Did Jesus Rise from the Dead? The Case for His Resurrection.

[Winston]

Christian video presenting 4 historical arguments for the resurrection of Jesus. What do you think? Do they make sense?

[Adama]

Poor Winston. Unable to come to the knowledge of the truth.

[kavaking]

Christian video presenting 4 historical arguments for the resurrection of Jesus. What do you think? Do they make sense?

Winston, look up Tacitus on Christ. Tacitus was a Roman historian. He talks about Yeshua(Jesus) in his writings called "The Annals". There is debate about the authenticity of these writings, but most scholars agree that they are authentic.

[MrMan]

We've got fragments left from that era, not a complete report from every Roman governor. Historical documents are bits and pieces that were passed on to us.

The Roman guards lay there as dead men, probably unable to move, in the presence of the angels.

[Winston]

@Adama , @MrMan , I don't understand something. If Jesus rose from the dead, then why didn't the Romans notice? Why didn't Roman guards arrest him again and try to crucify him again? Why didn't Roman historians record the event, at least during the year it happened? I don't think Christians have answered this question yet.

[Winston]

This is a good Christian apologetic video that goes over every theory about the resurrection of Jesus proposed by all the critics and analyzes them in detail to see if they fit all the evidence and data. It's very meticulous and left brained for those who like left brained analytical thinking. lol

[Adama]

@Adama , @MrMan , I don't understand something. If Jesus rose from the dead, then why didn't the Romans notice? Why didn't Roman guards arrest him again and try to crucify him again? Why didn't Roman historians record the event, at least during the year it happened? I don't think Christians have answered this question yet.

He was only revealed to His believers. His resurrection was not revealed to the greater public until after He ascended into heaven.

[Winston]

Link to download ebook by Dr. William Lane Craig, considered the greatest modern theologian and Christian apologist, about the resurrection of Jesus.

https://thepiratebay.org/torrent/103451 ... Lane_Craig

Did Jesus Rise From the Dead? Or is it the hoax of the ages?

Seems reasonable . . . perhaps Jesus was comatose. Or perhaps his body was stolen. Or maybe the women arrived at the wrong tomb . . . they were grieving, after all; it would have been an honest mistake. There are any number of explanations.

Dr. William Lane Craig uses well-documented historical facts to explore the evidence that surrounds the days following Jesus’ crucifixion. Without assuming “the Bible says so,” Did Jesus Rise from the Dead? presents positive religious, cultural, and historical evidence for the reality of the resurrection while breaking down the six most common hypotheses used to explain the unusual events that unfolded from the moment Christ breathed his last.

Thoroughly researched, yet deftly digestible, Did Jesus Rise from the Dead? belongs in the library of any apologist, skeptic, or seeker.

About the author:

William Lane Craig is Research Professor of Philosophy at Talbot School of Theology in La Mirada, California. At the age of sixteen as a junior in high school, he first heard the message of the Christian gospel and yielded his life to Christ. Dr. Craig pursued his undergraduate studies at Wheaton College (B.A. 1971) and graduate studies at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School (M.A. 1974; M.A. 1975), the University of Birmingham (England) (Ph.D. 1977), and the University of Munich (Germany) (D.Theol. 1984). From 1980-86 he taught Philosophy of Religion at Trinity, during which time he and Jan started their family. In 1987 they moved to Brussels, Belgium, where Dr. Craig pursued research at the University of Louvain until 1994.

He has authored or edited over thirty books, including The Kalam Cosmological Argument; Assessing the New Testament Evidence for the Historicity of the Resurrection of Jesus; Divine Foreknowledge and Human Freedom; Theism, Atheism and Big Bang Cosmology; and God, Time and Eternity, as well as over a hundred articles in professional journals of philosophy and theology, including The Journal of Philosophy, New Testament Studies, Journal for the Study of the New Testament, American Philosophical Quarterly, Philosophical Studies, Philosophy, and British Journal for Philosophy of Science. He lives in Atlanta, Georgia, with his wife Jan and their two teenage children Charity and John.

[Winston]

Interesting debate between Dr. William Lane Craig and Dr. Richard Carrier about whether Jesus rose from the dead. Dr. Craig presents some good compelling arguments for believing Jesus rose from the dead, including the big one about how the first apostles witnessed the resurrection of Jesus, and were willing to die for their faith and never wavered from it for the rest of their lives, which cannot be explained by any other alternative hypothesis. But Dr. Carrier is a typical annoying narrow minded Atheist and liberal who uses narrow arguments such as "miracles are impossible and unprovable" etc. However, he does have some valid arguments worth considering, such as that many Bible stories appear to be more myth than historical fact. So both sides have valid points but Dr. Craig seems to have the stronger case and more compelling arguments that his opponent could not refute. He's considered one of the best Christian apologists.

[Winston]

@Adama , @MrMan , I don't understand something. If Jesus rose from the dead, then why didn't the Romans notice? Why didn't Roman guards arrest him again and try to crucify him again? Why didn't Roman historians record the event, at least during the year it happened? I don't think Christians have answered this question yet.

