What If…There Was No Resurrection?
Now Think On This
Steve Martin
“But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain.” (1 Corinthians 15:13-15 NASU)
What if…there was no resurrection, and Jesus’ body decayed in the tomb, just like everyone else who died?
What if, when Miriam came to anoint Yeshua’s body with spices, as was common, that He was still there? And later His bones were found in an ossuary?
What if it really was a hoax, as the Temple priests wanted the world to believe, and the word spread about the disciples hiding His body so they could say that Jesus had been resurrected from the dead, was true?
If it were so, and there was no resurrection on the third day as Jesus had prophesied, then…
…the 12 disciples were complete fools in traveling the world, telling He was alive, and then martyred for nothing.
…Saul from Tarsus saw someone, or something, other than the resurrected Lord, on his way to Damascus to kill believers, and then too was completely mistaken for all his believing years, speaking a false Gospel of hope throughout the Roman Empire.
Years after his encounter of the Lord on that day, he wrote to the Corinthians, describing how not only would their faith be in vain, but “Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we testified against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.” (1 Corinthians 15:15-19, NASU)
If the resurrection were not so, then “we are of all men most to be pitied.”
What if there were no resurrection?
Then all the men and women through the centuries, who perished by sword, fire, rocks, arrows or bullets, who had proclaimed the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, would not be in heaven, but rather now suffer in eternal hell with all the other non-believers through the ages.
If Jesus had not been raised from the dead, what are we doing, looking to salvation from our sins, if the Perfect Sacrifice had not happened? What hope do we ourselves have for eternity?
“But the fact is that the Messiah has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have died. For since death came through a man, also the resurrection of the dead has come through a man.” (1 Corinthians 15:20-22 Complete Jewish Bible)
This had been predicted by the Jewish prophets centuries before, that the Messiah would come, and be the One to fulfill the Hope of Israel.
From Isaiah 53:1-12:
“Who has believed our message?
And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot,
And like a root out of parched ground;
He has no stately form or majesty
That we should look upon Him,
Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.
He was despised and forsaken of men,
A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief;
And like one from whom men hide their face
He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
Surely our griefs He Himself bore,
And our sorrows He carried;
Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten of God, and afflicted.
But He was pierced through for our transgressions,
He was crushed for our iniquities;
The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him,
All of us like sheep have gone astray,
Each of us has turned to his own way;
But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all
To fall on Him.
He was oppressed and He was afflicted,
Yet He did not open His mouth;
Like a lamb that is led to slaughter,
And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers,
So He did not open His mouth.
By oppression and judgment He was taken away;
And as for His generation, who considered
That He was cut off out of the land of the living
For the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due?
His grave was assigned with wicked men,
Yet He was with a rich man in His death,
Because He had done no violence,
Nor was there any deceit in His mouth.
But the Lord was pleased
To crush Him, putting Him to grief;
If He would render Himself as a guilt offering,
He will see His offspring,
He will prolong His days,
And the good pleasure of the Lord will prosper in His hand.
As a result of the anguish of His soul,
He will see it and be satisfied;
By His knowledge the Righteous One,
My Servant, will justify the many,
As He will bear their iniquities.
Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great,
And He will divide the booty with the strong;
Because He poured out Himself to death,
And was numbered with the transgressors;
Yet He Himself bore the sin of many,
And interceded for the transgressors.”
Because His grave is empty and indeed the resurrection did take place, our faith is on solid ground, and will stand come what may. The testimony of millions, from the first century through today, will ever proclaim that Jesus Christ lives and continues to save the hearts and souls of mankind. Your trust in Him is yet another fact that the world can see to believe also.
The “what if” became the “fact is”, with Jesus being the solid rock to stand on. Truth will always win out in the end.
Now think on this,
Steve Martin
Founder
Love For His People, Inc.
P.S. I would be most grateful if you'd share this encouraging word with your family and friends. They might need it. You can easily use the social media icons below. Thanks! Steve
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Now Think On This - In the New Year of our Lord 03.25.16 - #252 –“What If There Was No Resurrection?” – Friday at 4:30 pm
All previous editions of Now Think On This can be found on this Blog, and on the website: Now Think On This
Again, I would be most grateful if you'd share this encouraging word with your family and friends. You can easily use the social media icons below. Thanks! Steve
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