Core Beliefs 3: The Resurrection
Seeing Is Believing
Christians believe some weird and wacky things. There’s that one we go on about at Easter about the man who died, was buried, and the three days later was alive again and talking to his friends. You might say, “I won’t believe that unless I can see it with my own eyes.” Unfortunately, we can’t see it because it supposedly happened around two thousand years ago. And even if we were there, what our eyes tell us is not entirely reliable.
The problem is perception. Eyewitness testimony has played a central role in our court system leading to both convictions and acquittals for many years. However, the rise of DNA profiling has highlighted the limitations of eyewitness testimony which can lead to the misidentification of offenders and the conviction of innocent people. The thing is, so many variables affect our perception of an event - lighting, distance, duration, distracting stimuli, and the state of mind of the observer - that two people witnessing the same event can sincerely believe that they saw two quite different things. How do we get around that? The answer is multiple witnesses and consistency in their descriptions. The more eyewitnesses we have of an event and the more consistent their accounts of that event, the greater confidence we can have that what they saw was true. Seeing is only believing if lots of people see the same thing.
Here’s what the bible says about Jesus rising from the dead. “He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living… Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born” (1 Corinthians 15:5-8). Lots of independent people saw the same thing. That gives this event credibility.
And if it’s true, the implications are enormous. Jesus has defeated death, so when he says of those who believe in him, “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish” (John 10:28), he actually has the power to do just that. That alone makes Jesus someone worth investigating further.
Neil Percival
Christians believe some weird and wacky things. There’s that one we go on about at Easter about the man who died, was buried, and the three days later was alive again and talking to his friends. You might say, “I won’t believe that unless I can see it with my own eyes.” Unfortunately, we can’t see it because it supposedly happened around two thousand years ago. And even if we were there, what our eyes tell us is not entirely reliable.
The problem is perception. Eyewitness testimony has played a central role in our court system leading to both convictions and acquittals for many years. However, the rise of DNA profiling has highlighted the limitations of eyewitness testimony which can lead to the misidentification of offenders and the conviction of innocent people. The thing is, so many variables affect our perception of an event - lighting, distance, duration, distracting stimuli, and the state of mind of the observer - that two people witnessing the same event can sincerely believe that they saw two quite different things. How do we get around that? The answer is multiple witnesses and consistency in their descriptions. The more eyewitnesses we have of an event and the more consistent their accounts of that event, the greater confidence we can have that what they saw was true. Seeing is only believing if lots of people see the same thing.
Here’s what the bible says about Jesus rising from the dead. “He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living… Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born” (1 Corinthians 15:5-8). Lots of independent people saw the same thing. That gives this event credibility.
And if it’s true, the implications are enormous. Jesus has defeated death, so when he says of those who believe in him, “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish” (John 10:28), he actually has the power to do just that. That alone makes Jesus someone worth investigating further.
Neil Percival