Jesus: Fact or Fake?

Introduction – Legend or Legit?

Good morning everyone. My name is Michael Steemson and I’m the Associate Pastor at Trinity Church Golden Grove. Great to be here with you today to begin the Big Question series as we spend the next four weeks exploring different answers to the question ‘Who do you think Jesus is?’ To begin today’s talk, I’d like to play a quick game with you all. The game is called Legend or Legit. Legend or Legit.

I’m going to show you a series of people and ask you all whether they are a legend, a mythical figure who never truly existed, or if they are legit, a real historical person. You can show your answers by making an L with your index finger and thumb if you believe the person is a legend or give a thumbs-up if you think they are legit. Alright, here we go.

SLIDE 2 – Achilles

First up in Legend or Legit is Achilles. Achilles, the greatest of all the Greek warriors and hero of the Trojan War. Is he a legend or is he legit? (p)

Achilles is a legend. And famously, part of his legend is that after his mother held him by one heel and dipped him into the river Styx as an infant, he was invulnerable to attack all over his body, except for that one heel, which was ultimately the source of his downfall. Achilles’ legend continues today as the name of the tendon that runs along the heel and as an idiom for a vulnerable spot in an otherwise strong entity.

SLIDE 3 – King Arthur

Next up, King Arthur. Is King Arthur a legend or is he legit? (p)

Now this is a bit of a tricky one. King Arthur is legit. He’s traditionally been accepted as a real historical person from the late 5th to early 6th century. However, this real historical person later became the source for legendary tales.

Elements such as the magician Merlin and the sword Excalibur date back to the earliest historical writings about Arthur. Later French writers then began the fictional genre of Arthurian romance by introducing Lancelot, the Knights of the Round Table and the Holy Grail. So originally he was legit, but much of what we would now associate with him must be considered legend.

SLIDE 4 – Robin Hood

Alright final one, let’s see if anyone can go three from three. Robin Hood. The highly skilled archer, clad in Lincoln green, who returns to England from the Crusades to find his lands taken by the Sheriff of Nottingham and the usurper Prince John. In retaliation, he becomes the heroic outlaw who robs the rich to give to the poor. Is Robin Hood a legend or is he legit? (p) He is a legend.

Felt need – Truth in a world of fakes

SLIDE 5 - Blank

Now for these well-known characters who have been depicted to us in a number of films across the years, I trust that it wasn’t too difficult to discern the legend from the legit. But in modern times, it has become more difficult to know what is true and what is fake.

With the many and varied conspiracy theories that have gained traction in certain corners of society, clickbait headlines and fake news, and the rise of artificial intelligence and deepfakes, many people in our society have begun to wonder if we can trust anything anymore.

This was especially evident during the COVID period, when many people were sceptical of truth claims made by experts and authorities and instead trusted only their own research.

And so in this era of distrust, scepticism, and doing your own research, what can we actually know about Jesus with any degree of confidence? Is Jesus a fact, a real historical figure, or is he a fake? Is he legit, or is he a legend?

The aim of today’s talk is to convincingly show you that Jesus is a fact; he’s a real historical figure. But more than this, I want to convince you that Christianity’s claim that Jesus is the Christ who died for your sins and who was raised to life again on the third day can be believed without a shadow of a doubt, because this claim is supported by the historical evidence.

And so today we’ll be looking at the historical evidence for Jesus from two different sources. First, we’ll look at the evidence for the historical Jesus from outside the Bible. We’ll then consider the evidence for the historical Jesus from within the Bible. So let’s begin with the historical evidence for Jesus from outside the Bible.

Teaching Point 1 – Outside the Bible

(p) In the ancient world, historians almost exclusively chronicled the deeds of politicians, warriors, and holders of high religious office. And so it is both surprising and significant that Jesus, a wandering Jewish peasant-teacher from Palestine, is worthy of a mention in the great historical records of both the Jews and the Romans.

And so without even looking at the Bible, it’s possible to piece together the broad outline of Jesus’ life just from non-Christian historical records.

To do this, let’s have a look at the evidence for the historical Jesus as recorded by the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus. Writing in the later part of the first century, Josephus wrote two notable historical works: The Jewish War, recounting the Jewish revolt against the Roman occupation in 66-70 AD, and the Antiquities of the Jews, a history of the Jewish people written for Josephus’ non-Jewish clients.  

And it’s in this second work, the Antiquities of the Jews, that Josephus mentions Jesus on two separate occasions. Here’s the first one:

SLIDE 6 – Josephus quote

“Now about this time there lived a wise man called Jesus… Indeed, he was a man who performed startling feats. He was a teacher of the people… and he drew in many from among both the Jews and the Greeks. And those who were devoted to him from the start did not cease their devotion even after Governor Pilate, on the basis of charges laid against him by our leaders, condemned him to a cross.

