How do we Know Jesus Rose From the Dead?
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of Christian faith. Without it, as the Apostle Paul famously declared, "our preaching is useless and so is your faith" (1 Cor 15:14). But in a skeptical age, how can we assert with confidence that such an extraordinary event actually occurred? This isn't a matter of blind faith, but a historical claim open to examination. By scrutinizing the available evidence, we can build a compelling case for the reality of Jesus's resurrection, a case that has persuaded countless individuals throughout history and continues to do so today.
The inquiry into the resurrection is akin to a historical investigation, sifting through ancient texts, examining witness testimonies and considering alternative explanations. What emerges is a powerful cumulative case, not reliant on a single piece of evidence, but on the convergence of multiple, independent lines of inquiry.
The Empty Tomb - A Puzzling Absence
One of the most immediate and striking pieces of evidence is the empty tomb. All four Gospel accounts (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) consistently report that Jesus's tomb was found empty on the first day of the week, just days after his crucifixion. This isn't a detail invented by later tradition - it's a foundational element of the earliest Christian proclamation.
The empty tomb was not opened to allow Jesus out - He was spirit and could walk through walls (John 20:19-26)
It was opened so we could see in!
To set the scene, when Jesus was buried, Roman governor Pontius Pilate sealed with tomb with a 2-ton stone and then ordered guards to protect the tomb - not just one man, a 'guard' was a unit of sixteen armed soldiers. By Roman law, the punishment for quitting their post or falling asleep was death, so these men would be doing their job. In addition to this, the Jews also had Temple guards, placed in 24 stations about the gates and courts - a total of 240 Levites and 30 priests on duty every night. During the night, the captain of the Temple made his rounds and on his approach every guard had to rise and salute him. If any guard found asleep he was beaten, or his garments were set on fire. In fact, the Romans and Jewish priests did everything possible to prevent Jesus' resurrection.
Yet, despite these precautions, all of a sudden there was an earthquake, angels descended from heaven and rolled the stone not just out of the way of the entrance, but halfway up the mountain. The Roman guards see all of this unfolding and are terrified (Mat 28:4). What do they do now? All excuses lead to their death - they couldn't say someone broke the seal without them knowing, they couldn't say they fell asleep and they couldn't say Jesus rose from the dead and was raised up - that would be blasphemy! So they take a bribe from the jewish priests to falsely accuse the disciples of stealing the body. Think about it - how could twelve fishermen, possibly do this in front of all of these guards without alarming a single person? Why roll a 2 ton stone halfway up the mountain instead of just enough to get Jesus' body out? Would a full unit of armed Romans soldiers trained for battle really be fooled by timid Galilean fishermen, much less be overpowered by them (bear in mind that the disciples had a grand total of one sword between all of them)? It's simply not possible!
Not only was Jesus not in the tomb, but He moved around the region, taught people publicly for 30 days and there are over 500 eye witnesses accounts!
The tomb's emptiness is not disputed by Jesus's contemporaries, even his adversaries. The Jewish authorities, rather than producing the body to debunk the resurrection claims, spread a story that the disciples had stolen it (Matt 28:11-15). This attempt to explain away the empty tomb inadvertently confirms its reality. If the body were still in the tomb, there would be no need for such a fabrication.
"The Jewish polemic implies that the tomb was indeed empty."
The guard placed at the tomb, specifically requested by the Jewish leaders to prevent such an event, further underscores the seriousness with which the empty tomb was treated and the difficulty of its unauthorized opening.
Non-Christian Ancient Historians
Let's say you dismiss the eyewitness accounts of the Jewish people, Jesus' followers, the New Testament, and what your Christian friends say. But can you really ignore what Roman and Syrian historians recorded? These weren't just ordinary men-they were legal experts and could think for themselves - Roman senators, and provincial governors. If anything, their testimony as hostile sources, is especially valuable and considered the most credible since they had no reason to favor Jesus or His followers.
