The Resurrection: the biblical evidence
The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is the
cornerstone of Christianity. If there is no resurrection then there is no
forgiveness of sins and no future bodily resurrection of the believer. The
Christian faith is useless if there is no resurrection. There is therefore no
afterlife, no heaven and no hell and we might just as well eat and drink, for
tomorrow we die.
In the following account I will emphasise the eye witness
testimony, people who saw Jesus die on the cross, including women, they saw
where he was buried, they witnessed the empty tomb and some touched and felt
the risen Jesus. They saw his wounds from the cross, he also ate with his
disciples, he was not a ghost he had a human body.
In this ancient creed (1 Cor 15:3) Paul lists the key evidences for the
resurrection:
- Christ died
- He was buried
- He rose from the dead on the third day as predicted in scripture
- He appeared to Peter and the rest of the twelve
- Then he appeared to 500 disciples at the same time, most of whom were still
alive
- Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles
- Last of all he appeared to Paul
(1 Cor 15:3-8 NIV) For what I received I passed
on to you as of first importance : that Christ died for our sins
according to the Scriptures, {4} that he was buried, that he was raised on the
third day according to the Scriptures, {5} and that he appeared to Peter, and
then to the Twelve. {6} After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of
the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have
fallen asleep. {7} Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, {8} and
last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.
We should note that Paul emphasizes multiple witnesses, the
disciples and 500 hundred brothers at the same time, many of who were still
alive, so that their testimony could be verified. Paul names Peter and James
and lastly himself as witnesses of the resurrected Jesus. Luke, in his gospel,
also relied on eyewitness testimony (Luke 1:2).
If there is no resurrection then our faith is futile, the resurrection is
the keystone of Christianity, without the resurrection the whole edifice comes
tumbling down.
Without the resurrection Paul says "our preaching is useless and so
is your faith"
(1 Cor 15:13-14 NIV) If there is no resurrection
of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. {14} And if Christ has not
been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.
Without the resurrection Paul says "you are still in your
sins"
(1 Cor 15:17-19 NIV) And if Christ has not been
raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. {18} Then
those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. {19} If only for this
life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.
Without the resurrection Paul says "If the dead are not raised,
"Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die." "
(1 Cor 15:32 NIV) If I fought wild beasts in
Ephesus for merely human reasons, what have I gained? If the dead are not
raised, "Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die."
Paul reminds Timothy of his gospel
(2 Tim 2:8 NIV) Remember Jesus Christ, raised
from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel,
If Jesus did not rise from the dead, then the Christian gospel is
fraudulent, there is no hope for sinners, when I die I cease to exist. The
Christian gospel offers immortality of the soul. Even better a new body with no
more death, no more suffering, no more pain, even eternal life, but all of this
is contingent with Jesus Christ rising from the dead. The stakes are very high,
because if Jesus did not rise from the dead, there is no hope for us humans. I
might be descended from a Chimpanzee. My life will be nothing.
Key pieces of evidence:
- Jesus actually died on the cross
- the burial of Jesus in a tomb
- the disciples and the authorities believed he had died
- the discovery of the tomb as being empty
- the authorities never produced the body
- post-mortem appearances of Jesus to some of his followers
- the origin of the disciples belief that Jesus had been physically raised
from the dead
The biblical evidence:
It is interesting how much the testimony of women is
involved in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The testimony
of women is very prominent. If the accounts were fabricated then the testimony
of women would be minimised or removed altogether. In those days a womans
testimony was worthless. The fact that their testimony is included while the
men doubted, adds to the veracity of these accounts.
But I am glad that doubting Thomas is also included here,
Thomas did not see the resurrected Christ, he did not believe that Christ had
risen, and he wanted physical evidence, he wanted forensic evidence, he wanted
to see the nail marks, he wanted to put his fingers where the nails
were, he wanted to put his hand into Jesus side, the side that the spear went
into. Thomas was not happy with the testimony of others, he wanted the physical
and forensic evidence himself.
(John 20:25 NIV) So the other disciples told
him, "We have seen the Lord!" But he said to them, "Unless I see
the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my
hand into his side, I will not believe it."
Jesus gave Thomas the evidence he required
(John 20:27-29 NIV) Then he said to Thomas,
"Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into
my side. Stop doubting and believe." {28} Thomas said to him, "My
Lord and my God!" {29} Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen
me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have
believed."
