That You May Believe - 10

"THAT YOU MAY BELIEVE"
The Testimony For Jesus' Resurrection - Part 1

In this study we have noted that John seeks to produce faith in Jesus by recording the claims concerning Jesus We have looked at claims made by John in his prologue to the gospel and claims made by Jesus Himself throughout His ministry. By recording testimony to support such claims we read of the testimony of those who saw and heard Jesus and the testimony of the Father through signs and Scripture. Perhaps the strongest testimony provided by John is that of Jesus' resurrection. For if Jesus truly did rise from the dead He indeed is everything that both Jesus and John claimed!

What evidence is there for the resurrection of Jesus? In John's gospel, the testimony for Jesus' resurrection begins with Jesus' death; in other words, what is said about the crucifixion. Let’s look at the evidence. First there is the soldiers' observation that Jesus was dead - Jn 19:31-33 "After Jesus drank the wine, he said, "Everything is done!" He bowed his head and died. The next day would be both a Sabbath and the Passover. It was a special day for the Jewish people, and they did not want the bodies to stay on the crosses during that day. So they asked Pilate to break the men's legs and take their bodies down." Then we have blood and water coming from Jesus' pierced side - Jn 19:34-35 "One of the soldiers stuck his spear into Jesus' side, and blood and water came out. We know this is true, because it was told by someone who saw it happen. Now you can have faith too." Medical authorities have commented on this phenomenon as evidence that it proves Jesus died on the cross (not sometime later). "There remains, therefore, no supposition possible to explain the recorded phenomenon except the combination of the crucifixion and rupture of the heart." - Samuel Houghton, M.D. (physiologist from the University of Dublin). There is testimony of Tacitus, Roman historian (ca. 112 A.D.) - "Christus, the founder of the name, was put to death by Pontius Pilate, procurator of Judea in the reign of Tiberias."

The alternative view is that Jesus only swooned, to either die or be revived some time later. Postulated by many skeptics, trying to deny the resurrection of Jesus (e.g., The Passover Plot, by Hugh J. Schonfield)
Which is more likely becomes apparent as we consider the evidence of the empty tomb. The stone removed - Jn 20:1 "On Sunday morning while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance." The first observation is by Mary Magdalene, on early Sunday morning. A stone that had been sealed and guarded by Roman soldiers - Mt 27:62-66 "On the next day, which was a Sabbath, the chief priests and the Pharisees went together to Pilate. They said, "Sir, we remember what that liar said while he was still alive. He claimed that in three days he would come back from death. So please order the tomb to be carefully guarded for three days. If you don't, his disciples may come and steal his body. They will tell the people that he has been raised to life, and this last lie will be worse than the first one." Pilate said to them, "All right, take some of your soldiers and guard the tomb as well as you know how." So they sealed it tight and placed soldiers there to guard it." The body gone - Jn 20:2 "She ran to Simon Peter and to Jesus' favorite disciple and said, "They have taken the Lord from the tomb! We don't know where they have put him."' The tomb is empty! Mary supposes that the body has been removed, and runs to tell Peter. The grave clothes - Jn 20:3-9 "Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. They ran side by side, until the other disciple ran faster than Peter and got there first. He bent over and saw the strips of linen cloth lying inside the tomb, but he did not go in. When Simon Peter got there, he went into the tomb and saw the strips of cloth. He also saw the piece of cloth that had been used to cover Jesus' face. It was rolled up and in a place by itself. The disciple who got there first then went into the tomb, and when he saw it, he believed. At that time Peter and the other disciple did not know that the Scriptures said Jesus would rise to life." Peter and John see the head covering (napkin) lying neatly folded by itself indicating there had been no hurry to get away, or to steal the body (Hailey).

The alternative views and theories are the body was stolen. This theory says the disciples stole the body, then claimed He rose from the dead. This was the "official" theory offered from the very beginning - Mt 28:11-15 "While the women were on their way, some soldiers who had been guarding the tomb went into the city. They told the chief priests everything that had happened. So the chief priests met with the leaders and decided to bribe the soldiers with a lot of money. They said to the soldiers, "Tell everyone that Jesus' disciples came during the night and stole his body while you were asleep. If the governor hears about this, we will talk to him. You won't have anything to worry about." The soldiers took the money and did what they were told. The people of Judea still tell each other this story." There are difficulties with this described explaination. The explanation defies logic. If the soldiers were asleep how did they know it was the disciples who took the body? How could the large stone guarding the entrance be rolled away without awakening the soldiers? The soldiers guarding the tomb were Romans - Mt 27: 62-66. They were professional soldiers charged to guard the tomb with their lives. The punishment for falling asleep on duty was death. This would make those who testified they saw Jesus liars and frauds for they claimed empirical evidence - Ac 10:39-41 "We all saw what Jesus did both in Israel and in the city of Jerusalem. Jesus was put to death on a cross. But three days later, God raised him to life and let him be seen. Not everyone saw him. He was seen only by us, who ate and drank with him after he was raised from death. We were the ones God chose to tell others about him." Suppose just a few disciples stole the body, unknown by others, such as Nicodemus, Joseph of Arimathea, or the women. Others still say they saw Jesus, ate and drank with Him. You have to explain why they were willing to lie and die knowing it was a lie.

Another alternative view or theory is the swoon hypothesis. The theory explained that Jesus did not actually die on the cross, He only swooned. Suffering from shock, pain, and loss of blood, He fainted (swooned) from exhaustion. Thinking that He was dead, the Roman soldiers took Him down and He was buried in the tomb. In the coolness of the tomb, Jesus revived. Somehow He left the tomb, and appeared to His disciples, then lived in obscurity to die years later. The difficulties here are that Jesus would have had to revive sufficiently enough to break through the burial garments that bound Him, including a hundred pounds of spices used in preparing His body for burial - Jn 19:38-40. He had to role away the large stone that sealed the tomb, fight off the Roman guards protecting the tomb, walk the seven miles to Emmaus where He was seen by the two disciples, then walk back to Jerusalem where He was seen by the apostles. All within the same day! Every effort was made to prove He was dead. The Roman soldiers at the cross pierced His side - Jn 19:31-34, Pilate made sure He was dead - Mk 15:43-45. When Joseph of Arimathea wanted the body the Roman centurion confirmed that Jesus was dead. Not only would this make the apostles liars and frauds, but Jesus also for allowing a lie to spread for years! Another alternative view or theory is the vision hypothesis. The theory explained all of Christ's post-resurrection appearances were only supposed appearances and those who claimed to see Jesus had hallucinations. The difficulties as described are the appearances were not just to individuals, one at a time. Ten apostles claimed to see Him - Jn 20:19-25. Jesus appeared to six disciples at the Sea of Galilee - Jn 21:1-14. He appeared to over 500 people at once as recorded in 1 Co 15:6. The theory contradicts laws and principles which psychiatrists say are essential to hallucinations. Only certain kinds of people have hallucinations. Usually high-strung, highly imaginative, and very nervous people, only paranoid or schizophrenic individuals have hallucinations, or someone on drugs. The appearances were not restricted to people of any particular psychological make up. Hallucinations are linked in an individual's subconscious. An individual may have an hallucination, but hallucinations do not appear to groups of people. They occur in people when there is a spirit of anticipation or hopeful expectation. The disciples had no such anticipation - Lk 24: 13-21. They were prone to disbelieve even after they were told of the resurrection - Jn 20:24-25. I would highly suggest the reader open their Bible and read the scriptures referenced in this last paragraph.

Having looked at these alternative views or theories we will continue our study in a lesson to follow looking at the greatest evidence of all, the witnesses.