Is Any of This Real?
Have you ever woke up in the middle of the night, staring into the darkness, and wondering…"What if, after I die, that’s it? There is nothing else!"
Then fear started seizing you for a moment...
No matter who you are, there are times when everyone wrestles with doubt.
Did Jesus really rise from the dead? How do we know that a man named Jesus actually died and came back from the dead 2,000 years ago? This is not a matter of some idle curiosity. This is hugely important for every one of us. This is the very heart of Christianity. If there is no resurrection, there is no Christianity.
1 Corinthians 15:17, "If Christ did not rise, your faith is futile and your sins have never been forgiven."
The Guinness Book of World Records lists Sir Lionel Luckhoo as the most successful lawyer in history. He was a defense attorney who won 245 murder trials in a row. Luckhoo was a brilliant lawyer who understood what evidence is all about--reliable, powerful, convincing evidence.
He was knighted twice by queen Elizabeth, and he became a noted diplomat as well as a member of the highest court in his country. Wouldn’t it be great if we could get his legal opinion of the resurrection?
We can! Luckhoo was challenged to study the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ and come to a conclusion. He spent several years studying the historical record. One sentence of his conclusion says, "I say unequivocally that the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ is so overwhelming -- that it compels acceptance -- by proof which leaves absolutely no room for doubt."
This is the opinion of the most successful lawyer of all times, and is also the opinion of the early disciples. After Jesus’ resurrection, the disciples boldly proclaimed that Jesus was alive. They did this at great personal risk to themselves. All but John were put to death, proclaiming that Jesus had risen from the dead.
Religious fanatics have died for their faith all through history. The terrorists who crashed into the World Trade Center believed they were going to paradise for becoming a martyr.
People are willing to die for their religious beliefs, if they sincerely believe they are true. No one will die for a faith that they know is false. If Jesus' followers knew they were spreading a lie, they would never have died for it.
After carefully considering the claims of Christ, I too have concluded that Jesus is who He claimed to be; He is the Son of God. If you will be intellectually honest and ask God to help you know the truth, He will lead you in your pursuit. Ultimately, each us must answer the question, "Is any of this real?"