The Christian faith is not blind faith, it is based on
eyewitness testimony. Thomas did not believe in the eyewitness testimony of
others, he also wanted the physical evidence for himself, and only then he
believed that Jesus has risen from the dead. Thomas is similar to many of us
today, we want evidence, we want evidence that Jesus Christ rose from the dead.
Thomas asked the same question that we do, did Jesus rise from the dead? The
apostle John also appeals to many other miracles that Jesus did.
John appeals to this written testimony and many other, unrecorded miracles,
so that you can believe, the Christian faith is not blind faith. It is based on
eyewitness testimony.
(John 20:30-31 NIV) Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the
presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. {31} But these
are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and
that by believing you may have life in his name.
Jesus actually died on the cross:
The Roman soldiers, who were experienced at crucifixions,
realized that Jesus was dead, they did not need to break his legs to ensure
that he died. Even so, they pierced his side with a spear releasing the
coagulated blood and clear fluid from the heart of a dead person. John was an
eye witness of these events and says that his testimony is true. He saw that
Jesus died so that we can believe in the resurrection. John's account is
corroborated by the other three gospels and by the centurion.
(John 19:31-35 NIV) Now it was the day of
Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath. Because the Jews did
not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate
to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down. {32} The soldiers therefore
came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and
then those of the other. {33} But when they came to Jesus and found that he was
already dead, they did not break his legs. {34} Instead, one of the soldiers
pierced Jesus' side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water.
{35} The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He
knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe.
The centurion and women witnessed the death of Jesus. Mark gives us the
names of the female witnesses, their testimony could be checked.
(Mark 15:39-40 NIV) And when the centurion, who
stood there in front of Jesus, heard his cry and saw how he died, he said,
"Surely this man was the Son of God!" {40} Some women were watching
from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the
younger and of Joses, and Salome.
Women were witnesses to the death, burial, the empty tomb and the
resurrected Jesus. Here they witness his death. Some witnesses are also named.
The centurion is also an important witness since he was in charge of the
execution and reported to Pilate that Jesus had actually died (Mark 15:34).
(Mat 27:54-56 NIV) When the centurion and those
with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened,
they were terrified, and exclaimed, "Surely he was the Son of God!"
{55} Many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus
from Galilee to care for his needs. {56} Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary
the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee's sons.
Luke records that the centurion witnessed the death of Jesus, other
witnesses included those who knew Jesus.
(Luke 23:46-49 NIV) Jesus called out with a loud
voice, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." When he had said
this, he breathed his last. {47} The centurion, seeing what had happened,
praised God and said, "Surely this was a righteous man." {48} When
all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took place, they
beat their breasts and went away. {49} But all those who knew him, including
the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching
these things.
Jesus was buried in the tomb.
The burial in the tomb was witnessed by women. The tomb was sealed and
guarded by soldiers to prevent the disciples stealing the body.
(Mat 27:57-66 NIV) As evening approached, there
came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple
of Jesus. {58} Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus' body, and Pilate ordered
that it be given to him. {59} Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen
cloth, {60} and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock.
He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away. {61}
Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb. {62}
The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the
Pharisees went to Pilate. {63} "Sir," they said, "we remember
that while he was still alive that deceiver said, 'After three days I will rise
again.' {64} So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third
day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people
that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than
the first." {65} "Take a guard," Pilate answered. "Go, make
the tomb as secure as you know how." {66} So they went and made the tomb
secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.
Pilate checked with the centurion to check that Jesus was
actually dead before releasing the body. The centurion would be experienced in
execution and would not release a half dead man from the cross, the job had to
be finished, they broke the legs of the other two criminals and put a spear
through Jesus side to ensure that he was dead. The burial was witnessed by
women. The body was wrapped in linen, and the tomb sealed with a stone.
(Mark 15:43-47 NIV) Joseph of Arimathea, a
prominent member of the Council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of
God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for Jesus' body. {44} Pilate was surprised
to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if
Jesus had already died. {45} When he learned from the centurion that it was so,
he gave the body to Joseph. {46} So Joseph bought some linen cloth, took down
the body, wrapped it in the linen, and placed it in a tomb cut out of rock.
Then he rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb. {47} Mary Magdalene
and Mary the mother of Joses saw where he was laid.
The burial was witnessed by women.
(Luke 23:50-56 NIV) Now there was a man named
Joseph, a member of the Council, a good and upright man, {51} who had not
consented to their decision and action. He came from the Judean town of
Arimathea and he was waiting for the kingdom of God. {52} Going to Pilate, he
asked for Jesus' body. {53} Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen cloth and
placed it in a tomb cut in the rock, one in which no one had yet been laid.
