The Resurrection of Jesus Christ
The single most important event in all of history is the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is through Christ’s crucifixion that our sins can be forgiven by believing in Him. It is through Christ’s resurrection that we are assured that He will raise His own from the dead and we shall then live with Him eternally (Romans 6:6-9). The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the central truth of Christianity. In 1 Corinthians 15:14, Paul emphasizes that “if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching in vain, and your faith is also in vain.” It was one thing for Jesus to convince His disciples that He was Messiah and God, but in the process He was crucified! So, if death could keep Christ in the grave, then He was not who He said He was. Paul stated that the resurrection “declared [Jesus Christ] to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead” (Romans 1:4). It is Christ’s resurrection that proves He is God. The apostles realized as well that if the whole thing was a hoax they would be “found false witnesses of God” (1 Corinthians 15:15).
Resurrection Foretold
The resurrection of Christ was foretold by David in the Psalms (16:10-11) and by Isaiah (53:10-12), the prophet of the Lord. Jesus Himself announced that He would be killed, and on the third day He would rise again (Mark 9:9-10; John 2:19-22). The disciples were also told by Jesus that He would be killed at Jerusalem, and be raised again the third day (Matthew 16:21; Mark 8:31; Luke 9:22; John 2:19-21).
Despite the fact that Scripture and Jesus Himself testified to His crucifixion and resurrection, when His actual crucifixion occurred in the garden of Gethsemane, his disciples turned coward and fled (Matthew 26:56; Mark 14:50; Luke 22:54; John 18:16). It was up to this point that Jesus’ disciples believed He was the Messiah. Now that the occurring events looked otherwise they forsook him. We have to ask honestly what changed the disciples from cowards, before the crucifixion, and now that Christ is dead, and would prove He lied, all of a sudden these same cowards get the courage to die for what they believed was a lie. The witness of history does not add up unless the resurrection is true. Obviously something took place, and that something was that Christ rose from the dead, proving He is Messiah and God, as the biblical and historical evidence demonstrates.
The Empty Tomb
One of the earliest explanations of the empty tomb was that the disciples stole the body of Jesus. It is a very old lie that the Jews and Romans conjured up to dismiss the reality of Christ's resurrection (Matthew 28:11-15). Yet the lie reveals the truth that it did happen, for which the authorities tried to bribe the soldiers. The fact that Jesus did rise from the dead, leaving His grave clothes undisturbed, is acknowledged by both the Roman guards and Jewish authorities of Jesus’ day. The overwhelming testimony is that the tomb was empty.
To concoct an explanation of the situation, the soldiers were bribed to say they fell asleep. But would the soldiers have fallen asleep on their guard when they knew the penalty was death? How would the guards know that the disciples took the body if they were truly asleep? It is not possible such a situation occurred. The disciples’ character simply would not allow for them to carry out such an event. And, if the disciples took the body, it is inconceivable that they would let many die for what they knew was a lie, themselves included. Even if just a few of the disciples took the body surely the truth would have slipped out to the others.
Another radical theory is that the Jews or Romans moved the body. However, if this were true certainly they would have paraded the dead corpse through the streets and mocked the death of Christianity. At a time when the apostles had “turned the world upside down” (Acts 17:6) with the preaching of Christ’s resurrection, to simply produce the dead body of Jesus that had been moved would have destroyed Christianity. With that one event the Jews and the Romans’ troubles would be over. It simply did not happen!
Yet another view is that Jesus did not actually die. This is a modern explanation not taking into account the emphatic records of antiquity that Jesus actually died. The modern explanation suggests that Jesus passed out or took a drug that placed Him in a sleeplike trance only to be revived three days later. If we assume this is true, is it possible that Jesus would have survived the crucifixion? Before Jesus was crucified, He was whipped. The whip had chunks of metal and bone woven into it in order to tear the flesh. After Jesus was whipped, His body was in shreds so that it could hardly be recognized (cf. Isaiah 52:14). He should have died before He was nailed to the cross. One of the soldiers even thrust a spear into His side, and immediately blood and water rushed out (John 19:34). Is it possible to imagine that Jesus lay in the tomb for three days, with no medical attention, food, or water, yet was able to revive Himself? Who is the storyteller now?
The Burial Place
At the beginning of the passion week (or Easter), Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey proclaiming Himself as King of Israel. Crowds of Jews laid down palm branches, but it was the religious leaders of Jesus’ day that tried to silence these newfound disciples. In response, Jesus said, “I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out” (Luke 19:40). The witness of archaeology demonstrates a fulfillment of Jesus’ own prophecy that the stones would cry out. The most crucial events surrounding the last week of Jesus’ life are His burial and resurrection.
