Jesus of Nazareth was a Jewish man who lived some 2000 years ago, and gained a big following throughout his three years of travelling, teaching and healing. But some of the leaders of his day saw him as a threat. So they had him killed.
But the Bible tells us that two days after being killed by the Romans, Jesus rose from the dead. He interacted with many people. And when he left the earth for heaven, he took his resurrected body with him.
Now, for some people, this may all seem a bit hard to swallow. But Christians down through the centuries have held onto their belief in the Resurrection, and in fact consider it the bedrock of their faith. And if you dig a little deeper, you too may discover that there’s enough evidence to make it worthy of consideration.
So here are a few…
Reasons to believe in Jesus’ Resurrection:
1. The Consistency of the Gospels
In the Bible, there are four books we call “the Gospels” that tell us about the life of Jesus, all written by different people. All of them include his death and resurrection. They differ on some of the details. But the differences are minor — just enough to show us they weren’t copying from each other. And they have enough in common that it seems very likely that they were, in fact, based on eye-witness testimonies.
2. The Women Witnesses
First century culture did not give women equal rights. They were not considered trustworthy witnesses. Yet the Gospels tell us women discovered the empty tomb first. They met Jesus before his male followers. If a first century writer was trying to convince people of a lie, it’s highly unlikely he would use women as his witnesses. This adds to the likelihood that the Gospels are telling us what really happened.
3. The Willingness of Early Believers to Die
The first Christians had nothing to gain by lying about the resurrection. In the early decades of Christianity, they experienced severe persecution. Many of Jesus’ disciples and other Christians died for their faith. People are not usually willing to die for something they know is a lie. So if the first Christians had not actually seen the risen Jesus, it’s hard to believe they would have been willing to die.
4. The Rapid Rise and Impact of Christianity
In some ways, Jesus’ story isn’t all that unusual. He wasn’t the first or the last Jewish man to gain a following only to be killed by the Romans. But no one claimed to see the others alive after death. And yet, after Jesus’ death, Christianity spread rapidly and had a big impact on the world — based not only on Jesus’s teaching, but on the belief that he was alive.
In the ancient world, human rights and equality were foreign concepts in many cultures. Women and children were not seen as equal to men. Class systems kept the poor, poor. Education and health care were not guaranteed. But from the beginning, early Christians showed a better way. And throughout history there are countless examples of Christians leading the way, building schools and hospitals, fighting oppression and caring for the needy. All of this was in response to the teachings and example of Jesus. Jesus has made a huge difference in the world. If Jesus didn’t really rise from the dead, could such a rapidly expanding, world-changing movement have come about in His name?
What do you think?
If you’re skeptical about Jesus, we hope this will make you stop and think and perhaps consider learning more.
We believe that Jesus is the answer!
If you want read more about Jesus’ resurrection (Easter!), then please read this manga or this blog post if you haven’t already.
