The Evidence of the Resurrection Part I

The resurrection of Jesus is the cornerstone of Christian faith. Without the belief in this, there is nothing else to grab onto. All hope is in His resurrection. Unfortunately, this is the hardest thing to accept for so many people. All they see is that this “religion” is attempting to convince them that a man died and came back to life. With a carnal, worldly mindset, this is ridiculous. How can anyone believe this? For all Christians, it does boil down to faith through the Spirit. We know he lives because of what is in us. But to others who have heard conflicting explanations of different religions, how do we show them that our belief in Christ stands above all else as truth? Fortunately for us, God has given us many overwhelming proofs to His glory. More specifically, we have a wealth of evidence on the resurrection of Jesus. Sadly, many Christians have no clue of these evidences. If many of us were to find ourselves in a situation where we had to defend the resurrection, we would probably fall flat. For the next four weeks, I will concentrate on four powerful proofs for Jesus’ existence, death, and resurrection. I pray this series will either strengthen many people’s faiths or stir the searching soul to listen to the Spirit call.

Before the crucifixion can even be considered, the big question about Jesus’ existence arises. Did he really exist? If so, did he really die on a cross? What evidence do we have outside the Bible? All Christians should be able to answer these questions to some extent. This entry will focus on the essentials of the proofs, but there are many more resources to be found.

Did Jesus really exist?
In short, yes. It is clear that the Gospels focus on all of this and the vast majority of biblical scholars accept the Gospels as historically reliable, but can we find any evidence beyond them? Again, yes. There are scores of places to find the mention of Jesus. The most important are the Samarian historian Thallus, the Romans Tacitus and Suetonius, the Syrian Lucian, and the Jewish Pharisee Josephus. Keep in mind that I am not stating that all of these sources exalt Jesus as God. In fact, these authors are absolute enemies of Jesus. On historical grounds, when His enemies cannot deny His existence, it brings historical reliability.

Josephus is considered by many to be the most important. He was a Pharisee and Jewish historian. In his work Testimonium Flavianum, Josephus attests to Jesus’ existence, His death, and His post-mortem appearances. Even in the Roman Empire, Tacitus recorded in his Annals that Nero persecuted Christians as scapegoats to the fire of Rome. He goes on to describe who the Christians were and who Jesus was. This shows that there is great evidence for Jesus outside the gospels. Much more could be said on this, but bringing forth an argument for the non-existence of Jesus takes much more faith considering the evidence.

Did Jesus really die on a Cross?
Along with the evidence of Jesus’ existence, the mention of his death is also prevalent. Jesus was crucified and died. To some, it may be a shock to find out that crucifixion was a real form of execution. It was unlike anything we have seen in movies or heard about in history books. Firing squads, the gallows, the guillotine, and the electric chair are all humane forms of execution compared to crucifixion. The accused would be beaten to near death and then nailed hands and feet to a cross. Asphyxiation was the usual cause of death due to the weight of the hanging body on the lungs. The person would suffocate until he would pull up on the hanging nails in the wrists to take in a breath for the lungs. After a while, the Roman guards would break the legs of the accused to bring on unstoppable suffocation. The one variation to this that we know is that Jesus was stabbed with a spear instead.

Another convincing point is historians agree that the Romans were professionals at execution. This was mainly due to the belief that they would be killed instead if the accused did not die. With these points, it is clear that Jesus’ crucifixion caused His death. History shows that there was no way to come down from the cross alive.

These first points are crucial. Before the evidence for the resurrection can even be considered, we must show that Jesus actually existed and died. These points are important, but it is what they lead to that matters. If anyone would like a list of resources, citations, and guidance in further readings, please email. I pray that when we are confronted with a discussion that involves defending our faith, we can focus of the evidences that God has given us to use. For those that read with skepticism, let your hearts open up to the truth and the facts that surround it.