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What are some of the examples shared by Dr. Groothuis which provide evidence for Jesus’ resurrection?
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21 Replies
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First and foremost we are talking about a physical resurrection as Jesus taught and the Pharisees believed. Not some abstract idea that Jesus died and his spirit went to a higher level. The minimal facts approach to the resurrection to which the professor expounds on is based on facts that most critical scholars of the New Testament agree on even if they don’t agree that Christ rose from the dead. We can infer from these facts such as ‘Jesus was publicly crucified by the Romans,’ ‘He was buried in a known tomb,’ ‘the tomb was known to be empty.’ Regarding the empty tomb and the resurrection what are the possible explantations for it? 1) Jews claim the disciples stole the body; impossible because it was sealed and heavily guarded by Roman guards. 2.) the disciples made up the story: unlikely, women were the first witnesses to the empty tomb. If someone is going to make up a story like this why use women as witnesses since in that society they women’s witnesses held little weight. 3.) the tomb location was in a historical locatable place for it belonged to a rich man name Joseph. If Jesus died and was buried there would be tomb veneration which was very common that day. 4.) Jesus’s repeated instances of His appearance to many people. Jesus had a physical body that could be touched and He ate with the disciples. Some explain this as mass hallucinations. But there were too many instances and people involved. 5.) One final and significant thing: the “transformation of the disciples, from being dejected and hopeless, to being inspired and courageous to preach Christ crucified and resurrected.” They were profoundly changed men, willing to take on anyone and those in authority such as the Romans and the Jewish establishment. Willing to die and indeed they did for almost all were martyred. No one would be willing to die for a lie.
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That Jesus was publicly crucified by the Romans is an undisputed fact. His death was well known. He was buried in a known tomb. That tomb was reported to be empty. Scholars who don’t even believe in the resurrection will grant that the tomb was empty. Why was the tomb empty? The Jews said the tomb was empty because the disciples stole the body. Why would the disciples steal the body and how would they get past the Roman guards and the sealed tomb?
Women were witnesses to the empty tomb. The testimony of a woman was not taken seriously in that culture, so a made-up story would not have women as witnesses.
Additionally, people will not die for a known lie. All of Jesus’ disciples testified to the resurrection. They were all martyred except for the Apostle John, who, according to historians, was boiled in oil but didn’t die. He was later exiled to the island of Patmos.
The resurrected Jesus appeared to his disciples and more than 500 people at one time after He rose from the dead. Interestingly, the resurrected Jesus ate broiled fish and some honeycomb in His physically resurrected body. This was definitely not a hallucination. Jesus truly rose from the dead. He later ascended to the right hand of the Father. He is coming back for His church in the rapture and will later return to earth with His saints (us!) at the end of the great tribulation.
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The Empty Tomb: Groothuis points to the historical fact that Jesus’ tomb was found empty. Multiple sources, including the Gospels and other early Christian writings, support the discovery of the empty tomb. This is significant because, despite various explanations offered by skeptics (such as the body being stolen or moved), no sufficient naturalistic explanation has accounted for the empty tomb. Additionally, the fact that women—whose testimony was considered less credible in the first century—are recorded as discovering the empty tomb adds to its credibility, as it would have been an unlikely fabrication by early Christians.
Post-Resurrection Appearances: One of the most compelling pieces of evidence for the resurrection is the multiple appearances of the risen Jesus to various individuals and groups. Groothuis notes that the New Testament records Jesus appearing to the disciples, to over 500 people at one time (as mentioned by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:6), to James (Jesus’ skeptical brother), and finally to Paul, who was initially an enemy of Christianity. These appearances were not mere sightings but profound encounters that transformed the lives of those who experienced them. The personal transformation of these individuals, often at great personal cost, into bold witnesses of the resurrection is a testament to the sincerity of their testimonies.
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Some shared examples to prove evidence of Jesus’ resurrection was the stone being rolled away, the empty tomb, and accounts of several people seeing him after his death.
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Jesus was publicly executed and Romans knew well how to do that. In other words, he was clinically dead. He was then buried in a tomb.
Three days later, the tomb was reported empty. How did this happen? The resurrection did indeed take place. The following are three of several pieces of evidence.
(1) The disciples stole the body? They had no reason to do that.
(2) Women reported the tomb being empty, but women would not have been the ones to report such an occurrence. Women would not have been believed.
(3) The disciples saw Jesus after his death and even touched his body.
(4)) Disciples, who believed in the resurrection, would not have had any reason to concoct a lie that would cause them later to be martyred in supporting it. That would be simply insane. In fact, the disciples were “transformed” to carry the word of Jesus to the world.