The Romans were certainly no friends of Jesus Christ, or His followers - quite the opposite in fact! They scourged Jesus, gave Him a crown of thorns, mocked Him, crucified Him and later persecuted His followers the same way. And yet, their own historical records acknowledge Jesus Christ, the early church, and the surprising spread of Christianity.
If the resurrection of Jesus from the dead was not real, why was the message of Jesus spreading rapidly? Why were people willing to lose everything; be tortured and killed in such painful ways?
Jesus Christ - the ultimate Occam's Razor!
Roman Historians
Tacitus (Publius Cornelius Tacitus)
Tacitus, born in 56 AD, is widely regarded as one of Rome's greatest historians. The most significant Roman reference to Jesus comes from Cornelius Tacitus, a prominent Roman senator and historian. In his Annals, written around 116 AD, he covers events from the death of Augustus to Nero's reign, Tacitus references Jesus while describing Nero's brutal persecution of early Christians after the Great Fire of Rome. Importantly, there's no evidence of later tampering - his account stands as an authentic Roman record.
But all human efforts, all the lavish gifts of the emperor and the propitiations of the gods, did not banish the sinister belief that the conflagration was the result of an order. Consequently, to get rid of the report, Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christus, from whom the name had it's origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus and a superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their centre and become popular. Accordingly, an arrest was first made of all who pleaded guilty; then, upon their information, an immense multitude was convicted, not so much of the crime of firing the city, as of hatred against mankind. Mockery of every sort was added to their deaths. Covered with the skins of beasts, they were torn by dogs and perished, or were nailed to crosses, or were doomed to the flames and burnt, to serve as a nightly illumination, when daylight had expired.
This passage is widely accepted by scholars as authentic. It confirms several key historical facts about Jesus such as His name, Christus (the Latinized form of Christ), His execution under Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea, It also details the origin of the Christian movement in Judea and its spread to Rome and the persecution of Christians for their allegiance to Christ.
Pliny the Younger (Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundus)
Pliny the Younger is another valuable Roman historical source for information on Jesus and the early Church. He was the governor of Bithynia and Pontus (modern day Turkey or Asia Minor as it is referred to in the New Testament) on the Black Sea coast of Anatolia. He was the representative of Emperor Trajan between 109 and 111 AD. He even writes to Emperor Trajan asking how he should deal with those in his region who are accused of being Christians. And in this letter he describes the practices of these 'criminals':
They were in the habit of meeting on a certain fixed day before it was light, when they sang in alternate verses a hymn to Christ, as to a god and bound themselves by a solemn oath, not to any wicked deeds, but never to commit any fraud, theft or adultery, never to falsify their word, nor deny a trust when they should be called upon to deliver it up; after which it was their custom to separate and then reassemble to partake of food – but food of an ordinary and innocent kind.
... I believe it all the more necessary to find out the truth from two slave women, whom they call deaconesses, even by torture. I found nothing but immoderate superstition ...
The contagion of this superstition was spread not only through towns but also villages and even rural areas...
Pliny's account confirms that Christians worshipped Christ as God, maintained a high moral code and were numerous enough to pose a concern for Roman authorities. This letter indicates that within decades of Jesus' death, a distinct group identified by their worship of Christ was well-established.
Suetonius (Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus)
Another Roman historian, Suetonius, in his Life of Claudius[Emperor], mentions Jews being expelled from Rome:
He banished from Rome all the Jews, who were continually making disturbances at the instigation of one Chrestus (anointed one)
The 'disturbances' were Jews who trying to reconcile Jesus' divinity and the scandalous reports of his resurrection. Since the Jews couldn't agree, they were all expelled. This suggests Jesus' influence was felt even in the heart of the Roman Empire by the mid-1st century.
