From @JimDenison ... Lenten Devotional for Tuesday, March 11

James C. Denison, Ph.D., is a subject matter expert on cultural and contemporary issues. He founded the Denison Forum on Truth and Culture, a nonsectarian "think tank" designed to engage contemporary issues with biblical truth in 2009. In the introduction for his 2014 collection of Lenten devotionals, "Resurrection: Finding Your Victory in Christ," Denison writes, "The world's religions are based on what religious teachers said — Christianity is based on what Jesus did. The fact that Jesus of Nazareth was raised from the dead is still changing our world 20 centuries later."

CLICK HERE for a free copy of Dr. Denison's 2014 Advent Devotional (in a downloadable/printable Adobe .pdf file)

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DAY 7
Tuesday, March 11
 
... and last of all, even as to one abnormally born, he was made manifest to me (1 Corinthians 15:8)

Abraham Lincoln's elementary school teacher said of him, "He is very good with his studies, but he is a daydreamer and asks foolish questions." A teacher commented about Woodrow Wilson: "He is ten years old and is just beginning to read and write. He shows signs of improving, but you must not set your sights too high for him."

One of Amelia Earhart's teachers was worried about her "interest in bugs and other crawling things and her dare-devil projects," and hoped "we could channel her curiosity into a safe hobby." A teacher said of young Albert Einstein, "Albert is a very poor student. He is mentally slow, unsociable, and is always daydreaming. He is spoiling it for the rest of the class. It would be in the best interests of all if he were removed from school at once."

Do you measure your value by the changing opinions of society or the unchanging love of God?

What God's word means

The Apostle has listed Jesus' post-resurrection appearances to Peter, the apostles, the 500, and James. If his readers disbelieved Peter's testimony, they would have to contend with the apostles' witness. If they rejected the apostles' testimony, they would have to account for the experience of the 500. If they rejected their testimony, they would have to account for James' transformation. Finally, as his last witness, Paul calls himself to the stand.

Last of all could refer to the chronological fact that Paul met the risen Jesus several years after the others (Acts 9). Or it could refer to himself as last in signi ficance by comparison with them. He describes himself as one abnormally born, using a fascinating word which means "untimely birth" or even "one who is miscarried, born prematurely or aborted." The Greek term was fi rst used by Aristotle and is found only here in the New Testament. (The synonymous Hebrew word is found in Numbers 12:12, Job 3:16, Psalm 58:8 and Ecclesiastes 6:3, meaning "stillborn.") It describes a life form that is incapable of sustaining itself beyond its birth, emphasizing Paul's weakness and dependence on God. In the next verse, he will explain why he views himself in this way.

Despite his failings, his Lord was made manifest to me on the Damascus Road. This encounter so marked Paul that he would recount the story whenever he had the chance. He told it to Luke, who recorded it in Acts 9. He retold it to a rioting mob in Jerusalem (Acts 22:5-16) and again when he was on trial for his life before King Agrippa (Acts 26:12-18). This singular event turned him from Christianity's greatest enemy to its greatest global advocate.

Why Easter matters

Saul of Tarsus was one of the most brilliant and capable men of his era. He was born into the royal tribe of Benjamin, from which the rst king of Israel was chosen. He was "educated at the feet of Gamaliel" (Acts 22:3), thus the most accomplished student of the most brilliant scholar of his day (cf. Acts 26:24). He became a Pharisee (Philippians 3:5), the most rigorous and respected religious movement in Judaism. He was conversant in three languages, educated in Greek philosophy (cf. Acts 17:18) and Jewish rabbinic theology (cf. Galatians 4:24-31).

Yet he came to see himself as one abnormally born, a person with no true signi cance outside the grace of God. He learned rsthand that Jesus can transform any life: "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold the new has come" (2 Corinthians 5:17). Your value lies not in the shifting opinion of the world but your unconditional acceptance by the risen Christ.

How to respond

You can measure yourself by performance or possessions, but there's always something else to do or own. You can measure yourself by popularity, but there's always someone else to impress. Or you can measure yourself by God's sacri cial love for you.

Your Father considers your eternal life worth the death of his Son. Do you agree?