Posted on 04/10/2009 10:32:45 AM PDT by DouglasKC
Consider these important facts. First, Easter Sunday is traditionally revered as the day of Jesus' resurrection—although the Bible clearly states that He had already risen before Sunday dawned in the city of Jerusalem.
Second, even though Good Friday is generally observed as the traditional day of His crucifixion, Christ Himself told the disciples that He would be in the grave for all of three days and three nights. How can three days and three nights possibly fit between a Friday-afternoon crucifixion and a Sunday-morning resurrection?
Third, the word Easter is not found in the Greek New Testament. Nor is there biblical mention of or instruction to observe Lent.
Finally, unlike the specific instruction to commemorate Christ's death, there is absolutely no commandment in the New Testament to observe the date of Jesus' resurrection. Yet today's religious customs are so ingrained in the church calendar that many would consider it heretical to question them.
Most of the world is scarcely aware that the original apostles did not institute or keep these customs, nor were they observed by the early Christian Church. Try as you might to find them, Lent, Good Friday and Easter are not so much as mentioned in the original Greek wording of the New Testament. (The word Easter appears only once in the King James Version of the Bible—in Acts 12:4—where it is flagrantly mistranslated from the Greek word pascha, which should be translated "Passover," as most versions render it.)
The justification for the Lenten 40-day preparation for Easter is traditionally based on Jesus' 40-day wilderness fast before His temptation by Satan (Harper's Bible Dictionary, "Lent"; Matthew 4:1-2; Mark 1:13). The problem with this explanation is that this incident is not connected in any way with Jesus' supposed observance of Easter. The 40-day pre-Easter practice of fasting and penance did not originate in the Bible.
Many people still follow such practices, assuming that such activities honor God and are approved by Him. But, we should ask, how does God regard such extrabiblical customs? Consider God's instructions to those who would worship Him:
"Take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, 'How did these nations serve their gods? I also will do likewise.' You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way; for every abomination to the LORD which He hates they have done to their gods; for they burn even their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods. Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it" (Deuteronomy 12:30-32, emphasis added throughout).
The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia notes: "The term Easter was derived from the Anglo-Saxon 'Eostre,' the name of the goddess of spring. In her honor sacrifices were offered at the time of the vernal [spring] equinox" (1982, Vol. 2, "Easter").
Many battles were fought over its observance date, but the Council of Nicea finally fixed the date of Easter in A.D. 325 to fall on the first Sunday after the full moon on or after the vernal equinox (March 21).
Not generally known is that "the preparation for Easter season, beginning on Ash Wednesday and continuing for a week after Easter Day, was filled with pagan customs that had been revised in the light
of Christianity. Germanic nations, for example, set bonfires in spring. This custom was frowned on by the Church, which tried to suppress it . . . In the sixth and seventh centuries [monks] came to Germany, [bringing] their earlier pagan rites[,] and would bless bonfires outside the church building on Holy Saturday. The custom spread to France, and eventually it was incorporated into the Easter liturgy of Rome in the ninth century. Even today the blessing of the new fire is part of the Vigil of Easter.
"Medieval celebrations of Easter began at dawn. According to one old legend, the sun dances on Easter morning, or makes three jumps at the moment of its rising, in honor of Christ's resurrection. The rays of light penetrating the clouds were believed to be angels dancing for joy.
"Some Easter folk traditions that have survived today are the Easter egg, rabbit and lamb. During medieval times it was a tradition to give eggs at Easter to servants. King Edward I of England had 450 eggs boiled before Easter and dyed or covered with gold leaf. He then gave them to members of the royal household on Easter day. The egg was an earlier pagan symbol of rebirth and was presented at the spring equinox, the beginning of the pagan new year.
"The Easter rabbit is mentioned in a German book of 1572 and also was a pagan fertility symbol. The Easter lamb goes back to the Middle Ages; the lamb, holding a flag with a red cross on a white field, represented the resurrected Christ [rather than the sacrifice of His life, as a fulfillment of the Passover lamb, that paid for the sins of the world (John 1:29)]" (Anthony Mercatante, Facts on File Encyclopedia of World Mythology and Legend, 1988, "Easter").
Easter traditions are embraced by many who profess Christianity. Yet none of these practices are found in the Bible or the customs of the early Church. Jesus and His apostles did not establish or perpetuate such practices, which obscure the true biblical meanings and observances of this time of year. In fact, a fourth-century church historian, Socrates Scholasticus, wrote in his Ecclesiastical History that neither the apostles nor the Gospels taught the observance of Easter, nor did they or Jesus give a law requiring the keeping of this feast. Instead, "the observance originated not by legislation, but as a custom" (chapter 22, emphasis added).
