards,

A pitiful host indeed—

No courage to join the ranks,

Fill the gap, and meet the need.

 

D is for the Deception

That has spread so far and wide;

Truth is trampled in the street

And justice has all but died.

 

E is for Education,

Which really wouldn’t be a sin,

If only they’d held on to God

And thrown out the doctrines of men!

 

F is for Falling away

From the old paths we once trod;

Now on the highway to hell

Men race to get away from God.

 

G is for the Government,

A monster out of control;

Day by day it seizes its prey

Until it has taken every soul.

 

H is for Humanism,

A deadly disease for sure;

Yet the fools in the schools spread it near and far

While everyone ignores the cure!

 

I is for Internationalism,

Nations coming together as one;

Soon they’ll bow at the feet of Satan,

After kicking out God’s Son.

 

J is for the Jews,

God’s treasure, the apple of His eye,

He blesses their friends and curses their foes

Because His promises never die.

 

K is for the Knowledge

That makes man’s head to swell;

Each step he takes for his own self glory

Is one step closer to hell.

 

L is for the Lukewarmness

Of those who straddle the fence;

Would to God they forsook the cares of this world;

They would if they had any sense!

 

M is for the Majority

To which everyone wants to belong,

Yet history has taught us over and over

That the majority is usually wrong!

 

N is for the Nicolaitans,

Those religious oppressors of men;

While living in the spotlight with glory and praise,

Their followers live in ignorance and sin.

 

O is for the Ostriches,

You know, the human kind;

While living in fear with their heads in the sand,

The truth they’ll never find!

 

P is for Politicians,

But not one in a hundred can you trust;

They’re so full of hot air and special interest money,

If you stuck them with a pin they’d bust!

 

Q is for the Quarrel

That folks have with the Father above;

Most all object to His holy words,

Except when He speaks about love.

 

R is for the Restlessness

Of the wicked who have no peace;

Tossed to and fro like the troubled sea,

Their sins will only increase.

 

S is for Satan himself,

The one who runs this earthly show,

But with an all-star cast and power to deceive,

Few will ever know.

 

T is for the Temptations

That do try the souls of men;

Some will prevail and escape the wrath of hell,

But most will die in their sin.

 

U is for the Unborn,

The right to choose is what they say,

But what about the rights of the thousands

Who are slaughtered in the wombs every day?

 

V is for the Vengeance

Which God Himself shall take;

His mighty voice shall roar from on high

And the earth’s foundations shall shake.

 

W is for the Wars

That men continue to fight;

One thing is clear after thousands of years—

A man-made peace isn’t in sight.

 

X is for the X-rated minds,

The manufacturers of sin;

They lay their snares along the path,

And the simple will walk right in.

 

Y is for the Young folks,

Being programmed to play their roles

In the new society of Satan

Where they’ll lose their very souls.

 

Finally, Z is for Zion,

The city of our great King;

When He takes his throne, the earth we will own

And forever His praises we’ll sing!

 

So there, my friend, you have it,

A guide from A to Z,

An understanding of the times;
May God help you to see. 

Copyright © 2004  James L. Melton

Lessons For Christians To Be Used By God (video sermon)

He First Loved Us

We are all familiar with many powerful New Testament passages which speak about God's

love for sinners on display at Calvary:

1st John 4:10- Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be

the propitiation for our sins.

1st John 3:16- Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we

ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.

John 3:16- For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever

believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Ephesians 2:4-5- But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even

when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)

Titus 3:4,5- But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by

works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the

washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

Romans 8:37-39- Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor

things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able

to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 5:8- But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ

died for us.

...and many more like verses.

But I thought that I would make reference to the Old Testament to get another perspective of

the love that God has for us in Christ. Christ said that the Scriptures testify of Him in John 5:39. The New Testament had not been written when He spoke these words, so Christ is referencing the Old Testament.

Why waste time going to the Greek and Hebrew languages to show the degrees of the love of God or the difference between marital love and brotherly love when that stuff isn't only skull numbingly boring but many times simply isn't true. (Brother Hayes wrote an article in the Bible Baptist Bulletin that blows all of that nonsense to smithereens.)

Agape, phileo,... horsefeathers. That's the talk of someone who hasn't received the love of the truth and is deceived into thinking that grammar is going to bring them a greater understanding of the love of God.

Granted, sometimes, occasionally there are tidbits and curiosities of those languages which might give light on a subject, but they never give greater light than what the scriptures themselves already say in King James English.

We often remark how the grace of God is evidenced from cover to cover (even though the means of appropriating that grace differs) so it is with God's love through the Lord Jesus Christ. It isn't limited to New Testament passages. It is from cover to cover, from age to age, from eternity past to eternity future. The great theme of God's redeeming love at Calvary isn't just in the New Testament. It was just in mystery form until the New Testament.

The Stripes Of Chastisement are prophesied in Isaiah 53.

Psalm 89:30-32- If his children forsake my law, and walk not in my judgments; If they break my statutes, and keep not my commandments; Then will I visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes.

Proverbs 20:30- The blueness of a wound cleanseth away evil: so do stripes the inward parts of the belly.

