2022/April/14

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Informing and Inspiring Oklahoma Baptists Since 1912

BAPTISTMESSENGER.COM • APRIL 14, 2022

DISASTER RELIEF HELPS CHURCHES, HOMEOWNERS IN THE WAKE OF EF2 TORNADO /// SEE PAGE 6

Connect: The imperative of the Resurrection

Bible Q&A: Did Jesus have to raise from the dead?

Historic meeting of NAAF in OKC touts ‘Big Results’

>> TODD FISHER

>> BOBBY KELLY

>> CHRIS FORBES

Years ago, I was in a restaurant in Oklahoma City where a group of college students at the table next to me were discussing what they had learned in class that day, regarding the resurrection of Jesus. As I listened, one student essentially espoused a popular theory that states Jesus merely passed out on the cross and was revived on the cool floor of the tomb. He then lived out the rest of his life in a monastery where he died of natural causes.

The resurrection of Jesus was not merely a sermon topic for Easter Sunday in the early church. It was the sermon topic for every sermon. The New Testament provides a clear picture of what early Christian preaching looked like. In Acts alone we have eight Gospel sermons (Acts 2:14-29; 3:12-26; 4:8-12; 7:2-53; 10:34-43; 13:16-41; 14:15-17; 17:22-31). In each case, the resurrection is central.

More than 110 pastors and ministry leaders gathered in Oklahoma City for the National African American Fellowship (NAAF) Spring Board Meeting and Lifeway sponsored “Big Results” Sunday School Retreat, March 24-26. Oklahoma Baptists hosted both of the national meetings at the Baptist Building.

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CO N T E N T S : Page 2 | News & Trends OBU Missions Forum shares vision for Elliff Center >> KENNY DAY

Page 4 | Gospel Ministry Rite of Passage: A child’s curiosity >> WALKER MOORE

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