The Resurrection of Jesus Christ is the foundational event of the Christian faith. 1 Corinthians 15:14 says, “if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty” and verse 17 tells us, “if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!” The paramount question of all eternity is this, did Jesus rise from the dead? The great historian Luke reports that Jesus “presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs” (Acts 1:3). I will present these infallible proofs in three categories that can only be rightly answered by affirming the historical resurrection of Jesus. First, the origin of the Christian faith. Second, the many physical appearances of Jesus after His death. Third, the empty tomb of Jesus after His burial.
The Origin of the Christian Faith
There is no other plausible answer for the transformation that took place in the lives of the disciples of Jesus than to accept their testimony that Jesus rose from the dead. How else could a group of men who were cowardly absent during the crucifixion of Jesus become such courageous proclaimers of the Christian faith just a few days after their abandonment? A great change had occurred in their lives that could only be attributed to one event, namely Christ’s resurrection. They were no longer hiding nor denying their association with Jesus, but after they witnessed Jesus alive they began praying fervently and preaching passionately that Jesus was risen from the dead. These men had nothing to gain by preaching this message, unless you count suffering and death as gain. Their sincerity was verified by their deaths, in that every one of the apostles died a martyr’s death (with the possible exception of John). Would you die for a lie?
Extraordinarily Ordinary Men - One must also remember that this group of disciples were common men. They consisted primarily of fishermen, but were all just average men. They were not particularly crafty nor were they especially prominent in any way. Their message of Jesus rising from the dead was also completely opposite of the expectations in the Jewish mind of their day. While many of the Jews did expect a general resurrection at the end of time, no one expected a singular person to rise from the dead, especially not Jesus, who was the antithesis of the expectations they had for their Messiah. So how did such a small group of common everyday fellows gain such a large following of people with a message that was inconsistent with Jewish expectations? The only acceptable answer is that Jesus really had risen from the dead.
A Self-Refuting Response - The Jewish opposition did have two responses that attempted to conceal the truth of Christ’s resurrection. The first was silence through persecution. Just as they had persecuted Jesus so did they persecute His followers. The second attempt is found in Matthew 28:11-15. The chief priests bribed the soldiers who kept guard of Jesus’ tomb and said, “tell them, His disciples came at night and stole Him away while we slept.” The responsive question should be obvious to all. If you were asleep, how do you know that it was the disciples who stole His body?
The apostles of Jesus went out preaching that Christ had been risen from the dead. No matter how much it cost them they were willing to testify to this truth with their blood. They wrote down historical accounts of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus at a time and place of such close proximity that it would be almost impossible to fabricate a lie. The origin of the Christian faith would have been easily dismantled if these accounts were false because those living nearby would have come forward and disputed the apostle’s claims. But they didn’t.
The only proper explanation for what caused these 12 men from an obscure corner of the Roman world to transform the world from that moment to today, is the actual resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
Physical Appearances
After Jesus was crucified, they took His body down from the cross and wrapped it in linen graveclothes. He was then placed in a tomb which was borrowed from Joseph of Arimathea. The tomb was securely guarded by Roman soldiers, sealed with a large stone, and wrapped with the authoritative seal of the Roman government. In spite of the highest measures of security, on the third day from His burial the stone was rolled away, the clothes were left in the tomb, and Jesus was risen from the dead.
Multiple Appearances - Jesus then began appearing to various people during the 40 days between His resurrection and ascension. He appeared to Mary Magdalene and then again to the women as they were returning from His tomb (Mark 16:9; Matthew 28:9,10). He physically met with two disciples who were walking on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-33). Christ revealed His resurrected body to the apostles while Thomas was absent and again while Thomas was present, even inviting Thomas to place his finger in the scars from His crucifixion (John 20). Jesus met with Peter and also with a group of seven at the Lake of Tiberias (John 21). He miraculously appeared to a group of over 500 (1 Corinthians 15:6). Morevover, He met with James (1 Corinthians 15:7) and then began meeting with the apostles for a summation of His instructions (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:14-20; Luke 24:33-52; Acts 1:3-12).
Even after the heavenly ascension of Christ other resurrected appearances are well documented. He met with Paul on the Damascus Road (Acts 9:3-6) and He appeared alive to Stephen in Acts 7:55. The apostle John witnessed the unveiling of Christ in glory while he was in exile on the isle of Patmos (Revelation 1:10-19).
Reliable Reports - Some may object at this point by saying that I am using the Bible to prove the historicity of the physical appearances of Jesus. It is true that I am referencing parts of the Bible as historically accurate presentations, and although I know of no sufficient reason to reject any of the rest of the Bible as historically accurate, here I am simply offering to you portions of the Bible. Please consider the historical reliability of these texts as sufficient to at least establish that Jesus did indeed physically appear to many people.
Independently Agreeing Testimonies - The Resurrection became (and has become) such a widely held belief that it demands an explanation. There are multiple, independent testimonies from ancient literature, which have never been proven false, declaring that Jesus physically appeared to multiplied hundreds of witnesses after His death (as cited above). Their testimonies are dependable corroborative evidence but they are not collaborative. The independent testimonies of these multitudinous witnesses complements each other but they did not work together to create such reports. Any historian seeking to discover an event would be thrilled to discover such evidence!
