Why can Christians believe in the Resurrection? Part 3

So far in this series I have discussed two ways that people attempt to say that the Resurrection never happened. I talked about how some think that Jesus only swooned and how others believe that the disciples stole Jesus' body. Today I want to talk about a huge reason that further disproves the idea that the disciples stole Christ's body.

If Jesus never resurrected, then what about everyone who saw him after his death? Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:6 that Jesus appeared to more than 500 people after his resurrection at the same time—"most of whom are still alive." In the last post, I said that these people would not "lie" about seeing Jesus. Non-believers would agree. Instead, they say that all these people hallucinated. In addition, Jesus also appeared to many other people over the course of the 40 days after his resurrection until his ascension. A significant amount of these were individuals or small groups.

Think about what these people are saying. Five hundred people hallucinated and saw the exact same person. (Not to mention the many small groups and individuals who saw him.) First, five hundred people would not all hallucinate at the same exact moment. Second, even if they all did hallucinate, they would not all see the same things. Third, even if all hallucinated and saw the same things, the hallucination would not last for as long as Jesus was with them. As for the individuals and small groups, why would that many people all have the same hallucination with slight variations?

If all these people didn't hallucinate, or lie about seeing Jesus, then what other options are there? Only one. They did see Jesus. They saw him after his death, and after his resurrection. Jesus rose from the dead and lives today. He lives in you and me. He is risen! Praise God!

Why can Christians believe in the Resurrection? Part 2

In yesterday's post, I covered the impossibility that Jesus had only passed out, not died. Today, I will explain why it was not possible for Jesus' disciples to steal his body from the tomb and then claim that he rose from the dead.

The Roman soldiers were placed to guard the tomb for this very reason. They wanted to stop the idea that Jesus was God's Son, not enable the disciples to steal the body and promote the idea that He resurrected. These soldiers were armed, highly trained men. The disciples could not have simply scared off the guards or fought them.

Paul recorded that Jesus appeared to more than 500 people after his resurrection—"most of whom are still alive." (1 Corinthians 15:6) In other words, "Go ahead and ask all these people! They DID see Jesus after he died." Five hundred people would not lie about seeing Jesus. They did see him after he rose from the dead.

Perhaps the largest proof that Jesus rose from the dead is the mere fact that nearly all of the disciples died martyr deaths. If by some chance they were able to steal Jesus' body, when faced with recanting their beliefs and saying that Jesus did NOT rise from the dead or death, would they continue with their ruse even though they knew that Jesus never rose? Or would they recant and explain that they stole his body and live? Even if one of the disciples did choose to die for the sake of their lie, eleven others would not do the same. Who would die for a lie?

After reading this, I pray that you can understand and explain why this theory that the disciples stole Christ's body from the tomb and then claimed that he rose is ludicrous. He is risen! (He is risen INDEED!) Tomorrow is the final post in this "trilogy" that discusses in greater depth the five hundred who saw Jesus after he rose.

Why can Christians believe in the Resurrection? Part 1

As Christians, why can we believe in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ? When a non-believer comes up to us and gives us a reason that we cannot believe in the Resurrection, what will we say to them? Non-Christians often try to come up with any reason—logical or not—to get out of believing in the Bible. One of the theories says that Jesus did not rise from the dead but that he only swooned—passed out—on the cross and never actually died. Not only does this theory sound ridiculous, but it is impossible based on facts.

For one, when the Roman soldiers stuck a spear into Jesus' side when he hung on the cross, they punctured his heart. We know this is fact because it is recorded that blood, and water, flowed out of the wound. (John 19:34) It was not discovered until some time after Jesus' resurrection that water does indeed surround the heart. In the days of Jesus, this bit of anatomy was entirely unknown, and there would be no reason for John to lie about water coming out of the wound if  he did not even know about water surrounding the heart. Therefore, both blood and water came out of the hole in Jesus' side, indicating that his heart was punctured. He had died.

In addition, the Bible says that Jesus had been beaten beyond recognition as a man. (Isaiah 52:14) A man from the gawking crowd had to carry his cross for him because he was so weak. If this was the case, how would Jesus who would then be nailed hands and feet to a wooden beam, and hand for three hours with a crown of thorns thrust into his skin, suddenly become strong enough without food, water, or medical attention to "wake up" in three days and roll aside the massive stone put over the entrance to the tomb and walk out. He would not be able to walk, much less unwrap himself from the burial cloths, move the stone, AND scare the guards so badly that they fled on likely penalty of death! It is impossible. He had died.

I hope that you can see and understand a little bit better why this idea is impossible. Jesus died. There is no other option. He died and remained in the tomb. On the third day he rose from the dead with the power given to him by his Father. Angels rolled away the stone. Jesus died and defeated the power of death. He is risen, hallelujah!

I hope that you feel a little better equipped to explain why it is impossible that Jesus only passed out. Coming tomorrow is another post refuting a second theory about Jesus' resurrection.