Even as early as the close of the second century, the theologian Irenaeus bore witness in his letter to Victor, bishop of Rome, that some early Roman bishops forbade the observance of Passover on the 14th of Nisan. This was the date of the biblical observance practiced each spring by Jesus and the apostles. At the time that the Nisan 14 Passover observance was banned, ecclesiastical authorities introduced Lent and Easter into Christian practice.
A century later the Syriac Didascalia recorded the attempts of teachers in Rome to reconcile Jesus' words that He would be entombed "three days and three nights in the heart of the earth" (Matthew 12:40) with a Friday-afternoon crucifixion and a Sunday-morning resurrection. According to their reasoning, Jesus' sufferings were part of the three days and three nights of Scripture. Friday morning from 9 to noon was counted as the first day, and noon to 3 p.m. (which was darkened) was considered the first night. Three in the afternoon to sunset was reckoned as the second day, whereas Friday night to Saturday morning constituted the second night. The daylight part of Saturday was the third day, and the night portion to Sunday morning was the third night.
In other words, the three days and three nights in the grave that Jesus said would be the sign that He was indeed sent from God were transformed into a period of two days and two nights, or a total of no more than 48 hours. This has subsequently been reduced even further in modern times by figuring from late afternoon Friday to early Sunday morning, which takes away another 12 hours or more. Such reasoning has to discount or somehow explain away Jesus' clear promise that He would be entombed three days and three nights.
Easter and Lent are nonbiblical and were not observed by the apostles or the first-century Church. The biblical record shows, however, that the early Church diligently kept other observances, the New Testament Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread, just as Jesus and the apostles had done (Matthew 26:17-19; Acts 20:6; 1 Corinthians 5:8; 11:23-26). These were supplanted in later years by the customs and practices of Easter and Lent.
Passover is an annual reminder of Jesus' sacrificial death to pay the penalty for our sins (Matthew 26:26-28). The Feast of Unleavened Bread is a celebration that focuses on a Christian's need to live in sincerity, truth and purity (1 Corinthians 5:8). The nonbiblical festivals of Lent and Easter, added decades after the time of Jesus Christ and the apostles, only cloud the true significance of Christ's life, death and resurrection and the purpose of His coming.
The Passover, instituted in Exodus 12, continues by Jesus Christ's example and command—but with a change of symbols. Jesus' death fulfilled the symbolism of the sacrificial Passover lamb (Matthew 26:17-28; John 1:29). However, the New Testament Passover has been improperly replaced as an annual memorial of the death of Christ by Easter. We are commanded to commemorate Christ's death, not His resurrection (1 Corinthians 11:23-28).
Jesus Christ's promise was fulfilled exactly as He said, a fact that is made clear when we study and compare the Gospel accounts. These records give a clear, logical explanation that is perfectly consistent with Christ's words. Let's focus on Jesus' last days on earth to gain the proper perspective and understanding of how and when these events occurred.
Jesus said that, like the prophet Jonah, He would be entombed three days and three nights and that He would be raised up the third day after His crucifixion and death (Matthew 12:39-40; 17:23; 20:19). Putting these scriptures together, we see that He was resurrected at the end of the third day after His death. Luke 23:44 shows that He died around the ninth hour (Jewish reckoning), or 3 p.m. He would have been buried within the next few hours so that His body could be entombed before the approaching Sabbath (John 19:31).
Jesus' resurrection could not have been
on a Sunday morning because John 20:1-2 shows that He had already risen before Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early in the morning, arriving "while it was still dark." Therefore, neither could His death have occurred Friday afternoon, since that would not allow for His body to be in the grave three days and three nights. Clearly, the Good Friday-Easter Sunday explanation and tradition is without scriptural foundation.
Notice also that John 19:31 mentions that the Sabbath immediately after Jesus' death was "a high day"—not the weekly seventh-day Sabbath (from Friday evening to Saturday evening), but one of the annual Sabbaths, the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread (see Leviticus 23:6-7), which can fall on any day of the week.
In fact, two Sabbaths—first an annual Holy Day and then the regular weekly Sabbath—are mentioned in the Gospel accounts, a detail overlooked by most people. This can be proven by comparing Mark 16:1 with Luke 23:56.
Mark's account tells us, "Now when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, that they might come and anoint Him" (Mark 16:1). However, Luke's account describes how the women who followed Jesus saw how His body was laid in the tomb. "Then they returned and prepared spices and fragrant oils" for the final preparation of the body. And they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment" (Luke 23:56).
