Matt’s Matters: April Fools or Factual Faith

On Easter Sunday, March 31, 2013 Christians around the world celebrated the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. On the next day a lot of people wanted to say, “April fools.” However, is that the way the evidence points?

First, consider the empty tomb. All four Gospels record this to be the case. So what happened to Jesus’ body? The earliest non-Christian response is that His body was stolen by the disciples while the guards were sleep1ing. Question: how did the guards know that it was Jesus’ disciples who took His body if they were asleep? Both Roman and Jewish law would have required that the guards be put to death for sleeping on duty. So why weren’t they punished? Furthermore, why did the extremely wealthy and powerful chief priests not conduct a manhunt for Jesus’ body? They had all the necessary resources to do this. If the body would have been found, Christianity would be over. But why did they not attempt to do this? Could it be that they themselves knew that Jesus did in fact rise from the dead?

Second, consider the eye witness accounts. 1 Corinthians 15:6 states that Jesus appeared to more than 500 people at one time after that first Easter Sunday. Medical professionals tell us that it is impossible for that many people to hallucinate the exact same account at the same time. Furthermore, hallucinations do not happen over an extended period of time and Jesus appeared to various individuals over a 40 day period of time. Some believe that the eye witnesses were merely seeing the ghost of Jesus. However, the eye witnesses were able to not only see Him but also touch Him. And Jesus shared meals with these witnesses. Others say that Jesus survived the crucifixion and then in the coolness of the tomb was able to recover. This argument has some serious issues which one must consider. Even if Jesus did not die from the crucifixion, the spear thrust from the Roman soldier in His side hit His heart, ensuring His death. Could it be that these eye witnesses did in fact see the risen Jesus Christ as all the evidence points to? 

Third, consider the transformed lives. Some of the individuals whom Jesus appeared to were adamantly opposed to Christianity. Jesus’ brother had rejected Him prior to seeing the resurrected Jesus. Yet after this encounter James became the leader of the church in Jerusalem. Or who can forget the Apostle Paul. Paul persecuted Christians, having some put in prison and others executed. Yet after seeing the risen Jesus, Paul became one of the most influential missionaries in history. How does one explain these life transformations if Jesus did not in fact rise from the dead?

These three pieces of evidence are only a minute portion of the evidence available concerning the reality of the resurrection. However, by themselves they establish an overwhelming case for the validity of factual faith. Therefore, I encourage and invite you to examine the evidence concerning the Truth of Jesus’ resurrection on Easter Sunday.

In His service,

Matt