False Theories about the Resurrection

Hello, everyone! It has been two weeks since I posted a new article, but I hope you were able to check out the updated ones in that time period. Yesterday was Easter Sunday as well as April Fool's Day, and my pastor preached about the false theories that surround the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Unfortunately, regardless of the evidence, many people buy into the lies that undermine the resurrection, one of the greatest events in all of history. And even worse, unlike simple pranks, false theories have dire consequences. In this case, the consequence is eternal separation from God as a punishment for sin. Below I will explain five false theories designed to undermine Christ's resurrection and the heart of Easter. I have learned most of the facts from my homeschool textbook, Bible Doctrines.

1. The Theft Theory

This theory was created by the Pharisees in Matthew 28:11-15. The Roman guards who were guarding Jesus' tomb went unconscious after seeing an angel who rolled the stone away from the tomb. The angel did this not to let Jesus out but to let people in. The stone rolled away showed that Jesus had conquered death forever. Because Jesus had already risen from the dead by the time they regained consciousness, they found that his body was gone and that the angel had rolled the stone away.

According to Roman records, if a Roman guard didn't fulfill his duty, he and his comrades would be executed. The Roman guards (and there were sixteen of them) feared for their life so they went to the Pharisees to tell them what had happened. The Pharisees did not want to accept that Jesus was indeed the Messiah and that He had risen just like He said, so they bribed the guards. They gave them some money and told them to repeat what we know as the theft theory. If there were any problems with Pilate, the Roman authority of the area, the Pharisees would deal with it.

The theft theory states that while the Roman guards were sleeping, the disciples came and stole the body. Here are all the problems with that story:

• If the Romans were sleeping, how did they know it was the disciples that stole the body? How did they know that anybody could have stolen the body? You cannot see what is happening around if you are sleeping.
• The Roman guards operated in watches. Two guards would watch the tomb while the other fourteen would rest. If all the guards slept at once, they would be killed.
• The highly trained Roman guards were guarding against a possible resurrection. That was really the only reason they were stationed there. That was their only mission. The Pharisees knew in their heart that the resurrection would happen, and they were afraid the that.
• Why would the Roman guards just all go to sleep on the last day of their job? They only had to watch until the morning. If they took the trouble to watch for the past two days, why would they slack off on the last day when their life was on the line?
• The disciples couldn't imagine Jesus rising from the dead. After Jesus died on the cross, some of the disciples just went back to the occupations that they had before they followed Him. And even after Jesus appeared to all of the disciples except Thomas, Thomas wouldn't believe it was true. They weren't even expecting a resurrection.
• The linens that wrapped Jesus in the tomb were folded neatly. If the disciples stole it, why would they even take the time to neatly fold the linens?
• Lies always come out whether during the same generation or generations later. Nobody ever "slipped up" and said that this was a lie. On the same note, if the resurrection was a lie, why would the disciples die for a lie? There have been many martyrs for Christianity; way more martyrs than any other religion for sure. Most people die for the truth, not for lies.
• The Pharisees made no effort to search for the body. They knew what had happened, but completely the truth still.

2. The Swoon Theory

This theory says that Jesus never died but only became unconscious. The cool air of the tomb or the spices that he was embalmed in or the water droplets on the top of the cave revived him. Again, there are a lot of problems with this theory.

• The Roman soldiers who verified his death were highly trained executioners. They knew when someone was dead or not. They were going to break Jesus' knees in order to hasten his death, but they didn't do that because they knew that He was already dead. Additionally, they drove a spear through His side and water and blood flowed out indicating death. A mistake was impossible.
• Also Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea went to the tomb to embalm Him with spices. They were his followers; they didn't want Him to be dead. If He showed any sign of life, they wouldn't have left Him in the tomb.
• The Pharisees wanted Jesus to be dead so they would have made sure that He was dead. They wouldn't have allowed Him to live accidentally.
• Before Jesus' crucifixion, He stayed awake in the Garden of Gethsemane praying through the night. Then He was mocked and flogged by the Pharisees. Then He was scourged by the Romans. Most crucifixion victims don't even make it past the scourging. Then He was crucified. Nobody makes it past the crucifixion.

3. The Hallucination Theory

This theory says that people loved Jesus so much that they hallucinated that He rose from the dead. Besides the fact that they didn't believe that a resurrection was possible, five hundred people who didn't believe that the resurrection was possible saw Jesus. It sounds even more crazy that five hundred people started hallucinating about Jesus three days after His death and six weeks later the hallucinations stopped.

4. The Wrong Tomb Theory

This theory said that the women went to the wrong tomb and thought that Jesus had risen from the dead. Besides the fact that this doesn't explain how five hundred people saw Jesus, there are many more problems with this theory.

• The women saw Jesus' burial and were more concerned with the heavy stone than the location of the tomb.
• The linen cloths were arranged neatly. Why would someone randomly arrange linen cloths in their tomb for no reason at all.
• The Pharisees wanted Him dead. If He was truly dead, they would have corrected the women. They wouldn't have told a lie to cover up a mistake.
• Joseph of Arimathea owned the tomb. He would have corrected the women. Again, most of Jesus' followers were not expecting a resurrection.

5. The Twin Theory

Oh, boy. This is the sixth grade amateur fantasy writer story. This theory states that Jesus had a long lost identical twin who pretended to be Him after He died. Apparently, this twin didn't appear until after the crucifixion. I heard a story like this once. One teenage writer said that when she was in sixth grade, she wrote a story with three sets of long lost twins. Any young writer knows that the "convenient long-lost twin" is a very hard cliché to stay away from. Yes, my novel may or may not have a set of long lost twins.

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Here is some additional proof: most people view Jesus as a good teacher. How could they believe that He is a good person if they believe that He would let His disciples spread such a large lie as the resurrection. You can't believe both at the same time.

If one doesn't believe the resurrection, one also wouldn't believe the ascension. Where and when then Jesus die then? These theories result in myriads of other "miracles." It is more likely that one miracle took place instead of the myriads of absurd notions that people have tried to make.

In the next article, I will write a sequel and explain how any of this matters to us. But in a preview, the quote for this week is a paraphrase of something my pastor said in service. I don't trust to remember the quote exactly. Quotes are my brother's thing. Paraphrase: If the resurrection is true, nothing else matters; if the resurrection is not true, nothing much matters.

Have a great week and think about the evidence above. If you don't believe in the resurrection or the Bible as a whole, let me ask you a question. What evidence is there to oppose to the Bible? There is nothing that can prove that the Bible is not true. If you have any questions, comment below. Signing off for now!