The Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry Newsletter
&
Bible Study
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* Note: if you reading via your phone, try going horizontal.
Fellow officers,
sheepdogs,
warriors, sp
ouses, supporters and
ALL:
Moreover, for those of us who have been born again
"in Christ"
(Is that you?) we have the joy and confidence of knowing that death -- should it come -- has no sting
(1 Cor. 15:55-57).
Did you miss last week's study that has a special focus on some of the issues we're dealing with in the midst of this pandemic? Here again is
God, Cops & Government.
A
s always, these newsletters are re-posted for you on our
social media
feeds (
Twitter
,
Facebook
) and (eventually) on our
website
as well.
Finally, two things:
(1) Even if you're on duty this weekend, MAKE the time to "attend" a service online with your family (we invite you to join us for our special
Truth Church Easter
service).
(2) If you need prayer or support, PLEASE
reach out!
With that, and with this week's special Easter Bible study in mind (a
front sight focus
on first the cross and the empty tomb), let me wish you all a safe and blessed celebration of our Savior's Resurrection...
He is RISEN -- He is risen indeed!
MC
_____________________
RESOURCES
I included a
PLETHORA
of them in the study below!
PRAYER REQUESTS
(1) Please continue to pray for all those who have been put out of work (with bills to pay and families to feed) in the wake of the COVID-19 restrictions. And of course pray for the sick.
(2) Pray for one another as we work on the front lines of this epidemic. Many of our brethren are ill, and others have passed away after having been infected with this virus. Pray also that these will be called what they are -- line of duty deaths.
(3) In keeping with last week's message and my oft-mentioned
"Code 3"
sense of urgency, pray that the lost (unsaved) will repent and come to a genuine, life-saving/life-changing personal relationship with God in Christ (no "RIP" unless we pass from this life having first been born again in Christ). And sharing these newsletters is a great way to help fulfill our
Great Commission
marching orders.
(4) Pray for Colorado officer
Kevin Lyster
and his family who have lost their son --
Cody Lyster
-- to this terrible virus in concert with some underlying health issues.
(5) Pray that God would remove this pestilence from our country and world!
* And many more not shared here...just pray!
UPCOMING EVENTS
(1) Our next
FCPO-Denver
(Chapter 217) meeting is set for Tuesday,
April 21st,
at 6:30 PM. We will once again do this via Zoom --
Email me
for the 411.
*Have a prayer request, event or announcement you would like included here? Need help/prayer?
Email me
!
I also post prayer requests on
my personal Facebook page
("friend" and message me).
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A Cops' Easter
The police officers of Jesus' day played a huge role in His ministry, death, Resurrection and all the hope that is found in Him alone!
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The Easter story places a
"front sight focus"
on two of the three most significant events in human history: Christ's death on
the cross
(Good Friday) and His glorious
Resurrection
(Easter or Resurrection Sunday). Interestingly enough, the "police officers" of Jesus' day played a huge role in both of these events (and, as an aside, they also played a horrific role associated with His birth -- see
The Massacre of the Innocents
-- and thus yet another reason for our desperate need for the Savior).
Regarding His trials, death and Resurrection, our law enforcement counterparts of Jesus' day -- the Roman military law enforcement officers, King Herod's "secret police" and the Jewish temple guard force -- all played key roles. Accordingly, let's open our Bibles and explore this life-changing and thoroughly profession-relevant concept through the following points:
(1) The
Police at the Garden
(
Luke 22:52-71
): Here the temple guards -- the Jewish "municipal cops" of Jesus' day -- arrested, beat, and mocked our Savior.
(2) The
Police at Jesus' Trials
(
Luke 23:6-11
and the other Gospel accounts): After His initial arrest, Jesus endured 6 trials (3 civil, 3 criminal). There were "police officers" at each, and all treated our Lord with cruelty, contempt and brutal excessive force.
(3) The
Police at Christ's Scourging and Torture
(
Matthew 27:25-31
): Without any doubt, the Roman "feds" (federal police and corrections officers) were responsible for the horrific
scourging
(unimaginable torture) Jesus endured because of OUR "crimes" (sin).
(4) The
Police at the Cross
(
Luke 23:33-47
): It was the Roman officers who nailed our Savior to the cross, mocked Him, pounded a
crown of thorns
into His head and gambled for His clothing. But it was also a
Roman centurion
-- a respected, ranking officer (akin to a modern-day police Sergeant or perhaps even a Lieutenant) and the officers with him who, when faced with the overwhelming
evidence
of what they witnessed, praised God and exclaimed Christ's innocence (v. 47) and Godhead (
Matthew 27:54
--
"Surely this is the Son of God!
"). Many believe that this exclamation by the "cops at the cross" was part of their coming to a saving faith to Christ. On this, a career military chaplain wrote the following: "
A Centurion's Perspective
."
