Is There Proof Of Christ's Resurrection? [back]
If someone said to you in a street, “I was dead but now take a good look and see that I am
alive again” it is doubtful that you would you believe him/her. Yet the Saviour and Lord of
Christians, the Lord Jesus Christ, claims to have done just that and asks you to believe it. Is
this some fairytale that has nothing to do with reality or is it true and if so what effect can it
have on people? We need to test the evidence for this amazing claim and we ask you to take a
good look at it.
When evaluating all the evidence for a case there are two principles to be noted. Firstly the evidence must be taken as a complete whole. It is easy to draw another conclusion if you emphasis a part or one stream of the evidence. Such “other” conclusions are empty and useless, unless they fit in with the other parts of the evidence as well. Secondly we must not adjust the events from preconceived ideas but construct them from the evidence and let the
But how is death defined? The Bible defines death as the departure of both the soul (Genesis chapter (c )35 verse (v)18, which is the self conscious part of me), and the spirit (James c2v26, which is the God conscious part of me), from the body. The result is that the body dies and corrupts (e.g. Acts c13v36). Resurrection is the bringing back of life, i.e. the soul and spirit, to the same dead body of the person from whom it departed and the body has the living qualities restored to it. (In Romans c8v11: “quicken” means to make alive or cause to live). Such resurrected people will either:
• Live for a while on this earth and die again. Examples are: Jairus' daughter (Mark c5v21-24, 35-43), Nain’s young man (Luke c7v11-17) and Lazarus (John c11v1-45).
• After death, live forever in heaven (1 Thessalonians c4v13-18, 1 Corinthians c15v39- 44 and v48-57)
• After death, sadly exist forever under God’s judgement in hell (John c5v28-29 and Luke c16v19-31).
The recording of the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ is done by four main witnesses, which are the four Gospels that are called (with the relevant chapters): Matthew (c27 and c28), Mark (c15 and c16), Luke (c23 and c24) and John (c19 to c21). There are two additional passages which are Acts c1v1-12 and 1 Corinthians c15v3-8. These various accounts are from different witnesses and so while they will give different emphasis they do not contradict each other. If these witnesses’ records were all exactly alike then their similarity would be used as a proof that this story was just fiction.
When all the four Gospel records are compared we see that at the time of the Jewish Passover feast (e.g. Matthew c26v18 and John c18v39) Christ died and was buried in the tomb in the rock (e.g. Matthew c27v57-61, Mark c15v42-47, Luke c23v50-56 and John c19v38v42). On the third day afterwards some came to the tomb to finally anoint the body, or finish the job as undertakers, and they went away as unexpected news breakers (e.g. Matthew c28v1-8 and Mark c16v1-8). This is a story of sad and fearful ordinary people who when they discovered that Christ had risen from the dead were turned to joy (e.g. Luke c24v13-35 and John c20v19- 21). It is not the records of carefully stage-managed events showing the Lord Jesus gloriously coming out from the tomb in front of thousands of people including the religious (Jewish) and political (Roman) authorities. Nor is it a report of special appointments created to give the greatest impact because the Lord Jesus often appeared when He was not expected and also He did not make appearances to the general public. This further shows that this is not a legend. What legend creators could resist describing in dramatic detail the Lord appearing from the tomb in front of many people and especially to confound His enemies? Why are the details of how the Lord Jesus appeared to certain individuals and to over five hundred people at once (see later) conspicuous by their absence? The descriptions of the appearances are about real life scenes and written in such true-to-life words, that it makes the reader realize that they could not have been legends created by forgers.
To prove the resurrection we need to bring the evidence together. There are only three possible explanations of Christ's resurrection as follows:
1. The Lord Jesus' friends took the body away.
All the evidence shows that the circumstances surrounding the death and burial of the Lord Jesus had made the disciples very fearful. They had had fled in fear from the Lord Jesus when He was arrested (Matthew c26v56) and one of them, Peter, then followed Him afar off, denied Him during His trial and wept bitterly afterwards (Luke c22 v54-62). Only one disciple, John, with some of the women, including Mary the mother of the Lord Jesus, had actually been at the cross when Christ died (John c19v25-27). After Christ's death we read in:
• John c20v19 "when the doors were shut, where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews ..." Any thought of the Lord Jesus’ resurrection is not mentioned as then being in their minds (John c20v9).
