For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. – 1 Corinthians 15:16-19
As Christians, Good Friday and Easter are the most sacred holidays in the calendar. It’s when we celebrate a God who loved us so much that He was was willing to suffer humiliation, torture and death so that we could be reconciled to Him. Three days later, Jesus’ resurrection shows us his power over death and gives us hope for a new life beyond the grave.
The physical, bodily death and resurrection of Jesus is central to the Christian faith.
There are many professing Christians in progressive and liberal camps who deny the physical, bodily resurrection of Jesus. Perhaps because it doesn’t fit with our modern understanding of a world ruled by natural forces with no room for physical miracles outside of the natural order.
The idea of a non-physical resurrection is not new. Gnostics at the time of the early church fathers believed Christ’s physical resurrected body was an illusion. Body and pure spirit were incompatible. Matter was either evil or irrelevant and only spirit could be redeemed. 1
You cannot deny the physical Resurrection unless you want to throw out the storyline of the entire Bible, both Old Testament and New. Our hope as Christians hangs on the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ. As Paul said in his first letter to the Corinthians, if Jesus has not been raised from the dead, our hope is futile. When you deny the physical resurrection of Jesus, you deny the central teaching of Christianity and your faith becomes something other than Christian.
Why Believe in the Resurrection?
You don’t have to look far online to find those who think the idea of a man rising from the dead is ridiculous. I haven’t seen anyone rise from the dead… so why do I and millions of other Christians around the world believe the radical claim that a man actually rose from the dead?
For many Christians, the experience they have of the resurrected Christ leaves them without a doubt that he has risen indeed. But what about those who haven’t experienced the risen Jesus? Are there other reasons to believe in the resurrection?
Belief in God and Miracles
In order to believe such a claim, we first have to believe that miracles are possible. By miracle, I mean a supernatural action that cannot be explained by natural laws… an input from outside the natural world that causes events to take place that would not have occurred if natural laws were left to operate on their own.
To believe in miracles, we must believe in a supernatural entity that can intervene in the natural world. In this case, that means the Christian God, the all-powerful uncaused creator of the universe. If you believe in Him, miracles are possible.
There are many reasons to believe in the Christian God:
- Cosmology and the beginning of the universe.
- Teleology and design.
- Fine tuning of the universe .
- The existence of moral laws and duties.
- The information found in DNA.
- The existence of mathematics and the laws of physics.
- The existence of free will, consciousness, and beauty.
- … and more.
More on the existence of God:
- Ravi Zacharias: The Existence of God (Powerful Video – RZIM)
- Is There No God? (Philip Vander Elst – bethinking.org)
- Does God Exist? (William Lane Craig – Reasonable Faith)
- Does God Exist? 5 Quick Arguments (Video by Sean McDowell)
- Well Christian Woman Resources Page (Our Sister Site)
Reliability of the Gospels
Accounts of the Resurrection are described in four separate first century documents. They make up the first four books of the New Testament. To believe the details surrounding Jesus’ resurrection, we must believe that these documents are true and accurately passed down so that the words of the original writings have been preserved.
There are many reasons to believe that the gospel documents are reliable:
- There are thousands of manuscripts from multiple locations.
- They were written close to the time of the events .
- There are falsifiable eyewitness claims in the text.
- Archaeological evidence.
- The precision of oral tradition in the ancient Jewish world .
- Inclusion of embarrassing facts and events.
- Accurate historical details.
- …and more.
More on the reliability of the New Testament:
- The Historicity of the New Testament (J.P. Moreland – bethinking.org)
- The Reliability of the New Testament (Craig Blomberg – Gospel Coalition)
- Is The New Testament Text Reliable? (Greg Koukl – Stand To Reason)
- Four Reasons the New Testament Gospels Are Reliable (J. Warner Wallace – Cold Case Christianity)
- Well Christian Woman Resources Page (Our Sister Site)
Historicity of the Resurrection
The truth of Christianity stands or falls on historical events. To believe in the Resurrection we must believe it is an event that took place in history.
There are many reasons to accept the historicity of the Resurrection:
- Historical documentation.
- The early acceptance by thousands that it was true.
- The empty tomb.
- Jesus’ disciples were willing to die rather than deny the truth of the resurrection.
- Witnesses of the resurrected Jesus.
- Lack of other plausible explanations.
- The conversion of people hostile to the faith.
- The rapid spread of Christianity across the known world.
- … and more.
More on the historicity of the Resurrection:
- Historical evidence for the resurrection (Matt Perman – Desiring God)
- The Resurrection Fact or Fiction (Patrick Zukeran – bethinking.org)
- 10 Reasons to Accept the Resurrection off Jesus as an Historical Fact (Brian Chilton – CrossExamined.org)
- Evidence for the Resurrection (Josh McDowell – LeaderU)
- Well Christian Woman Resources Page (Our Sister Site)
Centrality of the Resurrection
Though many argue otherwise, I believe that the arguments from history, philosophy and logic constitute powerful reasons to believe that the resurrection of Jesus is a true historical event. The resources listed above barely scratch the surface of the work done in these areas. Just as powerful are the claims of transformed lives and experiences of the risen Jesus.
If the Resurrection is true, the implications are immense. We have a man who claimed to be God, said he would prove it by dying and coming back to life, then doing just that. Should we not at least consider what He has to say about human life, meaning and purpose?
When Jesus came to us, He brought the Kingdom of God to earth. Its renewal has already begun. When He sacrificed Himself in our place and rose from the dead, reconciliation with our Holy Creator was made possible. He defeated the grave and rose again. The same power that raised Him can raise you.
This is why Good Friday and Easter are the most sacred Holy days in the Christian calendar. The Resurrection is why we have the hope that we have. The hope of being reunited with our loved ones who have gone before. The hope of a new life, with a new resurrected body, where there will be no pain and no sorrow and God Himself will wipe away every tear from our eyes.
And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.’ – Revelation 21: 3-4
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