Now understand, without the
cross,
the Resurrection would not have any real impact, and without the Resurrection, the cross would have just been another Roman execution. Accordingly, the cross serves four main purposes for us both then and now:
(a) Jesus died on the cross to
satisfy
God's Divine sense of justice. God's Word says that
"the wages of sin is death"
(Romans 6:23).
When we break God's Law, there is a just penalty -- an eternal
death
sentence without parole in hell -- that MUST be paid. Jesus, the only Sinless One (and the ultimate servant-warrior), took on Satan and paid that just penalty
for us
through His death on the cross!
(b) Jesus died on the cross to
redeem
His children (meaning all who would repent and surrender to Him in faith --
Mark 1:15, John 3:1-21).
He literally rescued us from sin and death. Every one of us is born into enmity with God, but God has provided the way back to Him through Christ's sacrificial death on the cross.
(c) Jesus died on the cross to
justify
believers. It was an act of gracious justice. God does not excuse our sin as a minor concern, but He forgives and restores us when we cry out to Him in repentance and faith in Christ as our Lord and Savior. God rescues us from hell --
salvation
from sin and death and ultimately eternal life with Him in heaven -- through history's greatest gift.
(d) Jesus died on the cross to
reconcile
us to the Father. Sin creates a wall between us and the Father that ONLY Jesus can breach. When we are reconciled with God, He transforms us from being His enemies to being His children:
"For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life" --
Romans 5:10.
And finally...
(5) The
Police at the Resurrection
(
Matthew 27:62-66,
28:11-15
): The officers assigned to guard Christ's tomb were likely no ordinary lot but rather part of an elite, military police "SWAT" unit who understood that failure meant death. They also had to have major muscle to roll a stone weighing up to 2 tons down into a depression in front of the tomb entrance. They then applied an official "seal" (likely using a Roman invention -- cement) that would not have been easily broken (and to do so was a death penalty offense). Falling asleep while on duty was also a death penalty "IA" offense and thus out of the question (stay with me here).
So why the Resurrection? As LEOs,
evidence
is everything and the evidence pertaining to Christ's resurrection goes hand-in-hand with what occurred on the cross (again, the cross has no lasting value without the Resurrection
). Here are but three indisputable, evidence-based
facts
for your consideration:
FACT #1
:
The Broken Roman Seal
The first obvious fact was the breaking of the official Roman seal that stood for the power and authority of the Empire. As I stated above, the consequences of breaking the seal were extremely severe. When an official Roman seal was broken, the "FBI" of the Empire would be called into action to conduct an investigation to find those were responsible and punish them accordingly -- typically automatic execution by being crucified upside down.
FACT #2
:
The 2-Ton Stone is Rolled Away
On that Sunday morning the first thing that impressed Jesus' followers who approached the tomb was the unusual position of the 2-ton stone that had been lodged in a depression in front of the tomb entrance and then sealed. All the Gospel writers mention it. Those who observed the stone after the resurrection describe its position as having been miraculously rolled
up
a slope and away the tomb entrance (it looked as if it had been picked up and tossed away). Matthew puts it this way:
"And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it"
(Matthew 28:2).
Did you catch that? An earthquake and all the noise of breaking the seal and rolling the massive stone out of the way while the Roman SWAT team just slept through it? And Jesus' body stolen in front of them? Yea right!
FACT #3
:
The Tomb "Tac Team"
Did the "watch"
(coustodia
in the Greek -- from which we get the word "custodian") guarding the tomb just up and flee their post? How can their attrition be explained when Roman military discipline was so exceptional and that failure meant a horrendous death? One way in which a soldier who failed in his duty or disobeyed an order was executed was by being stripped of his clothes and then burned alive in a fire started with his own garments. If it was not apparent which soldier had failed in his duty, then lots were drawn to see which one would be punished with death for the entire unit's failure. Would they have all therefore just fallen asleep or gone gone AWOL (Absent Without Leave) with that kind of threat hanging over them? On this, Dr. George Currie, a student of Roman military discipline, wrote that fear of punishment "produced flawless attention to duty, especially in the night watches."
Folks, the indisputable, overwhelming EVIDENCE presented both to the cops of Jesus' day (and the
more than 500 eye witnesses
to Jesus' Resurrection) and to us here today, is
Evidence that Demands a Verdict
(an incredibly powerful resource from renowned atheist-turned-Christian, Josh McDowell)!
So now, in light of this undeniable
evidence,
where do YOU stand today? The centurion and those with him at the cross made a decision based on the evidence before them. Likewise, we must do the same!
Perhaps you'll argue that today's cops are nowhere near as "bad" as those of Jesus' day. Are you sure about that? Again, take the
Good Person Test
below and let me know how you do!
So here's the point of all this: Easter is about
all
of us, NOW! Out of love for us, God used the police officers of Jesus' day as firsthand,
expert witnesses
to the indisputable EVIDENCE that does in fact DEMAND a verdict from us TODAY!
