Basic arguments defending the resurrection of Jesus

1. ..
Did Jesus rise from the dead

2. Did Jesus rise from the dead

3. Basic positions
• Hallucination – the disciples imagined it
• Myth – the apostles made it all up
• Conspiracy – it was one big deception
• Swoon – he didn’t die, he just passed out
• Christian view – He died and rose
He is not here

4. Did He live?
• Star of Bethlehem - astronomical heralding of the king.
• Archeology – ossuaries, inscriptions, dead-sea scrolls
• Manuscripts – correlation, recency, complementarity
• Non-Christian texts – Josephus, Pliny, Lucian, Tacitus, Amoa
Ulla, Babylonian Talmud
• 4 gospels – styles, times, references women, death of disciples
• Paul - well qualified antagonist, believed and died for it

5. Did He die?
• Physical evidence:
- Blood & water (plasma), revealed humanity, certified death
- Soldier confirmed death, to priests and Pilate (surprised)
- Coiled/encased inside a burial shroud
• Could not survive crucifixion + examination
- Had He not died, Roman guard would have
- Medical experts confirm examination was deadly
• Witnesses – disciples, enemies, mother, Joseph, Nicodemus

6. Was He buried?
• Physical evidence:
- Roman guard – priests insisted, Pilate ordered (Matt 27:65)
Because He said He would rise – part of His trial
No sleeping. 3 hourly rotation
- Stone – with legal seal, inspected, too heavy to move
• Self-exit – a badly wounded, half dead man could not
• Jesus foretold it and went freely to His death
• Women - intently gazed on his dead body (Luke 23:55)

7. Did He rise again?
• Empty tomb - seal, stone, guards, abandoned tomb
• Thomas doubted - Peter and the womenfolk also doubted
• Witnesses – a list of specific witnesses, 500 saw Him
• Body not moved - concedes an empty tomb, no body
• Apostles died for it – no denials, violent deaths

8. Thomas Arnold, one of the world’s
greatest historians, said about the
historical evidence for the resurrection:
I know of no one fact in the history of mankind
which is proved by better, fuller evidence of
every sort, to the understanding of a fair
enquirer, than the great sign which God gave
us that Christ died and rose again.

9. Simon Greenleaf - expert on laws of evidence, founder
of Harvard Law School: analyzed Gospel accounts of the
resurrection in terms of testimonial evidence:
It was impossible that they could have persisted in affirming their
truths, had Jesus not actually risen from the dead, and had they
not known this fact as certainly as they knew any other fact.

10. • Myth? - no time, two layers don’t hold up, wrong style
• Hallucinations? - never last - what about body in tomb
• Conspiracy? Not easy to convince:
– Sadducees - rejected any form of resurrection
– Pharisees - believed in resurrection to eternal life only
– Greeks - bodily resurrection absurd (Acts 17:32)
– World - would have found out
– Disciples - self defeating
• Every alternative theory lacks credibility
A myth is as good as a mile

11. Closing
Like the brothers of Joseph, others fell before Jesus
Peter, ignored opinion and confessed Him as Lord
John, saw beyond intimacy to the Living Word
Mary saw her child become her king
Nicodemus and John saw Him as their Passover lamb

12. Closing
Acts 4:33 - With great power the apostles continued to
testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus
Acts 3:15 - You killed the author of life, but God raised him
from the dead. We are witnesses of this
Rev 1: 18 I am He that lives, and was dead; and am alive
for evermore; and I have the keys of death and hell