Archaeology has uncovered many 1st century Judean tombs that correspond in type to the Gospel narratives. Christian tourists generally favor “the Garden Tomb,” discovered by the British officer Charles Gordon in 1883, as the site of Christ’s burial. The “Garden Tomb” is a quite weathered tomb that is situated outside the present day walls of Jerusalem. It is next to a highly eroded limestone hill termed “Skull Hill” by Gordon.
In contrast to the archaeological find of Gordon, further research by archeologists Gabriel Barkay and Amos Kloner have demonstrated that the “Garden Tomb” is part of a system of Iron Age II type tombs in the area (the most notable of these tombs are on the property of the Ecole Biblique). These tombs are dated from the 8th-7th centuries BC. However, the New Testament record states that Christ was buried in “a new sepulchre, wherein was never man yet laid” (John 19:41). Obviously, the “Garden Tomb” would have already been some 800 years old at the time of Jesus, thus it is unable to meet the explicit details of the Gospel records.
The traditional site of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre has quite significant archeological support as the true burial site of Jesus. Although it is located within the present day walls of the Old City and Scripture explicitly specifies that Jesus was crucified “nigh to the city” (John 19:20), the modern day walls do not follow the ancient sequence. British archeologist Kathleen Kenyon proved this in the late 1960s when she discovered that the wall now enclosing the Church of the Holy Sepulchre was a “second wall” that was constructed after the time of Jesus, which would have been around 41 AD. Therefore, when Jesus was crucified, the traditional site would have been outside the earlier “first wall.”
Additionally, other archaeologists have discovered that a “garden gate” was on the wall. This fact would correspond well with the New Testament of a garden in this area. Further examinations of the tombs in the vicinity of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre confirm that these tombs are from the late second temple period (1st century AD), which was the very period in which Jesus lived.
The second temple tombs also correspond to the precise tomb in which Jesus was laid. In the 1st century there were two types of tombs that were used. One was the more common kokim tomb, which employed long narrow niches cut into the chamber of the burial cave walls at right angles. The other type of tomb was known as the thearcosolia tomb, which had shallow benches cut parallel to the wall of the chamber and an arch-shaped top over the recess. It is this type of tomb that was reserved for people of high esteem. This would seem plausible to be the type of tomb in which Jesus was laid since His tomb was recorded to be that of a wealthy man (Matthew 27:57; cf. Isaiah 53:9). The body of Christ could be seen by the disciples as it was laid out (John 20:5, 11), which would have been something possibly only with a benchcut tomb and the angels were seen seated at His head and feet (John 20:12).
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre also encloses a portion of a hill thought to be the true site of Calvary. There have been excavations to expose more of this rock and have revealed that it was a rejected portion of a pre-exilic white stone quarry that is evidenced by Iron Age II pottery at the site. Thus, it has been suggested that if this is the actual site of Christ’s burial then Peter’s citation of Psalm 118:22 (“the stone which was set at nought of you builders”) may have a double reference in the Text (Acts 4:11; 1 Peter 2:7).
By the time of the 1st century BC, this rejected quarry had made the transition from a refuse dump to a burial site. There is also evidence that it was located near a public road in Jesus’ time that would give another similarity to the authentic site since the Gospels record that those passing by the place where Jesus’ cross was situated were able to mock Him (Mt. 27:39).
It is the old quarry site that corresponds best with the Jewish and Roman requirements for an execution site, and its association with a place of death could explain quite plausibly why it was called the “place of the skull” in Jesus’ time. This rock can be seen today through a section preserved for viewing and bears evidence of earthquake activity, a fact that well accords with the Gospel narratives (Matthew 27:51).
Psychological Absurdity
The resurrection of Christ changed the disciples from a group of cowards into a band of men who “turned the world upside down” and in the end all but one died a martyr’s death. To think that this discouraged group who had up to the time of Jesus’ crucifixion believed Jesus was the Messiah and now that he was dead would give up all that they had to be beaten, thrown in prison, and eventually murdered for a lie is a psychological absurdity.
Jesus’ disciple, Thomas, said that he would not believe Jesus’ resurrection until “I shall see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into His side.” When he eventually saw the risen Lord he exclaimed, “My Lord and my God” (John 20:25, 28). Thomas died a martyr’s death for what he knew was reality.