Mark tells us that the women bought the spices after the Sabbath, "when the Sabbath was past." Luke, however, tells us that they prepared the spices and oils, "and they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment." How could the women have bought spices after the Sabbath, yet then prepared them and rested on the same Sabbath?
That is obviously impossible—unless two Sabbaths are involved, with a day between them. Once we realize this, the two accounts become clear (see "The Chronology of Christ's Crucifixion and Resurrection," p. 18). Christ died near 3 p.m. and was placed in the tomb near sunset that day—a Wednesday in the year 31. That evening began the "high day" Sabbath, the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which fell on Thursday that year. The women rested on that day, then on Friday purchased and prepared the spices and oils for Jesus' body, which could not be done on either the Holy Day or the weekly Sabbath. They then rested again on the weekly Sabbath before going to the tomb before daybreak on Sunday morning, at which time they discovered that Christ had already been resurrected.
The fact that two Sabbaths are involved is confirmed by Matthew 28:1, where the women went to the tomb "after the Sabbath." The Sabbath mentioned here is actually plural in the original Greek and should be translated "Sabbaths." Some Bible versions, including Alfred Marshall's Interlinear Greek-English New Testament, Ferrar Fenton's translation, Green's Literal Translation and Young's Literal Translation, make this clear.
Once we realize that two Sabbaths were involved—first an annual Holy Day, which was observed from Wednesday evening until Thursday evening, and the normal weekly Sabbath from Friday evening to Saturday evening, the fulfillment of Christ's words becomes clear.
The Savior of all humanity died near 3 p.m. on Wednesday and was buried shortly before sunset that day. From Wednesday sunset to Thursday sunset is one day and one night; from then until Friday sunset is two days and two nights; and from then until Saturday sunset is three days and three nights. Jesus Christ was resurrected at the end of this three-day and three-night period, near sunset on Saturday. Thus He was already risen long before the women came to the tomb before daylight on Sunday morning.
Jesus Christ's words were thus perfectly fulfilled, as verified by the Gospel accounts. He was not crucified on Friday afternoon, nor was He resurrected on a Sunday morning. The biblical evidence shows the Good Friday-Easter Sunday tradition to be a fabrication.
A correct harmonization of all the facts demonstrates that Jesus died near 3 p.m. that Wednesday afternoon, was entombed near sunset and was resurrected near sunset on Saturday, exactly three days and three nights later—just as He had stated. These are the facts, the correct biblical chronology that verifies the identity of Jesus Christ as the Son of God.
The chart on page 18 gives a day-by-day chronology of these events as described in the Gospel accounts.
Actually, the principal festivals and holidays observed by mainstream Christendom are a poor and pale reflection of true biblical teachings. Easter and Lent are a poor substitute for the wondrous truths revealed by keeping God's feasts.
The New Testament Church continued to observe the annual Passover to commemorate the death of Jesus Christ, but used the new symbols of bread and wine that He instituted (1 Corinthians 11:23-28). Today the members of the United Church of God commemorate this eminently important event in the same manner, in accordance with Christ's instructions. Again, the Bible contains no record of the Church observing Easter or Lent during the time of the apostles, nor any biblical command to observe Good Friday or Easter Sunday, especially since Christ did not die on Good Friday and was not resurrected on Easter Sunday. Instead, the apostles faithfully followed Christ's instructions to observe the biblical Passover "in remembrance" of Him (Luke 22:19; 1 Corinthians 11:24-25). GN
Mazol Tov.shalom b'SHEM Yah'shua HaMashiachHave a wonderful time on the wide road of life.
Enjoy the Pagan traditions of man.
Godzilla my friend;
Xenia doesn’t think as little of you as of me. She hasn’t referred to you as satan; she just thinks that you are headed off to meet him.
But now I know you are functionally illiterate as well. Enjoy your journey on the wide road. You have demonstrated your ignorance of the Holy Word of Elohim.
shalom b'SHEM Yah'shua HaMashiach
Nah, not a silly idea Diego - just a continual strawman ignoring the context of the era an Paul's own teachings to gentiles on the subject. You have yet to prove that he taught the gentiles to observe these feast days and sabbaths as obligatory - since you chose to continue to ignore Paul's teachings to the contrary.
