The resurrection of Christ is the fulcrum of Christianity. It is the single most important event in our history and demonstrates the power of God in a tangible, meaningful way that has forever changed the world.
Without the resurrection, Christianity doesn’t have any substance. The apostle Paul wrote, “And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If for only this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.” 1 Corinthians 15:14-19.
After the crucifixion, the Pharisees were acutely aware that Jesus’s resurrection would mean that he was indeed who he claimed to be and so they petitioned Pilate to have the tomb guarded by Roman soldiers. “Take a guard,’ Pilate answered. ‘Go and make the tomb as secure as you know how.’ So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.” Mathew 27:65-66.
A roman guard consisted of sixteen soldiers. The penalty for letting a prisoner escape was death. Each soldier was responsible for six square feet while on duty. They were not allowed to sit down, lean on anything or fall asleep while on duty. A soldier who fell asleep was burned in their clothing and the entire guard was executed therefore the guard was highly motivated and no match for 11 disciples who were frightened, dazed and confused from the events of the preceding days.
The empty tomb created a huge problem for the Roman guard as well as the Pharisees therefore they came up with the story that the body was stolen and paid the guard handsomely to remain quiet. This alone proves the tomb was empty and strongly supports the resurrection. Over the next forty days, Jesus appeared to the disciples including over 500 eyewitnesses at one time. This was not due to hallucinations or dreams since 500 people do not hallucinate the same hallucination or dream the same dream at the same time.
The eyewitnesses to the resurrected Jesus became the first Christians and their lives were changed to the point that they boldly proclaimed him to the very population that crucified him. The disciples went from cowardly and scattering when Jesus was arrested, to bold after seeing him after he rose. They were convincing enough that the church grew rapidly, even converting 3000 people in one day (Acts 2:41). Finally, they were so committed in their belief of the risen Christ that most endured torture and died for it. Even when given the opportunity to recant, they held steadfast and submitted to punishment. It is comprehensible that someone would endure torture and execution for something they believe in. It is inconceivable to believe someone would tolerate it for a lie.
Additionally, Jesus could not have survived the crucifixion because of the brutality of the process, beginning with the flogging which caused tremendous blood loss and culminating with the stab of the spear to ensure death. If Jesus didn’t die from the loss of blood and shock from the trauma he endured, no antibiotics were available to treat the infection that was sure to follow.
The most convincing physical evidence for the resurrection of Christ is the Shroud of Turin. The burial cloth of Jesus has been the source of much speculation and debate over the centuries since it first surfaced in historical documents in 1349. Since then it has been under lock and key and its preservation has been of utmost importance. In order to prove its authenticity, the shroud has been tested and dated in more than one method. The investigations have verified that the image on the shroud is of a real, “scourged and crucified man…. not the production of an artist.” In 2015, a vanillin test, two spectroscopic analyses, and compressibility and breaking strength tests were conducted on the shroud resulting in “a midpoint average of 50 A.D. (plus or minus 200 years) with a 96% confidence level.
Additionally, four types of external evidence place the shroud’s origin in 1st century Judea. First, pollen grains unique to Judea were found on it. Second, Roman coins on the eyes of the image – minted by Pontius Pilate in 29 A.D. in Judea. Thirdly, correlations with the Sudarium Christi (facecloth of Christ), which has similar pollen grains, 124 exact matches to wounds on the shroud and the same AB blood type (this artifact has been documented back to 600 A.D. proving the shroud isn’t a medieval forgery). And finally, the reflectance spectrometry showed dirt on the knee, heel and nose containing travertine aragonite, a rare type of limestone identical to that found in Judea.
The research shows that sometime after the blood deposits had dried on the shroud, the decomposing body emitted a short, intense burst of vacuum ultraviolet radiation that led to a dehydration and discoloration of the frontal and dorsal parts of the shroud, giving rise to a perfect photographic negative image. As well, the research suggests that the body inside the shroud became mechanically transparent and emitted light evenly from every 3 – dimensional point within it. This allowed the frontal part of the shroud to collapse – creating an image (of both inside and outside of the hands) as well as a double image on the frontal part of the shroud.
These tests prove that the image on the shroud was not formed by dyes, chemicals, vapors or scorching as well as brush strokes. There are no other explanations or postulations regarding the Shroud of Turin, indicating its authenticity as well as the authenticity and historicity of the resurrection of Jesus Christ as recorded in the Bible.
Despite the overwhelming physical evidence, eyewitness accounts and the dramatic explosion of the first century church in the face of persecution, critics still cannot comprehend how Jesus rose from the dead. No amount of evidence will convince someone who is spiritually dead that Jesus resurrected after he was crucified.
Atheists cannot accept the resurrection since they cannot explain it using natural reasoning, however it is impossible to explain the supernatural using natural comprehension. Since the resurrection is a stumbling block for their belief in Christ, then Christ becomes unbelievable and they become bogged down in a paradigm of unbelief pertaining to Christianity.
In the sixteenth chapter of Luke, Jesus told the story of the rich man and Lazarus the beggar who had both died and had markedly different experiences in the afterlife. The rich man pleaded with Abraham to send Lazarus back to warn his brothers about his torment. “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’
‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’
He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’” Luke 16:29-31.
The most important event in the history of humanity is the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is the fulfillment of everything in the Old Testament and signifies that, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone;” Psalm 118:22, written by King David 1000 years before Christ.
