We have a Creator who designed the universe, and a Lawgiver who gave us a moral compass. But does this God interact with us? Did He leave us alone in the dark? The historical reality of Jesus Christ — His claims, His death, and His resurrection — provides the answer.
KEY FINDING
People will die for a lie they think is true, but nobody willingly dies for a lie they know they made up. The disciples knew Jesus had risen — and they died for it.
Jesus claimed to be God, to forgive sins, and to be the judge of humanity. If these claims were false and He knew it, He was a liar. If false but He believed them, He was a lunatic. But if true, He is Lord. You cannot simply call Him a ‘good moral teacher.’ He didn’t leave that option open.
The Empty Tomb: The discovery of Jesus’ empty tomb is a historical fact that requires an explanation. Every alternative theory (stolen body, wrong tomb, swoon theory) has been thoroughly debunked.
Post-Resurrection Appearances: Jesus appeared to over 500 eyewitnesses after His crucifixion — individuals, small groups, and large crowds, over a period of 40 days.
The Transformation of the Disciples: The dramatic change from terrified cowards hiding behind locked doors to bold proclaimers willing to die for their testimony. Something extraordinary happened.
The Chain of Custody: An unbroken chain of information from Jesus to the apostles, to their disciples (Polycarp, Ignatius), ensuring the message we have today is the same one delivered in the first century.
Cold-Case Christianity
Applies cold-case forensic investigation techniques to the Gospels — testing witnesses, examining circumstantial evidence, and building a cumulative case for the resurrection.
"The most reasonable inference from the evidence is that the resurrection actually occurred."
Mere Christianity
Presents the famous ‘Lord, Liar, or Lunatic’ trilemma — Jesus’ claims to divinity force a decision about His identity that cannot be avoided.
"A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell."
The Story of Reality
Places Jesus at the center of the five-act ‘Story of Reality’ (God, Man, Jesus, Cross, Resurrection) as the hero who enters the story to rescue humanity.
"The Story is not so much about God’s plan for your life as it is about your life for God’s plan. Let that sink in. God’s purposes are central."
Lectures & Debates
Contends the resurrection is a well-attested historical event open to investigation, and that Christianity is unique in grounding its central claims in verifiable history.
"Faith is not a leap in the dark; it’s the opposite. It is a commitment based on evidence… It is irrational to reduce all faith to blind faith and then subject it to ridicule."
The resurrection of Jesus is not a matter of blind faith. It is a historical claim that can be examined with the same rigor applied to any event in antiquity — and the evidence is remarkably strong.
Historian Gary Habermas surveyed over 3,400 scholarly works on the resurrection and identified facts accepted by the vast majority of scholars — including skeptics: (1) Jesus died by crucifixion, (2) His disciples genuinely believed He rose and appeared to them, (3) The church persecutor Paul was suddenly converted, (4) The skeptic James, Jesus’ brother, was suddenly converted, and (5) The tomb was empty. These are not Christian assumptions — they are conclusions shared across the scholarly spectrum.
SOURCE: Gary Habermas, The Risen Jesus and Future Hope
Approximately 75% of scholars who have published on the subject — including non-Christians — accept the empty tomb as historical fact. N.T. Wright, one of the world’s leading New Testament historians, concluded that the empty tomb and post-mortem appearances have a historical probability ‘virtually certain, like the death of Augustus in AD 14 or the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70.’ Even the Jewish authorities in the first century never denied the tomb was empty — they instead claimed the body was stolen, inadvertently confirming the empty tomb.
SOURCE: N.T. Wright, The Resurrection of the Son of God