The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus Christ
Wenstrom Bible Ministries
Pastor-Teacher Bill Wenstrom
Sunday March 27, 2016
Special: The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus Christ
Did Jesus of Nazareth rise from the dead, is this fact, or fiction or mythology?
Unfortunately, many in the world today have come to the conclusion that He didn’t rise from the dead without seriously considering the eyewitness testimony and the evidence the case.
Former Chief Justice of England, Lord Darling states: “we, as Christians, are asked to take a very great deal on trust; the teachings, for example, and the miracles of Jesus. If we had to take all on trust, I, for one, should be skeptical. The crux of the problem of whether Jesus was, or was not, what He proclaimed Himself to be, must surely depend upon the truth or otherwise of the resurrection. On that greatest point we are not merely asked to have faith. In its favor as living truth there exists such overwhelming evidence, positive and negative, factual and circumstantial, that no intelligent jury in the world could fail to bring in a verdict that the resurrection story is true.”
Thomas Arnold, was for 14 years the famous headmaster of Rugby, author of the famous 3-volume History of Rome, appointed to the chair of modern history at Oxford, and one well acquainted with the value of evidence in determining historical facts, states the following: “The evidence for our Lord’s life and death and resurrection may be, and often has been, shown to be satisfactory; it is good according to the common rules for distinguishing good evidence from bad. Thousands and tens of thousands of persons have gone through it piece by piece, as carefully as every judge summing up on a most important cause. I have myself done it many times over, not persuade others but to satisfy myself. 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.”
In modern times, many theories have come forth to explain why Jesus’ tomb was empty three days after being taken down off the cross.
The “Swoon theory” contends that Jesus did not actually die on the cross but was in such a state of exhaustion due to loss of strength and blood that he “swooned” into a coma.
In that coma-like state, they contend that he was believed to be dead but when placed in the dampness of the tomb, He was revived and then somehow pushed the stone away and slipped out into the night, unnoticed by anyone.
He then appeared to His followers, claiming to have been raised miraculously when actually He had fallen into a coma.
The “Kidnap theory” contends that Jesus did actually die but in the middle of the night someone came and took His body.
While unseen by the soldiers who were guarding the tomb, this alleged kidnapper or kidnappers broke the Roman seal and pushed the stone back and stole the body and hid it where it would never be found.
The disciples they allege claimed that Jesus was raised because the tomb was empty, when all along, His body was kidnapped.
The second theory that the disciples of Jesus took the body was a story falsified by Jesus’ enemies according to Matthew 28:2-15.
The “Hallucination theory” contends that the disciples of Jesus were “hallucinating” that they saw Jesus raised from the dead and were actually seeing an apparition or a ghost.
In other words, this theory states that the claims of Jesus’ disciples that He was raised were simply a figment of their imaginations.
The problem with these three theories is that they ignore eyewitness testimony and the evidence in this case.
The four gospel writers offer eyewitness testimony that Jesus did in fact die physically since they all contends that Jesus did actually die and did not swoon or was kidnapped and that they were not hallucinating when they saw Jesus three days after His death (Matthew 27:50; Mark 15:37; Luke 23:46; John 19:30.
The Roman soldier in charge of the squad that crucified Jesus of Nazareth confirmed His death (Mark 15:39).
The crucifixion detail demonstrated He had died physically (cf. John 19:31-35).
The burial party of Jesus of Nazareth actions demonstrated that they believed He was in fact dead (cf. John 19:38-40).
The body of Jesus was wrapped in eight-inch to one-foot-width strips of linen that were wrapped tightly by the gummy consistency of the spices.
During the wrapping, the spices were pushed into the folds so that ultimately the body was encased in a hardened wrapping of linen, from the shoulders to the ankles.
The head was wrapped in a face cloth that was wrapped about the top of the head and tied under the jaw to keep the jaw from sagging.
This preparation of the body in this manner would have left the appearance of Jesus’ body looking like an Egyptian mummy.
These men who prepared the body of Jesus would never have wrapped the burial clothes around Jesus and laid Him in the tomb if there was the slightest sign of life in Him.
