4.24 Accusation: Resurrection proves nothing

Published by 1c15 on 5th December 20195th December 2019

When such a complaint is raised as a rebuttal, it means that the sceptic is rather frustrated with their lack of choices and has no opposing theory he can go to.  This objection doesn’t even challenge the resurrection, it questions the resurrector! So, is there any reason to believe anyone other than God raised Jesus from the dead? Well, no one of value has claimed responsibility and there is no evidence that anyone else did raise him. We have Jesus’ claim that his resurrection would be the clear cut evidence of his divine authority, one many could not comprehend at the time. We do have claims from eyewitnesses who were taught by the risen Jesus and claimed God raised him. These individuals were in a position to identify the cause of his resurrection (primary witnesses). Unless the sceptic can produce a stronger data case in support for another cause, the most logical and rational explanation is that God raised Jesus from the dead.

Another angle is the scientific angle, was Jesus’ resurrection natural or supernatural? From what we know of 21st century science, the natural method is not applicable. The decomposition of cells of a deceased person are not going to regenerate themselves back to life as we know it. So just as it is unlikely that science will overturn the law of gravity, it seems even more improbable that a natural cause will one day explain the return of Jesus to life.

So based on the information we know, that Jesus claimed to be divine, and those who saw him after he had been raised, claimed God had raised him from the dead, a supernatural God as the cause of Jesus’ resurrection is the most plausible explanation for it.

Can the historian establish that Jesus was raised from the dead?

Yes they can, but they cannot conclude from historical enquiry alone that God raised Jesus from the dead. This does not mean we’re not allowed to conclude God raised Jesus from the dead, it is simply to admit that historical enquiry alone cannot address questions of the cause of Jesus’ resurrection (like how hard science can’t measure love on a Geiger counter), it can only address whether the event occured like; the prediction of a resurrection; Miracles & Fulfillment of prophecy.  

Historical enquiries limitations do not stop us from concluding that God raised Jesus from the dead. This is far better than ascribing to a theory that lacks data and grounding. This combination of an extraordinary life, extraordinary claims and an extraordinary event composed the earliest christian proclamation, it was no later invention, we know this. The resurrection confirmed the christian message from God

Structured response

1. A sign of a sceptics frustration
2. No one else credible claimed they raised Jesus
3. Jesus said he would rise from the dead 
4. Never claimed science raised Jesus from the dead. His resurrection was by God

Sources on ‘resurrection proves nothing’

• Jesus made the claim — Matthew 12: 38–42; 16: 4; John 2: 18–21; cf. 10: 18.
• Claims of those taught by the risen Jesus — Acts 2: 24, 32; 3: 15, 26; 4: 10; 10: 40; 13: 30–31; 17: 31; 1 Corinthians 6: 14; 15: 15.
• Historical method — Gary R. Habermas, The Historical Jesus, 60–61 and Appendix 1 : “Historiography.”
• God not raising a heretic but only Jesus — For an examination of this comment, see Habermas, “Resurrection Claims in Non-Christian Religions,” Journal of Religious Studies 25 (1989): 167–77.