Read John 11:1-44. In what sense was Jesus “glorified” by the sickness and death of Lazarus (John 11:4)? Here, too, Jesus uses the metaphor for sleep in talking about death. “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up” (John 11:11, NIV). When some thought He was talking about literal sleep (John 11:11-13), … Continue reading –>
The resurrections prior to Jesus’ own death and resurrection were not limited to any specific ethnic group or social class. Moses was perhaps the greatest human leader of God’s people ever (Deuteronomy 34:10-12). By contrast, the poor Phoenician widow was not even an Israelite (1 Kings 17:9). The Shunammite woman was prominent in her community (2 Kings 4:8). … Continue reading –>
The Bible says that Jesus “went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him” (Acts 10:38, NASB). Indeed, all the Gospels are full of accounts of Jesus ministering to many needy and hurting souls, which is why later many Jews came to believe that Jesus was the … Continue reading –>
Read 1 Kings 17:8-24 and 2 Kings 4:18-37. What similarities and differences do you see in these two resurrections? In Hebrews 11:1-40, we read that by faith “women received back their dead by resurrection” (Hebrews 11:35, NASB). This was the case in the two resurrections depicted in the texts for today. The first one (see 1 Kings 17:8-24) occurred during the great … Continue reading –>
Some Greek Church Fathers from Alexandria argued that, when Moses died, two Moseses were seen: one alive in the spirit, another dead in the body; one Moses ascending to heaven with angels, the other buried in the earth. (See Origen, Homilies on Joshua 2.1; Clement of Alexandria, Stromata 6.15.) This distinction between the assumption of the soul and the … Continue reading –>
Sabbath Afternoon Read for This Week’s Study: Jude 9, Luke 9:28-36, 1 Kings 17:8-24, Luke 7:11-17, Mark 5:35-43, John 11:1-44. Memory Text: “Jesus said to her, ’I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die forever. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26, , … Continue reading –>
Sharing Living Water By David Maldonado Antonio Maldonado didn’t know much English, so he motioned to an interpreter at the reception at the U.S. White House in Washington. Antonio, a member of a mining delegation visiting from Peru, saw that the guests were being served fine whiskey, but he simply wanted a glass of pure … Continue reading –>
Further Thought: Read Ellen G. White, “Visions of Future Glory,” Pages 722-733, in Prophets and Kings. Modern science teaches that all matter is composed of atoms, themselves made up of two smaller particles, quarks and leptons, which are believed to be the building blocks of all physical reality. If, then, at the core the physical world is quarks … Continue reading –>
As we will see, the New Testament talks a great deal about the resurrection of the dead; and, as we have already seen, the idea of the resurrection of the dead appears in the Old Testament, as well. These people, in Old Testament times, had the hope of the final resurrection that we do. Martha, … Continue reading –>
Read Isaiah 26:14 and Isaiah 26:19. What is the contrast between those who will perish forever (Isaiah 26:14; see also Malachi 4:1) and those who will receive eternal life (Isaiah 26:19)? The book of Isaiah presents a major contrast between the majesty of God and our human fragility (see Isaiah chapter 40). Though we are like the grass that withers and the … Continue reading –>
