The Dark Knight and the Longing for Resurrection

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In the latest installment of the newest batman series, the Dark Knight, one of the characters is resurrected. At least that's the latest Hollywood "scoop". Liam Neeson played the ignominious, Ra's al Ghul, in the first installment of the series, Batman Begins. Supposedly, this character was supposedly killed during burning of Wayne Manor. But, those of us who know, know that in some sort of way, he is "un-kill-able." While they are still not sure whether or not this means a cameo flashback or possible something more, the character's billing is being promoted as, "Risen from the Dead: Liam Neeson Makes Comeback in the Dark Knight Rises." His long-anticipated return has been further verified in the newest movie, Dark Knight Rises. According to NZ City:

The 59-year-old actor will reprise his part of Ra's al Ghul for the forthcoming movie, despite his character being killed off in 2005's 'Batman Begins', with the news revealed in Warner Bros' production notes for his latest film 'Wrath of the Titans'.

We Want Resurrection 

Liam Neeson reprising his role as Ra's al Ghul

We seem to always hope that someone can make a comeback from the dead. Our hope can be seen in the macabre with such characters as Dracula and Frankenstein's monster. It can also have a technological bent as people are placing their bodies is a frozen stasis in a hope that one day in the future, they will be able to be brought back from the dead. Spiritually, we often hear of "near death" experiences that tell us of those who were physiologically passed from this life, and were able to return. (Although I never believe I went that far, I did have something like that happen to me. See www.TreyRhodes.info for more on my experience). We all have a hope built into us that envisions more life after dying. It what the Bible terms, eternity in our hearts. These are the words of King Solomon:

He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also put eternity in their hearts (italics mine) Ecclesiastes 3:11 (HCSB)

If Only Someone Could Return from the Dead
I recently heard someone quip, "No one knows what waits for us after death, no one has ever come back to tell us." To that, my answer is there is someone. He is Jesus Christ. The only time the past tense is ever used of Him was when it was He who was dead and is now alive (Revelation 1:18, 2:8, 11:8). Unlike Liam Neeson's character Ra's al Ghul, there can be no doubt that our Savior Jesus Christ rose from the dead. For if He never rose from the dead, neither do we. (See 1 Corinthians 15). According to Dr. Craig H. Blomberg of Cambridge University in England:

If the Crucifixion was as early as A.D. 30, Paul's conversion was about 32. His first meeting with the apostles in Jerusalem would have been about A.D. 35. At some point along there, Paul was given this creed, which had already been formulated and was being used in the early church. Now here you have the key facts about Jesus' death for our sins, plus a detailed list of those to whom He appeared in resurrected form -- all dating back to within two to five years of the events themselves! (The Case for Christ, Lee Strobel, p. 44)

They Really Believed
There can be no doubt that the apostles believed what they saw. Paul believed what was reported to him. And the facts could be checked out by anyone of the day with over 500 people that saw Jesus of Nazareth alive after had been executed by crucifixion.

You can choose not to believe the accounts of these honest, upstanding men of the first century, but you you would be hard-pressed to say that they didn't believe what they reported to us. After all, these same men and women, nearly to the person, all died saying they believed when they could have easily recanted as they were tortured and martyred for their beliefs.

Will You?
This Easter, it all really comes down to this, will you believe? C.S. Lewis reminds us with what has come to be known as "the Trilemma":

I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: "I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept His claim to be God." That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic - on the level with a man who says he is a poached egg - or he would be the devil of hell. You must take your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse.

You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. (C.S.Lewis, Mere Christianity, London: Collins, 1952, p54-56)

The Apostle Thomas examines Jesus's side

You Shall Know the Truth
If you don't quite get it...you wouldn't be alone. You see, Thomas didn't quite get it, so Jesus came to Him and told him to touch His hands and side. Thomas examined Jesus and then fell at Jesus' feet and proclaimed Him as, "My Lord and my God." (John 20:28). The choice is before you. Jesus, willingly asks you to examine His life, death, and resurrection. He is not afraid. He wants you to find out the truth. So, Jesus comes to you today and asks you to believe. As these words reach through the millenia, Jesus is reaching out to you...

Will you believe?


Pastor Trey Rhodes

If you would like a copy of The Case for Christ, please send us your name and address at:
contact@myoceansidechurch.com and we'll get you a book.

