Facts About Jesus' Resurrection Lead Online Students to the Full Story

Released on: February 12, 2010, 5:55 am
Author: United Church of God
Industry: Education

Much misunderstanding and many questions surround the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Did Jesus die on Friday? Was He resurrected on the Sabbath or Sunday? How did Jesus' enemies explain His tomb being empty? To truly understand the full story of Jesus’ resurrection, one must read all four Gospels together. It also helps to have a study guide. The United Church of God – which traces its origins back to Jesus’ Church of the first century, following the same teachings, doctrines and practices – has created such a study guide with “Jesus Christ: The Real Story,” available for free on its website, ucg.org.

February 2010 – Understanding the Bible isn't always easy. The language, the cultural references and the seemingly inconsistent accounts from book to book can all cause confusion for a student starting out on the path to enlightenment. Jesus’ resurrection proves that He was exactly who He said He was, yet much misunderstanding surrounds these events for students without the proper guide. The United Church of God hopes to clear up the confusion with its online study guide,“Jesus Christ: The Real Story.”

The free online guide, found at ucg.org, tackles many misconceptions and questions, including:

• When did Jesus die? – The chronology of Jesus’ resurrection and crucifixion becomes clear only when a student reads the four Gospels at the same time, and corroborates between them. Luke, Mark and John offer what seems to be conflicting information in their references to the Sabbath, but by understanding the differences between the different types of Sabbaths, you understand that Jesus died on Wednesday, which was just before a high-day Sabbath, and was resurrected on Saturday, at the end of the weekly Sabbath. The chronology of Jesus’ Resurrection and crucifixion are detailed in the study guide.

• Did Jesus’ enemies acknowledge that His tomb was empty? – Yes, they did, by creating a lie to discount Jesus’ Resurrection. The Bible tells us that they bribed the Roman soldiers who were responsible for guarding the sealed tomb, telling them to say that the disciples (who would become the founding members of Jesus’ Church) came and removed the body. The study guide points to an account in Matthew to help students understand the events surrounding Jesus’ Resurrection.

In addition to “Jesus Christ: The Real Story,” the United Church of God offers many other free study guides on its website. They include:

• What Did Jesus’ Church Believe and Practice? – The beginnings of Jesus’ Church are documented by eyewitness accounts in the book of Acts. This study guide reveals many overlooked truths.

• Modern Christianity’s Forgotten Roots – The practices of today's Christian Church can vary greatly from Jesus’ Church – the original Church Christ built.

• Bible Study Tools: Twelve lessons make up this Bible Study Course, which helps its students find biblical answers to crucial questions such as “Why are we here?” and“What does the future hold?”

All study guides on the United Church of God's website are free and available to all.

About the United Church of God: The United Church of God traces it origins back to the original Christian Church, founded in the early first century. The Church follows the same doctrines, teachings and practices as the original Church, and it strives to educate all about Jesus Resurrection. In addition to the many free online study guides – about the Sabbath and other topics – students can follow the United Church of God on twitter.com/ucgia, become a fan of the organization on Facebook, and watch video commentaries and excerpts from Beyond Today programs on youtube.com/user/BeyondTodayTV.