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Did Jesus Really Rise from the Dead?
The answer to this question is the lynch pin to the Christian
faith. If Jesus did rise from the dead there is no doubt that He must be the Son
of God. Fortunately, the Bible tells us much about the facts of the
Resurrection. In fact more is written about the Resurrection than any other
event in Jesus’ life.
Did Jesus Die on a Cross?
- Historical documents from the time confirm crucifixion was used during
Jesus’ time period and location.
- It is very unlikely anyone would invent the death of their leader by
crucifixion as it was the most shameful form of execution of the time.
Was Jesus Placed in a Tomb?
The Bible not only states Jesus was placed in a tomb but also
tells us the owner of the tomb, Joseph of Arimathea (Mark 15:43 ,
Matthew27:57-60, Luke 23:50-53, John 19:38-42). This is important because if
someone was doubtful of the Resurrection, they would know where to go to to
produce the body.
But Did He Rise from the Dead?
The gospels tell us that women found the tomb empty
three days after Jesus’ death. The fact that women are the ones to first witness
the empty tomb is important. At the time, the testimony of women was not seen as
reliable. It is very unlikely that the gospel writers would use them as witness
if they were fabricating a believable story.
Well He could have…
- Jesus could have survived the crucifixion : Some say thatJesus could have
survived the crucifixion and only appeared dead. Then once placed in a cool
tomb, He revived and walked out. This is impossiblefor the following
reasons:
- Jesus was crucified by Roman soldiers who were well practiced at the art
of crucifixion. In fact, a botched execution was punishable by death.
- After His death, Roman guards pierced His side with a spear to ensure His
death. The gospel account then tells that water and blood exited the
wound. Modern day science tells us that this was most likely the
separation of His red and white blood cells into clots and syrum.
- If Jesus did manage to survive the crucifixion He would have have to
recover and move a large stone (weighing over a ton) and sneak past a
contingent of Roman guards. This would be impossible for a man who had
been flogged, beaten, forced to carry a cross for some distant, crucified
with nails in His hands and feet, stabbed with a spear, then sealed in a
Jewish burial cloth (think mummy, with over 100 pounds of wrapping) with
in last 12 hours.
- Jesus’ body could have been moved by the Jewish leaders : Others say the
Jewish leaders moved the body to ensure that His followers did not steal it
and claim resurrection. This doesn’t make sense because when His followers
did claim that He rose all they had to do to disprove the fact would be to
produce the body. The Jewish leaders were also aware of Jesus’ warning that
He would rise thee days later and therefore went to Pilate and said,
“’Therefore, give orders for the grave to be made secure until the third
day, otherwise His disciples may come and steal Him away and say to the
people, 'He has risen from the dead,' and the last deception will be worse
than the first.’
”Pilate said to them, ‘You have a guard; go, make it as secure as you know
how.’ And they went and made the grave secure, and along with the guard they
set a seal on the stone.” – Matthew 27:63-66
- Jesus’ body was stolen by His followers : Perhaps Jesus’own followers stole
His body to fake the Resurrection. A few issues with this theory:
- The Jewish leaders asked the Romans to guard the tomb to protect against
this exact scenario (Mark 27:65).
- Jesus’ followers were in no condition mentally to devise such a plan.Their
leader, whom they believed to be God, was just killed before their eyes.
- Many of Jesus’ followers were killed over their faith. It is very unlikely
they would be willing to go to their deaths over a fake resurrection.
- The women went to the wrong tomb : Sounds plausible until you read further
that the disciples later ran to the tomb to check the women’s story. Did
they forget the location also? How do you forget the place your leader was
buried?
Resurrection Appearances
Jesus appeared to many different people after His
resurrection. The apostle Paul lists several of the individuals who saw Jesus,
including a group of 500 who all saw Him at the same time. Paul wrote that many
of the individuals were still alive at the time of his writing who could back up
the claim (1 Corinthians 15:6).
Transformation of Jesus’ Followers
After the Resurrection experience, Jesus’ followers were
transformed from average people (fishermen, tax collectors, etc.) with fears and
doubts about their beliefs into a group of leaders that changed not only the
whole world, but all the whole world for all time. If Jesus’resurrection was all
a hoax, it would be impossible for these leaders to go to their deaths for
teaching the lessons of an imposter god.There was no motivation for the
disciples to make up the Resurrection.They had nothing to gain and everything to
lose.
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