See you this weekend at Oceanside Church. Two services for you to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus and somewhere you can experience Him:

• Saturday night at 8:00 p.m. 
• Sunday morning at 10:30 a.m. 

For more information, directions, and what to expect, go to:
www.MyOceansideChurch.com

For information about upcoming events go to:
www.OCAnnounce.info

Changers Can't Quit

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It is oh so easy to start a task. You hear the words, watch the commercial, read the book, or do the research and you are all "gung ho". Soon, the excitement subsides and the hard work begins. It is the reason why finishing the job is always what's most difficult.

Quitters Don't Win
No doubt, you have probably been taught since you were a child that you shouldn't be a "quitter". As I look back, I'm sure it's because so many times I decided to do something, like take music lessons or play sports, and then when the excitement wore off, didn't have the maturity to stick it out.

As a result, we have come up with a multitude of ways to keep on keepin' on. One tactic was promoted by a motivational speaker. One thing he did was to cut the word "quit" out of his dictionary. Others have said we need to have accountability to someone. Still others have told us that we just need to sludge through no matter how hard it may be.

Silent Cal and the Power of Persistence
Have you ever heard this from one of our former presidents? They called him Silent Cal, but when he did speak, it was profound. Here is his thoughts on persistence (thanks to my new friend from Michigan, Kevin, for sharing this with me on Sunday):

Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan, 'press on' has solved, and always will solve, the problems of the human race. Calvin Coolidge

While "omnipotence" is a strong word, it expresses the power of persistence. Let's persevere.

Am I Truly Committed?
Is there anyone reading who would dispute that there are many things that can and will come along that will cause you to doubt your commitment or your original decision. It can start as a whisper then crescendo into a full symphony...if we let it. The doubts can surface anytime there is opposition or hardship. We begin to question, "Was only our emotions working or was it a true commitment?"

Jack Fischl lives in an indigenous reservation in western Panama as a Community Economic Development Consultant assisting small businesses. Expanding his vision to help others, he moved from just a simple concern for others to making a difference. He gives some good tips that can help us all "change our world". (Go to his blog here) His words are not as dramatic as they are simple reality:

Be consistent in your efforts, research your cause regularly, and expect to feel overwhelmed at some point. Not necessarily by the difficulty of your own efforts but by the scope of the problem. If it was easily solvable, you wouldn't need to work on it.

Commitment to a cause, as we push through the hard things, is what will ultimately make the difference

The Impact of One
One of our small group members, when asked what encouraged her the most about "52 Days to Change Your World" said that it was understanding the impact of what she can do to change the world. That one person can really make a difference. So much of persevering is experiencing your own individual desire to help change the world, and it matters. You might not be able to help everyone, but you can help someone. You might not have the resources to change everything, but you can change something.

Turning Your World Upside Down
It is that attitude that turned the word upside down in the first century. It started with one man, whose name was Paul of Tarsus. He decided, someone's got to do something, it might as well be me. He began by seeing the need of people who were wandering in a dark world without Christ. He sustained momentum by reproducing his walk with Christ into men like Silas, Timothy, and Titus. Finally, he secured the change by bringing together Christ-followers into communities that would then reproduce themselves over and over again. For the next two thousand years, the churches that began from simple missionary journeys would experience God's power working through them time and time again. Now there are over a billion people in our world who claim the name of Christ. Paul only had a little more than a decade on this side of eternity, yet this one man began a missionary movement that has progressed without fail in every generation. It is only a few years after he began traveling his world and changing lives in Christ that we hear these words in Acts 17:6. Mind you, this is from someone who was shocked at the impact of this man's persistence:

These who have turned the world upside down have come here too. (Acts 17:6 NKJV)

Now, some 2700 years later, the words of the prophet Isaiah can speak to you and encourage you as I'm sure they did for Paul as a young Jewish boy:

Surely your turning of things upside down shall be esteemed as the potter's clay (Isaiah 29:16 KJV)

As clay can be molded with perseverance and care, in the same way, you can change your world if you don't give up and keep working at it. It is what we all can possess and is truly the great equalizer. That is why, as we mold our world, we choose to never give in, never give up, and never give out.

How about you? Are you ready to turn your world upside down? Then...

"if it's going to happen, I can't quit".

Pastor Trey Rhodes


Lots going on at Oceanside Church.
Easter is on the way. 
Who will you introduce to the resurrected Savior?


More here ... www.ocannounce.info