He was only revealed to His believers. His resurrection was not revealed to the greater public until after He ascended into heaven.

Why not? If God or Jesus wanted the world to believe, then wouldn't it make more sense for Jesus to show himself to the rest of the world too? Including the Pharisees that crucified him, the Roman guards, Pontius Pilate, etc. Even the Emperor of Rome himself. That would be the best way of showing the whole world the validity of his Gospel message. Otherwise, what a wasted opportunity. Why doesn't Jesus show himself today to everyone too? It just doesn't make much sense. If the purpose is to convert the world, then it makes sense to show as many people as possible. Then they would have no excuse for not believing. That's what I would do if I were God. Then I'd have Jesus say "Now you see me resurrected, you should know that I died for your sins and rose again, as you can see. If you believe in me, you can be saved. If not, you will be damned. Up to you. The choice is yours." to each person individually.

Furthermore, even if Jesus only wanted to show himself to his disciples, still wasn't he resurrected for 40 days? If so, during that time, word would have spread fast, to the point where the Roman guards and Pontius Pilate would come investigate and check to see if it's true. Think about it. If someone really rose from the dead, they'd get a lot of attention and word would spread fast. Especially over the course of 40 days.

Also, why did Jesus ascend into heaven after 40 days? Because 40 is a magic number? Why not stick around to convert more people and help liberate the Jews, or gain more followers? What's the rush? Was God on a tight schedule? lol.

So you see, this makes no sense. I have been listening to lectures and debates by Dr. William Lane Craig and Dr. Frank Turek. Both of them have some good compelling arguments why Jesus must have risen from the dead. And their arguments have some logic to them. But I'd like them to explain the above. I will try to contact them through their websites and see what they say. If they reply, I'll post their responses here. Frank Turek and Kent Hovind, I think, are the best Christian debaters based on what I've seen. They are brave and courageous and not afraid to answer any question and are good at point by point argument and debate. So I'd be interested to see how they would address my questions. The audience in their lectures is always low IQ and ask the dumbest questions, not serious hard questions like I do. I am in disbelief at how dumb American audiences are who go to these Christian vs Atheist theology debates. They never ask good questions like I do. It makes me wonder if I'm the only one who can think logically and critically and ask really good questions that get to the core of the issue. Instead, everyone always asks the dumbest questions, as though being dumb were normal. What a wasted opportunity. Americans are dumber than I thought. No wonder they are so easy to beat in chess. Even Filipinos are better at chess than Americans are.

Even when I ask Adama such serious questions, he just quotes scripture or Bible verses, which prove nothing. I want serious logical answers that make sense, not just Bible verses and circular arguments that don't make sense and aren't justified.

[Adama]

He was only revealed to His believers. His resurrection was not revealed to the greater public until after He ascended into heaven.

Why not? If God or Jesus wanted the world to believe, then wouldn't it make more sense for Jesus to show himself to the rest of the world too? Including the Pharisees that crucified him, the Roman guards, Pontius Pilate, etc. Even the Emperor of Rome himself. That would be the best way of showing the whole world the validity of his Gospel message. Otherwise, what a wasted opportunity. Why doesn't Jesus show himself today to everyone too? It just doesn't make much sense. If the purpose is to convert the world, then it makes sense to show as many people as possible. Then they would have no excuse for not believing. That's what I would do if I were God. Then I'd have Jesus say "Now you see me resurrected, you should know that I died for your sins and rose again, as you can see. If you believe in me, you can be saved. If not, you will be damned. Up to you. The choice is yours." to each person individually.

Winston, if a person is shown proof with their eyes, then they know. God requires faith for salvation. Faith is the evidence of the unseen. He wants us to believe in His Son, without having seen Him with our eyes. Anyone can believe something after they've seen it. But if they can believe even though they haven't seen, that's when they've really trusted in Christ.

Faith takes place in the heart, not the eyes. People believe unto salvation with their heart. Their eyes have nothing to do with it. If a person has seen, then there is no need for belief. They already know.

In order to have faith, a person must overcome all of the distractions and lies of the world.

Some people will chose delusion over salvation, because they love the pleasure of sin for this short season, over the fact that God exists.

Only after a person believes in Christ is everything revealed to that person. To have everything revealed before they believe defeats the requirement that they must first have faith. Salvation is by faith alone. Revelation is given to believers, not unbelievers.

The good thing for believers (and the unfortunate thing for unbelievers who never get saved) is that life on the New Earth is going to be billions and billions of times better and more glorious than this one, full of glory and abundance, without any trace of sin or death or disease. Unbelievers who never get saved have simply cursed themselves to complete destitution in the afterlife: no light (complete darkness), no food (complete starvation), no water (perpetual thirst), no joy, no peace (infinite and everlasting fear and torture), and either a prison cell or a lava pit of molten sulfur, and much more.

And just as the Christian has to "die daily," to deny themselves pleasure and glory in the present world, unbelievers will die continually forever in the nether world. Believers will be repaid with glory, while the wicked will be repaid with eternal death.