So what say you? What is your verdict? And if you DO know the risen Christ as Lord and Savior, why are you not sharing the
"Good News"
of Easter with those who do not (ultimate backup that carries eternal consequences)? See below for more!
Accordingly, I'll close this "GREAT news" study with the
victory cry
our Savior uttered on the cross --
"IT IS FINISHED!"
-- and the same invitation I give at the end of every message:
"repent and believe"
(Mark 1:15)
in the risen Savior for your salvation! How? Scroll down to the
Know God?
section below -- and (as we say when giving orders on a felony stop) --
"DO IT NOW!"
(tomorrow may very well be too late).
Friends, even in the midst of this pandemic our
Savior is RISEN! He is risen indeed!
Happy Resurrection Day!
____________________
KNOW GOD?
(1) Do you hold to an utterly false hope that you can "earn" or otherwise "badge" your way into heaven and escape hell because you consider yourself to be a "
good
" cop or a "good" person (the "I'm good" mess)? That you can be "good" enough without knowing Christ as Lord and Savior? That mere "belief" is enough to "save" you? That you somehow "deserve" heaven because of your so-called "good" service in law enforcement? Take the
Good Person Test
and see how you do!
(2) Jesus' first recorded words in His earthly adult ministry included,
"Repent and believe in the Good News...
" --
Mark 1:15.
To
repent
is a "180" -- a complete,
radical
change of mind and heart as it relates to our sin (as God defines it). To "believe" (
pisteuo
in the original Greek) as Jesus intends it here is to wholeheartedly trust and
surrender
your life to Him in faith in the same way we have "faith" that our body armor will do its job against the rounds it is intended to stop; that a well-maintained weapon will function properly when used in against criminals intent on destroying us or others; or that our parachute will open when it is supposed to on a combat jump (we stake our very lives on it)! For more, see
What does it mean to believe in Jesus?
(3) This same concept of "
believe
" (the saving kind) is further revealed in
John 3:1-21
where Jesus says, "
... you must be born again
." Again, note our Lord's emphasis on the word "
must
" (not "may" or "should" or even "someday"): this is ultimately the life-saving AND life-changing personal relationship (and NOT "religion") with Jesus Christ that I stress here every week (see
What does it mean to be a born again Christian
? [hint -- there is no other kind]).
(5) Need more? Then check out this powerful, short video message that also comes to us from
Travis Yates
:
Cops and Salvation
(6) Have you now said "yes" to Jesus as Lord and Savior but are wondering what to do next? The "now what" is also an important part in dealing with the issues that can lead to suicide and sin in general. Click on,
Now what?
MC
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ABOUT US
The
Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry
is
a national, FCPO-affiliated, non-denominational,
evangelical
Christian outreach to our own in law enforcement. These newsletters and profession-focused Bible studies are part of this effort and past editions can be found on our website and social media feeds. Our desire is (1) to be used of God to
WIN
the lost in our profession to a saving faith in Christ; (2) to
DISCIPLE
the Christian officer; (3)
SEND
out discipled (trained) officers to "repeat" 1 and 2; (4) to
SUPPORT
police marriages; (5) to transform our God-ordained profession by infusing it with all-in Christian officers; and (6) to
IMPACT
(reduce) police suicides and PTS with the
Cure
found in Christ Jesus alone. In keeping with these 6 points, please feel free to adapt these messages for your own individual or group use and
share
them with others.
The
Fellowship of Christian Peace Officers
(FCPO-USA)
exists to provide biblical support ("backup"), accountability and
iron sharpens iron
fellowship for Christian officers first in the U.S. and throughout the world as well. Our Denver-area FCPO chapter (
FCPO Chapter #217
) is a
Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry
affiliate. Locally, we meet approximately twice a month in the south Denver-Metro suburb of Highlands Ranch for profession-focused, sound (uncompromising) Bible study, prayer and servant-warrior fellowship (and spouses are both welcome and encouraged to attend with their LEO).
Contact me
for complete details.
The
Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry
and FCPO-Metro Denver (
Chapter 217
) are led by veteran Police Officer, Chaplain and Evangelist Michael "MC" Williams
.
MC is an active (32-years and counting) sworn police officer/investigator and sought-after instructor and speaker at churches (including the popular
Centurion Church Security Seminar
), retreats and both police and civilian training conferences and seminars around the country. Contact MC via
email
for details on how to book him for your event.
Finally, we covet your prayer and financial support for this vital ministry outreach. Reference the latter, you can give in two ways:
(1) Send a check to the address posted below.
or
(2) Go the the
FCPO giving page
and designate "
FCPO #217
" or the "Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry."
* All donations are tax-deductible.
The Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry
, P.O. Box 630854, Littleton, CO 80163 |
Email Address
| (720) 371-1022 |
Website
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