More than a Ghost Story I (2021 Edition)
Introduction
The month of October turns our thoughts to cooler weather, Autumn
colors, and the remaining holidays yet to come. Others will think about
Halloween and the fun that comes with it; Jack-O-Lanterns, witches, ghosts, and
things that go bump in the night. Children will put on costumes and go into the
streets "scaring" up candy through trick-or-treat.
Some of the denominational churches will promote haunted houses
and Halloween parties for safer celebration of this pagan holiday. Their
thoughts are, “As long as you are with other church members on church property,
it’s okay”.
The scriptures make no mention of haunted houses or parties within
the assembly and these scriptures show that they have the wrong mindset: Rom.
14:17; 1 Cor. 11:34; 2 John 9; Gal. 1:6-7. In the following article, there was an
event that took place in scripture which could be considered a, kind of, ghost
story.
The Living Dead?
In the book of
Matthew, there is a scene which seems scary but has a very profound meaning to
it. The final moments of Jesus upon this cross, in chapter 27 and verses 50-53,
And Jesus
cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. Then, behold, the
veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked,
and the rocks were split, and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the
saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the graves after
His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many.
The writer is
not talking about spirits from the grave, or even zombies, but living-breathing
individuals brought back to life. He is talking about the resurrection of the
body in the same way Lazarus was raised (read John 11: 1-44) and Jairus’
daughter (read Mark 5:35-42).
If these saints
were merely spirits, then it would defeat the hope of resurrection for all of
us. Jesus said in John 11:25-26, “…I am the resurrection and
the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever
lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?”
The Hope of the
Resurrection
Paul talked
about the hope of the resurrection all through his ministry. Once example can
be found in Acts 23:6-8, But when Paul perceived that one part were
Sadducees and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, “Men and
brethren, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee; concerning the hope and
resurrection of the dead I am being judged!” And when he had said this, a
dissension arose between the Pharisees and the Sadducees; and the assembly was
divided. For Sadducees say that there is no resurrection--and no angel or
spirit; but the Pharisees confess both.
Conclusion
Although we don’t know what happened to the saints after they
appeared to people, they most likely were allowed to live just a few more days;
maybe years, to prove the power of the resurrection and help further prove
Jesus as deity as well as his victory over the grave (1 Cor. 15:22, 55-57).
The Roman Centurion summed up the event in Matthew 27:54, “Now the centurion, and they that were with him
watching Jesus, when they saw the earthquake, and the things that were done,
feared exceedingly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God.”
You, too, can have a hope in the
resurrection by coming a child of God; a Christian according to scripture.
Here’s what you need to do to get started…
Hear the Word of God (Rom. 10:17)
Believe Jesus is the Son of God (John
8:24)
Confess Jesus is the Son of God (Rom.
10:9-10)
Repent of your sins (Acts 2:38)
Become baptized to wash away your sins
(Acts 22:16)
Once you have done
these, then you can begin to live faithfully even unto Death (Rev. 2:10). Can
we help you do this? Please comment below for this article. Don’t delay, your
soul is at stake!
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