Then there was Peter who denied his Lord three times for fear of his own life. A short time after the Lord’s crucifixion, Peter was preaching boldly in Jerusalem while his own life was in danger. This man could not be silenced by the whole Sanhedrin. According to tradition, Peter was crucified upside down (at his own request) because he did not feel worthy to die like His Lord.1 The only explanation is that the risen Jesus appeared to Peter (Luke 24:34; Acts 4:1; 1 Corinthians 15:5).
James was Jesus’ own brother, yet he called himself “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ” (James 4:1). Before Christ’s resurrection, he did not believe that Jesus was indeed the Son of God (John 7:5). He was martyred as well for Christ’s sake. What caused this disbelieving brother to give his life as a “servant of the Lord Jesus Christ”? The answer is recorded by Paul (1 Corinthians 15:7).
Before Paul became a believer, he had Stephen stoned. Stephen saw the risen Lord “standing by the right hand of God.” Rather than curse his murderers he “cried with a loud voice, ‘Lord, lay not this sin to their charge’” (Acts 7:55, 60). This is definitely not the normal behavior of someone who was innocently murdered.
Paul enthusiastically persecuted the Church, but as the result of an encounter with the risen Lord he became a believer in the Lord (Acts 9:1-9) and was to become one of the greatest contributors to the writing of the New Testament. Paul preached in the exact places where he persecuted Christians and even “confounded the Jews” proving that Jesus is the Son of God (Acts 9:20-22). He lost all his worldly possessions to follow the risen Lord yet called those former losses “but dung, that I may win Christ” (Philippians 3:8). He, too, died a martyr’s death. The reason was the same as the others, that is, he saw the risen Lord and believed (1 Corinthians 15:8). The conversion of Paul, who was vehemently opposed to Christianity, is one of the greatest evidences of Christ's resurrection.
The Eyewitness Accounts
The resurrection was not a fabrication to be added to the Christian faith at a later date. The resurrection was the very cause and beginning of Christianity. The faith of the early church rested on fact; it was the fact that they had seen Jesus Christ risen with their own eyes. Could it have been a hallucination? If it was such the apostles did not believe it since they considered the resurrection to be an “idle tale” at first (Luke 24:11). Furthermore, it is not possible that the same hallucination would keep occurring for a seven week interval following the Lord’s resurrection and Peter’s sermon at Pentecost. The recorded appearances of the risen Lord are not individualistic as would happen if the event were a hallucination.
The resurrected Lord appeared to Mary Magdalene (John 20:14); the other Mary (Matthew 28:9); to Peter (Luke 24:34; 1 Corinthians 15:5); and then walked with two disciples on the Emmaus road (Luke 24:13-31). Jesus appeared to the ten apostles (Luke 24:36-43), a week later He appeared to the eleven apostles (John 20:26-29), then appeared to seven disciples at the sea of Tiberias (John 21:1-14); and to a crowd of 500 people at one time (1 Corinthians 15:6). Jesus’ brother James saw him (1 Corinthians 15:7) and others saw His ascension into heaven (Acts 1:6-11). The apostle Paul saw Jesus risen (Acts 9:3-6; 1 Corinthians 15:8); Stephen the martyr saw Him (Acts 7:55); and later John saw Him on the Isle of Patmos (Revelation 1:18). There is no single explanation for what occurred after Jesus’ crucifixion. No one expected His resurrection for they thought He was dead for good. Men do not die for what they know is a lie!
Another amazing feature of the resurrection is that no one said Jesus was stoned to death, beheaded, thrown into a lion's den, etc. At a time when it was still possible to refute the death and resurrection of Jesus, as well as the method, Peter stated: Christ, “being delivered . . . ye have taken and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death” (Acts 2:23-24). The apostle proclaimed the resurrection as fact, needing no evidence, for his listeners had witnessed the same. Had it been a fraud, surely it would have been reported. Yet “3,000 souls” were saved as a result of Peter’s sermon (Acts 2:41). Even members of the Sanhedrin admitted “we cannot deny it” (Acts 4:16).
Varying Accounts of the Resurrection
Central American diplomat and agnostic John K. Naland has argued strongly against the resurrection of Christ due to what he believes are contradictory accounts.2 However, it needs little imagination to observe how two parties, which set out from different points in order to meet at an agreed place, would not arrive at precisely the same moment. This is evident from some apparently contradictory statements in the Gospel narratives.