• Also the religious authorities were afraid that the disciples would steal the Lord's body and claim that He had risen from the dead. Consequently they had a guard of soldiers set by the tomb to guard the dead body (Matthew c27v62-66). These soldiers were without doubt quite capable of stopping any or all of the eleven disciples, none of whom were ex-soldiers, from attempting to steal away the body.
• John c20v7 says “And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself.” The napkin was a towel for either wiping the perspiration from the face or binding the face of a corpse (see John c11v44). No one who was stealing a body, and had trained enemy guards just outside the tomb, would waste time in folding the napkin and putting it in a place separate to the rest of the spice-filled grave clothes.
• Matthew c28v11-15 records as well that after the Lord Jesus had risen the soldiers guarding the tomb "shewed the chief priests all the things that were done." The chief priests, with others, "gave large money unto the soldiers, saying, 'Say ye, His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we slept. And if this comes to the governor's ears, we will persuade him and secure you.' So they took the money, and did as they were taught: and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day." The disciples did not take anyone to court over this lie nor organize a demonstration nor raise an army to expose it.
• In addition the Acts records that only the peaceful means of preaching were used (e.g. Acts c3v9-c4v2, c8v5, 40 and 13v42) when many people became Christians and which were sometimes associated with healing. The disciples did not violently force the message on people but rather suffered threatenings, violence and even death themselves for the sake of the message of the resurrection of Christ (e.g. Acts c4v17- 21, c5v18, 40 and c12v1-2).
Therefore the proposal that the disciples, perhaps with violence, took away the body of the Lord Jesus does not fit the facts.
2. The Lord Jesus' enemies removed His body.
If the enemies of the Lord Jesus removed His body then that would promote the resurrection of Christ and help spread abroad His fame. This is the very thing that the Lord Jesus’ enemies were trying to stop both before (e.g. Matthew c12v14 and John c11v47-53) and after the resurrection (e.g. Matthew c28v11-15 and Acts c4v15-18). Also at the day of Pentecost (Acts c2v1), about seven weeks after the after the Lord Jesus’ resurrection, the disciples preached that among the public at large which included their enemies (e.g. Acts c25v40 {see v29-33} and c3v11-c4v {see c3v13-16}). The authorities even said that the apostles “… intend to being this man’s blood upon us”(Acts c5v28), without saying that it was a false charge. If their enemies then had the body of the Lord Jesus why did not they produce it and confound His disciples while they were publically preaching about Christ’s resurrection? Why did not the Jewish authorities publically state that they, or the Romans, had ordered the body to be removed? Why did they not produce the witnesses who had carried out the removal? Instead they tried to stop them by beating them and forbidding them to speak in the Lord's name (e.g. Acts c5v40). So neither does this idea fit the facts.
3. So does the evidence show that the Lord Jesus actually, i.e. physically, rose from the dead?
• The Resurrection appearances. After the Lord Jesus rose from the dead He appeared to His followers in about eleven recorded and separate incidents in the four Gospels. Besides them there seems that there were a number of other incidents that are not recorded (see John c20v30-31 and Acts c1v3). The Lord Jesus’ appearances were:
• At different times of the day, i.e. early (e.g. Matthew c28v1-10 and John c21v3- 8), afternoon to evening (e.g. Luke c24v13-35) and evening (e.g. John c20v19).
• Both indoors (e.g. John c20v26) and out of doors (e.g. Mark c16v1-8 and John c21v1-23).
• To individuals and to whole groups of people. Some appearances were to one or two witnesses (e.g. John c20v11-18 and 1 Corinthians c15v5 & 7) but others involved all the eleven disciples (e.g. John c20v19-25) and on one occasion over five hundred people at once (1 Corinthians c15v6). If, in a court case, over five hundred people testified to seeing someone it would no doubt be accepted as genuine evidence. People also checked up on the facts for themselves (John c20 v2-10). This, also, disproves the theory that the Lord Jesus’ appearances were to a few individuals with psychological problems or that they were just hallucinations. You do not get over five hundred people who: all at the same time, all in one place and altogether hallucinate about exactly the same person and event and all in a relatively short space of time.
• Then at a certain point, after forty days (Acts c1v3), the appearances stopped happening.
• The Lord Jesus did eat fish and from a honeycomb when He was with His disciples (Luke c24v36-43) and on another occasion many think that He eat bread and fish with them (John c21v9-15). It is clear that only a person with a physical body could do that.
