GBC Community Update: Evidence for the resurrection

Good morning. I hope you’re making this a great week!  Seems like we’re in for a lot of rain in the next week. You know what they say, ‘April showers bring May flowers’.  I saw some tulips starting to peak out in one of our gardens yesterday. Spring is upon us!
Please remember to pray for our pastoral search team, elders and myself as we hold the next round of interviews with our candidates on Saturday. These are exciting times!
 
 
Good Friday Breakfast and service Reminder!
We had a great response to our announcement about the Good Friday breakfast Sunday.  It’ll be nice to have a meal together again!
As a reminder, our popular Good Friday Breakfast is back!  Join us Good Friday at the Guelph Bible Conference Center (“The Grounds”) at 8:30am for a delicious hot breakfast then travel down here for a 10AM service. Cost is free will offering. For our service, we’ll have a special guest doing music, communion and a time to reflect on the cross.
If you’re interested in joining us for breakfast sign up in the foyer. If you’re part of our virtual congregation, you’re still welcome to come out! Just send me an email and I’ll add you to the list. It would be great to have you come out again and join us.  It’s going to be a blessed day!
 
 
Join us on Sunday in-person or on our livestream as we continue our series “Servant in motion”
Sunday at 11am we continue to look at Jesus’ experiences as servant during Passion Week, leading to the cross. 
Patrick will be looking at chapter 13 which has some powerful teaching and lessons.  Not sure what to make of all this?  Join Patrick on Sunday to find out.
You may want to ‘read ahead’ and get prepared for Sunday by looking at the passage for the day- Mark 13.  We cover a lot of ground so it might help to read before Sunday!
Remember, you can join us as we gather in-person or you can connect through our website www.guelphbiblechapel.ca  our YouTube channel as well as Facebook LIVE
 
 
Thought for the Day:  Who’s Got the Body? 
                                     …an examination of evidence for Jesus’ resurrection.
For we who are followers of Jesus this may be something we don’t even think about. Yet in the world around us this is an important and legitimate question. Why is this important?  It makes all the difference in the world. If Christ did not rise, then thousands of Christians have lived and died for a hoax.  You may say, ‘but Chris, I believe’. Great!  But lots of others don’t. So, as we seek to let our light shine, and engage with the world around us with the Good News of life in Jesus, I’d like to share some evidence for the resurrection.  This is very important in the days we’re in since if He did rise, then He is still alive and can act now to straighten out our chaotic world. Let’s take a look.
 
Facts always speak louder than opinions. Let’s examine some of the historical evidence for the resurrection and see where the facts lead.
 
One preliminary consideration: countless scholars–among them, the apostle Paul, Augustine, Sir Isaac Newton and C. S. Lewis–believed in the resurrection. We need not fear committing intellectual suicide by accepting it as well since we’re in great company.
Paul wrote in 1st Corinthians that “Christ died for our sins, He was buried, He was raised on the third day. He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. After that, He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now.” 
Understand that this was written about 20 years after the event so could have been researched and refuted then, yet it wasn’t.  That’s what we’d call contemporary historical evidence.
 
Speaking of evidence, consider this: the explosive growth of the Christian church
Within a few weeks after the crucifixion a movement arose which, by the later admission of its enemies, “upset the world.” Something happened to ignite this movement a very short time after its leader had been executed and it’s been going ever since. Things like that don’t happen, and more importantly last, without a lasting, tangible stimulus. I’ll look at this further on next week as we prepare for Easter weekend.  Until then, we can be confident that what we believe on faith has a solid foundation in fact and history. I hope that’s an encouragement to you today.
 
In His grip,
Pastor Chris