On Sunday I said, “People don’t risk their life for a lie.” People may lie to save their life but that is a different issue. It makes no sense to me that the women who went to anoint (embalm) Jesus’ dead body would lie to the disciples. It makes less sense that the disciples would perpetuate that lie to others. 

They already knew the power of the Jewish Council (Sanhedrin) and the Roman authority. After all they had Jesus killed. If they could proverbially cut the head off this movement, they could easily arrest and kill any of Jesus’ followers. 

What benefit would the disciples receive in claiming that Jesus rose from the dead if he did not? You don’t put your life at risk to “save face.” No, you cut your losses and lay low. 

Besides, Christianity should have died out if Jesus didn’t rise from the dead. 

Maybe the gospel writers (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) picked up this story about Jesus and gave it an embellished ending (resurrection)? Unlikely. Scholars are confident that all four stories of Jesus found in the Bible were written within the first 65 years of his crucifixion. Not a tall tale that grew taller on down the line. They relayed what they had heard from others or saw with their own eyes.

Speaking of the four gospels, they roughly tell the same story. Jesus was buried in a tomb after his crucifixion and early on a Sunday morning several women came to anoint his body one final time. The tomb was open and Jesus body was missing. An angel or messenger of God told the women that “Jesus is risen”. Depending upon which version you read, Jesus either first appears to one of the women or some combination of the disciples before spending time with all the disciples.

The simple fact is this: Jesus rose from the dead. 

It doesn’t make sense. It defies logic and it even defies science… but it happened. There is no way to explain the disciples sudden change. They went from terrified to boldly proclaiming that Jesus is alive! As I said earlier, no one risks their life for a lie and they definitely put their lives at risk. All the remaining disciples except for John were martyred (killed) for proclaiming “Christ is risen!” 

They no longer feared death because they knew they followed someone who was stronger than death. They fully believed that Jesus defeated death and that there was something more beyond this life… and there is. 

The disciples didn’tbelieve they couldn’t be killed. They clearly knew they were still in grave danger. It’s just that it didn’t matter anymore. 

Jesus changed their life and their death. 

The resurrection is not a fairy tale or a myth. Christ is risen and our future is secure. 

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39 NLT

… because Christ lives!

God bless you,
Pr. Ben