{54} It was Preparation Day, and the Sabbath was about to begin. {55} The women
who had come with Jesus from Galilee followed Joseph and saw the tomb and how
his body was laid in it. {56} Then they went home and prepared spices and
perfumes. But they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment.
There were male two witnesses to the burial of Jesus, Joseph and Nicodemus,
(plus the women, Luke 23:55). This is significant since the testimony of woman
was not normally accepted, see how the disciples ignored the womans testimony
as nonsense (Luke 24:11).
(John 19:38-42 NIV) Later, Joseph of Arimathea
asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but
secretly because he feared the Jews. With Pilate's permission, he came and took
the body away. {39} He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had
visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about
seventy-five pounds. {40} Taking Jesus' body, the two of them wrapped it, with
the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial
customs. {41} At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and
in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. {42} Because it
was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid
Jesus there.
The disciples and the authorities believed he had died.
Pilate released the body for burial
(Mat 27:58 NIV) Going to Pilate, he asked for
Jesus' body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him.
The disciples were mourning and weeping and did not believe the testimony of
Mary Magdelene, a woman, that Jesus rose from the dead.
(Mark 16:9-14 NIV) When Jesus rose early on the
first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had
driven seven demons. {10} She went and told those who had been with him and who
were mourning and weeping. {11} When they heard that Jesus was alive and that
she had seen him, they did not believe it. {12} Afterward Jesus appeared in a
different form to two of them while they were walking in the country. {13}
These returned and reported it to the rest; but they did not believe them
either. {14} Later Jesus appeared to the Eleven as they were eating; he rebuked
them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who
had seen him after he had risen.
Even to the disciples the idea that Jesus was alive seemed like nonsense.
(Luke 24:11 NIV) But they did not believe the
women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense.
(Luke 24:19-21 NIV) "What things?" he
asked. "About Jesus of Nazareth," they replied. "He was a
prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. {20} The
chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they
crucified him; {21} but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to
redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place.
Thomas did not believe that Jesus rose from the dead and wanted physical
proof that Jesus was alive.
(John 20:24-28 NIV) Now Thomas (called Didymus),
one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. {25} So the
other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord!" But he said to
them, "Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where
the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it."
{26} A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with
them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said,
"Peace be with you!" {27} Then he said to Thomas, "Put your
finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop
doubting and believe." {28} Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my
God!"
Two of the disciples did not believe the women testimony
about the empty tomb, but other disciples verified the womens testimony about
the empty tomb. [remember a woman's testimony was of no value back then, yet
they were witnesses to the death, burial, the empty tomb and of the resurrected
Jesus Christ, they were also among Jesus supporters]
(Luke 24:22-24 NIV) In addition, some of our
women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning {23} but didn't find
his body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said
he was alive. {24} Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it
just as the women had said, but him they did not see."
The tomb was secured, sealed and guarded
The tomb had a big stone in front of it, the guards sealed the stone and
guarded the tomb to prevent the disciples stealing the body. They were probably
temple guards not Roman soldiers.
(Mat 27:59-66 NIV) Joseph took the body, wrapped
it in a clean linen cloth, {60} and placed it in his own new tomb that he had
cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb
and went away. {61} Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there
opposite the tomb. {62} The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief
priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. {63} "Sir," they said,
"we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, 'After
three days I will rise again.' {64} So give the order for the tomb to be made
secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the
body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last
deception will be worse than the first." {65} "Take a guard,"
Pilate answered. "Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how." {66}
So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and
posting the guard.
The guard was more than one man, note the use of "guards" plural.
(Mat 28:4 NIV) The guards were so afraid of him that they shook
and became like dead men.
The discovery of the tomb as being empty
The resurrection is announced by angels to the women. The
women are invited to see the place where Jesus lay (more evidence). Jesus had
also prophesied his own resurrection (Mark 8:31, John 2:19). It is worth noting
that there are no human witnesses to the actual resurrection for the simple
reason that the tomb was sealed and guarded to prevent the disciples stealing
the body. But, like the birth of Jesus, we have angelic witnesses who announce
the good news of the resurrection to the women. The angels tell the women that
Jesus is risen and offer to show them them the place where he lay (more
forensic evidence).
(Mat 28:5-6 NIV) The angel said to the women, "Do not be
afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. {6} He is
not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.