Flavius Josephus
Josephus, one of the most respected Roman-Jewish historians of Judea, was born in 37 AD and died in 100 AD. While he was born a Jew, he later became a Roman citizen and had the backing of the Roman emperors (Vespasian, Titus and Domitian), Josephus had access to resources and was able to generate incredible detail in his records, far beyond what the Gospel writers (who lacked wealth) could achieve. It is because he served under the Roman emperors, his records were valued as authentic. Living shortly after Jesus and in the same region, his writings offer near eyewitness quality, offering insights into the era's cultural context. His major works, Jewish Antiquities and The Wars of the Jews, chronicle Hebrew history and the Roman destruction of Jerusalem and the fall of Masada in 73 AD.
[63] 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 receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews and many of the Gentiles. He was [the] Christ. [64] And when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him; for he appeared to them alive again the third day; as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him. And the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day.
This core passage confirms Jesus' existence, his reputation as a wise teacher and miracle worker, his condemnation and crucifixion under Pontius Pilate (Luke 23), and the continued existence of his followers, the Christians.
In reference to James, this shorter passage is almost universally accepted as authentic and refers to Jesus indirectly but clearly:
"So he assembled the Sanhedrin of judges, and brought before them the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James, and some others; and when he had formed an accusation against them as breakers of the law, he delivered them to be stoned."
This reference to James, the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, is a vital piece of evidence. Josephus, writing independently, clearly knew of a figure named Jesus who was known as Christ and had a brother named James. This firmly grounds Jesus within known historical family lines and contemporary recognition.
The Syrian - Mara bar Serapion
Mara bar Serapion was a philosopher from the Roman province of Syria. He is particularly noted as a source of truth for a letter he wrote to his son, approximately after 73 AD. The letter refers to the unjust treatment of three wise men - one of them being Jesus Christ.
What else can we say, when the wise are forcibly dragged off by tyrants, their wisdom is captured by insults, and their minds are oppressed and without defense? What advantage did the Athenians gain from murdering Socrates? Famine and plague came upon them as a punishment for their crime. What advantage did the men of Samos gain from burning Pythagoras? In a moment their land was covered with sand. What advantage did the Jews gain from executing their wise king? It was just after that their kingdom was abolished. God justly avenged these three wise men: the Athenians died of hunger; the Samians were overwhelmed by the sea and the Jews, desolate and driven from their own kingdom, live in complete dispersion. But Socrates is not dead, because of Plato; neither is Pythagoras, because of the statue of Juno; nor is the wise king, because of the "new law" he laid down
Multiple Eyewitness Appearances - Beyond Hallucination
The Bible records several eye witness accounts of people seeing Jesus alive after His resurrection. Some people claim these are fake because these aren't multiple individual written accounts. By that logic though, all of ancient history would be unreliable given that most common people couldn't read, write or document events - they were too poor to own things like this.
The truth is that most of the people and events known from ancient history are based on a few written accounts centuries after the events occurred - for the Egyptians, Syrians, Jews, Romans, Greeks and so on. Multiple accounts written within living memory are extremely rare. Many historical figures like Julius Caesar or Philip of Macedonia are known from a single source that appear much later. In fact, there's more historical evidence for Jesus of Nazareth than for Roman Emperor Tiberius - and they both lived at the same period in history!
There are multiple undisputed Roman references (see sections above) to Jesus written within 20 years of His crucifixion, including mentions of His brother, three named disciples, the Twelve, and hundreds of followers. These accounts were written to third parties who personally knew the people involved, while many of them were still alive!
These accounts were not just story or legend, they are truth - they demonstrate the reality of Jesus' resurrection and His victory over death. That was the reason people were willing to be tortured and crucified, rather than recant their faith.
Even the Romans - who crucified Jesus - record His existence, death and resurrection. His followers spread across the empire, refusing to renounce their faith despite torture and execution. In Asia Minor and Rome, many were brutally killed or crucified, including being burned alive or fed to animals. If Jesus weren't real, what did they stand to gain by dying for Him?
