The New Testament tells us that Jesus was fully man as well as fully God. This “incarnation” of God is a mystery, but is clearly taught throughout Scripture. As Paul tells us in Philippians 2:5-9, Jesus had “stripped himself of all privilege by…being born as a mortal man.” God didn’t die on the cross, since that is impossible. It was Jesus the mortal man who suffered and died on the cross for our sins. [Read more…]
If Jesus Is God, Why Did He Cry Out on the Cross “My God, My God, Why Have You Forsaken Me?”
The Old Testament had foretold that God would come to earth as a child to be our Savior and Lord (Isaiah 9:6). It also foretold that this Savior, or Messiah, would suffer horribly as he took upon himself the sins of the world. So in some miraculous way, the Messiah would be both God and man. Several prophecies foretold that his suffering would be almost unbearable. Jesus claimed that he was that Messiah. [Read more…]
Was Jesus Actually Dead?
“Marley was deader than a doornail, of that there was no doubt.” So begins Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol, the author not wanting anyone to be mistaken as to the supernatural character of what is soon to take place. In the same way, before we take on the role of CSI (crime scene investigator) and piece together evidence for a resurrection, we must first establish that there was, in fact, a corpse. After all, occasionally the newspapers will report on some “corpse” in a morgue who was found stirring and recovered. Could something like that have happened with Jesus? [Read more…]
Have Nails From Jesus’ Crucifixion Been Discovered?
Just before Easter, Simcha Jacobovici (the “Naked Archaeologist”) produced a TV show on the History Channel about two iron nails that he believes could be from Jesus’ crucifixion. His show, “The Nails of the Cross” airs on April 20th.
Jacobovici is the same TV journalist who narrated a Discovery Channel TV special on “The Jesus Family Tomb” in 2007. In that documentary, which also aired just prior to Easter, Jacobovici speculated Jesus Christ’s final resting place had been discovered. Such a discovery, if true, would have undermined the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ resurrection.
Did Jesus Really Rise From The Dead?
The greatest question of our time is “Who is the real Jesus Christ?” Was he just an exceptional man, or was he God in the flesh, as Paul, John, and his other disciples believed? (See “Is Jesus God?“)
The eyewitnesses to Jesus Christ actually spoke and acted like they believed he physically rose from the dead after his crucifixion. If they were wrong then Christianity has been founded upon a lie. But if they were right, such a miracle would substantiate all Jesus said about God, himself, and us.
But must we take the resurrection of Jesus Christ by faith alone, or is there solid historical evidence? Several skeptics began investigations into the historical record to prove the resurrection account false. What did they discover?