Daily Bible Readings for Easter Monday, 16 April 2006

Peter's Message

Then Peter stood up with the other eleven apostles and in a loud voice began to speak to the crowd: "Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, listen to me and let me tell you what this means... Listen to these words, fellow Israelites! Jesus of Nazareth was a man whose divine authority was clearly proven to you by all the miracles and wonders which God performed through him. You yourselves know this, for it happened here among you. In accordance with his own plan God had already decided that Jesus would be handed over to you; and you killed him by letting sinful men crucify him. But God raised him from death, setting him free from its power, because it was impossible that death should hold him prisoner. For David said about him,

'I saw the Lord before me at all times; he is near me, and I will not be troubled. And so I am filled with gladness, and my words are full of joy. And i, mortal though I am, will rest assured in hope, because you will not abandon me in the world of the dead; you will not allow your faithful servant to rot in the grave. You have shown me the paths that lead to life, and your presence will fill me with joy.'

"My friends, I must speak to you plainly about our famous ancestor King David. He died and was buried, and his grave is here with us to this very day. He was a prophet, and he know what God had promised him: God had made a vow that he would make one of David's descendants a king, just as David was. David saw what God was going to do in the future, and so he spoke about the resurrection of the messiah when he said,

'He was not abandoned in the world of the dead; his body did not rot in the grave.'

God has raised this very Jesus from death, and we are all witnesses to this fact.

- ACTS 2:14, 22-32

A Prayer of Confidence

Protect me, O God; I trust in you for safety. I say to the Lord, "You are my Lord; all the good things I have come from you."

You, Lord, are all I have, and you give me all I need; my future is in your hands.

I praise the Lord, because he guides me, and in the night my conscience warns me. I am always aware of the Lord's presence; he is near, and nothing can shake me.

And so I am thankful and glad and I feel completely secure, because you protect me from the power of death. I have served you faithfully, and you will not abandon me to the world of the dead.

You will show me the path that leads to life; your presence fills me with joy and brings me pleasure forever.

- PSALMS 16:1-2, 5, 7-11

So they left the tomb in a hurry, afraid and yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples.

Suddenly Jesus met them and said, "Peace be with you." They came up to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. "Do not be afraid," Jesus said to them, "Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me."

The Report of the Guard

While the women went on their way, some of the soldiers guarding the tomb went back to the city and told the chief priests everything that had happened. The chief priests met with the elders and made their plan; they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers and said, "you are to say that his disciples came during the night and stole his body while you were asleep. And if the Governor should hear of this, we will convince him that you are innocent, and you will have nothing to worry about."

The guards took the money and did what they were told to do. And so that is the report spread around by the Jews to this very day.

- MATTHEW 28:8-15

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