Kopp Disclosure
(John 3:19-21)
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Here's one of my
favorite and most salty stories that I cannot tell on Christmas Eve or Easter
Day for fear of insulting people who insult God by winking at Him during their
semi-annual pilgrimages to the holy land.
A man dies, goes
to the gates of heaven, and is greeted by Peter who asks, "Why should we
let you in?"
"Because," the man claims proudly, "I went to church on
Christmas and gave $5."
Peter turns to
Gabriel who checks the book and says, "That's right. He went to
church on Christmas and gave $5."
The apostle asks
the man, "What else?"
"Well,"
the man continues, "I went to church on Easter and gave $5."
Peter turns to
Gabriel who checks the book and says, "That's right. He went to
church on Easter and gave $5."
The apostle asks
the man, "What else?"
"Hey, hey,
hey," the man protests, "What do you mean, 'What else?' I was
just like every other 'member' who went to church on Christmas and Easter and
gave $10 a year."
Peter turns to
Gabriel and asks, "What should we do?"
The wise old
angel strokes his beard, closes the book, and says, "I say we give the $10
back to him and tell him to go to hell."
I should but
don't tell that story because I did about 30 years ago and two church
ladies took me into a back room and told me how rude I was for insulting people
who insult God by winking at...
Geez.
Is it any wonder
why so many churches are going straight to...?
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Speaking of
integrity, Easter Day is sooooooo
big because everything about Him/us depends on it.
1 Corinthians
15:14: "If Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is
your faith."
True.
If all of
that/our talk about Jesus' resurrection is false, He's a poser and so's the Church.
Buuuuuuut if He did beat
death, everything that He claimed is certified and winking at Him has frightful
consequences existentially and eternally.
Sooooooo the credibility
of Jesus' divine declarations and the Church's affirmations of those
divine declarations depend upon the fact of His resurrection.
@#$%
It's been said
there's more evidence for the resurrection of Jesus than the birth of George
Washington.
1. The Church
has consistently focused on and referred to the resurrection of Jesus as the
keystone of its praise and practice since A.D. 32.
2. The worship
calendar shifted for Christians from the Jewish Sabbath (7th day of the week)
to Sunday (1st day of the week) because Jesus rose from the dead on Sunday (see
Mark 16).
3. The New
Testament consists of 27 testimonies to our Lord's resurrection.
4. The disciples
were transformed from cowards into bravehearted gospelers willing to face the
tests of torture and martyrdom because of Jesus' resurrection.
5. Jesus is alive
to all who believe in Him. This is the most compelling proof of all:
"You ask me how I know He lives? He lives within my heart!"
Those facts have
caused authentic Christians to worship Him regularly,
work for Him enthusiastically,
and witness to His invitational, inclusive, unconditional, and
eternal love convincingly.
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The greatest
proof of His resurrection is the hunger/thirst of people who get it/Him to
increase intimacy with Him.
People who know
Jesus is alive live and
look like it.
Resurrection
people can't distinguish between Sundays.
All of 'em get
maximum effort/enthusiasm.
Every Sunday has
been, uh, resurrecting for those who know the real deal since that first one.
@#$%
The local street
preacher who has insisted I approach Rabbi Cahn's The Harbinger with more
than a wink called earlier in Holy Week and told me how much he dislikes Easter
Day worship because of all of the posers who show up and bring the story in the
first section of this KD to
mind.
Before I could
bring it up, he contradicted, "And don't tell me what a great opportunity
it is to tell people about Jesus who never show up who never show up
anyway. When are you going to get it through your skull that they're just
doing their superstitious religion thing so they can think they're safe by
covering their bases on...?"
Whoa.
Before I could
bring it up, he contradicted, "Why don't you stop playing footsies with
those phonies who show up once or twice a year and tell them that they better
get right with Jesus before it's too...?"
Help us, Jesus!
Hmm.
That's what He
proved by His resurrection.
Because it's/He's
true, everyone distancing themselves from Him will be sorry sooner or later and
definitely in the...
Gulp.
I don't know if
that message can wait for the week after Easter when only the choir's around.
All I know is
people who really get it/Him consider every Sunday to be "a little Easter"
and are compelled so joyfully and eagerly to...
Yep.
You can always
distinguish the authentics from the posers.
It's the
difference between Church and church.
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Blessings and Love!
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