For instance, there are different times of the day documented as to when the various parties arrived at the empty tomb (Matthew 28:1; Mark 16:2, 9; Luke 24:1; John 20:1). The documentation of various times in the day if applied to only one party might be considered contradictory. However, when related to distinct groups coming to the same tomb at different times, in addition to bearing in mind the swiftness in the shades of morning in the East, dispels any notion of contradiction.
Mark’s Gospel records two parties of women arriving at the tomb (16:1). This is important since three women would have been unable to roll away the stone and thus offers by implication the fact that they expected to meet others at the tomb. In following the progression of Mark’s account, one discovers that the stone had already been rolled away by the time the women had arrived. Hence, they rushed back to the other disciples with the wrong information that the body of Christ had been taken away (John 20:2).
By the time that Peter had arrived at the tomb and looked inside his reaction was one of incredulity. Once John, the beloved disciple, looked into the burial tomb it is said that “saw, and believed” (John 20:8). The following account is given as an eyewitness who seeks to give a full documentation of what he witnessed so as to provide his readers with the full implication (cf. John 20:6-9). As Peter and John beheld the undisturbed grave clothes (20:7), they were convinced that Christ was risen.
Naland simply does not provide any detailed evidence that the resurrection accounts conflict with one another. What he does do is misrepresent what the Bible actually records. The Gospel accounts do not say that only one woman went to the tomb, and no other woman came at any other time. Likewise, neither does Matthew’s account conflict that there was one angel at the tomb, whereas Luke and John state that there were two angels (Matthew 28:2-4; Mark 16:4, 5; Luke 24:2-5). The simple answer is that two or more angels could be present at different times, and in a variety of locations and positions (both inside and outside the tomb). The problem would be if Scripture said that only two angels were present or mentioned only one angel at the tomb. To state that the account contradicts because different locations and positions of the angels are described is to misrepresent the obvious documentation that these events supplement one another. Again, there simply is no contradiction; rather the different accounts are supplementary, which is evidence of the fact that the resurrection accounts are in fact given by eyewitnesses.
The Account of the Soldiers
Matthew is the only Gospel writer who gives an account of the impact of the resurrection upon the soldiers who were guarding the tomb. He records several important facts: (1) “there was a great earthquake” (Matthew 28:2); (2) “the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door” (28:2); (3) the soldier’s beheld the appearance of the angel to be “like lightning, and his raiment white as snow” (28:3); and (4) “and for fear of him [the angel] the keepers did shake, and became as dead men” (28:4).
In the Passover Plot, Hugh Schonfield argues against the above account since only Matthew mentions the guards: “We may dismiss the story in Matthew alone that the chief priests requested Pilate that a guard be set over the tomb, and that they posted a watch, presumably on Saturday evening at the end of the Sabbath.”3 The idea is that Matthew’s account is fictitious since he alone mentions the guards.
Obviously, Matthew is selective in the material that he records. If a certain event portrays the specific theme that he has in mind he will use it. Likewise, if a certain event does not portray the theme he is aiming at he will not include it. The various similarities and dissimilarities among paralleled events in the Gospels are due to the purpose of the author in writing the book. Matthew is writing for a Jewish audience so it makes sense that he alone would mention the actions of the Jewish people (cf. Matthew 27:62-66; 28:11-15). In a court of law, one needs to have only one truthful eyewitness to verify that an event actually took place and Matthew is that eyewitness in regard to the guards being stationed at the tomb.
The Time of the Day
There are different times of the day documented as to when the various parties arrived at the empty tomb (Matthew 28:1; Mark 16:2, 9; Luke 24:1; John 20:1). The documentation of various times in the day if applied to only one party might be considered contradictory. However, when related to distinct groups coming to the same tomb at different times, in addition to bearing in mind the swiftness in the shades of morning in the East, dispels any notion of contradiction. Dr. Gleason Archer provides a careful examination of the original languages to prove the lack of contradiction between the resurrection accounts.
They [the women] apparently started their journey from the house in Jerusalem while it was still dark (skotias eti ouses), even though it was already early morning (proi) (John 20:1). But by the time they arrived, dawn was glimmering in the East (te epiphoskouse) that Sunday morning (eis mian sabbaton) (Matthew 28:1). (Mark 16:2, Luke 24:1, John 20:1 all use the dative: te mia ton sabbaton.) Mark 16:2 adds that the tip of the sun had actually appeared above the horizon (anateilantos tou heliou—aorist participle; the Bezae codex uses the present participle, anatellontos, implying “while the sun was rising”).4
Who Arrived at the Tomb First?
