Emmanuel - Part 2 (December 21, 2007)

Now let us look to the Jesus history portrays. First he is presented to us as a Good & Wise teacher. Which is pleasing to the mind and ears but not a real possibility. In a world where tolerance is now equal to godliness this little platitude makes everyone happy except the true seeker. Jesus spoke in definite terms about Himself which conveyed certain thoughts. 1. He thought He was perfect. 2. All authority -was vested in Him. 3. Felt He was the center of the religious union. 4. That His life through death was a ransom for others. 5. That He would raise from the dead if killed. 6. That He was eternal. C.S. Lewis deals with this ridiculous idea of good & wise in what he calls the startling alternative. If you look at these sayings merely at the surface they are lunacy. You cannot be a wise lunatic. Though many on this Blog are trying to prove the impossible. Now if He was not wise how can He be considered good? Does He not know that these are lies and that these lies will cause turmoil in people's lives? Is that good? If He was good and wanted good for people why did He create such a press statement that could easily be proven false. If He was not who He proclaimed to be was He good? He claimed to be so good that He was better than anyone else. I believe that is known as the Messiah complex to the simpletons here. If He was a lunatic we can have sympathy for Him but not belief in Him. If he knew He was a liar then there is even more reason not to offer Him belief. What good is there in making up a story that will require your death? Is that wisdom? Why die for the story if you know you are a charlatan? Why not take the money and run? He could have taken His act on the road and been famous and rich in hundreds of places. He knew how to get out of trouble and did so many times until the end. How do you reconcile someone thinking they are eternal, not from this point on but has always been, with an acceptable character? Now if He says that if we kill Him He will raise from the dead then that deserves a second look. Even if one of the blowhard retards on here spoke this insanity I would be forced to take another look if they rose from the dead. I think this is why Christ offered this one sign. It is a pretty good one you must admit. Muhammad, Buddha, Joseph Smith, Marcian, Caesars, Pharaohs, Kings, and Rulers all still have dirt on their face. If they didn't I would take a second look. But finally if you really want to grasp what these events really were like you must examine the lives of those affected by the events. Use a little human wisdom about human behavior a science we all have experience with and take a good look at the Disciples.

First you recognize that they had a Cataclysmic Change in their character. You had John one of the sons of thunder turning into the master of love. Peter who ran scared and lost his faith exercise faith in establishing the church. Next they developed an Internal Integrity. This I know goes way over the head of most of my critics. They don't know this. They change their tune to the highest bidder. I am a thief but the banks are OK. The banks are a thief but so is Kurt. I don't have to learn the truth the banks told me what to think. You get my point. Their integrity Is a moving target. These Disciples were unmoving in their testimony. They suffered rather than change their tune. This reflects the cost. They all had a Price to pay for their belief choice. A high price. This is what really separates the pretenders in life. When everyone is on your side truth or lie those without integrity fit right into the crowd. Take away the comfort of the crowd and the character will be measured. Will you value your integrity even enough to suffer pain or death? Are there some things worse than death to a man? These Disciples thought there was. Last they all die Alone. This is one truth I think someone who has been in a prison setting understands more than most. When a conspiracy is formed and all the parties are together there is friendship, love, purpose, and other things binding the group. The feds entire system is designed to divide and conquer because when these parties are not in the group they become self persevering. Dublin is 85 percent "rats" they call them. These are people who are looking to get a better deal by selling out the lives of others. Good or bad is irrelevant. It is human nature the same we share with the Disciples. If they had concocted this religious conspiracy with Jesus and their leader had died but they wanted to maintain the benefits that would require a certain type of behavior. The behavior displayed by these men is that they were almost all separated from each other under the pains of torture and not one recanted his story. Now if you lived where I have lived you'll know that this would never happen in the real world unless they truly believed their own reports about the Savior Jesus. That means the whole story of a Christ who was perfect, was a ransom, was eternal, did die and rise, and ascended into heaven. They would not give up that hope for anything in this world. That is a true historical perspective on the gospels though I will admit very cursory for this Blog. But I can tell you as a man I like them have complete confidence in this story and my personal integrity is not for sale to bankers, judges, critics, or the crowd. If I die alone in suffering I will not be moved from this conviction based on a single sign that is amazing and trustworthy. If God appeared as a man and gave me the resurrection for a sign I am safe to trust Him. When I feel frail in my trials and it looks like the enemy has the upper hand I can always go back to this amazing story and renew my faith. That is why I share it with you. If this story was not told by a bunch of conspirators about a lunatic or evil man and it was true we are safe to give our lives over to the Lord. I trust Him with my future, how about you? Answer that question when the world is about commercial indulgence based upon the winter solstice to please the pagan crowd.