Silly Theories of Desperate Skeptics

Then [Jesus] said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” – John 20:27

“He lives! He lives! Christ Jesus lives today!
He walks with me and talks with me along life’s narrow way.
He lives! He lives, salvation to impart.
You ask me how I know He lives?…”

Those of you who grew up with this song are familiar with the final line: after a dramatic pause, (*drumroll*) here comes the earth-shaking answer that will convince every skeptic – “He lives within my heart!”

With all due respect to the songwriter, and acknowledging that having Christ living in one’s heart is an unbelievably awesome experience, nevertheless, I don’t know a single skeptic that would be the slightest bit impressed with that “proof,” no matter how much gusto the singer displayed.

But fear not! The Resurrection of Jesus, the centerpiece of our faith, has ample evidence. In fact, it is the most well documented event in ancient history.

Let’s look at some of this evidence. What millions celebrate at Easter, roughly 2000 years after Jesus’ crucifixion, was written down by historians who interviewed eyewitnesses, as well as a few eyewitnesses themselves.

Woulda, coulda, shoulda…

With all the enemies the Christian movement had from the beginning, no one was able to refute what these witnesses said. After all, Jesus was seen by over 500 men (and probably women and children, too, though in those days they weren’t counted.) If Jesus hadn’t been raised to life, all His enemies had to do was produce His body and they would have saved themselves the hassle of arresting, imprisoning, torturing, and killing those pesky people who insisted that He was alive.

Yeah, right ...

Here are some theories about what happened that day that turned the world upside down (or right side up, depending on your perspective):

* The disciples stole the body and made up the story that Jesus had risen from the dead. Why in the world would a band of scared-to-death men who fled the Romans want to stir up that much trouble? After Judas hanged himself, the rest of the disciples were willing to face persecution and death – for a hoax? You’d think at least one of them would have caved under torture. After all, who wants to be crucified upside down for a prank?

* Jesus didn’t really die, He just swooned enough to fool the Romans and the doctor that signed His death certificate. Let me get this straight … Jesus survived a Roman scourge (alone tantamount to a death sentence), hanging on the cross for hours, and being buried for three days without food, water, or medical attention, and then healed up enough to roll away a two-ton stone, overcome the armed Roman guards, and declare Himself risen. …ok…

*The women went to the wrong tomb. And so did Peter, John, and the others. In fact, the real tomb of Jesus has yet to be found, but when it is, they’ll find His body in there. …Mmhm…

* The 500-plus people who saw Him alive were all having the same hallucination.

… for 40 days. (Seriously?)

OR…

HE IS RISEN! HE LIVES! Believe it! Enjoy it! If you’re a Christ-follower, you can celebrate His resurrection every day.

And if you’re not a Christ-follower, what’s keeping you?

Prayer: Lord Jesus, we are in awe that You loved us enough to sacrifice Your life to save us from hell. And we are overjoyed that You are alive! Live through us every day. Help us always be prepared to give and answer to everyone who asks us to give a reason for the hope that we have.* Open the eyes of the skeptics see that You are real, You are alive, and You love them. In Your name, amen.

*I Peter 3:15