>>9919874If Jesus didn’t rise from the dead, the foundation for the Christian faith would be destroyed.
1. Jesus didn’t really die on the cross.
2. Jesus’ body was stolen.
3. The disciples were hallucinating.
4. The account is legendary.
5. It really happened.
All the accounts affirm he died. Pilate verified he died. During the lifetime of the eyewitnesses no one disputes his death. Secular and contemporary historians Lucian, Josephus, and Tacitus cite his death as factual.
What if the disciples faked the resurrection story by stealing Jesus’ body and then claiming he was alive? Not only was the location of the tomb well-known but the Romans had assigned guards to watch the tomb 24 hours a day. This was a trained guard unit comprised of 4 to 16 soldiers. Josh McDowell notes, “The Roman Guard unit was committed to discipline and they feared failure in any way.” It would have been impossible for anyone to have slipped by the guards unnoticed and then move the stone. Yet the stone was rolled away, making it possible for eyewitnesses to enter the tomb. And when they did, the body of Jesus was missing. If Jesus’ body was anywhere to be found, his enemies would have quickly exposed the resurrection as a fraud.
What if the disciples might have been so emotionally distraught that they hallucinated and imagined Jesus’ resurrection? Hallucination is not even a remote possibility, according to psychologist Thomas Thorburn. “It is absolutely inconceivable that 500 persons of average soundness of mind should experience all kinds of sensuous impressions, and that all these experiences should rest entirely upon hallucination.”
Is it just a Legend? Legends do not develop while multiple eyewitnesses are alive to refute them. Legends develop by oral tradition and are not supported with contemporary historical documents. The legend theory does not adequately explain either the empty tomb or the fervent conviction of the apostles that Jesus was alive.
