April 8, 2012
| Today's Photograph . . . . He Is Not Here! He Has Risen! (Raymond R) |
| Easter Sunday - He's Alive !!!!!!! |
| |
Bible Study Verse
Luke 24:1-12
On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the Body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, "Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; He has risen! Remember how He told you, while He was still with you in Galilee: 'The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.' " Then they remembered His words. When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the eleven and to all the others. It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them who told this to the apostles. But they did not believe the women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense. Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb. Bending over, he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves, and he went away, wondering to himself what had happened. (NIV)
Thoughts
Early rifle Elk hunt in northern Arizona with my son. I hope you all don't get tired of hearing about this hunt, because I don't get tired of telling about it! Steve and Dean had seen a good bull there the day before and they were hoping to help my son put his tag on this bad boy!
As my camp host, Dan and I sat in the stillness on a heavily wooded bench overlooking a draw where elk were moving during early rifle season, the silence of the morning was broken by a bull bugling, then another, and followed by another. This went on for several minutes as we quietly worked our way closer to one of the bulls. All the time I was really hoping to hear my son's .375 Remington Ultra Mag tell me that they had gotten on the bull from the day before.
Suddenly, we heard a sound like an F-16 coming through the air, then the strike of the bullet, then the report from the rifle (we were about a quarter mile from the bull, maybe a half mile down range from my son)! From the sound of the bullet, I knew it was his monster gun. All went silent. I wondered anxiously if his shot had hit the bull. Then we heard the call on the radio from Steve to Dean. The bull was down!
Dan and I abandoned my hunt immediately and hustled over to my son and his bull. I had heard the radio report of the kill, but I had to see this for myself!
(Cliff S)
Action Point
"Then came Sunday, and the stone was rolled away..." So goes the words of one of my favorite Easter songs. The stone was rolled away!!! The tomb was empty!!! The angels inside the tomb announced to the women that Jesus had been raised from the dead, just as He had said He would be.
Now, can you imagine being one of the disciples when the women returned from the grave? What kind of nonsensical story is this? The tomb is empty? Jesus is alive? Like Peter, I would have had to see this for myself.
The disciples were blessed to actually see Jesus physically after the resurrection. We don't get to. However, when I examine the record, there is one compelling fact that makes me a believer in Christ. That fact is the empty tomb. In over 2000 years nobody has been able to produce the body of Jesus. If they could, that would be the end of Christianity. But they can't, because it isn't there!!!
More than anything else, the empty tomb tells me that Jesus was raised from the dead by His Father, God, and is alive today and sitting at the right hand of the Father just as the Bible says.
If I put my faith in Him, if I confess my sins to Him, He has promised that He will forgive me, that He will wash me clean with His sacrificial blood, and that He will prepare a place for me to spend eternity with Him.
If you never have before, will you join me today, Easter Sunday 2012, and place your faith in Jesus? Go to the Sportsmen's Devotional website. After you get done drooling over the bull elk, click on "About Us," and then click on the "Sportsmans Devotional.com prayer." There you will find a simple prayer of faith and you can become a child of the King, just as I am!!!
Sportsman's Tip of the Day
There's an old adage, I think it was Robert Ruark who said it, "Always use enough gun." It is good advice. The .375 RUM with a 270 grain Barnes Triple Shock bullet we used for elk is big. But, it did the job on my son's elk with a one shot kill at 460 yards. Another gun with less power may not have provided the results we wanted.
