The Case for Christ

The Resurrection…

Of all the things that Christians believe, the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the most incredible. Scripture teaches us that Jesus Christ was betrayed, and turned over to the Romans, who crucified Him, killed Him, then released His body to Joseph of Arimathea, who buried Him in the tomb. On the third day, Jesus was raised back to life, and He walked out of the tomb.

The belief is so incredible that a young investigative journalist by the name of Lee Strobel believed he could debunk the entire Christian religion simply by proving that the resurrection of Jesus never happened. Instead, Strobel encountered a mountain of evidence that supported the resurrection of Christ, from the number of copies of the scriptures that have been preserved over the centuries, to secular writings about the resurrection, to written testimony of the Apostles.

Strobel compiled this evidence into a book, entitled, The Case for Christ, which was later made into a movie. Strobel himself became a believer.

However, 2,000 years before Strobel embarked on his proof of the Gospel, the Apostle Paul had already laid out the case that the resurrection was indeed reality. In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul noted that Jesus was seen after the resurrection by the 12 apostles, by Peter, and by 500 brethren at once, some of whom were still alive at the time of Paul’s writing, and could personally attest to the truth of the resurrection. Paul could produce eye witness testimony.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the third and final part of the Gospel, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:3-4). Since the resurrection happened, we have proof that the Gospel is true.

But what does the Gospel mean for us?

In 1 Corinthians 15:1-2, Paul wrote, “Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; 2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.”

Paul told the Corinthians that they received the Gospel, and the Gospel was what made them stand, that is, have standing in the Kingdom of God. In other words, without the Gospel, they would have no standing in God’s Kingdom, and would be condemned. But they received the Gospel, and had standing, and therefore, by the Gospel, they were saved.

It works the same for us. When you receive (that is, believe) the Gospel, you are saved from God’s wrath and given standing in the Kingdom of God. This is all made possible by the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This is all proven by the resurrection of Christ.

In Romans 6, the Apostle Paul takes it a step further. Not only does the resurrection prove the Gospel, and not only does it secure our salvation, but it also transforms us.

In Romans 6:4-5, the Bible says, “Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:”

When Jesus rose again, He did not walk out of that tomb in the same broken body that was placed within it. Instead, He walked out of that tomb with a new, glorified body. The only signs left from the crucifixion were the nail scars in His hands, and the hole in His side from the spear thrust into Him by a Roman guard. The Lord purposefully kept those scars as a reminder of what He did for us, and they were the reason why the Apostle Thomas repented of His unbelief and worshipped Christ.

When the Lord returned from the grave, He was transformed and glorified. Likewise, we also should be transformed by the power of the Gospel. How? The Bible tells us in Romans 6, to reckon ourselves dead to sin but alive unto God, and to yield our bodies as instruments of righteousness rather than sin.

If you have believed the Gospel, you have repented of your sin and trusted Christ to save you. If you have trusted Christ to save you, then that belief will change you.

Therefore, as we study the resurrection, we must ask ourselves, “Has the Gospel changed us?” If not, perhaps it’s time to do what Peter told us, to “make our calling and election sure.”

May God bless you as you follow Christ.

The Resurrection: That DID Happen

Those who reject Christianity do so for a number of reasons. Some believe that to accept the Christian faith is to reject logic and intellect. Others reject the Christian faith due to perceived hypocrisies among Christians. One of the biggest reasons for rejecting Christianity is a disbelief in the miraculous events recorded in scripture.

Such was the stumblingblock for Lee Strobel, an investigative reporter for the Chicago Tribune. A self-described atheist, Strobel rejected Christian beliefs as superstition, fairy tales, and logic defying crutches that served as emotional supports for unstable people.

Stobel’s assessment of Christianity was challenged, however, when his wife, Leslie, professed her faith in Christ during a service at the Willow Creek Community Church in Chicago. Troubled by his wife’s new adherence to what he thought was a superstition, Strobel set out to disprove the most important doctrine of Christianity, the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Strobel chronicled this journey in his book, The Case for Christ, now a motion picture that has been released on 1,200 screens nationwide.

Instead of disproving Christianity, Strobel stumbled upon a mountain of evidence that supported the fact that the resurrection of Jesus Christ really existed. Such evidence included thousands of manuscripts of the New Testament, eye-witness accounts of the resurrection of Christ, historical documentation, and medical evidence of the cruelty of the beatings Christ endured, and the cruelty of crucifixion.

When standard journalistic investigation, historical research, and logical processes were employed, the resurrection stood on its merit. It really happened. Confronted with this truth, Strobel was forced to face the fact that, in this instance, he was wrong. He repented and accepted Jesus Christ as His personal savior.

The resurrection indeed happened. It is proven by the empty tomb, the multiple eye-witnesses to seeing a resurrected Christ (including the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, the testimony of the disciples, the fact that the Apostle Paul was confronted on the road to Damascus by the resurrected Christ, the testimony of the 500 mentioned in 1 Corinthians 15, and the fact that resurrection is the only logical explanation for sightings of Christ post-crucifixion.)

The resurrection is central to the Christian faith, because it is through the resurrection that Christ conquered the grave so that we can all be resurrected when the Lord establishes His Kingdom on this earth. It is through the resurrection that Christ rose to be at the right hand of the throne of God, where He secures our salvation through his intercession (advocacy) on our behalf. It is through the resurrection that we have assurance that we have eternal life through Jesus Christ.

Sunday morning, we will celebrate the resurrection of Christ during our Easter Sunrise Service, which will be held at 7 am Sunday at the Depot Pavilion in downtown Brownwood. Come worship with us.