Daily Lesson for Friday 20th of December 2024

Read Ellen G. White, “ ‘It Is Finished,’ ” Pages 758–764; “ ‘The Lord Is Risen,’ ” Pages 779–787; and “ ‘Why Weepest Thou? ” Pages 788–794, in The Desire of Ages. See also, Clifford Goldstein, Risen: Finding Hope in the Empty Tomb (Nampa, ID: Pacific Press, 2020).

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“Pilate longed to deliver Jesus. But he saw that he could not do this, and yet retain his own position and honor. Rather than lose his worldly power, he chose to sacrifice an innocent life. How many, to escape loss or suffering, in like manner sacrifice principle. Conscience and duty point one way, and self-interest points another. The current sets strongly in the wrong direction, and he who compromises with evil is swept away into the thick darkness of guilt.”—The Desire of Ages, p. 738.

“Christ did not yield up His life till He had accomplished the work which He came to do, and with His parting breath He exclaimed, ‘It is finished.’ John 19:30. The battle had been won. His right hand and His holy arm had gotten Him the victory. As a Conqueror He planted His banner on the eternal heights. Was there not joy among the angels? All heaven triumphed in the Saviour’s victory. Satan was defeated, and knew that his kingdom was lost.

“To the angels and the unfallen worlds the cry, ‘It is finished,’ had a deep significance. It was for them as well as for us that the great work of redemption had been accomplished. They with us share the fruits of Christ’s victory.”—The Desire of Ages, p. 758.

Discussion Questions

<–Thursday

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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/24d-12-further-thought-the-hour-of-glory-the-cross-and-resurrection/

Join the Hit the Mark panel as they discuss Sabbath School Lesson 12 – The Hour of Glory: The Cross and Resurrection. It’s the fastest hour of the week!

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Daily Lesson for Thursday 19th of December 2024

The last reference to Mary in the text before this one is her telling Peter and John about the empty tomb (John 20:2). They ran to the tomb, and she came back there a little later. After Peter and John inspected the tomb, they left it. But Mary returned and, weeping, lingered there. No doubt she had done a great deal of crying during the last few days. And now—this as well? Stooping over, she looked inside.

To her surprise, two angels in white were in the tomb, sitting where Jesus’ body had lain. They asked her, “ ‘Woman, why are you weeping?’ ” (John 20:13, NKJV). Her pained reply was that they had taken away her Lord, and she did not know where they had laid Him.

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Through tear-dimmed eyes, Mary turned and saw someone standing behind her. In words similar to those of the angels, the Stranger asks, “ ‘Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?’ ” (John 20:15, NKJV). She thinks she is talking to the gardener and asks for his help in finding the body of Jesus.

The Stranger says one word, “Mary.” It was a one-word revelation that changed the world. Suddenly, the surprised Mary recognizes that the risen Jesus is talking to her and acknowledges Him. Jesus insists that she not detain Him, as He must ascend to His Father. But her task is to go and tell the disciples that He is ascending “ ‘to My Father and your Father, and to My God and your God’ ” (John 20:17, NKJV). Mary fulfilled her mission. She told the disciples that she had seen the Lord and also told all the other details He had shared with her (John 20:18).

<–Wednesday Friday–>

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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/24d-12-jesus-and-mary/

Daily Lesson for Wednesday 18th of December 2024

Jesus died late on a Friday afternoon and rose early on Sunday. Because the Sabbath was near when He was buried (John 19:42), the burial process was done hastily and not completely. However much they loved Jesus, His followers kept the Sabbath day and did not go to the tomb (compare with Mark 16:1, Luke 23:56).

Image © S. M. Davis at Goodsalt.com

After the Sabbath, a number of women bought spices to the tomb on Sunday morning. To their shock, the stone was rolled away, and the tomb was empty.

Mary Magdalene was one of those who came early to the tomb. She ran to tell Peter and John what she saw. The two men ran there. John outran Peter and arrived first. Stooping down, he looked inside and saw the linen cloths with which Jesus had been wrapped. But he did not go in.

Peter, however, went inside and saw the linen cloths lying there. He saw, too, the face cloth that had been on Jesus’ head, but it was not with the rest of the cloths. It was folded up and sitting apart.

After Peter entered the tomb, John also entered. John 20:8 says that he went in, saw, and believed. Why would seeing the grave cloths lying there and the face cloth lying separately, folded up, lead John to believe Jesus had risen from the dead?

To answer this question, it is necessary to ponder why the tomb would be empty in the first place. The most typical answer would be grave robbers. But this explanation fails for three reasons. First, Matthew tells us that the tomb was guarded (Matthew 27:62-66), making grave robbery unlikely. Second, grave robbers typically steal valuables, not rotting bodies. Third, grave robbers are in a hurry and do not fold up grave cloths. No wonder, then, that when John saw the face cloth folded, he believed that Jesus had risen from the dead.

<–Tuesday Thursday–>

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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/24d-12-the-empty-tomb/

Join It Is Written Sabbath School host Eric Flickinger and one of this quarter’s authors, Dr. Thomas R. Shepherd, as they provide additional insights into this week’s Sabbath School lesson, “The Beginning of the Gospel.”

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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/12-the-hour-of-glory-the-cross-and-resurrection-it-is-written-discussions-with-the-author/