‘This story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day.’ Matthew 28:15 NIV

Here are two more pieces of evidence of Christ’s resurrection:

(1) You would be hard-pressed to find a time in recorded history when someone willingly gave up their life for what they knew to be a lie. Paul E. Little said, ‘Men will die for what they believe to be true, though it may actually be false. They do not, however, die for what they know is a lie.’ The fact that those early disciples were willing to endure such suffering makes the foundations of Christianity unshakable.

(2) Christ’s enemies went to incredible lengths to disprove the resurrection. ‘When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money, telling them, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’ If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy [bribe] him and keep you out of trouble.” So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed.’ (Matthew 28:12–15 NIV)

There has never been a witness in history allowed to testify to what transpired while he or she was asleep. And for a Roman soldier to fall asleep on duty meant a certain death penalty. Indeed, if Jesus had still been in the tomb, or if they had taken His body and placed it somewhere else, why did the Jewish leaders not say so? No, they were paralysed and powerless to do anything about it. Their only option—the one they took—was to initiate great persecution against all Christians. But it failed then, and it fails now because Jesus is alive!

SoulFood: 1 Cor 15, Mt 28:1–10, Lk 24:1–12

The Word for Today is authored by Bob and Debby Gass and published under licence from UCB International Copyright ©