Is resurrection just a myth?
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Answer:
By Dr. Peter Amerman
The 2016 movie, “Risen”, tells the story of a Roman Soldier, Clavius, who investigated the rumors of the resurrection of Jesus, to determine what had actually happened on that first Easter morning. Was this rumor of Jesus resurrection a myth, or an event that had actually occurred in space-time history? This movie itself was a fictional story; but, it illustrates a very important point- the events surrounding the death and resurrection of Jesus were historically accurate, and could very well have been investigated by a Roman soldier, a member of the Sanhedrin, or you or me, for that matter.
Christianity is by nature a historical religion. It stands or falls on certain historical facts. Hugh Ross, a skeptic who converted to Christianity, and founder of the “Reasons to Believe” ministry, said in his series, “An Astronomer’s Quest”- “If you study the other religions of the world, you will find that most of them are based on ideas and teachings and the philosophy of their founders. But, this is not the case with Christianity.
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Answer:
By Dr. Peter Amerman
The 2016 movie, “Risen”, tells the story of a Roman Soldier, Clavius, who investigated the rumors of the resurrection of Jesus, to determine what had actually happened on that first Easter morning. Was this rumor of Jesus resurrection a myth, or an event that had actually occurred in space-time history? This movie itself was a fictional story; but, it illustrates a very important point- the events surrounding the death and resurrection of Jesus were historically accurate, and could very well have been investigated by a Roman soldier, a member of the Sanhedrin, or you or me, for that matter.
Christianity is by nature a historical religion. It stands or falls on certain historical facts. Hugh Ross, a skeptic who converted to Christianity, and founder of the “Reasons to Believe” ministry, said in his series, “An Astronomer’s Quest”- “If you study the other religions of the world, you will find that most of them are based on ideas and teachings and the philosophy of their founders. But, this is not the case with Christianity. The basis for Christianity is on certain historical principles- names, places, events- which can be tested, and can be proven to be true by historical inquiry; and, the principles of faith that it teaches are all based on these historical events, not just on ideas or philosophies of its founder.”
Exactly! Jesus’ teachings focused mostly on Himself, not just His ideas; and, the most important historical event which he pointed to as validating who He was– was the resurrection. If you disprove the resurrection, you have disproved Christianity, and the entire system or beliefs of the Christian religion, the entire creed, the entire New Testament, the entire church will collapse.
More than once, I read or heard- even from professors who were supposedly Christian- “Even if we are not sure that the resurrection happened, even if we can’t be sure that Jesus had really risen from the dead, Christianity would be just a valid a religion. It was really the ideas of Jesus, His teachings, and His example of selfless love– especially His sacrificial love shown on the cross– that are really important.”
I couldn’t disagree more! The resurrection is the cornerstone truth of the gospel itself, and without the resurrection, there is no gospel!
Josh McDowell, writer of the two volume works, “Evidence that Demands a Verdict”, wrote an article entitled, “If I had Faked the Resurrection.” Here are a few of the points that he made:
“If I had been some first century propagandist trying to fake the resurrection of Jesus Christ, I would have done a number of things differently (from the way Matthew, Mark, Luke and John reported it):
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