The Jesus Tomb (a.k.a. James and The Giant Fib)
Pop quiz time folks:
What if one day you woke up to glaring and blaring headlines that boldly proclaimed that Jesus’ remains were found … what are you feeling? Who would you call? What would become of your faith?
Well by now you are probably aware that Hollywood Director James Cameron is using his Titanic influence to produce headlines just like the ones we just talked about. His scenario is essentially what’s being called the archaeological find of all time.
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"It doesn't get bigger than this," said Cameron in a statement. "We've done our homework; we've made the case; and now it's time for the debate to begin."
Alright, so let’s begin the debate. If you’ve been keeping up with the overwhelming response from experts not on the Discovery Channel payroll, you’ve notice that all of them have thoroughly exposed this “documentary” as at best a misinterpretation of the evidence, and at worst a money grabbing stunt that’s piggy-backing on the Da Vinci Code juggernaut.
OK, so I guess that’s the end of the debate … but what’s key here is not winning an argument, but rather recognizing an opportunity. A lot of folks expect us to have a holy cow when the foundation of our faith is called into question, and I’m sure there are many moos to come over the next few weeks … but I have a different response:
Reach out, don’t freak out.
Reach out to your friends and neighbors who have never given the substantial evidence for the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ a decent look. Share with them great quotes like this one from Lord Darling, the brilliant Chief Justice of England who said, "No intelligent jury in the world could fail to bring in a verdict that the resurrection story is true."
And beyond that, reach out with the facts that give us the highest hope in the universe that there is more than just this life – but an eternal life to come. What facts? Well, to name a few:
• There was a broken Roman Seal. This meant an investigation, an apprehension and automatic death for whoever did it ... so obviously the Roman soldiers didn't break it. The disciples? Right - they were in hiding.
• There was a huge stone that was moved uphill. We're not talking about a small boulder here. This was a 3,000-4,000 pound massive hunk of mountain that was supposed to stay where they put it. It didn't. So who moved the stone?
• According to followers and enemies of Jesus, there was an empty tomb, and the disciples started preaching about it right away in Jerusalem (where the resurrection happened). They would have been written off as a big joke if the tomb wasn't empty.
• The Roman guard split town. This was a death penalty offense - death by being burned alive, I might add. Why would they do that if they could simply produce the body and get off the hook?
• Jesus stayed in town for 40 days after He rose from the dead. He appeared to more than 500 people in all kinds of places, times and circumstances. When the Gospels were being circulated, many of these people were still alive. If you thought they might be a joke, you could have simply asked the eyewitnesses.
There was another headline 2000 years ago- that Jesus rose from the dead, and no one has disproved it since … isn’t it time we got the real story out?
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Lane Palmer is the Youth Ministries Specialist for Dare 2 Share Ministries in Arvada, Colo., where he works with to provide resources for youth leaders and students. Dare 2 Share exists to energize and equip teens to know, live, share and own their faith in Jesus. For more information on Dare 2 Share Ministries or the GameDay youth conference tour, please visit www.dare2share.org. Send feedback to lane@dare2share.org.