(Mark 16:4-6 NIV) But when they looked up, they
saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. {5} As they
entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the
right side, and they were alarmed. {6} "Don't be alarmed," he said.
"You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen!
He is not here. See the place where they laid him.
Here the angels remind the woman that Jesus told them
"The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be
crucified and on the third day be raised again". Then they remembered his
words (Mat 17:22-23, 20:18-19, Mark 8:31, 9:31, 10:33, Luke 9:22 ).
(Luke 24:1-8 NIV) On the first day of the week,
very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went
to the tomb. {2} They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, {3} but when
they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. {4} While they were
wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning
stood beside them. {5} In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to
the ground, but the men said to them, "Why do you look for the living
among the dead? {6} He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you,
while he was still with you in Galilee: {7} 'The Son of Man must be delivered
into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised
again.'" {8} Then they remembered his words.
(Luke 24:22-23 NIV) In addition, some of our
women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning {23} but didn't find
his body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said
he was alive.
Then the men find the empty tomb (John and Simon Peter). Finally the
"other disciple" (John) went into the tomb, and like Simon Peter
"he saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the burial cloth that
had been around Jesus' head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from
the linen." John saw the physical evidence that Jesus Christ was not in
the tomb, and he believed. He believed that Jesus had risen from the dead, just
as Jesus told them.
(John 20:1-8 NIV) Early on the first day of the
week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the
stone had been removed from the entrance. {2} So she came running to Simon
Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, "They have
taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put
him!" {3} So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. {4} Both
were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first.
{5} He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not
go in. {6} Then Simon Peter, who was behind him, arrived and went into the
tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, {7} as well as the burial cloth
that had been around Jesus' head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate
from the linen. {8} Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first,
also went inside. He saw and believed.
Post-mortem appearances of Jesus to some of his followers
The woman see Jesus, and they clasp his feet (he had a physical body) and
worship him, which he accepts.
(Mat 28:8-10 NIV) So the women hurried away from
the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. {9}
Suddenly Jesus met them. "Greetings," he said. They came to him,
clasped his feet and worshiped him. {10} Then Jesus said to them, "Do not
be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see
me."
Eleven disciples see him in Galilee, they also worship him.
(Mat 28:16-17 NIV) Then the eleven disciples
went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. {17} When
they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted.
He appeared to Mary Magdalene (the witness is named so her testimony can be
checked)
(Mark 16:9 NIV) When Jesus rose early on the
first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had
driven seven demons.
Jesus appears to two disciples
(Mark 16:12-13 NIV) Afterward Jesus appeared in
a different form to two of them while they were walking in the country. {13}
These returned and reported it to the rest; but they did not believe them
either.
The two disciples on the road to Emmaus is recounted by Luke
in much greater detail. They also believed that Jesus was dead, but then Jesus
explains to them the prophecies in scripture about himself. Jesus not only
fulfilled prophecy but he also predicted his own death and resurrection three
days later (Mark 8:31, John 2:19).
(Luke 24:13-31 NIV) Now that same day two of
them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem.
{14} They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. {15}
As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came
up and walked along with them; {16} but they were kept from recognizing him.
{17} He asked them, "What are you discussing together as you walk
along?" They stood still, their faces downcast. {18} One of them, named
Cleopas, asked him, "Are you only a visitor to Jerusalem and do not know
the things that have happened there in these days?" {19} "What
things?" he asked. "About Jesus of Nazareth," they replied.
"He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the
people. {20} The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced
to death, and they crucified him; {21} but we had hoped that he was the one who
was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all
this took place. {22} In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to
the tomb early this morning {23} but didn't find his body. They came and told
us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive. {24} Then some
of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but
him they did not see." {25} He said to them, "How foolish you are,
and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! {26} Did
not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?" {27}
And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was
said in all the Scriptures concerning himself. {28} As they approached the
village to which they were going, Jesus acted as if he were going farther. {29}
But they urged him strongly, "Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the
day is almost over." So he went in to stay with them. {30} When he was at
the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it
to them. {31} Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he
disappeared from their sight.
Jesus appears to the eleven
(Mark 16:14 NIV) Later Jesus appeared to the
Eleven as they were eating; he rebuked them for their lack of faith and their
stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had risen.
Jesus appears to the eleven. Jesus shows them the wounds on
his hands and feet, he invites them to touch and verify that he was not a
ghost, he had a physical body. His wounds indicate that Jesus had actually been
crucified, not someone else. He also ate broiled fish in their presence, ghosts
do not eat, he had a physical body.
