People say the power of God is less today or not even operating at all. I say the power of God is even even more real today because I've seen the power of God make a cataclysmic, radical changes in people's lives. And telling a lie seldom makes you improve or become a better person. In fact, examining the cataclysmic changes in the lives of the disciples, just take Peter for example. Remember when Jesus is going to wash Peter's feet, Peter argues, "Oh no you're not," "Well, then," Jesus states, "You're not coming with me." "Then wash me all over!" Peter exclaims. An extremist. Unstable. Peter gets his mouth going and he says, "I'll never deny you, Lord," but of course he does -- three times. Peter has a problem, I mean a serious problem. Until this cataclysmic change occurs, he has always got his mouth going before his brain is in gear and he makes some of the craziest moves. He says to Jesus, "Thou art the Christ," and then says something so ridiculous that Jesus is forced to reply: "Get behind me, Satan." But this man, Peter goes from this strange, impetuous, and an unreliable person to the rock, the pillar on that day of Pentecost. It's Peter who proclaims "This Jesus whom you've crucified and God raised up..." You know that brilliant sermon that birthed three thousand into the church in one day.

Remember the sons of thunder, John and James? (Not James, the one who writes the epistle in the New Testament, but James, brother of John). They sent their mother to go and ask Jesus for the best seat in the kingdom. These were the sons of thunder, but they send their mom to go and ask Jesus for special treatment. Think about that. John later becomes the apostle of love.

And of course you can't go and tell the story of all this without Thomas. Every time you encounter Thomas you encounter something truly staggering. Now when Jesus is saying, "I go to prepare mansions for you, and whither I go..." Thomas blurts out, "How can we know where you're going?" Jesus just told him, "I go to prepare a place for you." There's Thomas interrupting and doubting, "I won't believe it until it can put my finger in the nail holes and touch the side where He was pierced...." Jesus submits to the test and, "Oh my God, it's true! My Lord and Savior." Thomas had to have proof to bring himself to the point of saying, "My God, my Lord and Savior." Imagine that. But this same man changes from being a doubting realist and humanist to become a pillar of faith, taking the Gospel to the far edges of India and actually being martyred.

I thought I'd add in the one nobody ever gives attention to, and this is Mary Magdalene. While we're talking about radical changes, here's a woman who had seven demons cast out of her. You want to talk about cataclysmic change? I wouldn't have wanted to see her when she had the seven demons residing inside her, but this is a woman who comes to love Jesus so much that she will not be separated from His tomb. The most faithful. I'm sorry if that rubs you the wrong way, but go read the testimony yourself. It was not the men, but she who was faithfully there. The most faithful witness who in her grief, is recorded as being the first evangelist. In every record it's Mary Magdalene who first preaches, "He is risen." And the whole concept radically flies in the face of how women are depicted in Scripture. This woman who had seven demons becomes a faithful follower.

We don't know the outcome of Mary Magdalene but we know every single disciple without fail, died in separate places, in separate times, for preaching the gospel message. And the thing that I marvel at, every time I read Fox's Book of Martyrs, is seeing that stream of blood flow through time. Beginning with Jesus, then Stephen. Follow the blood of the martyrs and you recognize that in this great Book, people died and gave their life that we might be able to read and receive these words we have before us today. Do you really think these people thought two thousand years later we'd be here talking about this event, picking apart what they really said?

I always give credit on top of credit, both to Dr. Scott and his referencing Thomas Aquinas' great proof that these all died alone and they all died alone in different places suffering persecution till death for preaching this message of the Resurrection.

It would have been easy for just one of these people to break under the pressure and recant. Peter could have decided, "You know what? I'm here in Rome and no one's going to find out if I just say the whole story is made up. See you later. I'm going fishing." He could have done that. And we know that Mark is acting as Peter's secretary. The Book of Mark is actually Peter's account that Peter is telling to Mark, and Mark is writing it down. I have to kind of laugh about this part because Peter is depicted in a really bad way. His credibility is totally lost. But again, here comes the cataclysmic change, the radical approach to what happened to all these people. They not only died for their testimony, but they died alone.

But I'm going to bring this to a close with what I think is maybe the most important fact, and it is always left out of the equation. Let's just theorize that all these men lied because they couldn't bear the fact that Jesus didn't raise from the dead. So they perpetuate a lie. But look what happened to the disciples: One is hanged upside down, another one is skinned alive. Look for yourself and chronicle the death of the martyrs. Allow me to introduce the one guy who challenges the verity of this Resurrection story to the core. I call my star witness, the Apostle Paul.

He has nothing to do with any of these men that Jesus called and chose. Paul wasn't one of the initial band who walked with Jesus, and his time occurs much later. Oh, if the world would just hear this one message: The apostle Paul, persecutor of the church, tormentor of the brethren, ready to destroy the first Christians and then this cataclysmic, radical change comes over him and he becomes the greatest Apostle who ever lived, penning two thirds of the New Testament. Chronicled in the Book of Acts, he was an accomplice to murder in the stoning of Stephen.

And we know he had many murdered and breathed out threatenings against many, and yet, Paul, this particular vessel is the vessel that God uses. Had God not raised up the apostle Paul, turned him around, and caused this radical change to occur, who knows what would have become of the rest of these gospel writer's messages. But I look to that radical change. Paul didn't serve and follow Jesus around for three and half years while he was alive. No wonder the whole community said, "What are you doing here? You don't belong here." Ostracized by the Christian community at first because they were highly suspicious of his motives. And on the other side of the coin, the Jewish leaders wanting him for being a traitor.

Now you can neatly wrap up the disciples into the same package and claim they acted how they did because they loved their dear, fallen leader. But please? Tell me how you explain the apostle Paul? And tell me when he says that he was personally trained and tutored by the risen Lord Jesus, how you explain such a staggering change in his life. It blows up every theory that could possibly shake the reality that Jesus was raised up from the dead.

If we take the reports, the testimony of the witnesses, their character and motives for reporting, and then read where John puts the capstone at the end into the Book of Revelation showing us what is beyond. We find this one who conquered death, who conquered the grave for us that we might live and have new life and not only in this life now, but life eternal.

Follow those "I ams" and you'll come to a conclusion based on all the evidence, not just through John's Gospel and not just strictly through the testimonies I've given, but the fulfillment of the prophecies, the fulfillment of the set times, and the reality that Jesus Christ went to the cross. And this great moment in time where He gave His life, where He covered and blanketed the world with salvation, wholeness, and healing. That same power is deposited in us today. I'm sorry; I will not let anybody say that Resurrection power does not exist today.

The church doesn't exist to have coffee clubs and social clubs. It exists to proclaim the power of the Resurrected Christ. For the life of the believer, Jesus is the one that makes us more than conquerors. He is risen. That's my message.

For information on obtaining the DVD or audio tape of Pastor Melissa Scott's entire message, please visit http://www.pastormelissascott.com

The tape information is listed below:

VF-1661 4-12-2009
Proofs of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ

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