• The Changed Disciples. Immediately after the resurrection the Lord Jesus’ disciples were fearful (e.g. John c20v19). However after seeing the Lord Jesus they were transformed into confident and joyful people (e.g. John c20v20 and Luke c24v52) who were not silenced by the hostile Jewish authorities (e.g. Acts c4v13-22). The message of the risen and saving Christ was to go beyond Judaism and the other cultures of that time and would change and benefit far more civilizations around the world in the future. If the Lord Jesus had never risen from the dead then these previously fearful disciples, were deliberately preaching a huge lie. Do deliberate lies make cowards into people full of joy and confidence? Is it not probable that in disillusionment, agony or near martyrdom that at least one of them would have revealed their secret lie? However these disciples were not only joyful but also suffered beatings, imprisonment and death for this message (Acts c5v17-42 and c12v1-4). While some people have in recent times given their lives as martyrs for what they have been taught is truth, would rational people give up, sometimes, good living standards and choose lives involving suffering, and sometimes martyrdom, for what they knew was a lie? Obviously not.
• A further point is that all the disciples did not immediately believe when they saw the Lord Jesus. When He had appeared unto the eleven disciples in John c20v19-25 one of them, Thomas, was not with them. He refused to believe until he saw the print of the nails in the Lord Jesus’ hands (v25). After eight days the Lord Jesus appeared unto the eleven disciples again when Thomas was there (v26-29). When he saw the Lord Jesus and the prints of the nails he believed. To any who like Thomas would like to see, meet and touch the Lord Jesus He gave some helpful words, saying, “Thomas, because thou hast seen thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed." Luke records this incident in c23v33-49 when the Lord Jesus said in v39-40, "Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself: handle Me and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones as ye see Me have." And when He had thus spoken He showed them His hands and His feet." In addition to that Matthew c28v17 says, "And when they (the eleven disciples) saw Him, they worshipped Him but some doubted." We are not told how He appeared to the disciples nor which of them doubted. The record that some of the disciples doubted showed their honesty and that they were not easily changeable. This additionally revealed that they had not decided beforehand to confirm the Lord Jesus’ resurrection and that they were convinced solely by the strength of the evidence. And v18 continues, "And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, ...". Therefore as with Mary Magdalene who recognized the Lord Jesus' voice (John c20v14–16), so also these disciples stopped doubting when they saw Him close by and heard His voice.
• Did People Go To The Wrong Tomb? A challenge is that as the women went early to the tomb, "while it was yet dark" (John c20v1), they must have gone to the wrong tomb. Then a young man, who happened to be there when they arrived and understood their purpose said, “You seek Jesus. He is not here. Behold (pointing to another tomb) the place where they laid Him.” The women became terrified and ran away but considered what the young man had said and took his words as an announcement that the Lord Jesus had risen from the dead. Still they did not immediately inform the disciples of this event, because why did the disciples not check the facts of the event and wait about seven weeks before they began to preach the resurrection? This lack of contact between the women and the disciples was because the disciples had fled from Jerusalem to Galilee where they stayed for some three weeks where the Lord Jesus “appeared” to them. Only after the disciples return to Jerusalem did the women tell them of their event at the tomb. Then as the disciples were full of their psychological or mystical “appearance” experiences, which they had enjoyed, did they piece things together and decide that the resurrection must have taken place. In answer to this clever and imaginative challenge what does the Bible show?
• John c19v41 – 42 says, "Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden; and in the garden a new sepulchre (or tomb), wherein was never man yet laid. There laid they Jesus therefore because of the Jews' preparation day; for the sepulchre was nigh at hand." Therefore the place where the Lord Jesus was buried was very distinctive and so easily known. It was not a mass public burial ground where one body could be mixed up with another but a new tomb which the owner had cut out of the rock for himself (Matthew c27v60) which was in a garden that was next to a specific and well known location i.e. the place of crucifixion.
• Luke c23v55 informs us, "And the women also, which came with Him from Galilee, followed after, and beheld the sepulchre, and how His body was laid" less than three days before He rose again. See further in Matthew 27v61 and Mark 15v47. Therefore the women personally saw and made a mental note of where the Lord was buried. Do you think any rational person would forget so quickly, i.e. within three days, the place where someone that they really loved was buried?