The resurrection of Christ is an historical fact of history that can be verified by eyewitnesses: (1) Disciples of Christ (Lk. 24:9-11; Acts 1:1-3; 21-22; 2:23-24; 31-32; 3:14-15; 10:39-41; 13:29-39) (2) Roman Guard Protecting the Tomb of Jesus (Mt. 27:62-66; 28:11-15) (3) Enemies of Christ (Mt. 28:11-15; Acts 2).
The resurrection of Christ can be verified by evidence: (1) The Empty Tomb (Jn. 20:2-9) (2) The Stone (Mt. 28:1-4; Mk. 16:1-4; Lk. 24:2) (3) Seal (Mt. 27:62-66). (4) The Grave Clothes (Jn. 20:2-9) (5) The Roman Guard (Mt. 27:57-60; 28:11-15; Mk. 15:42-45; Lk. 23:50-52; Jn. 19:38). (6) The Silence of the Enemies of Christ at Pentecost (Acts 2) (7) The Transformed Lives of the Disciples of Jesus (8) The Existence of the Christian Church (9) The Observance of the First Day of the Week (Sunday) as the Lord’s Day (10) Christ’s Appearances (500 on more than one occasion: 1 Cor. 15:1-8; Peter 1 Cor. 15:5; 2 on the way to Emmaus Lk. 24:13-15; 11 apostles Jn. 20:24-28; Paul Acts 9).
Luke alludes to this preponderance of incontrovertible evidence and eyewitnesses in Acts 1:1-3.
The proclamation of the resurrection of Jesus could have not been maintained in Jerusalem for a single day, for a single hour, if the emptiness of the tomb had not been established as a fact for all concerned.
The burden of proof rests not upon those who proclaim the resurrection as a historical fact but rather the burden of proof rests upon those who either deny that the tomb was found empty, or attempt to explain the absence of the Lord’s body by some other rationale.
Remember the enemies of Christ went to extraordinary lengths to ensure the fact that the body of Jesus would not leave the tomb on the third day.
The fact that the body of Jesus was not in the tomb despite the extreme security measures by our Lord’s enemies was indisputable evidence that He had risen.
The last thing the enemies of Christ wanted was to have His body leave that tomb and yet it did!
Neither the Romans nor the Jews could produce the body of our Lord to disclaim what the apostles were proclaiming to the world.
It was in the interests of these two groups to put an end to such talk by simply producing the body which they could not since He had in fact risen from the dead.
The four gospels agree that Jesus’ body was placed in a tomb after His crucifixion and that on the third day it was empty (Matt. 28; Mark 16:1-8; Luke 24; John 20-21).
Even our Lord’s enemies could not dispute that the tomb was empty.
Our Lord’s enemies could have simply disproved the resurrection of Christ and stopped all the talk in Jerusalem concerning it if they could have simply produced the body, which they knew they could not.
They didn’t even attempt to arrest the apostles in order to obtain it because they trusted in the veracity of the Roman soldiers who were under the command of Pilate himself.
The silence of the Jewish leaders is as significant as the boldness of speech by our Lord’s disciples.
In First Corinthians 15:1-4, the apostle Paul informed the Corinthian church that he knew personally of over five hundred eyewitnesses who state that they saw Jesus alive after His death including the apostles.
The fact that over five hundred people claimed to have seen Jesus of Nazareth raised from the dead destroys the “hallucination” argument presented in this case since it is highly unlikely that all these people could have been hallucinating.
Not only do we have the testimony of eyewitnesses recorded in the Word of God but also the testimony of changed and transformed lives of innumerable individuals throughout the centuries, up to this very day, both men and women, of all races and backgrounds.
Therefore, since you have heard the eyewitness testimony and the presentation of evidence, what is your verdict?
If you are an unbeliever, your response to the testimony of the witnesses and evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ should be one of faith in Jesus Christ (John 3:16-18; Acts 16:30-31).
If you are already a believer, your response to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ should be one of obedience and total commitment to Him (Mark 12:30).