Easter 2013 video by yours truly:
Transcript:
“He saved others; himself he could not save…” (Matthew 27:42)
I cannot help but wonder if this phrase did not stick in the minds of those early disciples after Jesus died on the cross.
Some of his disciples had been with him for nearly his entire ministry, and believed almost as soon as they saw him. Many went to their friends declaring that they had “found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write…” (John 1:45)
They were there when he boldly instructed multitudes, and quietly taught those that sought him by night. These people were among those that were “…astonished at his doctrine, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.” (Matthew 7:28-29)
They had seen him feed thousands with a few loaves and fishes. They had seen him make lame men walk, deaf men hear, and blind men see. They had followed him when others accused him of blasphemy, tried to kill him, or simply asked him to leave them alone.
Some of them had experienced the terror of being caught in a storm at sea and appealed to him saying “carest thou not that we perish?” (Mark 4:38) In amazement they had watched as he commanded the winds and the waves to be at peace, and saved them.
They had listened to his thunderous condemnation of the scribes and hypocrites, and seen him overthrow the tables of money changers in the temple. They had heard him compassionately stop to help those who desperately sought healing, and to mercifully promise peace and forgiveness even to those who had made poor decisions in their pasts.
They heard him command Lazarus to come out of his tomb, and had watched in shock and awe when he that had died came out alive and whole.
After he had been betrayed by Judas, some of them had seen as Pontius Pilate washed his hands and let his enemies torture him. It had been too late to do anything when they watched the soldiers drive nails into his hands and feet. Even as he died, his enemies declared those hurtful words, “…he saved others; himself he could not save…”
For some of his disciples, there was nothing left to do but pay respects. The man they had believed to be the redeemer of the world had been killed.
After he died, several of the women who had believed in him went to the tomb in which he had been sealed, only to find the stone had been rolled away. To their surprise, they saw two men in shining raiment near the entrance. The men asked them “why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen…” (Luke 24:5-6)
They might as well have asked “did you actually believe what those men said? Did you think he could not save himself?”
Most of the women went to tell the apostles, but Mary Magdalene wept near the tomb, perhaps thinking that an enemy had taken his body to further disgrace him. In her grief, she perceived a man that asked her why she was weeping. Thinking that he was the gardener, she asked to know where the body of Jesus had been taken. As he called her by name, she turned and realized the truth. Standing before her was Jesus Christ himself, alive and well.
Over time, many disciples saw him and came to the same understanding as Mary did on that first Easter morning. The words of the enemies of Christ might have seemed convincing… “he saved others; himself he could not save…” But the truth was that he did save himself. Even death was not sufficiently strong to stop the Son of God.
Though centuries have come and gone, the man that beat death itself is as alive today as he was then. His power has not waned with the passing of time. Though skeptics and enemies of Christ would have Christians despair, especially on Easter, we would do well to remember that the champion of right has not yet completed his plan. Jesus Christ lives… and he is coming to save us all.
Credits:
Narration and recording on a mediocre microphone, done by me.
Artwork:
Various
Video Music:
Epic moving hearfelt beautiful dramatic trailer score by Audiomachine - Helios! 'Like' their official page on facebook here: https://www.facebook.com/audiomachine Title: Apollo's Triumph Artist: Audiomachine Composer: Paul Dinletir (ASCAP) Album: Helios Genre: Epic Beautiful Intense Dramatic Orchestral Trailer Score Image: http://dinesiac.deviantart.com/galler... Website: http://www.audiomachine.com/ Buy Audiomachine's public music here: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/audiomachine http://itunes.apple.com/de/artist/aud... http://www.amazon.de/s?ie=UTF8&se...
