05 Apr 21 Reasons to Believe in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ: Reason #12
This is an excerpt from Pastor Mark’s new book “Alive: 21 Reasons to Believe in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ” as we count down to Easter. To get your physical copy, CLICK HERE to give a gift of any amount in the month of April to RealFaith to help us get more Bible teaching out. For a FREE digital copy, CLICK HERE. Thank you in advance for your generosity to help us tell more and more people about Jesus.
1 Corinthians 15:7 – Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles.
Reason #12: Jesus’ family worshipped Him as God.
I don’t know about you, but never has it ever crossed my mind to bow down to my brother and worship him for his perfection and god-like qualities. If you have a brother, you’ve probably seen him on his worst days when he acts more like Satan than Jesus.
Imagine being Jesus’ brother and seeing Him do miraculous ministry after playing ball with him as a kid and getting into wrestling matches. James, Jesus’ half-brother, was originally opposed to the claims of deity by his brother (John 7:5), but a transformation occurred in James after he saw his brother resurrected from death (1 Corinthians 15:7). James went on to pastor the church in Jerusalem and authored the New Testament book bearing his name. Jesus’ brother Jude also wrote a book of the New Testament bearing his name.
Jesus’ mother Mary was also part of the early church that prayed to and worshipped her son as the Son of God, along with James and Jude (Acts 1:14). Additionally, when the angel Gabriel appeared to her to tell her she would bear a son, she trusted the Lord despite the fact that she was a virgin and didn’t know how she would raise God. She was a woman of immense faith that believed in God’s promise of deliverance, which happened to be through her womb.
It is impossible to conceive of Jesus convincing His own mother and brothers to suffer persecution in this life and choose the torments of Hell in eternal life for worshipping Him as the one true God unless HE provided His deity by resurrecting from death.
Can you imagine what Jesus’ siblings felt like, realizing they had grown up with Him as their brother and that He was actually God?
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