[Adama]

Interesting debate between Dr. William Lane Craig and Dr. Richard Carrier about whether Jesus rose from the dead. Dr. Craig presents some good compelling arguments for believing Jesus rose from the dead, including the big one about how the first apostles witnessed the resurrection of Jesus, and were willing to die for their faith and never wavered from it for the rest of their lives, which cannot be explained by any other alternative hypothesis. But Dr. Carrier is a typical annoying narrow minded Atheist and liberal who uses narrow arguments such as "miracles are impossible and unprovable" etc. However, he does have some valid arguments worth considering, such as that many Bible stories appear to be more myth than historical fact. So both sides have valid points but Dr. Craig seems to have the stronger case and more compelling arguments that his opponent could not refute. He's considered one of the best Christian apologists.

Answering a few questions is perfectly fine, but having a full on debate is out of the question. There is absolutely no benefit to such a thing. It is a waste of time and effort.

If a person wants to disbelieve, that's on them. Most likely people who want to disbelieve that Christ rose again are unable to believe in Christ. It would be much better for that kind of unbeliever to keep silence. Because the more they blaspheme, the more trouble they're creating for themselves.

[TruthSeeker]

Why not? If God or Jesus wanted the world to believe, then wouldn't it make more sense for Jesus to show himself to the rest of the world too? Including the Pharisees that crucified him, the Roman guards, Pontius Pilate, etc. Even the Emperor of Rome himself. That would be the best way of showing the whole world the validity of his Gospel message. Otherwise, what a wasted opportunity. Why doesn't Jesus show himself today to everyone too? It just doesn't make much sense. If the purpose is to convert the world, then it makes sense to show as many people as possible. Then they would have no excuse for not believing. That's what I would do if I were God. Then I'd have Jesus say "Now you see me resurrected, you should know that I died for your sins and rose again, as you can see. If you believe in me, you can be saved. If not, you will be damned. Up to you. The choice is yours." to each person individually.

Furthermore, even if Jesus only wanted to show himself to his disciples, still wasn't he resurrected for 40 days? If so, during that time, word would have spread fast, to the point where the Roman guards and Pontius Pilate would come investigate and check to see if it's true. Think about it. If someone really rose from the dead, they'd get a lot of attention and word would spread fast. Especially over the course of 40 days.

Also, why did Jesus ascend into heaven after 40 days? Because 40 is a magic number? Why not stick around to convert more people and help liberate the Jews, or gain more followers? What's the rush? Was God on a tight schedule? lol.

Jesus already did show himself. Most Bible scholars would agree his earthly ministry lasted 3 years. He preached the gospel, healed the sick, raised the dead, did miracles and for that they crucified him.

Then He says in Acts 1:8 "But you shall receive power, after that the Holy Spirit is come upon you: and you shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth."

God doesn't do things in a way that may make logical sense to you Winston. The goal of Christianity is not to get the maximum number of converts as possible or to convert the whole world. Jesus said few there be that find it. (Matt. 7:14).

So you lack understanding Winston because you have not studied the Scriptures.

[TruthSeeker]

http://www.biblestudy.org/bibleref/mean ... le/40.html

The Meaning of Numbers: The Number 40

Mentioning 146 times in Scripture, the number 40 generally symbolizes a period of testing, trial or probation. During Moses' life he lived forty years in Egypt and forty years in the desert before God selected him to lead his people out of slavery. Moses was also on Mount Sinai for 40 days and nights, on two separate occasions (Exodus 24:18, 34:1 - 28), receiving God's laws. He also sent spies, for forty days, to investigate the land God promised the Israelites as an inheritance (Numbers 13:25, 14:34).

The prophet Jonah powerfully warned ancient Nineveh, for forty days, that its destruction would come because of its many sins. The prophet Ezekiel laid on His right side for 40 days to symbolize Judah's sins (Ezekiel 4:6). Elijah went 40 days without food or water at Mount Horeb. Jesus was tempted by the devil not just three times, but MANY times during the 40 days and nights he fasted just before his ministry began. He also appeared to his disciples and others for 40 days after his resurrection from the dead.

The number forty can also represent a generation of man. Because of their sins after leaving Egypt, God swore that the generation of Israelites who left Egyptian bondage would not enter their inheritance in Canaan (Deuteronomy 1). The children of Israel were punished by wandering the wilderness for 40 years before a new generation was allowed to possess the promised land. Jesus, just days before his crucifixion, prophesied the total destruction of Jerusalem (Matthew 24:1 - 2, Mark 13:1 - 2). Forty years after his crucifixion in 30 A.D., the mighty Roman Empire destroyed the city and burned its beloved temple to the ground.

[TruthSeeker]

I do not believe a Bible generation to be 40 years. I believe it to be 70 years based on this Scripture:

Psalm 90:10 The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labour and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away.

Now modern day Israel was established as a nation May 14, 1948. Add 70 years to that you get May 14, 2018. We just passed that. It didn't all come to an end. I do not believe it will go beyond 80 years. "If by reason of strength."

Jesus said this generation shall not pass till all things be fulfilled. (Matt. 24:34)