The words of Moses and the prophets, that is, the Scriptures, are more convincing than the words of a person raised from the dead. Therefore, when Jesus rose from the dead, He did not say that He was risen. Rather, a few hours after His Resurrection, He began "with Moses and all the prophets" and "interpreted for them every passage of Scripture which referred to Him" (Lk 24:27). Then, in the evening of the day of His Resurrection, Jesus said: " ‘Everything written about Me in the law of Moses and the prophets and psalms had to be fulfilled.' Then He opened their minds to the understanding of the Scriptures" (Lk 24:44-45).
At the first Christian Pentecost, Peter did not refer to the hundreds of people who had seen the risen Christ (see 1 Cor 15:5-6). Instead, Peter preached from the prophet Joel and the psalms (Acts 2:16ff). The early Church did not concentrate on substantiating the claims of those who had seen the risen Lord. Rather, they devoted themselves to the apostles' instruction, especially from the Scriptures (Acts 2:42). Stephen preached the Bible and became the first Christian martyr (Acts 7:2ff). Philip taught the Scriptures to the Ethiopian eunuch, who was baptized into the risen Christ and took the Gospel to Africa (Acts 8:35ff). Although Paul dramatically met the risen Christ on the road to Damascus, he led people to faith in the risen Christ primarily by proclaiming the Scriptures.
The Lord pierces hearts through His Word. Proclaim the Bible accordingly.
| PRAYER: | Father, give me a hunger for the Scriptures as a nursing baby hungers for milk (see 1 Pt 2:2). |
| PROMISE: | "Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose hope is the Lord." –Jer 17:7 |
| PRAISE: | St. Casimir was known to sleep on the ground and spend a large portion of the night in prayer. |
Reprinted with permission from Presentation Ministries, a lay association of the Catholic Church that focuses on evangelization and discipleship through Bible teaching, daily Mass, the charisms of the Holy Spirit, and Small Christian Community. Their ministries include:
· One Bread, One Body
· Daily Bread Radio Program
· Annual Bible Institute
· Discipleship Retreats
· Guadalupe Bible College