Ask Mr Bible

Imagine you are living during a warm April day in the Middle East some 20 centuries ago when suddenly you heard the mind-boggling news . . “IT’S TRUE, HE’S ALIVE!”

Would you have (1) believed it? (2) disbelieved it? (3) expressed total confusion about the news?  Well, here are the responses of many who did live at that time:

The response of His foes:

1. The Jewish leaders demanded that Pilate seal Jesus’ tomb to prevent the resurrection from happening.

“Now the next day, that followed the day of the preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees came together unto Pilate, Saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again. Command therefore that the sepulchre be made sure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night, and steal him away, and say unto the people, He is risen from the dead: so the last error shall be worse than the first. Pilate said unto them, Ye have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as ye can. So they went, and made the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch”  (Matt. 27:62-66).

2.  The Roman soldiers who witnessed the resurrection were bribed to say it had never occurred (Matt. 28:12-15).

The response of His friends:
 
Sadly, none of Jesus’ disciples remembered (or had sufficient faith to believe) His repeated promise to rise again.

1.  The women did not remember.
“And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him. And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun. And they said among themselves, Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulchre?” (Mark 16:1-3).

2.  Mary Magdalene did not remember.
“And they say unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my LORD, and I know not where they have laid him. And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away” (John 20:13-15).

3.  Peter and John did not remember.
“For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead” (John 20:9).

 “Then arose Peter, and ran unto the sepulchre; and stooping down, he beheld the linen clothes laid by themselves, and departed, wondering in himself at that which was come to pass” (Luke 24:12).

4.  The apostles did not remember.

“And returned from the sepulchre, and told all these things unto the eleven, and to all the rest. It was Mary Magdalene and Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, and other women that were with them, which told these things unto the apostles. And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed them not” (Luke 24:9-11).

5.  The two disciples on the Emmaus Road did not remember.
“Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?” (Luke 24:25, 26).

6.  Thomas did not remember.
 “But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the LORD. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe” (John 20:24, 25).

What is the evidence supporting the resurrection of Jesus Christ?

 “But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must  believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him”  (Heb. 11:6).

 “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear” (1 Peter 3:15).

 These verses at first glance may seem to have little in common with the resurrection of Christ, but the fact is they serve to set the stage for us as we contemplate this glorious event.  From these passages we learn two truths:

 ● Above all else, God desires that we, by faith alone, accept His revealed  word on any given subject apart from any external evidence that might exist to support it.

● On the other hand as believers, after accepting God’s word at face value, Peter exhorts us to compile whatever relevant evidence that might exist to validate or confirm the Scriptures!

 Perhaps no other biblical event lends itself more completely to all this than does the resurrection of Jesus Christ!  The evidence supporting His resurrection is nine-fold:

A. The empty tomb:
 If Christ did not rise again, what happened to His body?

 1. His friends did not remove it, for they were as surprised concerning the empty tomb as the rest.  See John 20:1-9.

 2. His enemies did not remove it, for they were bribed to tell a lie concerning the empty tomb.  See Matt. 28:12-15.

 Josh McDowell observes:

Another obvious fact after the resurrection was the empty tomb.  The disciples of Christ did not go off to Athens or Rome to preach Christ raised from the dead; they went right back to the city of Jerusalem where, if what they were teaching were false, their message would have been disproved.  The resurrection could not have been maintained for a moment in Jerusalem if the tomb had not been empty. 

B.   The tremendous and sudden change in the lives of the disciples.
       Two examples will suffice here:

 1. That of Simon Peter:
  a. Just prior to the Resurrection Peter is seen bitterly denying his Savior (Matt. 26:69-74).
  b. Just after the Resurrection he is seen boldly declaring His Savior (Acts 2:14-40).

 2. That of John the Apostle:
  a. Just prior to the Resurrection John displayed total contempt toward the Samaritans.

“And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did?” (Luke 9:54).

b.  Just after the Resurrection he displays total compassion toward the Samaritans.

“Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John … And they, when they had testified and preached the word of the Lord, returned to Jerusalem, and preached the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans” (Acts 8:14, 25).

 C. The silence from both the Romans and Pharisees.  Not once did either of these enemy groups even attempt to deny Christ’s resurrection.  They hated it and tried to suppress it, but could not refute it. 
  
The point of all this is simple:  If the foes of Christianity could have produced the body of Jesus, no warnings, threats, or imprison-ment in regard to His followers would have been necessary.

D. The change from Saturday to Sunday as the main day of worship.   Imagine the following:

While visiting a foreign country you are suddenly seized by some terrorists and held hostage in solitary confinement for 90 days.  During this time you are permitted absolutely no contact with the outside world.  After three months (for no apparent reason) you are released and allowed to return home.  Upon arrival, however, you learn some incredible news.  During your absence all Christian churches everywhere no longer gather for worship on Sunday, but instead assemble on Monday of each week.  Your immediate question of course would be what in the world could have happened during those 90 days causing Christians to abandon their 2,000-year-old custom of worshipping on Sunday.

Yet this is exactly what happened in Palestine shortly after the Resurrection of Christ.  As ingrained as the Sabbath was in the hearts and history of the apostles, it would have taken some fantastic event to change their thinking here.

 E. The existence of the Church:
 In less than 50 years after Christ’s death, the Christian Church  had become a mighty power, causing the Roman government to  view with growing concern its influence upon men and women.   Legends and religions do not develop this quickly.

 F. The various appearances of Christ following His Resurrection:
  During the 40 days between His resurrection and ascension, our Lord made ten specific appearances before individuals or groups of individuals.

  1. The first day (Easter Sunday)
   a. To Mary Magdalene (Mark 16:9-11; John 20:11-18)
   b. To some women (Matt. 28:9-15)
   c. To Simon Peter (Luke 24:34; 1 Cor. 15:5)
   d. To two disciples en route to Emmaus (Mark 16:12-13; Luke 24:13-35)
   e. To ten apostles in the Upper Room (Mark 16:14; Luke 24:36-48; John 20:19-23)

  2. The final 39 days
   a. To Thomas and the 10 apostles in the Upper Room (John 20:24-31)
   b. To seven apostles by the Galilean Sea (John 21)
   c. To the apostles and 500 disciples (Matt. 28:16-20; Mark 16:15-18; 1 Cor. 15:6)
   d. To James, the half brother of Christ (1 Cor. 15:7)
   e. To the 11 apostles on the Mount of Olives (Luke 24:49-50; Acts 1:3-8)

I believe it can be safely assumed that if a lost person would suddenly decide to attend church during one given Sunday out of the year it would probably be Easter Sunday morning.

However, for that person (who might attend only to be seen, having no desire to accept Christ), resurrection Sunday would be the worst possible choice, for that Sunday serves as a warning of the future and frightful Great White Throne Judgment!

• Paul declared this judgment during his Mar’s Hill sermon:
“Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead (Acts 17:31).

• John later described this judgment:
And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is [the book] of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire  (Rev. 20:11, 12, 15).

And the lesson to be learned?
While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation.
(Heb. 3:15)