A Closer Look at the Resurrection of Y'shua (Jesus)
Written by Geoff Robinson

"Why do you seek the living One among the dead?
He is not here, but He has risen." - Luke 24:5-6

Why should we study the Resurrection? Well, Y'shua (Jesus) made an extraordinary claim. He claimed to be God both verbally and by his actions (John 10:30,14:9-10, Mark 2).

Big claims require big evidence, and Y'shua knew this. He not only was raised from the dead to give us life, but his resurrection was also a sign for us (Matt 12:39-40, Acts 17:31). So if we want to examine the claims of Y'shua, we should also examine the evidence for the Resurrection. Is there really evidence for it? That's what I'll try to look at.

The Empty Tomb

One of the most important evidences is the historical fact of the empty tomb. Messianic believers started in Jerusalem. If the tomb was occupied, this would be the last place in the world to start. The Roman or Jewish authorities could have very easily produced the body in order to destroy an infant movement. Neither did that.

In fact, they confirm the empty tomb with their own words. From first century Jewish historian Josephus to "Toledot Yeshu," the fifth century Jewish book, the counter argument to the Resurrection has been that the disciples stole the body. We even see this counter argument in the gospel of Matthew, so we have further evidence that this was the first argument against the Resurrection by the opponents of the gospel.
believed sight of the empty tomb--who really knows?

This counter argument lets us know one important thing. Even the people who opposed the early believers in Y'shua knew something to be true. They knew the tomb was empty. Since we have positive evidence from a hostile source, we must conclude that the tomb was empty.

Dead People Don't Get Up And Leave, Unless...

The people who knew Jesus claimed he rose from the dead--that's a few hundred people. They sealed that testimony with their blood. If the Resurrection did not happen, they died for what they knew was a false cause. The followers of Jesus claimed to be witnesses to the Resurrection, and they constantly appealed to fulfillments of Jewish prophecy.

If Jesus never rose from the dead, we must conclude, based on the believers' actions, that this was a massive organized conspiracy or they were deluded.

Did Simple Men Organize the Most Complex and Cruel Conspiracy the World has ever seen?

The amount of deception needed to pull off a resurrection hoax is immense. The body would have been stolen, maybe out from under Roman guards. (Remember the body needs to be accounted for.) Is it logical to believe that?

The group, as a whole, continually went against the Jewish authorities and the will of Caesar. The disciples and their followers got killed, flogged, and imprisoned repeatedly. Despite existing in an incredibly hostile environment, they stood up for what they believed in.

There wasn't a motive for profit or power. What would their motive be to hold together a conspiracy? Maybe they wanted to get beaten, go to jail and lose their lives? Maybe they thought, "Look what they did to Jesus. Sounds like fun. Sign me up."

Twelve of the most powerful men in the world, when faced with minimal prison time, couldn't keep the Watergate conspiracy together for three weeks. Fishermen and other followers of Jesus would not be able to keep together a lie for over fifty years under an intense amount of persecution.

The early believers chose death rather than deny the facts of the Resurrection. Saul (Paul), an orthodox Pharisee who claimed to see Y'shua, killed believers before he became one. He was beheaded in Rome. Peter was crucified upside down. According to the Jewish historian Josephus, James, the brother of Y'shua, was stoned and clubbed to death. The list goes on and on.

The deaths of the original eyewitnesses help confirm the accuracy of the Resurrection. If any intelligent person wanted to challenge the accuracy of the story, it was still possible to talk to the students of the original apostles well after the time of Y'shua's death. Polycarp, a disciple of Yochanan (John), was alive until 155 CE for example.

To sum this section up, they did not have the motivation for any hoax. Their deaths proved their sincerity.

If you have doubts about the first century martyrs, look to their students, the second and third generation of believers, who were also martyred. Polycarp was burned at the stake and thrust through with a spear. Ignatius, a disciple of Peter, Saul and Yochanan, was thrown to the lions in Rome in 117 CE. Again, the list goes on and on. If the students are willing to die...how much more so the teacher.

Were the Followers of Jesus Brainwashed?

Some people have tried to argue that the followers of Jesus were brainwashed in order to explain how they can be sincere and mistaken at the same time. One must ask the question. Who brainwashed them? Jesus? When the followers of Jesus recorded their experiences about Jesus, they had a hard time understanding Jesus until after the Resurrection. It doesn't seem like Jesus did a very good job of brainwashing if that's what his intention was.

When Jesus was crucified, and this point is confirmed by all sides, the followers of Jesus claim in their New Covenant writings that they were disillusioned. That does not sound like brainwashed people. They weren't saying to themselves, "Jesus is going to rise from the dead." They were hiding for fear of their lives. And if they were brainwashed, it looks like the crucifixion of Jesus took the brainwashing right out of them.

Not only that, we mustn't forget about the empty tomb. Who took the body? The followers of Jesus would be the only people with a motive. For them to steal the body they would have to know Jesus didn't rise from the dead. We can't have the same people believing in something so they die for it and, at the same time, not believe in something so they steal the body.

How do we explain people like Paul? He was not even under the sphere of influence of the early believers or Jesus. Yet, he claims to have seen Jesus. How was he brainwashed?

Lastly, brainwashers need total control of a person's environment. Given the constant contact his followers had with Pharisees, Saducees, and just normal, outside people, this would not be possible. Brainwashers also denigrate all other authorities in the world. Jesus told his followers to respect the authorities on earth, such as when he said, "give unto Caesar what is Caesar's."

Did Another Party Steal the Body?

To convince about five hundred people of a resurrection, you need to do more than just steal a body. These believers claimed to see Y'shua, talk to Y'shua, eat with Y'shua, even touch Y'shua. It is safe to say this: Even if another party stole the body, the followers of Y'shua would have known better.

Did They Have Other Motives?

Maybe the disciples fabricated this whole thing because they wanted people to live moral lives? This is the only reasonable motive they could have without the Resurrection being true. I have heard this several times.

There are several problems with this. First, if they wanted, they could have just tried to spread a philosophical system. Secondly, they would have lied and knowingly led people to their deaths. They would be incredibly inconsistent with their beliefs. Finally, this view shows a common misunderstanding of this faith. The faith, as the apostles taught, was concerned with morality in people's live, but what was at its core? Y'shua, especially his death and resurrection, from the beginning.

Accounts Don't Have Mark of Fabrication

In all of the gospels, the disciples act really stupid (Peter's denial and doubting Thomas for example). If you want to start a new, false religion, you don't want to make yourself and your fellow leaders look bad.

In all of the gospels, women are the first witnesses to the risen Messiah. If a group of people were going to make up a story, they are not going to use women. Women were not considered reliable or legal witnesses. Their standing in society was minimal at best.

What All This Means

This means we should examine Y'shua's claims more closely. We need to study the evidence more closely. And eventually we have to make a determination of Y'shua's claims.

>>> Click here to find out how to know Jesus Christ