• Also the young man that “happened to be there” did he know all the tombs in the area and which ones were full and which were empty? Very unlikely. Anyway what he was supposed to have said misses out what the angel said “for He is risen as He said. Come see the place (that is the place inside the tomb) where the Lord lay.” (Matthew c28v6). Luke c24v1-8 shows that the women “found the stone rolled away from the sepulchre. And they entered in and found not the body of the Lord Jesus.” These were the women who “beheld the sepulchre, and how His body was laid.” (Luke c23v55)
• Besides, Matthew c28v8-10, Luke c24v9-13 and John c20v2–10, 18 show that the women went immediately and found and informed the disciples. You cannot read it any other way. Furthermore John c20v19-23 reveals that the Lord Jesus “… same day (i.e. the resurrection day) at evening” appeared to the disciples. Then “after eight days” the Lord Jesus appeared again to the disciples (John c20v26- 29). So the disciples did not leave Jerusalem immediately for three weeks and why should they? While Jerusalem would not be an easy place for them to be in at that time, the Gospels repeat (e.g. Matthew c12v14, Mark c11v18) that it was the Lord Jesus that the authorities wanted to destroy and not the disciples. Also John, with the Lord Jesus’ “mother, and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene” were at the cross (John c19v25-26) but they were not arrested or ill treated. In addition would it not be a cowardly and callous act for the disciples to run away and leave the women behind? This was not the character of the disciples because the Lord Jesus knew the disciples before He called them to follow Him. Then further He had been with the disciples for three years before He was crucified and so knew them from experience. So when He was on the cross and He committed the tender keeping of his mother to John (John c19v26- 27) He showed that He knew that John would care for her. Anyway why would not the women have followed the disciples?
• John c20v2–10 and Luke c24v9-11 say “then arose” two disciples, who are not anonymous but are named Peter and John, who went and saw the tomb for themselves. As this would now have been during the day the disciples would not have made a mistake about something so important and they "found it even so as the women had said: but Him they saw not." (Luke c24v24).
• Then there were two other disciples, Joseph of Arimathaea, who had cut out and owned the tomb (Matthew c27v59-60) and Nicodemus, who together buried the Lord Jesus’ body (John c19v38-42). Although it is not recorded no doubt they, and especially Joseph, would have checked the facts. If the resurrection was not true they would have spoken about it to the other disciples as everyone would have been keen to know the truth.
• Furthermore if the evidence for the resurrection was weak or untrue why did not even the ordinary members of the public condemn it while it was being preached or produce evidence to prove that it had not taken place? Why would they believe a lie especially as the local authorities were against it and sometimes publically arrested the preachers (e.g. Acts c4v1-3) and persecuted them (e.g. Acts c9v1-2, c26v11), and sometimes to death those who believed it (e.g. Acts c22v4)? Yet we read that many people trusted in the Lord (e.g. Acts c4v4, c5v32, c8v12, c9v42, c11v21).
• The fact that the enemies spread lies (Matthew c28v11-15) showed that they believed that the resurrection had actually happened. • Even the spreading of the “commonly reported” lies (Matthew c28v15) did not weaken the disciples’ faith in the Lord Jesus’ resurrection. The Lord Jesus could be; clearly seen (e.g. Mark c16v9), distinctly heard (e.g. John c21v15-22), touched and handled (e.g. Matthew c28v9, John c20v14-18), eat food (e.g. Luke c24v41-42) and the marks of His sufferings could be seen and felt (e.g. John c20v26-30). The disciples had been convinced of the reality of the Lord Jesus’ resurrection and preached it whatever the source of the lies. It is interesting that when the resurrection of the Lord Jesus was publically preached these lies were never mentioned.
• Another fact is that if the evidence was weak and would fall before an investigation why was there the need to spread lies about it?
• In the apostles' preaching there was no description of the evidences for the resurrection. Why was there no reference to the tomb in their preaching? Why did they publically state that the resurrection was a fulfilment of the Old Testament writings (e.g. Acts c2v22-31, c13v32-37) and of which they were witnesses (e.g. Acts c3v14-15)? The reason can only be that the tomb was a fact of common knowledge which did not need repeated insistence. The controversy was not about the facts but about their explanations.
• Why did the disciples not preach about the resurrection for about seven weeks after it happened? Acts c1v1-5 shows that until the day that Lord Jesus was taken up to heaven, He gave commandments unto the apostles. To them also He shewed Himself alive after His crucifixion and death by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God. He additionally commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father” that would come in a few days. So after all the evidence, teaching and power that the disciples needed did they start preaching (Acts c2v14). Consequently there is no evidence for the wrong tomb theory and so that thought does not stand up to scrutiny. 7 To believe the wrong tomb theory, one would have to say that, as well as the women, the following people also went to the wrong tomb:
• the chief priests and Pharisees (who were a strict religious sect of the Jews {Acts c15v5, c26v5 and Mark c7v3-4}), who were the Lord’s enemies and tried to stop the Lord Jesus from rising from the dead {Matthew c27v62-66},
• the Roman soldiers “who made the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone and setting a watch” (Matthew c27v65-66).
