1. Is He

2. Luke 24:1-12 NASB But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb, bringing the spices which they had prepared. {2} And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, {3} but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. {4} And it happened that while they were perplexed about this, behold, two men suddenly stood near them in dazzling apparel; {5} and as the women were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, "Why do you seek the living One among the dead? {6} "He is not here, but He has risen. Remember how He spoke to you while He was still in Galilee, {7} saying that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again."

3. Luke 24:1-12 NASB {8} And they remembered His words, {9} and returned from the tomb and reported all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. {10} Now they were Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James; also the other women with them were telling these things to the apostles. {11} And these words appeared to them as nonsense, and they would not believe them. {12} But Peter arose and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen wrappings only; and he went away to his home, marveling at that which had happened. Luke 24:1-12 NASB

4. Some questions to ask about the resurrection of Jesus 1. How important is it? 2. What are the implications without it? a. Worldwide Christianity would lose the heart of its message b. The Bible would become just another book of antiquities c. There would be no church d. There would be no changed lives e. We would be dead in our sins and separated from God forever

5. 3. What are the explanations of its detractors? a. They were hallucinating b. They created a myth c. They were deceivers d. They revived the swooning body of Jesus

6. The evidence for the resurrection of Jesus 1. The eyewitness evidence a. Mary Magdalene saw Jesus at the tomb Mark 16:9; John 20:11-18 b. A group of women saw Jesus early on Sunday Matt. 28:9-10 c. Cleopas and the other disciple saw Him on the road to Emmaus Luke 24:13-33 d. Peter saw Him in Jerusalem Luke 24:34 1 Cor. 15:5

7. The evidence for the resurrection of Jesus 1. The eyewitness evidence e. Ten of His disciples saw Him in the upper room Mark 16:14; Luke 24:36-43; John 20:19-25 f. Eleven of His disciples saw Him a week later in the upper room John 20:26-31; 1 Cor. 15:5 g. Seven of His disciples saw Him while fishing one morning John 21:1-23 h. Eleven of His disciples saw Him on a mountain in Galilee Matt. 28:16-20; Mark 16:15-18

8. The evidence for the resurrection of Jesus 1. The eyewitness evidence i. Five hundred men saw Him at one time 1 Cor. 15:6 j. James his brother saw Him 1 Cor. 15:7 k. Many saw Him ascend into Heaven Luke 24:44-49 Acts 1:3-8 l. Paul sees Him on the Damascus Road Acts 9:1-19

9. 2. The circumstantial evidence a. The tomb is empty b. The Gospels portray the women as seeing Him first c. There is a great variety of people who see the resurrected Christ d. No dead body was produced after the resurrection e. The Sanhedrin never disproved the resurrection f. The cowardly disciples transform into lions of the faith g. The disciples lived as if the resurrection did occur

10. 3. The historical evidence a. The empty tomb launched a worldwide movement b. The followers of Jesus died for their faith regularly c. Signs and wonders were performed in the name of this risen Jesus d. The whole missionary movement of Acts is launched e. The simplicity and authenticity of the Bible verify the reality of the resurrection

11. 3. The historical evidence f. Jesus’ fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies in dynamic detail give evidence of a powerful consistency in the whole story. g. Jesus’ fulfillment of His own promise to rise from the dead is a gigantic verification of the consistency of the story

12. Your must make a choice about the resurrection of Jesus Jesus is a liar of the first magnitude Jesus is a raving lunatic Jesus is the Lord of all