#2- What Happened?

by Jeff Estep

and based on Chapter 8 in Josh McDowell's More Than A Carpenter

    In our last article, we established that Jesus's tomb was empty on the Sunday morning after he was crucified.  This begs the question- What happened?   Why was the tomb empty?  Did Jesus rise from the dead like he said he would, or was the resurrection a fraud?  In this article we will address these questions.

    There are only a few explanations that have been given for the disappearance of Jesus's body.  Among these are:

    These are the only possible explanations for the empty tomb that I know of.  Let us discuss the plausibility of each of these theories.

Stolen Body

    One theory says that the body was stolen by the disciples.  The Roman guards assigned to protect the tomb fell asleep, and the disciples rushed in, moved the incredibly heavy stone (without waking the guards), stole the body, and then preached Jesus' Resurrection.  This theory is deeply flawed.

    To quote Josh McDowell: "The depression and cowardice of the disciples provide a hardhitting argument against their suddenly becoming so brave and daring as to face a detachment of soldiers at the tomb and steal the body.  They were in no mood to attempt anything like that." (2)  The disciples retreated to the upper room after Jesus' death, because they were afraid of the Jews.  It is proposterous to believe that they mustered up the courage to steal the body of Jesus, a man they assumed would never die, and then preach to all of Jerusalem with great joy and confidence that the Christ had risen from the dead.  Furthermore, such an action would go against everything the disciples had taught up to that point, and there is no reason to believe that the disciples were hypocrites. (1)

    Also, it is unwise to assume that the Roman guards fell asleep.   A&E network ran a television show called "Foot Soldiers" a few months back, and I saw an episode about the Roman army.  The Roman army was a disciplined, shape up or ship out kind of an army.  So dedicated to their duty were they, that if a single soldier was even suspected of cowardice in battle, one tenth of his legion was put to death.  Furthermore, falling asleep while on watch was grounds for capital punishment.  So the chances that the soldiers guarding Jesus' tomb were anything but attentive during their watch is slim to none.  All things considered, the theory that the disciples stole the body is a poor one.

    A similar theory to the stolen body is that the Jewish or Roman authorities moved Jesus' body to another location.  This is equally proposterous, because if this was the case the authorities would have simply presented the body, and Christianity would have died before it started. (2)

Wrong Tomb

    Some have argued that the disciples and the women all went to the wrong tomb.  This theory can be quickly disposed of.  If Jesus' followers had went to the wrong tomb, the authorities would have simply went to the right tomb, brought out Jesus' body, and made a fool of the disciples. (2)  The other possibility, of course, is that Jesus was buried in one tomb, and the Roman guard was sent to guard another tomb, which was already empty.  The women also mistakenly went to the wrong tomb, as did the disciples, as did the authorities.  This is extremely unlikely, because the Jewish and Roman authorities took every precaution to make sure that Jesus' ministry died with him.  They would not have allowed such a comedy of errors to take place.  Furthermore, if the tomb was already empty, the stone wouldn't have been rolled over the entrance when the soldiers went to guard it.  Finally, this theory wouldn't explain the stone being moved away from the entrance on Sunday morning or the linens stacked neatly inside the tomb.

Jesus Never Really Died on the Cross

    Another theory is often called the "Swoon Theory".   This theory postulates that Jesus never actually died; he simply passed out because of loss of blood and exhaustion, and then regained his strength, escaped from the tomb, and fooled the disciples into believing he had been resurrected. (2)  This again is a ridiculous claim, as skeptic David Friedrich Strauss said in 1879:

"It is impossible that a being who had stolen half-dead out of the sepulchre (tomb), who crept about weak and ill, wanting medical treatment, who required bandaging, strengthening and indulgence, and who still at last yielded to his sufferings, could have given to the disciples the impression that he was a Conqueror over death and the grave, the Prince of Life, an impression which lay at the bottom of their future ministry.   Such a resuscitation could only have weakened the impression which He had made upon them in life and in death, at the most could only have  given it an elegiac voice, but could by no possibility have changed their sorrow into enthusiasm, have elevated their reverence into worship." (3)

    In addition, consider what happened to Jesus:

    The chances of Jesus surviving all of these things are not at all good.  If Jesus did survive all of this, he would have probably suffocated to death when they wrapped him with the burial cloths, especially if the rags were dipped in embalming fluid, as was often the custom.  Jesus could not have survived, and even if he did, he would not have been able to convince his disciples that he "defeated the grave."

Jesus Rose From the Dead, As He Said He Would

    The only other possibility I can think of is that Jesus Christ, on the Sunday morning after he was crucified, defeated death and was Resurrected to life, just as he predicted he would.  There is incredible historical evidence in support of this.

    Paul said in Romans 6:9- "For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him."  Death can no longer control Jesus, and God has given you the option of following in Jesus' footsteps, of dying to your sin and having eternal life.   Sin leads to death, but faith in Jesus leads to the promise of everlasting communion with the Creator of the universe!  Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."  Which do you prefer?  Death or life?  Jesus proved that death need not be your destiny.  There is one way to eternal life.   Romans 10:9- "That if you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved."  All you have to do is repent of your sins, give Jesus control over your life, and believe.  If Christ is your Savior, you can rest assured that one day, even if you experience physical death, you will be resurrected to eternal life.  God has promised it.

References:

1. J.N.D. Anderson, Christianity: The Witness of History, p.92, as quoted by Josh McDowell, in More Than A Carpenter
2. Josh McDowell, More Than A Carpenter, 1977
3. David Frederick Strauss, The Life of Jesus for the People (London: Williams and Norgate, 1879, 2nd ed.), Vol. 1, p. 412, as quoted by Josh McDowell in More Than A Carpenter