• the two disciples Peter and John when they ran there (John c20v2-10).
• the guards told the truth about the wrong tomb which the chief priests believed! (Matthew c28v11-15).
• that the “angel of the Lord descended from heaven” and appeared at the wrong tomb (Matthew c28v2-7).
It would take a lot of incredulity, and a blind ignoring of the facts, to believe that theory.
Is Luke c24v50-51 which says, "He led them out as far as to Bethany ... and ... He was carried up into heaven" inconsistent with Acts c8v9, 12 which says, "while they beheld He was taken up; ... Then returned they ... from the mount called Olivet ..."? Bethany and mount Olivet are near each other as seen in Mark c11v1, "And when they were come nigh to Jerusalem, unto Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives ..." which is confirmed in Luke c19v29 and Matthew c21v1.
Is there some discrepancy between the Lord Jesus' clear prediction that He would rise again after three days and three nights of burial (Matthew c12v39-40), and the actual event? Since He was crucified on the Friday (Mark c15v42 and Luke c23v54-56) and raised on the Sunday morning (Matthew c28v1, Mark c16v1-2 and Luke c24v1) then in fact He was only in the tomb for part of three days and two complete nights. However a Jewish principle of reckoning, as in some other places in the world, is that a part of a day and night would be counted as the whole twenty four hour period. Consequently a whole day and part of two other days would be counted as three days and three nights. An example is in Esther c4v15-16 where she says, "... and fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise; and so will I go in unto the king, which is not according to law: and if I perish, I perish." C5v1 says, "Now it came to pass on the third day, that Esther put on her royal apparel, and stood in the inner court of the king's house ..." So when she prepared to face the king the fast was over even though it was the third day and only two nights had passed. Nevertheless in the Jewish thinking three days and three nights would have been counted. Therefore the Lord Jesus’ prediction in Matthew c12v39-40 was completely accurate. The same principle applies to the release of British prisoners today. They are released early on the last day of their prison sentence but that counts as a complete day as far as serving the sentence is concerned.
Conclusion
The only explanation that fits the evidence is that the Lord Jesus Christ rose from the dead on the third day after He died. So the evidence in the Bible concerning Christ stands and will still stand even after the most complete and thorough of investigations. This is because Christ and the Bible are the truth.
Implications
What are the implications if Christ did not rise bodily from the dead? It is that He was as weak and as conquered by death as every other man. The results for the world would be:
1. Christians would be "found false witnesses of God because they testified concerning God that He raised up Christ: Whom He raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not." (1 Corinthians c15v15)
2. The Christians' "faith is vain” (or empty). (1 Corinthians c15v17)
3. The Christians "are yet in their sins." (1 Corinthians c15v17)
4. Then those Christians which have died are perished i.e. are in hell. (1 Corinthians c15v18)
5. Then Christians would be "of all men most miserable”, (meaning most to be pitied) because "in this life only they have hope in Christ" (1 Corinthians c15v19). If Christ has not risen then Christians are giving up various things, and perhaps suffering in this life, in hope of a life that they will never see.
6. A dead Christ would therefore not be able to save people from the judgement of their sins (Hebrews c9v27, Acts c17v31 and Luke c16v19-31) nor give them a wonderful joy on earth and more so in heaven (1 Peter c1v4 and Philippians c1v23).
However from the above evidence we can affirm that now is the Lord Jesus Christ risen from the dead. So among many other things the proven death and resurrection of Christ shows that He is unique and cannot be ignored. The Lord Jesus has triumphed where everyone else has failed. As well the Lord Jesus is the truth (John {referring to his Gospel}c14v6 and 1 John c5v20), and so whoever repents of their sin (Acts c3v19 and c17v30 and repents means to change your mind about continuing in sin) and believes in the Lord Jesus Christ to be their own Saviour shall be saved (Acts c16v31). His amazing words in John c6v37, "Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out," show His great heart of love for all the human race. He will gladly:
• Not cast out for any reason anyone who will trust that He died for their sins;
• Save them from God's judgement of perishing in hell (John c3v16);
• Bring them God's forgiveness for their sins (Ephesians c1v7);
• Bring them the gift of everlasting life (Romans c6v23) "which God that cannot lie promised ..." (Titus c1v2). So each person who has repented, and believed in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation receives from God these and many other spiritual gifts {or blessings} (Ephesians c1v3).