Strong Evidence for the Resurrection of Jesus Christ

The resurrection of the Lord Jesus from the dead is one of the central beliefs of Christianity. Although Jesus died on the cross for our sins, His work of salvation would not have been complete without His resurrection. Even if we believed in Him, we would have no hope of salvation if He had not risen from the dead.

As the Bible says:

“And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.”
— 1 Corinthians 15:17 (NIV)

There are two main areas we will consider regarding the resurrection of Christ:

The Certainty of Christ’s Resurrection

The Four Gospels

The first evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ is found in the four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Each Gospel records the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Although each writer presents the events from his own perspective, their accounts fit together and tell the same basic story.

Matthew and John were disciples of Jesus and were with Him during His earthly ministry. Mark is traditionally understood to have received much of his information from the apostle Peter, who personally witnessed Jesus’ arrest, death, and resurrection appearances. Luke was a physician and carefully investigated the events surrounding Jesus’ life and ministry.

When we read the four Gospels carefully, we can see that each writer emphasizes different details. However, the overall story is consistent. Each writer presents his own perspective, yet they all point to the same conclusion:

Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God.

The Gospel writers and the early disciples were eyewitnesses to many of the events they recorded.

After Jesus was crucified, Joseph of Arimathea, a wealthy disciple, asked Pilate for Jesus’ body. He wrapped Jesus’ body in clean linen and placed it in his own new tomb. Then he rolled a large stone in front of the entrance.

“Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away.”
— Matthew 27:59–60 (NIV)

 

The next day, the chief priests and Pharisees went to Pilate and asked for the tomb to be secured. Pilate gave them permission to guard it.

“So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.”
— Matthew 27:66 (NIV)

 

Early on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.

“There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.

The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.’”
— Matthew 28:2–6 (NIV)

We should remember that the Roman Empire was a powerful government with a strong military. Jesus’ followers were only a small group of ordinary people. They had no army, political power, or weapons. Humanly speaking, they were no match for Rome. What they had was their faith and their message of truth. Therefore, the evidence concerning the resurrection of Jesus Christ should not be ignored.

1. The Empty Tomb

The tomb was empty.

A large stone had been placed in front of the tomb, and guards were assigned to watch it. Yet when the women came to the tomb early in the morning, the stone had been rolled away and Jesus’ body was gone.

Later, Peter and John also went to the tomb and found that Jesus’ body was not there.

The empty tomb is one of the important facts surrounding the resurrection accounts.

2. The Missing Body

Jesus’ body was missing. It is unlikely that the disciples had taken His body because soldiers were guarding the tomb carefully. In addition, the linen cloth that had been used to wrap Jesus’ body and the cloth that had covered His head were still there. If the disciples had stolen Jesus’ body, they would not have had enough time to remove the burial cloths and head covering and then leave them neatly behind.

Then, could the Roman authorities, the chief priests, or other Jewish leaders have taken Jesus’ body away?

That also seems unlikely. After Jesus Christ ascended into heaven, His disciples went everywhere preaching the good news that Jesus had risen from the dead. Peter said:

“God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of it.”
— Acts 2:32 (NIV)

Peter also said:

“You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this.”
— Acts 3:15 (NIV)

He also declared:

“Then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.”
— Acts 4:10 (NIV)

At that time, if the Roman authorities or the Jewish religious leaders had Jesus’ body, they could simply have shown the body publicly and claimed that Jesus had not risen from the dead. This would have made it much more difficult for the apostles to continue preaching the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Yet they continued to preach boldly that Jesus had risen from the dead.

3. Many People Saw the Risen Jesus

Jesus did not appear only to one or two people.

After His resurrection, He appeared to many people. The apostle Paul wrote:

“He appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also.”
— 1 Corinthians 15:5–8 (NIV)

Many of these witnesses were still alive when Paul wrote this. They could therefore testify about what they had seen.

