1. Did Jesus Rise from the Dead?
Is Christianity True?
Did Jesus Rise from the Dead?

2. Did Jesus Rise from the Dead?
Historical Question
Historical Investigation

3. Historian as Detective
Historical Investigation
Historian as Detective

4. How is History Done? Establish Historical Facts (CLUES)
2. Provide the Best Explanation
(SOLVE THE CASE)

5. Establishing a Historical Facts (CLUES)
Early sources
Multiple independent sources
Lack legendary embellishment
No other compelling and competing story
Establishing a Historical Facts (CLUES)
Four Conditions in Establishing a Historical Truth
Early sources
Multiple independent sources
Lack legendary embellishment
No other compelling and competing story

6. Four Historical Facts (CLUES) Burial Empty Tomb Appearances of Christ
Transformation of the Disciples
Jesus BEAT death!

7. CLUE #1: BEAT Burial “After Jesus died, he was buried by Joseph
of Arimathea in his tomb”
Roman soldiers experts at death
JAMA “On the Physical Death of Jesus” Vol. 256, 1986
Attested in Mark 15:42-47 and 1 Corinthians 15:3-5
Joseph of Arimathea unlikely to be an invention
John A. T. Robinson of Cambridge states that the burial of Jesus in the tomb is “one of the earliest and best-attested facts about Jesus.”

8. CLUE #2: Empty Tomb “Jesus’ Tomb was found empty” BEAT
Attested in 1 Corinthians 15:4, Mark 16:1-8, Matt. 28:11-15
Earliest Jewish response admits an empty tomb
Empty Tomb discovered by
women, unlikely to be invented

9. CLUE #3: Appearances of Christ
BEAT
“On multiple occasions and various circumstances different individuals and groups experienced appearances of Jesus risen from the dead”
Attested in Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and Paul
Eleven different appearances recorded as the most attested historical fact under consideration
Gerd Ludemann of the Univ. of Gottingen, a skeptic of the bodily resurrection, concludes in his study that the appearances are “historically certain.”

10. Transformation of the Disciples
CLUE #4:
Transformation of the Disciples
BEAT
“Disciples sincerely believed that Jesus rose from the dead they were willing to die for that belief ”
Jewish belief of a messiah had no idea of a messiah being executed as a criminal
Jesus’ execution exposed him as cursed by God
No Jewish belief of a resurrection before the general resurrection of the dead at the end of the world
Yet, disciples came to believe that Jesus from the dead that they were willing to die for it

11. Best Explanation (SOLVING THE CASE)
What explanation best accounts for these four established historical facts?
Historical facts can have multiple explanations, but what is the criteria for the “best explanation” of the facts:
Explanatory Scope: it must explain all the facts, not just one or some or the majority
Explanatory Power: it must explain each fact adequately, not just superficially or in an ad hoc (i.e.-contrived) manner

12. Must explain all of the CLUES
(SOLVING THE CASE)
Must explain all of the CLUES
“Conspiracy” – disciples lied or stole the body
critique – The transformation of the disciples?
“Hallucination” – disciples hallucinated the resurrection
critique – The empty tomb?
“Wrong Tomb” – women went to the wrong tomb
critique – The tomb of Joseph of Arimathea?
“Resuscitation” – Jesus survived the crucifixion
critique – The burial facts state he died?

13. (SOLVING THE CASE) The “Best Explanation” of the facts?
“God Raised Jesus From the Dead”
Explains ALL the historical facts and EACH
historical fact clearly

14. “JESUS IS ALIVE”