The resurrection of Jesus Christ is crucially important for Christianity for three key reasons: 1) It validates Jesus' identity as the Son of God and his sacrificial death on the cross for humanity's sins. Without the resurrection, Christianity has no foundation. 2) Multiple historical evidences point to the resurrection actually occurring, including Jesus' burial in a known location, the empty tomb discovered by women before the disciples, and numerous reported appearances of the risen Jesus to individuals and groups. 3) The lives and martyrdoms of Jesus' disciples, who went from fearful men to bold proclaimers of the gospel despite facing severe persecution, can only reasonably be explained by them experiencing the risen

1. The
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4. Why is the
Today’s Question:
Resurrection
so important?

5. Why is the
Resurrection
so important?
1 Corinthians 15:12-19
Today’s Question:

6. No resurrection =
No Christianity.

7. "And if Christ has not been
raised, your faith is futile and
you are still in your sins."
(1 Corinthians 15:17)

8. The resurrection is
the centerpiece
of Christianity.

9. actually happened?
that it
How do we know

10. 4-Part Argument:
Method
B D.E.A. .

11. B
D
E
A
urial
ppearances of Jesus
mptyTomb
isciples’ Lives & Deaths

12. Burial

13. Burial
"For I delivered to you as of first importance what I
also received: that Christ died for our sins in
accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried,
that he was raised on the third day in accordance with
the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then
to the twelve." (1 Corinthians 15:3–5)

14. a) The location of Jesus’ tomb
was public and could be
investigated by anyone
Burial

15. b) Joseph of Arimathea was a
member of the group that got
Jesus executed
Burial

16. I know I just blew up your planet…
Would you like to use my house for a memorial?
Sure, that
would be
lovely!

17. “Christians inventing Joseph (a member of the court
that condemned Jesus) is highly unlikely. Why would
early Christians make a hero of a member of the very
court that was responsible for Jesus’ death?”
- Josh McDowell
Burial

18. a. Tomb Location was known
b. Joseph of Arimathea
unlikely made-up hero
Burial

19. B
E
urial
mptyTomb

20. EmptyTomb
a) The apostles preached the
resurrection soon after the
crucifixion in Jerusalem

21. EmptyTomb
“It is highly probable that the resurrection was
preached in Jerusalem weeks after the crucifixion. If
the tomb had not been empty, such preaching could
never have occurred” - J.P. Moreland

22. EmptyTomb
b) Women found the tomb
before the disciples

23. EmptyTomb
a) The apostles’ early preaching
in Jerusalem
b) Women found the tomb
empty before the disciples

24. B
E
A
urial
mptyTomb
ppearances of Jesus

25. a) The there are mutiple, separate
reports of people seeing Jesus
alive after being crucified.
Appearances of Jesus

26. "For I delivered to you as of first importance what I
also received: that Christ died for our sins in
accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried,
that he was raised on the third day in accordance with
the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then
to the twelve." (1 Corinthians 15:3–5)
Appearances of Jesus

27. "For I delivered to you as of first importance what I
also received: that Christ died for our sins in
accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried,
that he was raised on the third day in accordance with
the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then
to the twelve." (1 Corinthians 15:3–5)
Appearances of Jesus

28. "Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers
at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some
have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to
all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born,
he appeared also to me." (1 Corinthians 15:6–8)
Appearances of Jesus

29. a) The there are mutiple, separate
reports of people seeing Jesus
alive after being crucified.
Appearances of Jesus

30. Appearances of Jesus
“Those Jews who believed in the afterlife believed in a
general resurrection for all people at the end of
history. Therefore Jesus’ resurrection differed from
the prevailing view in two ways:

31. Appearances of Jesus
1) It happened in history, not at the end of history
and 2) It happened to one individual and not the
whole human race.”
- Doug Groothuis

32. b) Belief about resurrection was
‘future and everybody’, not
‘now and individual’.
Appearances of Jesus

33. a) Separate, verifiable reports
b) An uncommon view of
resurrection
Appearances of Jesus

34. B
D
E
A
urial
mptyTomb
ppearances of Jesus
isciples’ Lives & Deaths

35. Disciples’ Lives & Deaths
“The radically changed lives of those early Christian
believers are among the most telling testimonies to the fact
of the resurrection. One of the most dramatic changes was
their willingness to go everywhere proclaiming the
message of the risen Christ.

36. Disciples’ Lives & Deaths
We must ask, what could have motivated such a change?
Had there been visible benefits accruing to them from their
efforts (such as prestige, wealth or increased social status)
we might logically account for their actions.

37. Disciples’ Lives & Deaths
As a reward, however, for their wholehearted and total
allegiance to this risen Christ, these early Christians were
beaten, stoned to death, thrown to the lions, tortured,
crucified and subjected to every conceivable method of
stopping them from talking.

38. Disciples’ Lives & Deaths
Yet they were the most peaceful of men and women, who
continually demonstrated love and never forced their
beliefs on anyone. Rather they laid down their very lives as
the ultimate proof of their complete confidence in the truth
of their message.” - Josh & Sean McDowell

39. Disciples’ Lives & Deaths
“The "cruncher" in this argument is the historical fact that
no one, weak or strong, saint or sinner, Christian or
heretic, ever confessed, freely or under pressure, bribe or
even torture, that the whole story of the resurrection was a
fake a lie, a deliberate deception.

40. Disciples’ Lives & Deaths
Even when people broke under torture, denied Christ and
worshiped Caesar, they never let that cat out of the bag,
never revealed that the resurrection was their conspiracy.

41. Disciples’ Lives & Deaths
For that cat was never in that bag. No Christians believed
the resurrection was a conspiracy, if they had, they
wouldn't have become Christians.” - Peter Kreeft

42. Disciples’ Lives & Deaths
a) From scared fisherman to bold
martyrs
b) No record of anyone saying
the resurrection was a hoax

43. B
D
E
A
urial
ppearances of Jesus
mptyTomb
isciples’ Lives & Deaths

44. Why is the
Today’s Question:
Resurrection
so important
for us today?

45. Bristle Cone Pine
5,067 years old
Mayfly
1-3 hours old

46. 1 Corinthians 15:51-55
“Death doesn’t result in our elimination but
our transformation.”