Resurrection Resources

This Sunday is Easter Sunday, which means there will be Easter egg hunts, pastel colors, special lunches and dinners, fuller churches, and lots, lots, lots of popular media articles trying to claim that the resurrection of Jesus never happened and possibly even saying something like "there is no historical evidence for it" or some thing like that. Well, since Paul says in 1 Co. 15:14, "If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain," this is an important subject.

Well, to cut to the chase, the resurrection did happen, there is ample historical evidence for it, and there is good reason to believe in it. Now, since so much good stuff has been written on this subject, I do not feel the need to repeat that process. Instead, here is a short list of some great resources for defending the validity and historicity of the resurrection:

• The Resurrection of Jesus: A New Historiographical Approach -- This is one of the most scholarly works on the resurrection of Jesus, and even though it is expensive and big, it is worth your money and time. It does have a few issues with it (a few of which are discussed here at a roundtable with the author a few other NT scholars), but overall it is quite good. 
• Challenge: We Can't Know Jesus Rose from the Dead -- This is a quick video interview with Mike Licona (the author of the above book), highlighting the major historical points that show us that we can know that Jesus rose from the dead. 
• Impact 360 Video: Did Jesus Rise from the Dead? -- This is a great, short video explaining the major pieces of evidence for the resurrection, and it even addresses the objection: "Science has disproved the resurrection." 
• The Resurrection wad a Real Event in History -- This is an article laying out some of the major evidences for the resurrection. It also briefly counters some of the attempts to offer a "natural" explanation. 
• 4 Reasons to Believe in the Empty Tomb -- This one is not about the resurrection, per se, but it is about why we can believe that Jesus' tomb was empty on that Sunday morning after His crucifixion and why that historical evidence demands an explanation that all other attempts fail to supply.
• Five Strands of Evidence for Jesus Christ’s Resurrection -- Here is another article briefly summarizing the evidence for the resurrection. 
• Jesus’ Family and the Resurrection -- This one looks at James' change of heart in particular and how the best explanation for that is the resurrection. 
• An Elephant in the Resurrection Skeptic’s Room -- This one looks a different line of argumentation: answering a challenge that the disciples were uneducated, so we should not trust their accounts of the resurrection. 
• Addressing Resurrection Alternatives -- This is a six-part series addressing the attempts to explain away the resurrection (part one, part two, part three, part four, part five, part six).
• The Resurrection: Christianity’s Most Dangerous Idea -- This one is not so much an apologetic article but one that talks about why the resurrection is such a dangerous idea to those looking upon the Christian faith with disbelief. 
• Was Jesus Still God in the Tomb? -- Again, not an apologetic article, but it is an important question that Christians should be able to answer. 

If you are a Christian, I hope these help boost your confidence in your Savior and standing before God in Him. If you are not a Christian, I pray these resources will challenge your preconceptions about the Bible and history and lead you to a saving faith in Christ.

By His Grace,
Taylor