Why I Can Believe the Resurrection of Jesus

By: Edward Cortez

He is not here: for he is risen!” (Matthew 28:6). The centerpiece of Christianity is the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Take the resurrection away and the whole structure of the Christian faith crumbles. No other religion has made any claim that its founder rose again after death, only in the Christian faith. Why should we believe the resurrection?

The empty tomb. I had been to Israel and went inside what is believed to be the site of the burial of Jesus. It was empty then; it is still empty today. The empty tomb testifies to the glorious resurrection of Jesus some 2,000 years ago.

The eyewitnesses account. The apostle Paul writes, “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to Scriptures, and then he appeared to Cephas, and then to the twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time…then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also…” (1 Corinthians 15:3-8). More than 500 people. That’s a compelling witness from so many people!

The evidentiary boldness of the apostles. When faced with martyrdom or death, rarely will a person die for a lie. It was evident that all the apostles became even bolder and courageous in their faith and proclamation of the gospel after the resurrection even in the most intense persecutions under Nero and other tyrants. Why would they gamble their lives away and willingly die if the resurrection was just a mere lie? No. They embraced and fully believed the resurrection. It was what gave them power to be bold and overcome all persecutions and oppositions. The early Christians were bound, beaten, burned, and fed to the lions. But because of their unflinching belief that Jesus is alive, they endured and gave their lives for him.

The establishment of Sunday, the first day of the week, as the day of worship designated by the early Christians and fathers of the faith. This was a monumental shift. The early, post-resurrection believers chose Sunday to gather to commemorate the resurrection of Jesus which took place on the first Sunday of the week. They did not gather on a Saturday, the day of Sabbath, but on Sunday, the day of the greatest event that took place in the universe! Acts 20:7 states, “And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached to them…” Today, billions worship on Sunday.

The extraordinary change in people’s lives. Countless millions of people the world over have encountered the risen Christ, and their lives are never the same again. You cannot have an encounter with the resurrected Christ and still be the same person. The risen Christ has changed me, and I have experienced him firsthand in my life. Christianity is more than a religion; it is a personal encounter with the resurrected Christ that brings spiritual transformation. The risen One alone has the authority and power to say, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live” (John 11:25).