Transformed Lives - Consider the exchanged lives of the early followers of Christ. Paul had been very successful in Jewish life. He was a leader among his people and had great authority, even having studied under the great Gamaliel. Why would he exchange such a life of prominence for a life of suffering and persecution? James was the half-brother of Jesus. He did not believe Jesus to be the Messiah before the resurrection (Mark 3:21; 31-35; John 7:1-10). However, we see that James became one of the pillars of the early church as he served on the council of elders in Jerusalem (Galatians 2:9; Acts 21:18). The Jewish historian, Josephus, tells us that James was later stoned to death illegally by the Sanhedrin for his faith in Christ around 60 A.D.. Why would these men and hundreds of others exchange lives of prominence and comfort for lives of persecution and martyrdom? The only sufficient explanatory reason to account for such consistent belief is that they must have really seen Jesus physically resurrected.
What other reasonable conclusion could there be? An honest seeker of truth must confess the evidence is mounted in favor of affirming that Jesus physically appeared after His death and is therefore risen from the dead. The late New Testament critical scholar of the University of Chicago, Norman Perrin, stated, “The more we study the tradition with regard to the appearances, the firmer the rock begins to appear upon which they are based.”
The Empty Tomb
It would not have been plausible for the disciples of Jesus to believe in His resurrection if His body still laid in the tomb. Moreover, no one would have believed their widespread testimony that Jesus was risen from the dead if the tomb had not been left empty. The empty tomb of Jesus after His resurrection is recorded by no less than six independent sources of historical importance. The gospel accounts of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John all present the tomb in which Jesus was buried to be left empty. The book of Acts contains multiplied attestations to the message that Jesus left His grave vacant. 1 Corinthians 15:3-7 records an early Christian creed which reveals early acceptance by many that the tomb in which Jesus was buried was empty.
New and Widely Used Phrases - There were significant changes in practice and terminology among those in the first century that reveal clear belief in the empty tomb of Jesus. A new phrase developed in first century lingo that found widespread acceptance among multiplied thousands of people. It was the phrase, “on the third day”. Christians began referring to events and eternal salvation according to the “third day”, with that day being recognized as the third day after Jesus’ crucifixion and the day that He rose from the dead. Another significant adjustment occurred in the appointment of Sunday as the official day of Christian worship and celebration. Their choosing of the first day of the week as the day for corporate gathering flowed from the cherished belief that Jesus left the tomb empty on that day.
Agreement Regarding Burial - Liberal and conservative scholars both agree with the gospel writers that the body of Jesus was buried in a tomb belonging to Joseph of Arimathea. Joseph was an affluent man who was also a member of the Jewish Sanhedrin. The Sandhedrin was the group of men who appealed for the death of Jesus and strategized His arrest. It is thoroughly unlikely that out of all the people that could have buried the body of Jesus, it would have been this Joseph. However, that is exactly who the gospel writers claim buried Jesus. Although it is inexplicable for a man who was part of the committee who condemned Jesus to be the very one compassionate enough to bury Jesus, this is exactly what the disciples reported. This type of irony could not have been fabricated by the disciples for it would have made no sense to do so. Why would the disciples report that a man who had been a part of the council that condemned Jesus be the one who mercifully buried him unless it was indeed the truth? Also, there is no other story offered by ancient opponents to contradict this burial account, which also leads to the conclusion that Jesus left the tomb empty.
Unlikely Witnesses - Women were not extended proper amounts of respect in the ancient world. Women were not even allowed to serve as witnesses in matters of legal dispute. Their testimony was not considered worthy to be reported. However, this is who God chose to be the first witnesses of the resurrection of Jesus. Although it would have been embarrassing in the ancient world, it was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary, and other women who first testified that they had seen Jesus alive and the grave empty. This helps prove that Jesus rose from the dead because this report would not at all have been the kind of testimony the disciples would have chosen if they had been trying to convince people of something miraculous. The embarrassment involved with having women as primary eyewitnesses in the ancient world for something as miraculous as the resurrection of Jesus would have caused the disciples to produce a different story, but they did not. They did not create a different story because this was the truth, and although it may have been an embarrassment to some, women were the first to witness Jesus risen from the dead.
Conspiracy Without Denial - The opponents of Jesus did not offer a denial of the empty tomb. Matthew 28:11-15 records the Jewish priests bribing the soldiers so they might tell others that the disciples of Jesus had come at night and stolen the body of Jesus while they were sleeping. As previously mentioned, if they were asleep, how would they know it was the disciples who stole the body? Moreover, notice that the priests did not deny the empty tomb, they only came up with an alternative explanation for why it was empty. The historical fact still remains, the tomb of Jesus was empty because He had been indubitably risen from the dead.
Conclusion - The only plausible explanation for the information available regarding the resurrection of Jesus Christ is that He did in fact rise from the dead. Other reports of historical figures from the ancient world do not contain 1/1000th of the information that is reported to us concerning the resurrection of Jesus. When one considers the Origin of the Christian Faith, the Physical Appearances of Jesus after His death, and the Empty Tomb left after Jesus rose from the dead, there is only one reasonable conclusion - Jesus is risen!
