Why I Preach the Literal Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the Grave

A Pocket Paper
from
The Donelson Fellowship
______________

Robert J. Morgan
April 11, 2004

It’s wonderful to be back at the Grand Ole Opry House for the second year at Easter and I want to welcome all of you who are visiting us here at The Donelson Fellowship today. Where we meet doesn’t matter. We’re a family and we’re a church. We can meet anywhere and we love each other and Christ is among us. If you’re visiting with us today, we’re glad to include you in our church family and as a gift of appreciation, we’d like to send you a copy of the book that has already been mentioned—The Case for Easter. We’ll send it to you free and postage paid. The author, Lee Strobel, was an atheist and a skeptic, a graduate of Yale School of Law and a journalist for the Chicago Tribune. He scoffed at Christianity and regarded the resurrection of Jesus Christ as a fairy tale. But when his wife became a Christian, he decided to dig into the truth-claims of Christianity. He took two years and interviewed some of the greatest scholars and authorities on earth. He read and studied, and used his credentials as a legal affairs journalist to investigate the claims of Christ and the reliability of the historical evidence of the resurrection. The result? Today Lee Strobel is one of the leading Christian scholars in the nation and a powerful evangelist whose books are winning multitudes of people to the faith that he once tried to discredit.

This has happened over and over again. When I was in college, I went through a period in which I questioned my faith and wanted to know for sure that Christianity was really true. One of the books that helped me was Evidence that Demands a Verdict by Josh McDowell. McDowell was cynical, a non-believer who scoffed at Christian truth until he met a group of students who had a peace and joy and contentment that he couldn’t explain. When he asked one of the girls what made her different, she replied, “Jesus Christ.” McDowell had a keen mind, and he knew that everything about Christianity hinged on the actual, physical resurrection of Jesus Christ from the grave. So he mounted in intense and prolonged investigation into the historical reliability of the resurrection. He wanted to discredit Christianity. To his utter amazement, he discovered that he could not explain away the resurrection of Jesus Christ. As a result, he became a Christian himself and one of the chief proponents of the faith he had once tried to destroy.

If I had time, I would tell you about Lew Wallace, who sought to discredit the resurrection and ended up becoming a Christian through his investigation, writing one of the greatest novels about the time of Christ, Ben Hur.

Albert L. Roper was a prominent Virginia attorney, a graduate of the University of Virginia and its law school, who eventually became mayor of the city of Norfolk. He once began a thorough legal investigation into the evidence for the resurrection of Christ, asking himself the question: “Can any intelligent person accept the Resurrection story?” After examining the evidence at length, he came away asking a different question: “Can any intelligent person deny the weight of this evidence?” He wrote a book entitled Did Jesus Rise from the Dead?

One of the most interesting books in my library was written by a man who set out to disprove the resurrection of Jesus Christ. He was an English journalist named Frank Morison. He viewed Christianity with disfavor, deciding that if he could prove that Christ’s resurrection was a mere myth, he could debunk all of Christianity. He poured over the evidence, absorbing all the information he could and marshaling all his arguments. Not only was he unable to disprove the resurrection, but he was compelled by the weight of the evidence to become a Christian himself. And his book became a powerful argument in favor of the Resurrection, entitled Who Moved the Stone? Morison said that his book was “essentially a confession, the inner story of a man who originally set out to write one kind of book and found himself compelled by the sheer force of circumstances to write quite another.”

What is this proof that is so convincing? Well, there is one passage in the Bible that summarizes and systematizes the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is the first part of the chapter that we call the Resurrection Chapter in the Bible—1 Corinthians 15:

Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.

For what I received, I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, He appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers 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, as to one abnormally born. For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.

But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that He raised Christ from the dead. But He did not raise Him if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men. But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.

In this passage, the apostle Paul provides five pieces of evidence for the veracity of the literal resurrection of Christ from the Scripture.

The Theological Fit (vv. 1-3)

Paul begins here by showing us how the resurrection fits naturally and essentially into the overall message of the Gospel. It completes the Gospel and fits into the entire structure of biblical theology.

For what I received, I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day….

The resurrection is so woven into the warp and woof of the biblical plan of salvation that the entire Bible is held together by it, and the entire plan of salvation depends on it. Without the resurrection of Jesus Christ nothing in the Bible makes sense. Without the resurrection of Christ, the Gospel is a giant puzzle with the central piece missing. It is unresolved. It is incomplete. Frankly, it is worthless. It’s like a frame that is missing the masterpiece. It’s like a ring that is missing the diamond. But add the resurrection to the Gospel and we have the most cohesive and brilliant and logical system of philosophy and faith that the world has ever seen, one that satisfies both the mind and the heart.

Advance Predictions (vv. 3-4)

Second, the resurrection of Christ was predicted in advance. Look at the way the chapter begins: For what I received, I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures… The word “Scriptures” here indicates the Old Testament. I would like to read you a passage of Scripture written 700 years before Christ was born. It’s from the prophet Isaiah and I’m reading it from Peterson’s new paraphrase of the Bible:

He was beaten, He was tortured, but He didn’t say a word.

Like a lamb taken to be slaughtered and like a sheep being sheared,

He took it all in silence. Justice miscarried, and He was led off…

He died without a thought for His own welfare,

beaten bloody for the sins of my people.

They buried Him with the wicked,

threw Him in a grave with a rich man,

Even though He’d never hurt a soul

or said one word that wasn’t true.

Still, it’s what God had in mind all along,

to crush Him with pain.

The plan was that He give Himself as an offering for sin

so that He’d see life come from it—life, life, and more life….

