Light Brings Salt
Volume 2, Issue 15 April 11, 2004
Dedicated to the
Systematic Exposition of the Word of God
What About the Resurrection?
Fact or Fiction?
Something crucial
happened 2000 years ago, something that had such an impact it changed
the course of history from B.C. (Before Christ) to A.D. (the Latin Anno Domini--the year of our
Lord). That
"something" was so dramatic it completely changed 11 men's lives, so
that all but one died a martyr's death.
That something was an empty tomb? An empty
tomb that just a short 15-minute
walk from the center of
"If you wish to rationalize away the events surrounding
Christ and His resurrection, you must deal with certain imponderables."
(McDowell, The Resurrection Factor, p. 64)
By imponderables, McDowell is talking about historical evidence
for the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The body of evidence is so great it has
led millions throughout history to put their trust in Jesus Christ, many of
whom were skilled in evaluating historical evidence. We make this emphasis because many theories
have been advanced that attempt to show the resurrection of Jesus Christ was a
fraud or nothing but a myth concocted many years later.
McDowell writes: "I believe
that many of the people who came up with these theories must have had two brains--one
lost, and the other one out looking for it. Historians have to become
anti-historical to invent some of their ideas." (p. 76)
With this in mind, let's consider the testimony of a few
outstanding historians. These are testimonies of men who are some of the
greatest minds of history, men who were specialists in gathering and evaluating
historical evidence. Note the following six testimonies from The Resurrection
Factor, pages 10-12:
1. Roman history scholar: I
have been used for many years to study the histories of other times, and to
examine and weigh the evidence of those who have written about them, and I know
of no one fact in the history of mankind which is proved by better and fuller
evidence of every sort, to the understanding of a fair inquirer, than the great
sign which God hath given us that Christ died and rose again from the dead.
2. Textual critic Brooke Foss Wescott,
an English scholar, said, "Taking all the evidence together, it is not too
much to say that there is no historic incident better or more variously
supported than the resurrection of Christ.
Nothing but the antecedent assumption that it must be false could have
suggested the idea of deficiency in the proof of it."
3. Professor of ancient history Dr. Paul L. Maier, professor of
ancient history at
4. Legal authority: One man who was highly skilled at dealing
with evidence was Dr. Simon Greenleaf. He was the famous Royal Professor of Law
at
Greenleaf examined the value of the historical evidence for the
resurrection of Jesus Christ to ascertain the truth. He applied the principles
contained in his three-volume treatise on evidence. His findings were recorded
in his book, An Examination of the Testimony of the Four Evangelists by the
Rules of Evidence Administered in the Courts of Justice.
Greenleaf came to the conclusion that, according to the laws of
legal evidence used in courts of law, there is more evidence for the historical
fact of the resurrection of Jesus Christ than for just about any other event in
history.
5. Attorney general: An
Englishman, John Singleton Copley, better known as Lord Lyndhurst, is
recognized as one of the greatest legal minds in British history.
Upon Copley's death, among his personal papers were found his
comments concerning the resurrection in the light of legal evidence and why he
became a Christian: "I
know pretty well what evidence is; and I tell you, such evidence as that for
the resurrection has never broken down yet."
Lord Chief Justice of
6. Rationalistic lawyer: Dr.
Frank Morrison, a
lawyer who had been brought up in a rationalistic environment, had come to the
opinion that the resurrection was nothing but a fairy-tale happy ending which
spoiled the matchless story of Jesus. He felt that he owed it to himself and
others to write a book that would present the truth about Jesus and dispel the
mythical story of the resurrection.
Upon studying the facts, however, he, too, came to a different
conclusion. The sheer weight of the
evidence compelled him to conclude that Jesus actually did rise from the dead.
Morrison wrote his book--but not the one he had planned. It is titled, Who Moved the Stone? The first chapter, very significantly, is, "The
Book That Refused to Be Written."
An outstanding book on the evidences for the resurrection is
Josh McDowell's book, The Resurrection Factor. He also covers this in his book,
Evidence That Demand's A Verdict. There are many others as well.
All this wonderful evidence exists in spite of the security
precautions taken by both the Jews and the Romans to make sure Jesus was dead
and remained in the tomb. These included things like the Roman seal that was
broken, the heavy stone that covered the door but was removed, and the Roman
guard of soldiers who were there to guard the tomb. All this makes the evidence of the resurrection
of Jesus that much more remarkable.
Remember what Paul
said in 1 Corinthians 15:17 "and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is
worthless; you are still in your sins."
Some Doctrinal Issues
1. Declared
that Jesus Christ is God's Son.
2. It
verifies the truth of Scripture.
Both
in the Old Testament and in the teaching of Jesus, His resurrection is clearly
taught.
If
Jesus had not come out of the tomb, then these Scriptures would not be true.
3. It
indicated the completion and acceptance of His provision of justification. Rom.
4. It
is the visible proof to us that His work on the cross satisfied the
righteousness of God the Father.
5. It
assures our own future resurrection. Because Jesus died and rose again, we shall
one day be raised to be like Him (1 Thes.
6. If
we do away with His resurrection, we have no hope.
7. It
is related to the power
for Christian living. We cannot live for God
by our own strength. It
is only as His resurrection power works in and through us that we can do His
will and glorify His name (Rom. 6:4; Eph.
8. It
is the basis of our confidence in the future. Because we have a living hope in
a living Savior we are able to live confidently. 1 Peter 1:3-5
9. Whenever
God's people gather on the first day of the week they bear witness to the fact that
Jesus is alive and that the church has been blessed with all spiritual blessings in Him.