SLIDE 7 – Josephus quote

For [it is reported] he appeared to them alive again… And the group of ‘Christians’, named after him, has still not disappeared to this day.”[1]

(p) In addition to this evidence for the historical existence of Jesus from Josephus is the evidence provided by ancient Rome’s greatest historian, Cornelius Tacitus. Tacitus wrote the Annals of Imperial Rome in 115 AD and they are the basis of much of our most accurate information about Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero, and many of the other famous figures of the period.

And yet, in recounting the persecutions against the early Christians, Tacitus records the following about Jesus:

SLIDE 8 – Tacitus quote

“Christians derived their name from a man called Christ, who, during the reign of Emperor Tiberius had been executed by sentence of the procurator Pontius Pilate. The deadly superstition, thus checked for the moment, broke out afresh not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but also in the City of Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world meet and become popular.”[2]

Whilst clearly not a fan of Jesus or his followers, Tacitus must have felt it necessary to include a reference to Jesus and confirm some details about his execution – where, when, and by whom – as a matter of historical accuracy.

And so from these fascinating two records alone, we can piece together just about the whole story of Jesus without even opening a Bible. We learn:

SLIDE 9 – What we know about Jesus

· When and where Jesus lived

· That he was an influential teacher who performed ‘startling feats’

· That he was widely known by the prestigious title ‘the Christ’

· That he was executed and by whom

· That people claimed to have seen him raised from the dead

That’s a lot of information from documents written by people who were anything but supporters of the Christian faith! Add to these writings others written by Jewish and Roman sources, as well as the many documents written by Christians in the first and second centuries, and you really have to bury your head in the sand to deny the overwhelming amount of historical evidence proving that Jesus is a fact.

John Dickson, an Australian Christian author who holds a PhD in ancient history, sums up the strength of the case for the historical Jesus in these words:

SLIDE 10 – John Dickson quote

“I have discovered that finding a professional historian who denies the first-century existence of Jesus Christ is about as difficult as finding a professional scientist who rejects the existence of DNA.”[3]

Jesus is a fact. The evidence is convincing, compelling, undeniable. Anyone who says otherwise clearly hasn’t done their homework.

But of course, this is only the beginning. Proving the existence of Jesus as a factual historical figure is one thing. There are many people throughout history who have had their lives and achievements documented. Yet the difference is that Christianity claims that Jesus is relevant not just to history but also to our lives today.

And so to consider the validity of this claim, let’s now turn our attention to see what the Bible has to say about Jesus.

Teaching Point 2 – Within the Bible

(p) Today’s Bible reading came from 1 Corinthians chapter 15. And in this reading, the apostle Paul wants to remind the church in Corinth of the gospel.

Now the word ‘gospel’ is a bit of a ‘Christianese’ word used in church circles. And yet there is often a surprising amount of variance in our understanding of what the gospel actually is.

The word ‘gospel’ itself just means good news, or more precisely, important news, and it is used over 100 times in the New Testament books of the Bible. But on only a few occasions is a complete description of the content of this good and important news fully laid out. 1 Corinthians chapter 15 is one such occasion.

And in the opening verses of 1 Corinthians chapter 15, it becomes clear why the gospel is both good and important news. The gospel is important news, a matter of first importance as it says in verse 3, because the gospel is a message concerning life and death. And the gospel is good news because by receiving the gospel and taking your stand in the gospel, there is salvation from death and the promise of eternal life.

So what is this gospel that is both so good and so important? Let’s now look at verses 3 to 6, where the apostle Paul outlines the three central claims that make up the gospel and the supporting evidence proving the validity of these claims. The gospel is:

SLIDE 11 – The Gospel

that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than 500 of the brothers and sisters at the same time…

SLIDE 12 – Jesus is the Christ

First claim of the gospel, Jesus is the Christ. He is the Messiah, the human being who is the chosen King of God’s kingdom. He is also the divine Son of God.

SLIDE 13 – Jesus died for our sins

Second claim of the gospel. Jesus, the Christ, died for our sins. His death was a sacrificial offering of his fully human and fully divine life. And in this way, God in his grace takes on himself that which is rightly reserved for us, by becoming one of us, so that he might be a fitting substitute who receives the just punishment for humanity’s sin.

In support of this big claim, Paul provides two types of evidence. First, the death of the Christ as a sacrificial offering for the sins of humanity was predicted; it happened according to the Scriptures.

Perhaps the Scripture which Paul has in mind is Isaiah chapter 53. There the prophet Isaiah speaks of a suffering servant of God who takes on himself the penalty and punishment of sin so that God’s people might have peace. Jesus is the one whom Isaiah was speaking of. He is the Christ who died for our sins, according to the Scriptures.

And the second piece of evidence for Jesus’ death is that he was buried. Jesus’ death was a highly public affair. It happened in the biggest city in the country during a time when the entire population gathered in that city to celebrate a festival.

