The story of a hoax – is a hoax.
Let me explain. But first, this …
The poem titled One Solitary Life is about Jesus. Its final lines read that Jesus is –
… the central figure of the human race, and the Leader of mankind’s progress. All the armies that ever marched, all the navies that ever sailed, all the parliaments that ever sat, all the kings that ever reigned, put together have not affected the life of man on Earth as much as that One Solitary Life.
Jesus is the most influential Man of all time. He is the most admired, the most believable, the most trusted Man of all time. You can make mention of the Buddha, you can speak of Mohammed, you can point to Moses, but none of these men have affected the life of Man on Earth more than Jesus Christ.
Yet, this most influential Man of all time made the most outrageous claim of all time. He predicted His resurrection from the dead.
- The most trusted man of all time predicted the most controversial event of all time
- The most credible Man of all time predicted the most incredible event of all time
- The most believable Man of all time predicted the most unbelievable event of all time
- The sanest Man of all time predicted the most insane event of all time
- The one easiest to believe spoke of that which is the hardest to believe
But what if He was mistaken about His resurrection or what if it was a hoax? How could the most honorable Man of history be so honored if He has deceived billions of people into thinking the most preposterous thing and given them false hope?
The most credible Man of all time loses all credibility if the resurrection isn’t a reality. If you dismiss the resurrection, you have to dismiss Jesus. How can someone maintain an affection and admiration for Jesus and yet dismiss His claims for the resurrection? If the resurrection did not occur, He is a crank, a deceiver, or delusional. If the resurrection isn’t real, Jesus can be likened to a slick, charismatic banker who promises a lucrative return on monies invested with him and then rips everybody off.
The resurrection of Christ has always been difficult for some to accept. Even those alive when it occurred, had a hard time with it. In modern times, resurrection-deniers have turned their disbelief into a kind of artform as they propose various scenarios to “explain” what really happened. Those who consider the resurrection to be a hoax perpetrated by Jesus’ disciples may assume they are saving His reputation by blaming others. “Oh, look! Jesus isn’t delusional. He never predicted His resurrection. Rather, the story of the resurrection is a diabolical hoax created by His disciples for the purpose of scamming gullible people.”
But this story of a diabolical hoax by the disciples IS a diabolical hoax critics concoct for the purpose of scamming gullible people.
Charles Colson, Assistant to President Richard Nixon and convicted in the Watergate scandal, wrote –
Watergate involved a conspiracy perpetuated by closest aides to the President of the United States. The most powerful men in America were intensely loyal to their president. But one of them, John Dean, testified against Nixon after only two weeks — two weeks! The cover-up, the lie, could only be held together for two weeks, and then everybody else jumped ship in order to save themselves. The fact is that all those around the President were facing embarrassment, maybe prison, but nobody’s life was at stake. But what about the disciples? Twelve powerless men, peasants really, were facing not just embarrassment or political disgrace, but beatings and stonings and execution. Every single one of the disciples insisted, to their dying breaths, that they had physically seen Jesus bodily raised from the dead. Don’t you think that one of those apostles would have cracked before being beheaded or stoned? That one of them would have made a deal with the authorities? None did. Men will give their lives for something they believe to be true; they will never give their lives for something they know to be false. The Watergate cover-up reveals the true nature of humanity. Even political zealots at the pinnacle of power will, in a crunch, save their own necks, even at the expense of ones they profess to serve so loyally. But the apostles could not deny Jesus, because they had seen Him face to face, and they knew He had risen from dead.
Jesus is risen! He is risen indeed!
