Proof of the Resurrection

Proof of the Resurrection

copyright Millie Plastaras
3/26/05 all rights reserved.

We hear many skeptics today say the resurrection was
made up to give people hope about this life. And that
there is no proof of it. They often challenge people to prove
it to them, sit back with their arms folded and say "show me".

Through many resources to help bring that proof to you. I am using
the resources that have done a great deal of study,
not only on Biblical history, but history of non christian
authors who wrote of it.

Hope you enjoy it, and find it useful in your witness for the Lord Jesus.

Evidence for the Resurrection

According to many resources I have read, the resurrection
of Jesus Christ of Nazareth is one of the most well attested
events in the ancient world.

Why is this important to us? Because the resurrection
was meant to set Jesus apart from anyone else that ever
lived. It would prove He was the son of God, able
to conquer death, and bring eternal life to the world
through His death.

For a 40 day period after he rose from the grave, he appeared
to many different people. Paul, in 56 AD wrote that over
500 people had seen the risen Jesus and that most of them
were still alive (1 Corinthians 15:6).

One of the greatest ways to disprove Jesus death would
have been for anyone to produce his body.

Let us take a look at that part of the resurrection story.
Who would have wanted to steal Jesus body, and
how would it have profited them?

WE know that Jesus could not have survived the
crucifixion. The romans were very thorough in checking
the body of those crucified to make sure they were dead
before they took them down from the cross.

Most people had their legs broken while still on the cross
so that it would hasten their death. The fact that the
soldiers did not do this, shows they felt he was already dead.
And according to Bible prophecy this has been predicted
that not one bone of his body would be broken.

IN John, it is recorded that when Jesus side was pierced,
blood and water came out of it. That would have been a
sign he was dead.

The Jews, if they had wanted to prove Jesus did not rise from
the grave, would have produced the body and paraded
it throughout the streets to prove that theory.

Grave robbers would have had no reason to take it,
only anything worthy of selling or using would have been
their interest.

The romans had no reason to steal the body, they wanted to
keep the peace in Palestine. They had accomplished
their goal of putting him in the grave, they just wanted
to keep the peace.

The disciples had no reason to steal the body of Christ.
If you think about it, later they all died for their belief
in Christ, his life, death and resurrection. Why would they
have wanted to die for a lie?

There have been many who have studied this event,
who were not Christians and wanted to destroy the ancient
story of Jesus and how he came to save the world.
They spent hours pouring over ancient documentation,
historical accounts, and through their journey, accepted
Jesus as their savior. Why? The evidence was compelled,
and verified by man.

One of those men was Frank Morrison who was a agnostic
journalist. Another was Lee Strobel. Who was according to
his investigative reporting, wanted to disprove the outrageous
theory of Christ, and the resurrection. In his desire to
disprove it, he found evidence that changed his life
and made him turn to Christ as His savior.

There were many ancient writers who spoke about
the resurrection, here is just a list of a few of them:

The apostle Paul said in 55 or 56 A.D. that there were hundreds of actual eyewitnesses of the risen Christ who were still alive and could confirm the accounts of the Resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:6). The apostle Paul and the other disciples had to be accurate in what they reported because these living eyewitnesses would have been the first to dispute anything untrue that Paul or the disciples may have said. Another problem with this theory is that first-century historians and other writers of that time period have provided us with further information about the Resurrection, whether directly or indirectly. Here are some examples:

Flavius Josephus (Jewish historian), The Antiquities of the Jews (93 A.D.), book 18, chapter 3, paragraph 3.

Pliny the Younger (Plinius Secundus), Epistles (112 A.D.), volume 10, p.96, in a letter written to emperor Trajan concerning the Christians in Pliny's province (he was the governor of Bithynia in Asia Minor at the time).

Emperor Trajan's reply to Pliny's letter, recorded in Pliny's Epistles, volume 10, p. 97

Cornelius Tacitus (senator under the reign of Vespasian and governor of Asia from 112-113 A.D.), Annals (116 A.D.), volume 15, p.44.

Eusebius recorded in The History of the Church, volume 4, p.9, a letter from emperor Hadrian (who reigned from 117-138 A.D.) to Minucius Fundanus (governor of Asia) giving advice on handling charges against Christians.

Suetonius (Roman historian), Life of Claudius (120 A.D.), volume 25, p.4.

Suetonius, Life of Nero, p.16.

Lucian of Samosata (Greek satirist), The Death of Peregrine (170 A.D.), p.11-13.

Lucian of Samosata, Alexander the False Prophet, sections 25 and 29.


The most plausible explanation is that Christ did rise from the
grave, and all the eyewitnesses and writings about this
make it a plain case in evidence of his resurrection.
The truth is the disciples knew the difference between
a risen savior and a dead friend. They knew the
reason came, the reason He died, and the reason He
rose from the grave. And they gave their lives,
and died because of their firm, real belief in Him.

Peter said: For we did not follow cleverly devised tales
when we made known to you the power and the coming
of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His
majesty. 2 Peter 1:16


Click here: Evidence for the Resurrection
http://www.bringyou.to/apologetics/num9.htm

Click here: The Evidence for the Death and Resurrection of Jesus
http://www.layhands.com/EvidenceForTheResurrection.htm


sources for this:
Answers to tough questions by Josh McDowell
(Wheaton, Illinois, Tyndale house publishers 1980)
Frank Morrison - Who Moved the Stone ( Grand Rapids, Zondervan, 1971)
Lee Stroebel - The Case for Christ (Zondervan Publishing 1998)
Proof of the Resurrection published by Rose Publishing, 2004