Illustrations about Easter.
Messing Up the Meaning of Easter
On Sunday morning, April 4, 2021, the Rev. Raphael Warnock stood in front of his congregation and delivered an Easter sermon like he’d done for the past decade-and-a-half. His message…
Illustrations about Easter.
On Sunday morning, April 4, 2021, the Rev. Raphael Warnock stood in front of his congregation and delivered an Easter sermon like he’d done for the past decade-and-a-half. His message…
When people talk about the validity of Jesus’ resurrection, it’s inevitable that someone asks, “What are the chances?” It’s a fair question. After all, most of us know plenty of people who died…and stayed dead.
But is chance a good basis for belief?
Easter always stirs conversations about the credibility of the resurrection. Some believe the Bible’s version is trustworthy, while others give no credence to Scripture’s testimony whatsoever. In an attempt to bring balance to the discussion, one group offers a middle-ground theory they hope will work for everyone.
Here’s why it won’t.
In the summer of 1815, Europe’s eyes were fixed on the small town of Waterloo in what is now modern-day Belgium. There, an English and Prussian coalition bravely faced the army of Napoleon Bonaparte, a Frenchman who’d brought war to the entire continent.
The English were eagerly waiting for battlefield news…but they didn’t like what they were hearing.
In August of 480 BC, a few hundred Spartans led by King Leonidas battled against 150,000 Persian warriors led by King Xerxes. The heavily outnumbered Greeks held their ground, repelled the invaders, and controlled the battle for three days.
But there was one thing King Leonidas couldn’t control…and it would prove fatal.
It’s the phone call no parent wants to receive. Ever. But on Thursday, February 28, 1991, Cecil and Ruth were both informed that their son, PFC. Clayton Carpenter, was killed in action in the Persian Gulf War. In an instant, their lives were changed.
Until the phone rang again.
Snakes can lead to really big problems, which is why they’re best handled by experts. When ridding themselves of the slithering nuisances, do-it-yourselfers face the risk of getting bit, getting hurt, or even getting killed.
Or, like one woman in Texas, they can even cause you to burn down your house.
Suleiman the Magnificent was the longest-ruling leader in the Ottoman Empire. The mighty sultan led successful military conquests on multiple continents and the legal system he set in place transformed the lives of millions for several centuries. But like all men, both great and small, he eventually died.
But through an elaborate hoax, his dead body was kept on the throne!
Nobody witnessed the crazed gunman sneak into Ford’s Theater the night Lincoln was shot, but many thousands saw the President’s body as it journeyed by train from Washington to Springfield where it was laid to final rest. The home stretch of Lincoln’s earthly travels deeply impacted the grateful people of a grieving nation.
Especially one nameless black woman from New York.
Daybreak on April 2, 1945. True, it was Easter Sunday, but the last thing Louis Boyle had on his mind was the resurrection of Jesus or church services. That’s because the young Marine was standing aboard the USS Sea Bass, one of 50,000 American soldiers, about to invade the island of Okinawa.