[John 19:31] The Jews, therefore, that the bodies might not remain on the cross on the sabbath, since it was the preparation, (for that sabbath day was a great one,) asked of Pilate that their legs may be broken, and they taken away. John is here describing The First Sabbath of Unleavened Bread [Leviticus 23:6] and he calls it a SABBATW, (singular form)......a Feast Day commanded by The Lord for observance.
Interesting, you seem to totally ignore the phrase (for that sabbath day was a great one,). Yes, for the start of the Feast of Unleaven bread - but John qualified it further THAT SABBATH was a great (or high) one. Thus John was indicating that this sabbath was not only the normal one, but it also coincided with the Passover sabbath. It was a double sabbath.
***But now I know you are functionally illiterate as well.
***
Fascinating. Once a Christian, one cannot return to the womb. By denying Christ’s Church, one denies Christ. But, I forgot for a moment, that you really aren’t Christian and don’t claim to be Christian. In other words, why do you care about Christianity any more than the Jains or the little blue Britons do?
***Enjoy your journey on the wide road. ***
You’ve referred to me as satan recently, now you say that I’m headed off to meet him?
I think that this confusion in posts may reflect the confusion in theology that I see you post. If you are a Jew, then be Jewish. If you are Christian, then be Christian and follow the Church. You don’t get to make up your own theology as you go along.
Ga 2:4 And that because of false brethren unawares brought in, who came in privily to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might bring us into bondage:
Col 2:16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: 17 Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.
Gal 2:16 Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified.
Thats OK, I know where I stand in Christ and who I rely upon for my salvation. :)
Thank you Xenia, I'm sure you labored long and hard to develop this reply to us. I really appreciate the thought you put into it.
The LORD bless thee, and keep thee:
The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:
The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.
***Thank you Xenia, I’m sure you labored long and hard to develop this reply to us. I really appreciate the thought you put into it. ***
She has.
***The LORD bless thee, and keep thee:
The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee:
The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.***
You surpass me, sir. I am too easily caught up in the rough and tumble of dealing with heretics.
Peter, Diego likes to push the 30 AD theory because he is doctrinally predisposed to reject a Sunday resurrection. There are serious problems chronologically with AD 30 not just with his proposed Sabbath sequence conflicts with the gospel narrative. There are other data points here that help us confirm the year.
First Luke 3:1–3 tells us that John the Baptist, Jesus’ forerunner, began his ministry “in the 15th year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar.” Both Roman historians Tacitus (Annales 4 §4) and Suetonius (Tiberius 73) date the beginning of Tiberius’s reign at A.D. 14 (the precise date is August 19, the day of Emperor Augustus’s death). Hence the 15th year of Tiberius’s reign, counting from August 19, A.D. 14, brings us to A.D. 29 (14 + 15 = 29). Luke's account also indicates that John, who was older, had been preaching for a while before Jesus was baptised. Note that AD 29 is only one year away from AD 30. Diego only allows 1 year for Jesus' ministry, which is far too short of a period to account for the gospel account
The Apostle John lists 3 passovers - (2:13, 23); (6:4); and (11:55; 12:1). It is possible that there was a fourth that might be inferred from Mt 12:1 - but that could be another feast as well. This adds up to a length of about 3 ½ years for Jesus’ ministry - placing His crucifixion in AD33. Once again, Diego's numbers don't match the scriptural account.
The AD 33 date also agrees with the interpretation of Daniel's vision of 70 "sevens" (490 prophetic years of 360 days each) (Daniel 9)- a period prophesied that at the end of the 69th week (483 years) after the decree to rebuild the city, messiah would present himself and be cut off. Artaxerxes gave the order to restore Jerusalem to Nehemiah in 444 BC. There is no 0 BC year, 1 BC jumps to 1 AD in 1 year of time. Therefore -
483years X 360 days = 73880 days
73880 / 365.242199( days/yr) = 476 years + 1 year (BC to AD) = 477 calendar years
477 - 444 = 33 AD
This comes out to be the exact day that Jesus rode into Jerusalem (Palm Sunday)
Luke 19:41 ¶ And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it,
42 Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.
Finally, in 33 CE the full moon occured on Friday, Nisan 14th. That makes the Passover a double sabbath since it coincides with the weekly sabbath. John in 20:31 writes ¶ The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation, that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the sabbath day, (for that sabbath day was an high day,) besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.
