The women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. (Matthew 28:8)
We have arrived at Holy Week, and I would like to share three facts with you that come under the heading “Criteria of Authenticity” regarding the resurrection of Jesus Christ. These facts are agreed on by most scholars and historians on both sides of the debate about the historical truth of the Resurrection. The evidence I will present is rooted in the work of Gary Habermas, Michael Licona, and William Lane Craig. These men have established specific facts about the historical Jesus and His resurrection without assuming the divine inspiration of the Gospels. In other words, these three scholars present arguments for the historical truth of the Resurrection that do not leave any room for unbelievers to object, “You’re just saying that because it’s in the Bible, and I don’t believe the Bible is true!”
My focus today will be on what is called “embarrassing evidence” — evidence that is considered by all to be counterproductive to serve as a source of proof for the Resurrection.
The Witness of the Women
To understand the power of this embarrassing piece of evidence, we must journey back in time to the first century. In our contemporary culture, what I am about to say sounds preposterous, but in the ancient world it was a bitter fact of life. Women were widely regarded as second-class citizens; they were thought to be inferior to men and their testimony was considered untrustworthy. They were not allowed to give testimony as public witnesses, but they could testify in domestic and family matters. When large crowds were mentioned, women were never counted among the men. You may recall that in the gospel accounts of the feeding of the 5,000, the story only records the 5,000 men without any mention of women or children, who surely were present. All this to say that if the first-century gospel writers had fabricated the story of the Resurrection and were trying to convince people it was actually true, it is utterly implausible that they would have used women as the first witnesses. They would have cited witness who were considered more trustworthy by the culture of that time.
After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him,’ So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them, “Greetings,” he said. (Matthew 28:1-8)
Why do we read that these “second-class citizens,” who could not give testimony in a court of law, were the first ones to see the risen Jesus? Because it is true! No one would make up a story that would be both embarrassing and counter-productive. In fact, it must have been hard for the gospel writers to write it this way, because when they first heard the report from the women, they themselves didn’t believe! The words of the women “seemed to [the apostles] like nonsense” (Luke 24:11). Surely, the gospel writers would much rather have reported that it was Peter, James, and John who first saw the empty tomb and the risen Lord. This would have been a far more credible statement for the first-century audience to accept. But that would not have been the truth. When we read the gospel accounts, we read exactly what God had planned for providing a powerful proof for the Resurrection in the witness of the women.
A second-century critic of Christianity, the Greek Philosopher Celsus, mocked and ridiculed the witness of the women, stating that Mary Magdalene was a “hysterical female . . . deluded by sorcery.” If you were going to invent the story of the Resurrection to get anyone to believe it, you would never use the witness of the women. But the inspired authors of the gospel accounts were not trying to get people to believe . . . they were simply recounting the facts.
How is it with you? What do you think about the witness of the women as the first ones to see the risen Jesus?
On Wednesday and Friday, we will look at enemy attestation as our second powerful proof of the resurrection.
This is the Gospel. This is grace for your race. NEVER FORGET THAT . . . AMEN!
Grace for the Race 