Out of that terrible travail of soul, He’ll see that it’s worth it and be glad He did it.

Through what He experienced, my Righteous One, my Servant,

will make many “righteous ones,” as he himself carries the burden of their sins.

Therefore I’ll reward him extravagantly—

the best of everything, the highest honors…

If we had time I could show you other passages in the Old Testament, some of them pre-dating Isaiah. But I’d also like to point out that Jesus Himself predicted His death and resurrection. Now, none of us can even predict our death. I don’t know if I’m going to die an hour from now, a week from now, a year from now, or fifty years from now. I don’t have a single idea. But from the very beginning of His ministry, Jesus predicted His own death and resurrection with great specificity. He told His enemies, “Destroy this temple and I will raise it up in three days.” He said, “As Jonah was in the belly of the whale for three days and nights, so the Son of Man will be in the earth for three days.” He told the disciples as they left Galilee the last time, “We’re going up to Jerusalem, and I’m going to be crucified and three days later rise again.”

Everything that happened was predicted in advance, according to the Scriptures.

The Eyewitnesses (vv. 5-8)

Third, we have eyewitness testimony. Look at verse 5-8. …and that He appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, He appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers 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,…

Following his resurrection, Jesus remained on earth for 40 days, appearing at least 10 times to various individuals and groups. The genuineness and history reliability of these accounts are well attested. Some people assume that Christ only appeared to His hardcore believers. That isn’t true. First, all the disciples were skeptics; none imagined that He would rise from the dead. Second, Thomas was a vocal and determined doubter. Third, James, the Lord’s half-brother, had ridiculed and rejected Christ (John 7:1-5). And fourth, Saul of Tarsus was the greatest enemy to His movement. All of these saw and were convinced and changed.

The Power of the Resurrection to Change Lives (vv. 8-11)

That leads to the fourth evidence presented in this passage—the power of the resurrection to change lives. Look at verses 8-11: Last of all He appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born. For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. Whether, then, it was I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.

No one has ever been able to explain how a bumbling, frightened, traumatized, scattered, divided group of broken men overnight became the most powerful, outspoken, united advocates for a selfless cause that the world has ever seen. No one has ever been able to explain how the most zealous opponent of Christianity was instantly transformed into the greatest missionary the world has ever known.

John Stott wrote: “Perhaps the transformation of the disciples of Jesus is the greatest evidence of all for the resurrection. It was the resurrection which transformed Peter’s fear into courage, and James’ doubt into faith. It was the resurrection which changed the Sabbath into Sunday and the Jewish remnant into the Christian Church. It was the resurrection which changed Saul the Pharisee into Paul the apostle, and turned his persecuting into preaching.”

The Absence of Alternatives (vv. 12-20)

There is a final item mentioned in this passage—the absence of alternatives. Nothing else in all the world can provide the kind of hope that we have in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Notice these words in verse 13: If there is no resurrection of the dead, then…. And he goes on to present the dire consequences of living in a world that has no hope.

Paul says that if the resurrection isn’t true, all we have left is despair. We are of all men most miserable. Our preaching is useless, our faith is in vain, and those who have died in Christ are lost. There is no other truth ever discovered by humanity by which we can be both logically consistent in our thinking and spiritually happy in our souls. Francis Schaeffer wrote in He is There and He is Not Silent: “There is no other sufficient philosophical answer. You can search through university philosophy, underground philosophy, filling station philosophy—it doesn’t matter which—there is no other sufficient philosophical answer to existence.” Only Christianity provides a comprehensive explanation for the reality of death and a satisfying answer for the problem of death; and only Christianity has authenticated its message by providing a leader who actually arose from the tomb.

The Bible says that Jesus Christ showed Himself alive by many infallible proofs. Paul said, “Why should it seem incredible to you that God can raise the dead?” If He is the source and center of all reality, if He is the God for whom nothing is impossible, if He created us from scratch to begin with—why should it seem incredible that God would raise the dead. Jesus is the Rock of our salvation, and on that Rock I stand.

Recently, I’ve been missing my father and mother a great deal. I’ve been homesick for them. I remember how my dad would sometimes set aside a whole day and spend it with me. I remember when he brought home an old, used bicycle for me and taught me to ride it. I remember the notes he’d send me when I was in college. I remember the wise advice he always gave me. And sometimes I still need that advice, but I can’t call him anymore. I think of my mom and her housekeeping and her homemaking and her prayers and her Bible reading.

But I haven’t seen the last of them, and they haven’t seen the last of me. Christ rose from the dead and became the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. His resurrection and life is the prototype and prophecy for me and you, if we know Christ as our Savior. Jesus said, “Because I live, you will live also.” He said, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me shall live, even if he dies.” And the Bible says, “So shall we ever be with the Lord.”

Do you know Him as your Lord? How do you receive Him as Savior? Well, you do it in prayer. You say, “Lord, I believe that Jesus Christ died and rose again for me. I am willing here and now to turn my life over to you. I’m willing to follow Christ. I repent of my sins, and with Your help I will turn from my sins. I am going to follow Christ, starting today.”

Will you pray that prayer? Will you receive Him as your Savior? Will you let this Easter Sunday be your day of new beginning and of new life?

Copyright Statement

We grant permission for any edition of The Pocket Paper to be photocopied for use in a local congregation or classroom, provided no more than 1,000 copies are made, the material is distributed free, and the copies include the notice: "Copyright (year) The Donelson Fellowship."

For any other use, advance permission must be obtained from The Donelson Fellowship church office.

[ Return to Top | Pocket Papers index | TDF Home Page | send email to: office@donelson.org ]