The chronology from the gospels is very straight forward from there on. Jesus died at the time the Passover lambs were being killed and was buried before the start of the High Sabbath (before 6 PM Friday). The guard was placed at the tomb some time Saturday. And the women came to the tomb at dawn (the day after the sabbaths - a reference to the double sabbath celebrated Friday night - Sat night and at dawn the angel removed the stone. Much more can be said of this sequence, but the simple facts point to 33 CE as the year of Jesus' death. -
1. Only 33 AD meets the clear time line for the ministry documented in the gospels
2. Only 33 AD meets the date obtained from Daniel
3. It has the passover coinciding with the weekly sabbath, matching the gospel narrative.
Hope this clears things up for you
The last three lines were heart felt. XeniaSt is a MJ who’s beliefs are probably far closer to mine than he/she thinks.
***The chronology from the gospels is very straight forward from there on. Jesus died at the time the Passover lambs were being killed and was buried before the start of the High Sabbath (before 6 PM Friday). The guard was placed at the tomb some time Saturday. And the women came to the tomb at dawn (the day after the sabbaths - a reference to the double sabbath celebrated Friday night - Sat night and at dawn the angel removed the stone. Much more can be said of this sequence, but the simple facts point to 33 CE as the year of Jesus’ death. -
1. Only 33 AD meets the clear time line for the ministry documented in the gospels
2. Only 33 AD meets the date obtained from Daniel
3. It has the passover coinciding with the weekly sabbath, matching the gospel narrative.
Hope this clears things up for you***
It certainly illuminates things for me. Thank you.
1Jo 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
If the crucifixion/resurrection was in 33 A.D. then the women of [Mark 16:1] could not have purchased the spices after the Sabbath.....and then rested on another Sabbath after preparing them [Luke 23:56]. There had to be a day in between the First Sabbath of Unleavened [Leviticus 23:6] and the weekly Sabbath, the day of resurrection. Here is the calendar for 33 A.D.
As you can see the Passover (the 14th) was on a Friday that year and the weekly Sabbath (resurrection day) followed next. The women could not purchase the spices on the preparation because they went to the tomb with Joseph [Matthew 27:61][Mark 15:47][Luke 23:55]. They could not purchase the spices [Mark 16:1] after sundown when the body was interred.....because the Passover Sabbath had begun and all the shops in Jerusalem would have been closed. If the crucifixion occurred in 33 A.D. as some erroneously believe the women would have then had to purchase the spices [Mark 16:1], return home and prepare them [Luke 23:56] doing all of this prior to sunrise on Sunday morning because that's the time they appeared at the tomb......with the spices! This means that after the weekly Sabbath ended (sundown Saturday) they would have to do all of this on Saturday night. This is inconceivable because all the shops in Jerusalem would again be closed at night......and it still leaves the question about resting the Sabbath according to the commandment......after they prepared them [Luke 23:56]!
Here is a much more sensible (and scriptural) time line. Calendar for 30 A.D..
As you can see Passover Preparation and the day of crucifixion occurred on Wednesday. The body was entombed shortly before sunset [Luke 23:54] which constituted the first day. The Sabbath of Unleavened Bread began at sundown [John 19:31] and was the first night. The following day (Thursday) continued the Sabbath of Unleavened and was the second day in the tomb. At nightfall (Thursday evening) the Sabbath was past and this time was reckoned as the second night. Friday daylight was the first time the women [Mark 16:1] would have been able to purchase the spices and then they returned home and prepared them [Luke 23:56]. This would have been the third day in the tomb and their task probably took all day as scripture indicates they did not go to the tomb then....but rested the Sabbath according to the commandment. The Sabbath (weekly) began at sundown and during this period of darkness, it would have been the third night in the tomb [Matthew 12:39-40] and Our Lord resurrected Himself sometime before sunset because scripture ........all four Gospels say the tomb was empty when the women got there and were told, "HE IS RISEN"!
[Matthew 28:1] And on the eve of the sabbaths, at the dawn, toward the first of the sabbaths, came Mary the Magdalene, and the other Mary, to see the sepulchre.
[Luke 16:2] and early in the morning of the first of the sabbaths, they come unto the sepulchre, at the rising of the sun.
[Luke 24:1] And on the first of the sabbaths, at early dawn, they came to the tomb, bearing the spices they made ready, and certain others with them.
[John 20:1] And on the first of the sabbaths, Mary the Magdalene doth come early (there being yet darkness) to the tomb, and she seeth the stone having been taken away out of the tomb.
Now....I have not even addressed the impossibility of a Friday afternoon/Sunday morning affair and the fact that the only sign Our Lord would give us was.....He would be in the tomb three days.....and three nights. The main stream church has kept Christians in the dark (they know the truth) over this question for 1700 years. They have done this in the zeal to perpetuate the fantasy and myths which keep their Day of the Sun in the forefront. They are the ones who changed the day of worship from God's Holy Sabbath to Sunday....they admit it.....and they laugh about it.
