What Would Convince Me *Not* to Be a Christian?
As the followers of Jesus gather today to celebrate his bodily resurrection, let us remember that our doctrine is not founded upon a legend or “leap of faith” with no evidence. It is founded upon the reality of a personal, all-powerful God; evidence that this God not only promised to do so, but actually raised Jesus from the dead; and the eye-witness testimonies to this resurrection fact.
In other words, if someone were to ask me, “Is there anything that would convince you to leave Christianity?” the answer is Yes. If the bodily resurrection of Jesus were objectively and irrefutably proven *not* to have happened, then I would walk away from Christianity.
If the bones of Jesus of Nazareth are in the ground, then Christianity is utterly and diabolically false. Everything depends upon the facticity of the bodily resurrection of Jesus. As Paul puts it: “For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins” (1 Cor. 15:16-17).
For this reason, the Evangelists and Paul repeatedly affirm that Jesus appeared, physically alive again, to hundreds of his followers. He was seen, he ate, he conversed, he invited Thomas to touch his wounds. As Paul says, “He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me” (1 Corinthians 15:5-8).
These hundreds of historical eye-witnesses, the written testimonies of some of them, their willingness to face even martyrdom before denying it, Paul's revolutionary conversion from persecutor to apostle, and much more, combine to provide more than adequate evidence of the truthfulness of Christianity.
In other words, our faith is not founded upon an ahistorical legend, unprovable myth, or non-evidence-based tale, but on historical, objective, eye-witness accounts of a man who was crucified and bodily, gloriously resurrected.
Bodily crucifixion.
Bodily resurrection.
Hundreds of people who witnessed him alive again.
Written testimonies to this fact.
Today, therefore, as we gather on the Lord’s day, we worship not an idea or legend or fairy tale, but a flesh-and-blood man, who is also fully divine, who was crucified, buried, and bodily raised back to life, who now reigns as King of kings at the right hand of the Father.
And that, my friends, quite literally, makes all the difference in the world.
A blessed Resurrection celebration to you all.