At the end of the Jewish Sabbath, Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James (Matthew 28:1) set out at dawn on Sunday morning to the tomb of Jesus. They brought spices to anoint the body of Jesus since they could not do this on the Sabbath (Luke 23:54-56). There were other women that met up with them (Mark 16:1; Luke 24:1, 10).
Mark’s Gospel records two parties of women arriving at the tomb (16:1). This is important since three women would have been unable to roll away the stone and thus offers by implication the fact that they expected to meet others at the tomb. As the women were coming near to the tomb, they wondered who would roll away the stone, but when they arrived at the tomb the stone had already been rolled away (Mark 16:3). Their immediate thought was that somebody had stolen the body of Jesus and moved it somewhere else. Mary Magdalene ran back immediately to tell Peter and John and then she returned to the tomb by herself (John 20:11).
Although Mary had left the tomb at first arrival, the other women entered the tomb. They saw two men “in shining garments” and bowed down to them recognizing that they were supernatural beings (Luke 24:3-5a). One of the angels said, “Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen: remember how he spake unto you when he was yet in Galilee, saying, The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again” (Luke 23:5b-7). The initial reaction of the women to the words of the angels was fear; they ran from the tomb and did not say a word to anyone that they passed (Mark 16:8). Wenham comments:
Matthew intends us to understand that the angel rolled back the stone, not to let the body out, but to let the witnesses in, in proof of the resurrection. He sat in awesome splendor on the great gravestone, making it clear that no one could replace it. He sat there to frighten the guard away, and then presumably went inside not to frighten the women unnecessarily. He told them that they were not to be afraid.5
Eventually, the meaning of the angel’s message seized them and they were filled with “great joy” as they ran to tell the other disciples (Matthew 28:8). On their way to the disciples, Jesus met them and they fell down at His feet to worship Him. Jesus comforted the women, and then said to tell the disciples to find Him in Galilee (28:9. 10).
When the women arrived at the place of the disciples, Mary Magdalene had already informed the disciples of the empty tomb. The disciples did not believe Mary or the women (Luke 24:11). Peter and John decided to check out the tomb for themselves (Luke 24:12; John 20:3).
Peter and John ran together to the tomb, but eventually John outran Peter. When John came to the tomb, he stooped down to look inside and saw the linen wrappings that had been used to wrap the crucified body of Jesus. By the time that Peter had arrived at the tomb and looked inside his reaction was one of incredulity. Once John, the beloved disciple, looked into the burial tomb it is said that “saw, and believed” (John 20:8). As Peter and John beheld the undisturbed grave clothes (20:7), they were convinced that Christ was raised. Both men were able to see that the linen cloths were lying flat as though the body of Jesus passed through them (20:5-7). The account is given as an eyewitness who seeks to give a full documentation of what he witnessed so as to provide his readers with the full implication (cf. 20:6-9).
After Mary Magdalene had run to the disciples to tell them that the tomb was empty, she then returned to the tomb. At this time, the other women that were with her in the morning had departed. At first, Mary stood outside of the tomb weeping. Eventually, she stooped down and looked inside of the tomb and saw two angels who asked why she was crying. At this moment, Mary did not understand that Jesus had risen from the dead. She turned around to a man that she thought was the gardener and Jesus revealed Himself to her. Mary saw the resurrected Lord then so she returned to the disciples to give them the good word (20:17).
Later in the day, Jesus appeared to Peter alone (Luke 24:34; 1 Corinthians 15:5). Toward the end of the evening of the same day, he appeared to the disciples on the road to Emmaus, and then appeared to all of the disciples, except for Thomas (Luke 24:36-43; John 20:19-24). Approximately one week later, Jesus appeared to the disciples again and Thomas was present (Jn. 21:24-30). Jesus also appeared in Galilee to the seven disciples at the Sea sometime during the 40 days prior to His ascension into heaven (John 21:1-23).
Critics of the resurrection simply do not provide any detailed evidence that the resurrection accounts conflict with one another. What they do is misrepresent what the Bible actually records. There simply is no contradiction. The different accounts are supplementary to each other and this is solid evidence of the fact that the resurrection accounts are in fact given by eyewitnesses.