Mary Magdalene
She witnessed the empty tomb and subsequently encountered the resurrected Jesus when she mistook Him for the gardener (Mark 16:9-11, John 20:11-18)
Other women
Several women, including those who were with Mary Magdalene, (Mat 28:9-10) seeing the resurrected Jesus.
Two disciples on the Emmaus Road
They encountered Jesus in a different form and recognized him as the Messiah, as He broke bread with them (Mark 16:12-13, Luke 24:13-32)
His disciples
Jesus blessing His disciples before being taken up into heaven (Acts 1:9-11, Luke 24:50-51). The disciples in the Upper Room (with Thomas): Thomas, the skeptic, is invited to touch Jesus's wounds, demonstrating the physical reality of the resurrection (John 20:24-29).
Simon Peter
The apostle Peter was one of the first individuals to whom Jesus appeared after his resurrection (Luke 24:34, 1 Cor 15:5)
James
James, who was the brother of Jesus was a skeptic (John 7:5), became a leader in the early church after an encounter with the risen Christ (1 Cor 15:7; Acts 15:13-21). This transformation is particularly compelling, as it's difficult to attribute to wishful thinking or a shared delusion.
Apostle Paul
Paul himself saw the resurrected Jesus (1 Cor 15:8), which radically changed his life - he went from hating and persecuting followers of Christ; to becoming one himself - suffering beatings, stoning, imprisonment and ultimately death for his faith. Why? He met the resurrected Jesus Christ on the road to Damascus! Paul willingly gave up power, wealth and status as a Roman citizen to follow Jesus Christ!
He also strengthens Jesus's historical credibility - naming Jesus's family, quoting Him, referencing the crucifixion, burial, the last supper and meeting His disciples and brother James. If Jesus wasn't real, why would His followers be active across the empire? Paul didn't gain money or fame - only hardship and that in no small portion! The simplest explanation? Jesus rose from the dead and Paul's life proved it.
More than 500 people
Paul mentions in 1 Cor 15:3-8 that Jesus appeared to more than 500 people at one time. There is also Acts 2:32, 4:19-20, and 10:39-40
There are multiple sources verifying the claim of 500 witnesses - documents from the apostolic period by people outside the faith written to third parties (in this case Roman governors and Emperors, no less) For this to be fabricated, it would require an enormous, well-coordinated conspiracy involving people pretending to be Jesus's relatives and disciples, lying to intentionally create conflicting accounts and add details that worked against the core message; all while facing brutal persecution and death for their beliefs.
These appearances occurred in various settings, to different people, individually and in groups, over a period of 40 days. The sheer number and diversity of these testimonies make the hallucination theory incredibly difficult to sustain.
Hallucinations are typically individual, subjective, and don't manifest to large groups simultaneously in consistent ways.
Cowardice to Courage - The Radical Transformation of the Disciples
Perhaps one of the most powerful pieces of evidence for the resurrection is the radical transformation of Jesus's disciples. After Jesus's crucifixion, they were terrified, scattered and in hiding. Peter, who had boldly declared his loyalty, denied Jesus three times. Their hopes were shattered, their leader dead, and their movement seemingly extinguished.
Yet, within weeks, these same fearful individuals were boldly proclaiming Jesus's resurrection in the very city where he had been executed, facing ridicule, persecution and ultimately, death. This dramatic shift in behavior, from despair to unwavering conviction, is difficult to explain without a profound, life-altering event. What could account for such a drastic change? The only plausible explanation, consistent with their actions and subsequent history, is their conviction that they had indeed seen the risen Christ.
The willingness of the disciples to suffer and die for their testimony is a strong indicator of their sincere belief.
They didn't just say Jesus rose; they lived and died as if it were true. People do not willingly endure torture and execution for a lie they know to be false. Their martyrdoms, particularly those of Peter, Paul and James, serve as powerful testaments to their unwavering belief in the resurrection.