(Luke 24:31-45 NIV) Then their eyes were opened
and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. {32} They asked
each other, "Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us
on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?" {33} They got up and
returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them,
assembled together {34} and saying, "It is true! The Lord has risen and
has appeared to Simon." {35} Then the two told what had happened on the
way, and how Jesus was recognized by them when he broke the bread. {36} While
they were still talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to
them, "Peace be with you." {37} They were startled and frightened,
thinking they saw a ghost. {38} He said to them, "Why are you troubled,
and why do doubts rise in your minds? {39} Look at my hands and my feet. It
is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you
see I have." {40} When he had said this, he showed them his hands and
feet. {41} And while they still did not believe it because of joy and
amazement, he asked them, "Do you have anything here to eat?" {42}
They gave him a piece of broiled fish, {43} and he took it and ate it in
their presence. {44} He said to them, "This is what I told you while I
was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in
the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms." {45} Then he opened their
minds so they could understand the Scriptures.
He appeared to Mary Magdalene (the witness is named so her testimony can be
checked)
(John 20:14-18 NIV) At this, she turned around
and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. {15}
"Woman," he said, "why are you crying? Who is it you are looking
for?" Thinking he was the gardener, she said, "Sir, if you have
carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him."
{16} Jesus said to her, "Mary." She turned toward him and cried out
in Aramaic, "Rabboni!" (which means Teacher). {17} Jesus said,
"Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go
instead to my brothers and tell them, 'I am returning to my Father and your
Father, to my God and your God.'" {18} Mary Magdalene went to the
disciples with the news: "I have seen the Lord!" And she told them
that he had said these things to her.
Jesus appears to the disciples
(John 20:19-20 NIV) On the evening of that first
day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for
fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with
you!" {20} After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The
disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.
Thomas wanted physical evidence that the Lord was alive and he got it.
(John 20:24-29 NIV) Now Thomas (called Didymus),
one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. {25} So the
other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord!" But he said to
them, "Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where
the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe it."
{26} A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with
them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said,
"Peace be with you!" {27} Then he said to Thomas, "Put your
finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop
doubting and believe." {28} Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my
God!" {29} Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have
believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."
Jesus appears to his disciples for a third time.
(John 21:1-14 NIV) Afterward Jesus appeared
again to his disciples, by the Sea of Tiberias. It happened this way: {2} Simon
Peter, Thomas (called Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of
Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. {3} "I'm going out to
fish," Simon Peter told them, and they said, "We'll go with
you." So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught
nothing. {4} Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples
did not realize that it was Jesus. {5} He called out to them, "Friends,
haven't you any fish?" "No," they answered. {6} He said,
"Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find
some." When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the
large number of fish. {7} Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter,
"It is the Lord!" As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, "It is
the Lord," he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it
off) and jumped into the water. {8} The other disciples followed in the boat,
towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred
yards. {9} When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish
on it, and some bread. {10} Jesus said to them, "Bring some of the fish
you have just caught." {11} Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net
ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not
torn. {12} Jesus said to them, "Come and have breakfast." None of the
disciples dared ask him, "Who are you?" They knew it was the Lord.
{13} Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the
fish. {14} This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he
was raised from the dead.
At the end of his gospel, John states that he testifies (was a witness) to
these things and wrote them down.
(John 21:24-25 NIV) This is the disciple who
testifies to these things and who wrote them down. We know that his testimony
is true. {25} Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were
written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the
books that would be written.
Luke sums things up by saying: "After his suffering, he
showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive.
He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of
God. "
(Acts 1:1-3 NIV) In my former book, Theophilus,
I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach {2} until the day he was
taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the
apostles he had chosen. {3} After his suffering, he showed himself to these
men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over
a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God.
Paul's summary of the evidence:
(1 Cor 15:3-8 NIV) For what I received I passed
on to you as of first importance : that Christ died for our sins according to
the Scriptures, {4} that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day
according to the Scriptures, {5} and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the
Twelve. {6} After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers
at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen
asleep. {7} Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, {8} and last
of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.
There are some that argue that the resurrection appearances hopelessly
contradict each other, but differences in viewpoint is a common feature of
eyewitness reports. If the resurrection narratives harmonized too well then the
witnesses will be accused of collusion.
Articles defending the resurrection:
Matt Perman or Justin Taylor
Glenn Miller
J P Holding
William Lane Craig
Edwin M. Yamauchi
Books:
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