History Speaks
Flavius Josephus (Jewish historian, AD 37-c.100) wrote as follows:
Now, there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man, for he was a doer of wonderful works – a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews, and many of the Gentiles. He was [the] Christ; and whom Pilate, at the suggestion of principal men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at first did not forsake him, for he appeared to them alive again the third day, as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him; and the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day (Antiquities of the Jews 18.3.3).6
Of course, some skeptical scholars have decided that the above passage is an interpolation. If that were the case, one must wonder why the same interpolator(s) did not refer to Jesus and James in a more distinct manner in another passage: “So he (Albinus) assembled the sanhedrin of judges, and brought before them the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James, and some others” (Antiquities 20.9.1).7
If the interpolation was a Christian insertion, we would expect to read James identified as the “brother of the Lord,” which was the Christian practice.8 The fourth century church historian Eusebius follows this practice of identifying James as the “brother of the Lord,” even telling us of his surname “the Just” (Ecclesiastical History 2:23).9 Likewise, Galatians 1:19 states, “James the Lord’s brother.” The authenticity of Josephus’ passage is substantiated by the second. We do not notice any preference given to Jesus or James, the historian is merely doing what an historian is supposed to do, that is, report the facts regardless of bias.
Furthermore, one would have to account for the event that caused the Jewish Christians to worship on Sunday rather that Saturday. The Jewish people were fanatics concerning the Sabbath (more so than today’s Seventh-Day Adventists). The early church was mostly Jewish, yet one finds that they worshipped on the first day of the week. The change was the result of Christ’s resurrection marking a new dispensation (divine economy). This day of celebrating Jesus’ resurrection from the grave was known as the Lord’s Day and observed by many of the Jewish Christians.
A Christian Testimony
C. S. Lewis tells of his own battle converting to Christianity:
Early in 1926 the hardest boiled of all the atheists I ever knew sat in my room on the other side of the fire and remarked that the evidence for the historicity of the Gospels was really surprisingly good. ‘Rum thing,’ he went on. ‘All that stuff of Frazer’s about the Dying God. Rum thing. It almost looks as if it had really happened once.’ To understand the shattering impact of it, you would need to know the man (who has certainly never shown any interest in Christianity). If he, the cynic of cynics, the toughest of the toughs, were not – as I would still have put it – ‘safe,’ where could I turn? Was there no escape?10
“There was no such historical claim as in Christianity,” Lewis commented. Realizing the evidence for the Bible’s claims was completely factual he could no longer “regard the Gospels as myths.” All the while Professor Lewis was fighting himself from converting to Christianity he could feel the “steady, unrelenting approach” of God whom he “so earnestly desired not to meet.” Unable to stay away from the Truth any longer, he knelt and prayed.11
Concluding Remarks
Would it have been easier to validate Jesus’ death and resurrection if He were born in our age? Due to our technology, the event could be videotaped or televised so that all could see. Even then someone would claim the filming had been dubbed (anything but the truth when it comes to the Bible). In His own perfect sovereignty, Jesus came at the right time in history and if He chose to come today, He told us some men would still deny Him. “And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead” (Luke 16:31). Obviously, Jesus knew the hardness of some men’s hearts, even when the truth was right before them. Call Him liar or call him lunatic, but the time is coming when all mankind will call Him Lord. “That at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:10-11).
One day every man will give an account of himself to the Lord Jesus Christ. Based on your faith in Him alone, you will be either eternally condemned or commended. To believe in Jesus is not to surrender your reason; it is just the opposite. The evidence is extremely reasonable. If you have been this up till now, and Jesus Christ is not your Savior, won’t you pray a prayer like the following?
Dear Father,
I believe in your Son, Jesus Christ. I admit that I am a sinner, and that the Lord Jesus Christ died to forgive me of my sins. I trust in Christ Jesus alone to forgive me my sins right now. Having believed, apart from any works, I will turn from my sinful life and live for You alone because I am born again. Help me now to follow You, and grow in my relationship with You. Thank You for saving me forever. Amen.
1 Eusebius Pamphilus, Ecclesiastical History, rep. Christian Frederick Cruse and Isaac Boyle (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1994), III.I.
2 John K. Naland, “The First Easter: The Evidence for the Resurrection Evaluated,” Free Inquiry, Spring 1988.
3 Hugh Schonfield, The Passover Plot (New York: Bantam Books, 1969), p. 163.
4 Gleason L. Archer, Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1982), pp. 347-348.
5 John Wenham, Easter Enigma (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1984), p. 77.
6 Flavius Josephus, The Works of Josephus, trans. by William Whiston (Peabody: Hendrickson, 1995), 480.
7 Ibid., 538.
8 Merrill F. Unger, The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary (Chicago: Moody Press, 1988), 649.
9 Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History, II.23.
10 C. S. Lewis, Surprised by Joy (New York: Harvest Book, 1955), 223-224.
11 Ibid., 228, 236.
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