More than this, Jesus’ death happened in a prominent public place and was carried out by Roman soldiers who were experts in this brutal form of execution. From what historians now know about Romans and crucifixion, it's laughably implausible to suggest that Jesus never died but was sleeping or unconscious when his body was taken down from the cross.

And so, being sure that Jesus was in fact dead, his body was buried in a tomb owned by a prominent politician of the time named Joseph of Arimathea.

And Jesus’ tomb could easily have been found by any curious person in Jerusalem that Passover weekend, just as any of us could find Sir Donald Bradman in Centennial Park Cemetery or Colonel William Light in West Terrace Cemetery if we so desired.

In fact, so well-known was the location of Jesus’ burial site that the Jewish leaders requested it be guarded by Roman soldiers so that no one could steal Jesus’ body. So be assured, Jesus was truly dead and buried. And that makes the third claim all the more remarkable.

SLIDE 14 – Jesus rose to life

The third claim of the gospel is that Jesus, the Christ, was raised to life on the third day. Jesus is both the fully divine and living God who defeats death and the fully human being who pioneers the way for all who follow him. For as Paul will go on to argue in the remainder of 1 Corinthians chapter 15, just as Jesus was resurrected to eternal life, so too will those who are in Christ by faith be resurrected to eternal life.

And in the same way that Jesus’ death for our sins was supported by two types of evidence, so too is his resurrection from the dead supported by two types of evidence. Firstly, Jesus’ resurrection from the dead happened according to the Scriptures.

In his great sermon at Pentecost in Acts chapter 2, which is the first recorded public preaching of the gospel following Jesus’ death, resurrection and ascension, the apostle Peter explains to the crowd that Israel’s great king David wrote about Jesus’ resurrection in the Psalms. In Psalm 16, David praises God because he will not abandon his holy one to the realm of the dead.

Jesus' resurrection happened according to the Scriptures. And the second proof of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead is his public appearance to many eyewitnesses. The resurrected Jesus appeared to Cephas, which is the Aramaic version of Peter’s name, and then to the Twelve apostles, to 500 more men and women, to his brother James, and lastly to Paul. That’s a lot of eyewitnesses who were all testifying to the same remarkable story.

And for those who want to say that the gospel of Jesus is a fake, the credibility of the eyewitnesses is the piece of evidence they attack. It’s been this way ever since the very day of Jesus’ resurrection, when the Jewish leaders tried to explain away the empty tomb with the story that Jesus’ disciples had stolen his body in the middle of the night.

But you have to ask, what did the disciples have to gain by stealing a dead body and claiming the person was alive again? They didn’t become rich, or famous, or powerful. Rather, the opposite is true. They were public enemy number one!

They were considered heretics and traitors by many of their fellow Jews. They were taken to court, beaten, and thrown in prison. And many of them were executed in dreadful ways. And yet their conviction that Jesus was raised from the dead never once wavered.

And so you have to ask, if it was all a lie, if they knew they had taken the body from the tomb, why did they die for the claim that Jesus was raised from the tomb? It is an extremely difficult historical and psychological question to answer… without a resurrection.

So the testimony of the eyewitnesses of Jesus’ resurrection is the final piece of proof for the gospel. And these eyewitnesses had the conviction that not only should the people of their generation hear their testimony and hear the gospel, but all peoples of all generations should hear the gospel.

And for us now, many centuries later, the testimony of these witnesses has been recorded and collated as the New Testament. The disciple John concludes his account of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection by saying that:

Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. (John 20:30-31)

and

This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who wrote them down. We know that his testimony is true. (John 21:24)

The biblical authors, who were eyewitnesses to the death and resurrection of Jesus, wanted you to know that Jesus is a fact. His death is a fact. His resurrection is a fact. His identity as the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of God, is a fact. And it is by believing these things, by believing in him, that you may have eternal life.

Application

Are these facts, is this gospel, the foundation on which you have taken your stand and which you firmly hold onto?

(P) If you’re here today because you want to learn more about who Jesus is, I’m so glad you’re here and I hope today has been helpful for you. Can I encourage you to keep investigating, keep asking questions and searching for answers?

I know that Scott or Jake or Dave, or the person who invited you here today, would love to chat more about Jesus with you. Maybe you’d like to come along to the Life Course next month. Keep uncovering the facts about Jesus, the Christ, who died for your sins and rose again to life.

And if you’re here today because you are living with Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, I do hope you have been encouraged by being reminded of that which is of first importance, the gospel. The gospel, by which you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word preached to you. So continue on in the gospel, being confident that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day when the resurrected Lord Jesus returns.

[1]Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, Book 18, chapter 3. Sourced from John Dickson, Simply Christianity Leader’s Notes, p31

[2]Cornelius Tacitus, Annals of Imperial Rome 25.44.  Sourced from John Dickson, Simply Christianity Leader’s Notes, p31

[3]John Dickson, Simply Christianity Leader’s Notes, p30