For some, the events that took place at Easter, more than 2000 years ago, simply amount to a story Christians like to tell.
But is it really just a story? Did Jesus really die on the cross and did his followers really witness the resurrected Christ, or is it all just wishful thinking?
The death and resurrection of Jesus is pivotal to our salvation. The apostle Paul goes as far as to say in 1 Corinthians 15:14-17: And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. Wow, harsh words!
The point of the Bible is Jesus. More than 40 authors1 wrote 66 books over a period of about 1500 years to show us Gods plan as revealed in the risen Christ. Without his death and resurrection, everything we believe is a lie.
So how do you go about proving something that happened more than 2000 years ago? Fortunately for us, by looking at just seven facts, we will be able to build a very strong case.
Fact 1: The Bible is an excellent source of history
With more than 24 000 ancient manuscripts, portions of manuscripts and fragments still available today, the earliest of which date between 50 and 300 years after the events, the Bible is the best preserved ancient document on the planet.2 Although this in itself does not prove the resurrection, when we combine it with the archeological evidence as well as the external evidence from other contemporary non-Christian authors, we can verify whether the authors were telling the truth regarding the events they described. Sir William Ramsay stated after his painstaking research into the New Testament and specifically the writings of Luke, that Lukes history is unsurpassed in respect to his trustworthiness. This says a lot seeing that more than 25% of the New Testament was authored by Luke. It therefore follows that if the authors were truthful about the events and places we can verify, they have a higher likelihood of being truthful about those that we cant.
Fact 2: Jesus really existed and died on the cross
There are many people who try to argue that Jesus did not die on the cross. Some say that the crucifixion was a hoax and that Jesus survived and married Mary Magdalene. Others believe that Jesus survived and travelled towards India.
History however tells a different story. External evidence from non-Christian sources confirms the information we find in the Bible regarding two critical facts, namely that (a) Jesus really lived and (b) that he died. In the book, An Ancient Evidence for the Life of Jesus, Dr Garry R. Habermas sites 17 non Christian sources, of which 11 speak in varying detail on the death of Jesus and five specifically mention the cross.
In Lee Strobels book The Case for Christ, he questions experts on the chances that Jesus could have made it off the cross alive, and they all agree that given the evidence produced by the Bible and what we know today about the Romans and crucifixion, there was no way that Jesus could have survived.
Fact 3: The Apostles believed Jesus was resurrected and testified to that
As mentioned earlier, the Bible is an excellent history book. As part of the canonization (compiling) of the New Testament, one of the key aspects used to include or exclude a book was whether it was written by someone who was either a witness to the actual event, or was acting as a scribe to an actual witness. By looking at the four gospels we get first hand knowledge from people who were actually there at the time.
For example in Luke 1:3-4 we read, With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.
One of the most impressive things for me personally about the apostles testimony regarding the risen Christ, lies in the fact that most of them died horrible deaths proclaiming that Jesus was resurrected. Why would anyone die for a lie, bearing in mind that these individuals became Christians as adults.
The apostles knew that claiming that Jesus was God meant that their Jewish friends and family would disown them; it also meant a life of scant living with no promise of power and wealth. Therefore all the usual motivators for people to lie were just not present with the apostles.
Fact 4: The embarrassment factor
Another clue to the authenticity of the claims made about Jesus life, death and resurrection lies in two major events that would have embarrassed the apostles and Jesus. Both these events would have caused undue scrutiny and mistrust from other Jews in Jerusalem at the time, which would have increased the need for compelling evidence to sway prospective Christians.
The first is that James, Jesus half brother, did not believe that Jesus was the Christ while he was alive. In Mathew 13:55-57 we read that his own family did not believe him, yet after Jesus death and resurrection we later find out that James, who denied that Jesus was the Christ, not only now believes, but becomes a leader in the church and is later recorded to have suffered a martyrs death because of it.
The second event is the eyewitness account given by women who were the first people on the scene after the resurrection. When they went back to the apostles to tell them about this, they were met with disbelief. Mark 16:11: When they heard that Jesus was alive and that she had seen him, they did not believe it. This was a major issue because the Jewish custom of the day was not to trust women at all. In fact when a woman testified in court she had to have a man second what she was saying in order for it to be considered valid evidence. So the fact that the first eyewitnesses were women would have been embarrassing for the apostles.
Fact 5: The tomb was empty
This might sound obvious, but think about it. No one contested the empty tomb. The Jewish leaders made up a story about the disciples stealing the body, but could never actually prove that Jesus was still dead. And how likely do you think it would be for fishermen, a tax collector and a couple of youths to overpower trained, hardened Roman soldiers?
Another interesting fact is that no one searched for the body either. It would have been very easy for the Jews and Romans, who both had a vested interest in proving that Jesus was indeed dead, to find the apostles, torture them for the location of Jesus body and then parade his dead body in the streets. But they did not, because there was no body to be found.
Fact 6: Evidence for the resurrection from enemies
Saul who later became the apostle Paul was no friend of the early church. In Acts 7 and 8 we read of how Stephen was stoned to death and how Saul approved of it, and then later started to hunt the Christians. Isnt it ironic that this enemy is then later converted by none other than Jesus himself on the road to Damascus and much later dies for his belief that Jesus was the risen Son of God? Why would someone who hated Christ initially, all of a sudden start to follow Jesus and then die for him, if he knew that it all was a lie. Of course he wouldnt.
Fact 7: Eyewitnesses to the resurrection
In total there were 11 recorded sightings of Jesus after his death. These appearances varied from personal sightings for the apostles, Mary Magdalene and others, to as many as 500 people at once (see 1Corinthians 15:6).
In Acts 2:41 we read of 3000 people being converted to Christianity in one day. Would that have been possible if there had been no eyewitnesses to corroborate the sightings of Jesus?
Modern day Christians do not have to wonder or worry about the reliability of the gospel accounts surrounding Easter. Yes we might not have video evidence with DNA and fingerprints to corroborate the history, but we have an incredible amount of other reliable evidence proving that Jesus lived, died and was resurrected.
1. http://bibleresources.bible.com/afacts.php
2. Taking a stand for the Bible, John Ankerburg and Dillon Burroughs, Harvest house publishers page 58
3. Roman Society and Roman Law in the New Testament (Oxford Clarendon Press,1965) from Norman L. Gesler, Christian Apologetics (Grand Rapids: Baker,1976) p.326
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