Here is an interesting comment from Cardinal Gibbon's book, "Faith of Our Fathers," 110th ed., p. 89: "You may read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, and YOU WILL NOT FIND A SINGLE LINE AUTHORIZING THE SANCTIFICATION OF SUNDAY. THE SCRIPTURES ENFORCE THE RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCE OF SATURDAY, a day which we never sanctify."
On September 23, 1893, Cardinal Gibbons also made this statement in the "Catholic Mirror:" "The CATHOLIC CHURCH for over one thousand years before the existence of a Protestant, by virtue of her divine mission, CHANGED THE DAY FROM SATURDAY TO SUNDAY ... THE CHRISTIAN Sabbath (Sunday) IS, therefore, to this day, THE ACKNOWLEDGED OFFSPRING OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH as the spouse of the Holy Ghost, without a word of remonstrance from the Protestant world.
Maybe if Protestants read my post they will understand how foolish they appear.
Neither is there support for worship in the Day of the Pagan God Saturn.
After all, if you’re not a pretentious judaicizer, you’re on the road straight to hell.
Anyone who worships on the Pagan Day of the Sun is going straight to hell. If, however, you worship on the Pagan Day of the Pagan God Saturn, all is well.
***I have not even addressed the impossibility of a Friday afternoon/Sunday morning affair and the fact that the only sign Our Lord would give us was.....He would be in the tomb three days.....and three nights.***
Let us see what Scripture actually says:
Matt. 28:1-2: “Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it.” The first day of the week is Sunday according to Judaism, according to the New Testament since Saturday is the 7th day.
Mark 16:1-4: “Now when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, that they might come and anoint Him. Very early in the morning, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen. And they said among themselves, “Who will roll away the stone from the door of the tomb for us?” But when they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away— for it was very large.”
Luke 24:1: “Now on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they, and certain other women with them, came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared.”
John 20:1 “On the first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb.”
Luke 24:21-23 “But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened. “Yes, and certain women of our company, who arrived at the tomb early, astonished us. When they did not find His body, they came saying that they had also seen a vision of angels who said He was alive.”
Jesus has twice appeared to people none of which were the apostles but disciples. Cleopas and the other disciple had disbelieved the two reports already given of the resurrection. It is now the third day since all these things have occurred. If he was in three 24 hour periods it would have read the 4th day. The scripture is absolutely clear in the eyewitness testimonies on this.
1 Cor. 15:3-4: “ For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures and that he was buried and that He rose again the the third day according to the Scriptures.” The third day. If it was 3 full 24-hours Paul would have said after the third day or more precisely the fourth day. Paul is not preaching another gospel nor taking liberty in interpreting the event, he is speaking according to the Scripture and the facts.
Peter in the book of Acts declares to the Jewish brethren (Acts10:39-40) “And we are witnesses of all things which He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem, whom they killed by hanging on a tree. “Him God raised up on the third day, and showed Him openly. ”
On the third day means that He was crucified on Day 1, spent Day 2 in the grave and was resurrected on Day 3. I think that an examining of the facts make this clear.
***Here is an interesting comment from Cardinal Gibbon’s book, “Faith of Our Fathers,” 110th ed., p. 89: “You may read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, and YOU WILL NOT FIND A SINGLE LINE AUTHORIZING THE SANCTIFICATION OF SUNDAY. THE SCRIPTURES ENFORCE THE RELIGIOUS OBSERVANCE OF SATURDAY, a day which we never sanctify.”
On September 23, 1893, Cardinal Gibbons also made this statement in the “Catholic Mirror:” “The CATHOLIC CHURCH for over one thousand years before the existence of a Protestant, by virtue of her divine mission, CHANGED THE DAY FROM SATURDAY TO SUNDAY ... THE CHRISTIAN Sabbath (Sunday) IS, therefore, to this day, THE ACKNOWLEDGED OFFSPRING OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH as the spouse of the Holy Ghost, without a word of remonstrance from the Protestant world.***
And? That is the authority of the Church, deny it as you will.
***Maybe if Protestants read my post they will understand how foolish they appear.***
Along with the Canon of Scripture, most Protestants accept the authority of the Church to do such as this. This is not foolishness; the foolishness extends to not recognizing the authority of the Church in all Christian things.
I love the allcaps in the quotes from Cardinal Gibbons, as if some fantastic smoking gun had just been unearthed.
lol
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