Remembering the Resurrection 1 Corinthians 15 14 19

Remembering the Resurrection 1 Corinthians 15: 14 -19 “ 14 And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. 15 More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. 19 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. ”

Remembering the Resurrection 1 Cor. 15: 1 -8 – The Kerygma (~31 AD) 1 Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. 3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. 6 After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8 and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born. ”

Remembering the Resurrection What witnesses are listed in the Kerygma? - Cephas - The Twelve - The 500 - James - All the apostles - Paul

Remembering the Resurrection What facts are claimed in the Kerygma? 1) Jesus he was killed 2) That he was buried 3) That he was resurrected from the dead, 4) There were a number of witnesses of his resurrection.

Remembering the Resurrection The Minimum Facts Argument 1. Jesus died by crucifixion under Pontius Pilate. 2. He had an honorable burial. 3. His death caused the disciples to despair and lose hope. 4. The tomb was empty. 5. The disciples and doubters had experiences which they believed were physical appearances of the risen Jesus. - James was converted to the faith when he saw the resurrected Jesus (James was a family skeptic). - Paul was converted to the faith (Paul was an outsider skeptic). 6. The disciples were willing to go to their deaths proclaiming the resurrection of Jesus. 7. The resurrection was the central message. 8. They preached the message of Jesus’ resurrection in Jerusalem. 9. Orthodox Jews who believed in Christ made Sunday their primary day of worship.

Remembering the Resurrection Fact #1: Jesus died by crucifixion under Pontius Pilate.

Remembering the Resurrection 1 Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged. 2 The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They clothed him in a purple robe 3 and went up to him again and again, saying, “Hail, king of the Jews!” And they slapped him in the face. 17 Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). 18 There they crucified him, and with him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle. 19 Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS. - John 19: 1 -2, 17 -19

Recording the Crucifixion Tacitus on the Fire of Rome, 64 AD: “Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome. . . ” Josephus’ Antiquities, 94 AD: “At this time there was a wise man who was called Jesus, and his conduct was good, and he was known to be virtuous. And many people from among the Jews and other nations become his disciples. Pilate condemned him to be crucified and to die. ” John Dominic Crossan, Jesus: A Revolutionary Biography (1994): “That [Jesus] was crucified is as sure as anything historical can be. . . ”

Remembering the Resurrection Fact #2: Jesus’ tomb was found empty a few days after his execution/burial

Remembering the Resurrection 1 Very early in the morning on the first day of the week, the women went to the tomb, bringing the fragrant spices they had prepared. 2 They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they went in, they didn’t find the body of the Lord Jesus. - Luke 24: 1 -3

On the Empty Tomb Geza Vermes, Jesus the Jew : “When every argument has been considered and weighed, the only conclusion acceptable to the historian must be that. . . the women who set out to pay their last respects to Jesus found to their consternation, not a body, but an empty tomb. ” Jacob Kremer, Die Osterevangelien-Geschichten um Geschichte : “By far most exegetes hold firmly to the reliability of the biblical statements concerning the empty tomb. ” D. H. Van Daalen, The Real Resurrection : “It is extremely difficult to object to the fact of the empty tomb on historical grounds; most objectors do so on the basis of theological or philosophical assumptions. ”

The Nazareth Inscription (~41 AD) 1. EDICT OF CAESAR 2. It is my decision [concerning] graves and tombs—whoever has made 3. them for the religious observances of parents, or children, or household 4. members—that these remain undisturbed forever. But if anyone legally 5. charges that another person has destroyed, or has in any manner extracted 6. those who have been buried, or has moved with wicked intent those who 7. have been buried to other places, committing a crime against them, or has 8. moved sepulcher-sealing stones, against such a person I order that a 9. judicial tribunal be created, just as [is done] concerning the gods in 10. human religious observances, even more so will it be obligatory to treat 11. with honor those who have been entombed. You are absolutely not to 12. allow anyone to move [those who have been entombed]. But if 13. [someone does], I wish that [violator] to suffer capital punishment under 14. the title of tomb-breaker.

Remembering the Resurrection Fact #3: The disciples and doubters had experiences which they believed were physical appearances of the risen Jesus.

Remembering the Resurrection Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born. ” - 1 Corinthians 15: 8

Disciples and Doubters Concerning the disciples – Gerd Lüdemann, What Really Happened to Jesus? : “It may be taken as historically certain that Peter and the disciples had experiences after Jesus’ death in which Jesus appeared to them as the risen Christ. ” Concerning doubters > James was converted to the faith when he saw the resurrected Jesus (James was a family skeptic) > Paul was also converted to the faith after seeing the resurrected Jesus (Paul was an outsider skeptic) (Lüdemann refers to James’ sighting as “certain” and spends much of his time analyzing Paul’s encounter, assuming it to be true)

Remembering the Resurrection Fact #4: The disciples were willing to go to their deaths proclaiming the resurrection of Jesus.

Remembering the Resurrection 13 Then Paul answered, “Why are you weeping and breaking my heart? I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. ” - Acts 21: 13 Let us take the noble examples of our own generation. Through jealousy and envy the greatest and most just pillars of the Church were persecuted, and came even unto death… Peter, through unjust envy, endured not one or two but many labours, and at last, having delivered his testimony, departed unto the place of glory due to him. ” - Clement of Rome, Letter to the Corinthians (90 AD)

Willing to Go to the Grave > There is solid historical tradition for the martyrdom of Peter, Paul, and James (the brother of John) Mike Licona, The Resurrection of Jesus: A New Historiographical Approach : “After Jesus’ death, the disciples endured persecution, and a number of them experienced martyrdom. The strength of their conviction indicates that they were not just claiming Jesus had appeared to them after rising from the dead. They really believed it. They willingly endangered themselves by publicly proclaiming the risen Christ. ” Pinchas Lapide, The Resurrection of Jesus: A Jewish Perspective : “If the defeated and depressed group of disciples overnight could change into a victorious movement of faith, based only on autosuggestion or self-deception—without a fundamental faith experience—then this would be a much greater miracle than the resurrection itself. ”

Remembering the Resurrection The Minimum Facts Argument 1. Jesus died by crucifixion under Pontius Pilate. 2. He had an honorable burial. 3. His death caused the disciples to despair and lose hope. 4. The tomb was empty. 5. The disciples and doubters had experiences which they believed were physical appearances of the risen Jesus. - James was converted to the faith when he saw the resurrected Jesus (James was a family skeptic). - Paul was converted to the faith (Paul was an outsider skeptic). 6. The disciples were willing to go to their deaths proclaiming the resurrection of Jesus. 7. The resurrection was the central message. 8. They preached the message of Jesus’ resurrection in Jerusalem. 9. Orthodox Jews who believed in Christ made Sunday their primary day of worship.

Remembering the Resurrection 1 Cor. 15: 20 -24 20 But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. 22 For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. 23 But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. 24 Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power.