Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Cold Case Christianity

Biblical Reliability

Every Easter Sermon Is Built on the Reliability of the Gospel Eyewitnesses

Every Easter Sermon Is Built on the Reliability of the Gospel EyewitnessesChristian leaders have been preaching Easter messages for over two thousand years. In fact, the first Christian leaders were eyewitnesses of the Resurrection and their message was, in large part, simply their eyewitness testimony. In the years immediately following the Resurrection of Jesus, the apostles preached in a variety of geographic locations and cultural situations. Wherever they went, they shared the case for the Resurrection. The eyewitnesses built their case directly upon their own personal experiences with the Risen Christ. Thousands of years later, pastors and Christian leaders are still preparing Easter messages, and the reliability of the gospel eyewitness accounts is still critically important.

I was interviewed earlier this week by Kevin Boling of the “Knowing The Truth” radio program and we talked about the importance of the New Testament gospel eyewitness accounts.  As a pastor, Kevin has preached many Easter sermons. He shared a common outline he has used on Easter Sundays:

The Resurrection Was Prophetically Predicted
Kevin begins by reminding his congregation of the many Old Testament prophecies related to the coming Messiah. These prophetic predictions were fulfilled by Jesus throughout the course of his life, ministry, death and resurrection.

The Resurrection Was Credibly Confirmed
The life of Jesus is faithfully and reliably recorded in the gospel eyewitness accounts and these narratives describe the many evidences Jesus provided to verify His Deity. The miracles, Resurrection and Old Testament prophecies confirmed Jesus’ claims.

The Resurrection Is Eternally Experienced
The history of Christianity is replete with millions of conversion experiences. Believers are continually restored and transformed by the power of the resurrected Christ. The resurrection is a fact of history and is continually experienced by those who have trusted in Jesus.

As I listened to Kevin describe the three points of his Easter outline, I began to think about the centrality of the eyewitness accounts and the importance of their reliability. Kevin’s Easter message, like all Easter sermons, is dependent upon his second point, the credible confirmation of the eyewitness accounts. If these records are not reliable, Kevin’s entire message falls like a house of cards.

Advertisement. Scroll to continue reading.

If we can’t trust the life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus was accurately described by the eyewitnesses, we can’t trust the Old Testament prophecies were truly fulfilled. If the gospels are elaborate fictions crafted with prophecy in mind, the alleged fulfillment of the Old Testament predictions is meaningless. The reliability of the gospels (point two) is required if we hope to find Kevin’s first point persuasive. In addition, if we can’t trust the life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus was accurately described by eyewitnesses, we can’t trust our personal experiences are grounded in truth rather than emotion. If the Gospels are inspiring fictions misrepresenting Jesus (like, for example, the Book of Mormon), we have no reason to believe our transformation is anything other than our own individual effort or emotional evaluation. The reliability of the gospels (point two) is required if we hope to find Kevin’s third point persuasive. The reliability of the gospel eyewitness accounts is central to every Easter sermon. Click To Tweet

The reliability of the gospel eyewitness accounts is central to every Easter sermon. The messages we hope to deliver as pastors, Christian leaders, or followers of Christ, are dependent upon Biblical accuracy and reliability. That’s why every one of us ought to take the time to know why these accounts are trustworthy. We ought to be able to communicate this truth to others. Let’s use this Easter season to talk about the New Testament accounts as reliable history so we can point to the reality of the Resurrection with confidence and boldness.

For more information about the reliability of the New Testament gospels and the case for Christianity, please read Cold-Case Christianity: A Homicide Detective Investigates the Claims of the Gospels. This book teaches readers ten principles of cold-case investigations and applies these strategies to investigate the claims of the gospel authors. The book is accompanied by an eight-session Cold-Case Christianity DVD Set (and Participant’s Guide) to help individuals or small groups examine the evidence and make the case.

J. Warner Wallace is a Dateline featured Cold-Case Detective, Senior Fellow at the Colson Center for Christian Worldview, Adj. Professor of Christian Apologetics at Talbot School of Theology, Biola University, author of Cold-Case ChristianityGod’s Crime Scene, and Forensic Faith, and creator of the Case Makers Academy for kids.

Subscribe to J. Warner’s Daily Email

Print Friendly, PDF & Email
Written By

J. Warner Wallace is a Dateline featured cold-case homicide detective, popular national speaker and best-selling author. He continues to consult on cold-case investigations while serving as a Senior Fellow at the Colson Center for Christian Worldview. He is also an Adj. Professor of Christian Apologetics at Talbot School of Theology, Biola University, and a faculty member at Summit Ministries. He holds a BA in Design (from CSULB), an MA in Architecture (from UCLA), and an MA in Theological Studies (from Gateway Seminary).

5 Comments

5 Comments

  1. Pingback: Is the Bible True? The Cumulative Case for the Reliability of the Gospels (Free Bible Insert) | Cold Case Christianity

  2. Pingback: Is the Bible True? The Cumulative Case for the Reliability of the Gospels (Free Bible Insert) | Apologetics.com

  3. Pingback: Is the Bible True? The Cumulative Case for the Reliability of the Gospels (Free Bible Insert) | Truth2Freedom's Blog

  4. Pingback: Is the Bible True? The Cumulative Case for the Reliability of the Gospels (Free Bible Insert) | Apologetics ForumApologetics Forum

  5. Pingback: Every Easter Sermon Is Built on the Reliability of the Gospel Eyewitnesses | Cold Case Christianity – Elders Scrolls

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You May Also Like

God’s Existence

In this re-posted podcast, J. Warner begins to examine the case for God’s existence from the Laws of Logic (the Transcendental Argument). Jim also...

Christian Case Making

Christianity is unique among theistic worldviews. Some religious systems are based purely on the doctrinal, proverbial statements of their founders. The wisdom statements of...

Podcasts

In this podcast, J. Warner examines the difficulty involved in responding to rhetorically powerful objections based on the problem of evil. Jim talks about...

Christian Case Making

Jesus often referred to His followers as “sheep”. When he was saddened to see His people disheartened, the Gospels tell us “He felt compassion...