Daily text, Friday, June 10. 2016

[Queen Esther]

You will not leave me in the Grave.—Ps. 16:10.

One reason why we know that Jesus’ resurrection occurred is the zeal that his disciples showed in proclaiming it. Zealously bearing witness to the resurrection of the Christ exposed them to persecution, suffering, and death. If Jesus had not been raised up—if it was all a hoax—why would Peter risk his life to proclaim Christ’s resurrection to the religious leaders, who hated Jesus and had plotted his death? It was because Peter and the other disciples were certain that Jesus was alive and was directing the work that God wanted done. Moreover, Jesus’ resurrection assured his followers that they too would be resurrected. For instance, Stephen died with the conviction that there would be a resurrection of the dead. (Acts 7:55-60) We would probably never have heard of Jesus had he not been resurrected. But we have solid reasons to believe that Jesus is alive and is now guiding and directing us as we proclaim the good news far and wide. w14 11/15 1:11, 13, 14