Hebrews 12:1-11- Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let

us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the

race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that

was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the

throne of God. For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be

wearied and faint in your minds. Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin. And ye have

forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the

chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness. Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.

Psalm 129:3- The plowers plowed upon my back: they made long their furrows.

Isaiah 50:4-11- The Lord GOD hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary: he wakeneth morning by morning, he wakeneth mine ear to hear as the learned. The Lord GOD hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away back. I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and spitting. For the Lord GOD will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed. He is near that justifieth me; who will contend with me? let us stand together: who is mine adversary? let him come near to me. Behold, the Lord GOD will help me; who is he that shall condemn me? lo, they all shall wax old as a garment; the moth shall eat them up. Who is among you that feareth the LORD, that obeyeth the voice of his servant, that walketh in darkness, and hath no light? let him trust in the name of the LORD, and stay upon his God. Behold, all ye that kindle a fire, that compass yourselves about with sparks: walk in the light ofyour fire, and in the sparks that ye have kindled. This shall ye have of mine hand; ye shall lie down in sorrow.

The stripes that the Romans laid on Christ's back were prophesied in Isaiah 53 long before the Romans laid their hands on a cat-of-nine-tails.

Luke 23:13-16- And Pilate, when he had called together the chief priests and the rulers and the people,

Said unto them, Ye have brought this man unto me, as one that perverteth the people: and, behold, I,

having examined him before you, have found no fault in this man touching those things whereof ye

accuse him: No, nor yet Herod: for I sent you to him; and, lo, nothing worthy of death is done unto him. I will therefore chastise him, and release him.

Luke 22:63-65- And the men that held Jesus mocked him, and smote him. And when they had blindfolded him, they struck him on the face, and asked him, saying, Prophesy, who is it that smote thee? And many other things blasphemously spake they against him.

The Crown Of Thorns that Christ wore were prophetically illustrated in Genesis 22 with the ram caught in the thicket by his horns. That's what Christ meant when He said Abraham saw his day.

John 8:56- Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad.

Matthew 27:29- And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand: and they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, Hail, King of the Jews!

Hebrews 6:8- But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned.

Abraham knew the love of sacrifing his only son. He also knew that all of God's promises to him were through Isaac. He understood that God would somehow keep that promise. The promise of resurrecting a fallen son was believed by Abraham back in Genesis.

Hebrews 11:17-19- By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the

promises offered up his only begotten son, Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called:

Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure.

The Pierced Hands, Feet And Side were all prophesied. In fact, Psalms 22 prophesies the crucifixion in amazing detail!

Psalm 22:7,8,14-19- All they that see me laugh me to scorn: they shoot out the lip, they shake the head, saying, He trusted on the LORD that he would deliver him: let him deliver him, seeing he delighted in him. I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint: my heart is like wax; it is melted in the midst of my bowels. My strength is dried up like a potsherd; and my tongue cleaveth to my jaws; and thou hast brought me into the dust of death. For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet. I may tell all my bones: they look and stare upon me. They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture. But be not thou far from me, O LORD: O my strength, haste thee to help me. 

Zechariah 12:10- And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the

spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn.

Isaiah 49:15-16- Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son

of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.

John 19:32-37- 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 true, that ye might believe. For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken. And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.

Revelation 1:7- Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.

John 20:24-29- But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe. And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.

Eternal scars that show his love for us as an eternal servant to the Father are foreshadowed in the faithful servant.

Exodus 21:5-6- And if the servant shall plainly say, I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free: Then his master shall bring him unto the judges; he shall also bring him to the door, or unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an aul; and he shall serve him for ever. 

Bearing Our Curse On The Cross is also found in the Old Testament Scriptures.

Deuteronomy 21:22-23- And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death, and he be to be put to death, and thou hang him on a tree: His body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but thou shalt in any wise bury him that day; (for he that is hanged is accursed of God;) that thy land be not defiled, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.

Galatians 3:13- Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is

written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:

Jeremiah 31:3- The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an

everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.

John 12:32- And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.

We are Undeserving Of His Great Love, and yet He still loves us!

Deuteronomy 7:6-8- For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth. The LORD did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: But because the LORD loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your fathers, hath the LORD brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt.

Romans 5:6-8- For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For

scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Nothing was held back. Not the judgment. Not the punishment. Not the promises. And not the prophesy.

Proverbs 8:21- That I may cause those that love me to inherit substance; and I will fill their treasures.

Song of Solomon 8:6-7- Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm: for love is strong as death; jealousy is cruel as the grave: the coals thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most vehement

flame. Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it: if a man would give all the

substance of his house for love, it would utterly be contemned. (counted as nothing)

Proverbs 6:30-31- Men do not despise a thief, if he steal to satisfy his soul when he is hungry; But if he

be found, he shall restore sevenfold; he shall give all the substance of his house.

Matthew 13:45-46- Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls:

Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.

Romans 8:31-34- What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He

that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.

Is it any wonder that Christ constantly told them to search the Scriptures? He is typified and prophesied throughout the Old Testament! They just couldn't see it.

-Adam Trosclair