If someone were to ask you for evidence of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, how would you respond? Believing in it is important because it leads to salvation. Romans 10:9 “If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” 

In a relational, experience-based culture, the fact that you believe in your heart that the resurrection of Jesus Christ is true may be your greatest testimony to someone who is searching for the meaning of life. Yet, some want more than belief; they want proof of it. 

However, there is a difference between proof and evidence when discussing something historical like the resurrection of Christ. We cannot conclusively prove it, but there is significant evidence that it happened. This gives us reason to believe. 

Here is some of the evidence. First, there were eye witness accounts. The Apostle John wrote “we have seen with our eyes . . . looked upon . . . and our hands have handled” (1st John 1:1). Second, the lives of the apostles and other early Christians were changed, and they spent the rest of their lives spreading the Good News, often suffering persecution and death. One must ask, why would they have done this if it were not true? 

Third, there are over 24,000 portions or complete New Testament manuscripts from the first few centuries testifying of the event. When comparing this to other ancient manuscripts, nothing comes remotely close to this amount. Fourth, there are early non-Christian references to the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Some of these were Roman historians who give evidence of the life of Jesus Christ. 

Josephus (37—100 AD), the Jewish historian, wrote some startling things. Of Christ, he wrote: “Now there was about this time, Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man; for he was a doer of wonderful works, a teacher of such men as had a veneration for truth. He drew over to him both many of the Jews and many of the Gentiles: he was the Christ. And when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men among us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at first did not for- sake him; for he appeared unto them alive again the third day, as the divine prophets had spoken of these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him: whence the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day.” 

We could add to this the modern evidence of traditions, the empowerment of the Holy Spirit, and the changed lives of millions of people who have accepted Christ as their risen King and Lord. The evidence is overwhelming! 

Dr. Simon Greenleaf (1783-1853): Harvard Law School, expert on judicial evidence, studied the evidence regarding the resurrection and concluded that there is more evidence for the historical fact of the resurrection of Jesus Christ than for just about any other evidence in history. 

The resurrection of Christ was arguably the greatest event in his- tory, but just prior to that, Jesus died on the cross. Before He could be resurrected, He had to die. So there is obvious evidence for His death too. 

Jesus had a mission on earth. He knew that He would die on the cross and then be resurrected. For instance, speaking of Himself in third person as the Son of Man to His disciples, He said: “They will condemn Him to death, and deliver Him to the Gentiles to mock and to scourge and to crucify. And the third day he will rise again” (Matthew 20:18-19). 

Jesus noted the importance of His shed blood. At the Last Supper, He told His disciples, “For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins” (Matthew 26:28). When John the Baptist saw Jesus, he made reference to the Old Testament manner of removing sin when he said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). 

So, why did Jesus need to shed His blood for us? Most people do not think of themselves as sinners, but possibly every one would admit that they have done something wrong in their life. They have behaved in a way that was inappropriate, hurting someone else or doing something that is forbidden by Almighty God. 

Imagine if you were in a court room before a judge who was pronouncing the penalty of death on you for a life of crime, but suddenly a man comes forth and says that he will die in your place. That is what Jesus did for us. 

The Bible says, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” but repentant believers are “justified by His blood” (Romans 3:23; 5:9). This basically means that our sin separated us from God, but Jesus took our punishment on Himself. All those who repent and receive Him as Lord and Savior are accepted by Him. The mission of Jesus could be summarized in John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” 

Many people hope that after this life, there will be an eternity with a loving and merciful God in a beautiful place like heaven or a new earth. Yet, God is not only loving and merciful, but He is also holy and just. What makes it possible for us to spend eternity with this perfect, sinless God is the fact that Jesus “bore our own sins in His body” when He died on the cross (1st Peter 2:24). He died on the cross for all men, and according to 1st Timothy 2:4, God “desires all men to be saved.” However, He will not force anyone to accept Him as their Lord and Savior, but for those who do, the Bible gives a promise: “As many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become the children of God, to those who believe in His name” (John 1:12). 

In conclusion, there is significant evidence for the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. He died for our sin and then did what no one has done before Him, He rose from the dead. His mission was and still is to restore us to God, who is righteous and loving. Have you asked Jesus to be your Lord and Savior?