Jesus also appeared to His disciples several times after His resurrection. He even ate food with them.

When Jesus appeared to His disciples, He said:

“Do you have anything here to eat?”
— Luke 24:41 (NIV)

They gave Him a piece of broiled fish, and He took it and ate it in front of them.

“They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate it in their presence.”
— Luke 24:42–43 (NIV)

This shows that Jesus’ resurrection was not simply a dream or an imaginary experience. The disciples believed they had actually seen the risen Jesus in a physical, tangible way.

4. The Dramatic Transformation in the Apostles

After the Lord Jesus was crucified and died, the apostles were extremely frightened. The Bible records:

“On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders…”
— John 20:19 (NIV)

Later, after the Lord Jesus rose from the dead, He appeared to His disciples many times. They also witnessed Jesus being taken up into heaven. Then the Holy Spirit came upon them, and their lives changed completely. Their faith became strong, and they became bold witnesses for Christ.

At first, they were afraid for their lives and hid themselves. But after they became convinced that Jesus had truly risen, they were willing to risk their lives to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ’s resurrection. They even considered it an honor to suffer and be insulted for God. Later, according to early Christian tradition, most of the twelve apostles died as martyrs for the Lord, while the apostle John is traditionally believed to have died of old age after being exiled to the island of Patmos.

The dramatic change in the apostles is powerful evidence of how deeply they believed that they had truly seen the risen Lord.

5. Prophecy Was Fulfilled

According to biblical research, there are more than 300 important prophecies in the Bible concerning events in Jesus’ life, death, and what happened after His death. Christians believe that these prophecies were fulfilled in Jesus Christ. His resurrection is one of them.

That is why the apostles said:

“We tell you the good news: What God promised our ancestors he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm:
‘You are my son;
today I have become your father.’”
— Acts 13:32–33 (NIV)

Paul then spoke about God raising Jesus from the dead so that His body would not decay:

“God raised him from the dead so that he will never be subject to decay. As God has said,
‘I will give you the holy and sure blessings promised to David.’

So it is also stated elsewhere:
‘You will not let your holy one see decay.’”
— Acts 13:34–35 (NIV)

Paul continued:

“Now when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his ancestors and his body decayed. But the one whom God raised from the dead did not see decay.”
— Acts 13:36–37 (NIV)

The resurrection of Jesus was not only spoken about by the Old Testament prophets. Jesus Himself also foretold His own death and resurrection while He was on earth.

6. Historical References Outside Christianity

The resurrection is primarily supported by the New Testament testimony of the early Christians and the apostles. There are also ancient non-Christian sources that provide historical information about Jesus and the early Christian movement.

For example, Josephus, a first-century Jewish historian, wrote about Jesus and about the growth of the Christian movement. However, historians debate the exact wording and authenticity of some passages concerning Jesus in Josephus’ writings. Therefore, these passages should be treated carefully.

Tacitus, a Roman historian, also wrote about Christians and mentioned that Christ was executed during the reign of Emperor Tiberius by the Roman governor Pontius Pilate.

Tacitus was not a Christian. His writings therefore provide an important non-Christian reference to Jesus’ execution and the existence of Christians in the Roman Empire.

These historical references do not replace the testimony of the New Testament, but they help show that Jesus was a real historical person, that He was crucified under Pontius Pilate, and that His followers soon began proclaiming that He had risen from the dead.

Conclusion

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is at the heart of the Christian faith.

The empty tomb, the testimony of many witnesses, the disciples’ dramatic change, the Old Testament prophecies, and the rapid growth of the early Christian message all form part of the evidence Christians have used throughout history to believe that Jesus truly rose from the dead.

The apostle Paul summarized the Christian message clearly:

“Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.”
— 1 Corinthians 15:20 (NIV)

Because Jesus rose from the dead, Christians have hope—not only that our sins can be forgiven, but also that death does not have the final word.

Jesus Christ is risen. He is alive.