The Birth and Rapid Growth of the Early Church
The emergence of the Christian Church in Jerusalem, a mere fifty days after Jesus's crucifixion, is another significant piece of evidence. This was not a gradual evolution, but a sudden explosion of faith centered on the proclamation of Jesus's resurrection. How could a movement founded on a crucified Messiah gain such immediate traction and spread so rapidly without a foundational, miraculous event?
The early sermons, as recorded in the book of Acts, consistently emphasized the resurrection as the central message ( Acts 2:24-32, Acts 3:15, Acts 4:10). This wasn't a later theological development; it was the core of their initial evangelism. The early Christians celebrated Sunday, the day of the resurrection, as their day of worship, shifting from the traditional Sabbath. This profound change in religious practice further underscores the central importance of the resurrection in their nascent faith.
The Insufficiency of Alternative Theories - Why They Fail
Skeptics have proposed various alternative theories to explain the events surrounding Jesus's death and the subsequent belief in his resurrection. However, none of these theories adequately account for the totality of the evidence:
The Swoon Theory (or Apparent Death Theory) - This theory suggests Jesus merely fainted on the cross and later revived in the tomb. This is highly improbable given the Roman crucifixion method, designed for maximum lethality. Roman soldiers were experts in execution, and the spear thrust into Jesus's side, drawing blood and water, indicates a punctured pericardium and lungs, confirming death (John 19:34). Furthermore, a weak, barely alive Jesus, even if he survived, could not have rolled away a heavy stone, overpowered Roman guards and convinced his disciples he had conquered death.
The Hallucination Theory: As discussed, this fails to explain the multiple, diverse and consistent appearances to different individuals and groups. It also doesn't account for the empty tomb or the transformed lives of the disciples.
The Stolen Body Theory This theory, initially propagated by the Jewish authorities, struggles to explain how a small, frightened group of disciples could have overcome Roman guards and a heavy stone without detection. It also doesn't account for their subsequent willingness to die for a known lie. If they had stolen the body, they would know it was a fraud, and it's highly unlikely they would endure persecution and death for a deception.
The Legend Theory This theory proposes that the resurrection accounts were later myths or legends that developed over time. However, the New Testament documents are remarkably early, written within decades of the events, during the lifetime of eyewitnesses who could have refuted false claims. Paul's first letter to the Corinthians, which includes a creedal statement about the resurrection (1 Cor 15:3-8), is dated to the mid-50s AD, less than 25 years after the crucifixion. This is far too soon for a complex legend to fully form and gain widespread acceptance without historical basis.
The Overwhelming Weight of Evidence
When viewed cumulatively, the evidence for Jesus's resurrection is overwhelming – all point powerfully to one conclusion - Jesus rose from the dead
While faith remains an essential component of Christian belief, this faith is not blind. It is a faith grounded in historical inquiry and supported by a robust body of evidence. The resurrection of Jesus is not merely a theological doctrine; it is a historical event that profoundly altered the course of human history and continues to offer hope and meaning to billions worldwide.
To us, the evidence is clear. We also understand that it's not that way for everyone. So we'd ask you to stay humble and pursue truth where it leads you even if you don't like it. Truth is not mine or yours - it's truth for everyone and that's what makes it truth. Follow truth!
Buddha said he was a seeker of truth, Muhammed said he was a prophet of truth, Jesus said he is the truth.
Jesus is credible, therefor what He said is also credible! I have to believe what He says. It is no longer about my personal opinion. There is only one God - Jehovah, who has revealed Himself through scripture, through His Son Jesus Christ. He offers not only the way to eternal life but also the assurance of that life, based on a relationship with God rather than our own merit.
Suggested Additional Resources
- How Do We Know Jesus is God and Not Just Another Prophet?
- How can Christianity be the one true religion
- The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel
- The Case for the Resurrection of Jesus edited by Gary Habermas & Michael Licona
- Jesus and the Eyewitnesses by Richard Bauckham