Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.
A logical error made by Carl Sagan. Extraordinary claims require compelling evidence…same as ordinary claims.
There were a lot of people name Yeshua around back then and there were also many apocalyptic cults around then as well. The only source of the events come some 30+ years after the supposed time.
Which is stunning in and of itself since we have nothing like this for other people of antiquity.
However, Paul provides very strong evidence for the resurrection claims of the original apostles. He claimed for himself the authority of an apostle, and this claim was supported by a number of Apostolic Fathers shortly after the completion of the New Testament—two of whom probably were themselves disciples of the apostles. Paul knew several of the apostles personally including Peter, James and John. He played a major role in the Council of Jerusalem in AD 49 (cf. Acts 15). As a result of Paul’s personal knowledge of the apostles, what he has to say about the beliefs of the other apostles is important.
In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul writes:
15 Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.
3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. 6 After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8 and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.
There are two important phrases in this passage which must be highlighted. First, notice that Paul says clearly “that Christ died…that he was buried…that he was raised on the third day”. This is unquestionable evidence of the belief of the resurrection of Jesus. However, it is the second point that ties this belief directly to the Apostles: Paul writes, “For what I received, I passed on to you…”.
Paul tells us that what he is about to say is something that he himself had “received” from others. Who were they? And when did he receive it? Paul learned the details contained in 1 Co. 15:1-8 from the apostles themselves during his visit to Jerusalem after his conversion. Thus, Paul is telling us of the core belief of the apostles that Jesus rose from the dead.
At this point, the skeptic may object that this is using the Bible to prove the Bible. This objection will not stand. The minimal facts approach does not rely on the inspiration of scripture nor on the general reliability of the New Testament. Instead, the New Testament is viewed for what it is: an ancient volume of literature containing 27 separate books by multiple, independent authors written over a period of roughly 50 years. From this volume, only those facts were are accepted by a majority of scholars – including the skeptical ones – are taken into consideration. Paul is one of those independent sources, and he confirms that the apostles claimed that Jesus rose from the dead. If Paul did indeed receive this from the apostles during his first visit to Jerusalem after his conversion, then he may have heard the resurrection of Christ preached as early as five years after the resurrection took place. This leaves those skeptics who argue for the embellishment of the “legend” or “story” of Jesus with a very small window in which that embellishment could have taken place!
See the story makes it seem that this one guy was paraded around to his execution, let us use some common sense. This type of execution was common place so making a big deal over one person is a little much to swallow. Since none of the Gospels are eye witness accounts we don’t know if this man did sweat blood. A lot can be exaggerated to help give a person abilities they do not have.
ALL of the gospels are eyewitness accounts, and the important matter of “enemy attestation” adds to their credibility. The Jews themselves claimed that Jesus’ disciples stole the body.
IOW, they admit the tomb was empty!
