Sermon for Sunday March 12th, 2006

A Cunningly Devised Fable? by Dr. Damian Phillips

2 Peter 1:16-1:19


Matthew 28:11-15; 1 Corinthians 15:5-8; 2 Peter 1:16-19

Paul Tan says an Arlington, Virginia, minister once stated, “We have closed our minds to such trivial considerations as the question of the resurrection of Christ. If you fundamentalists wish to believe that nonsense, we have no objections, but we have more important things to preach than the presence or absence of an empty tomb twenty centuries old.” If you find this appalling then just listen to this: Hal Lindsay reveals to us that, “One of the very first exposes of the beliefs of our future ministers was made by Redbook magazine in August of 1961. The publishers hired one of the top pollsters in the nation to survey a full representation of our seminaries which are supposedly preparing men for Christian service in the Protestant churches. Here [is just one] of the results: Of the ministers in training . . . fifty-four percent rejected the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ.” I would like to hope that opinions have changed for the better since 1961, but you have to wonder with what we see on television. I have noticed over the past few years that on channels such as The Discovery Channel, The Learning Channel, The History Channel, and other such educational channels, that they seem to love to argue and to refute the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Why do so many people wish to disprove the resurrection? The reason is that the resurrection is the crux of our faith. In the resurrection, whenever Jesus overcame death, he defeated the end result or the consequence of sin. By defeating death, Jesus also defeated sin, so that all who will believe in him will overcome sin and death just as he did, and be made into the righteousness of God in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21), and be able to live in the presence of a holy God forever and all eternity in heaven. If the resurrection can be proven false, then all that Christians believe will come toppling down around us. M. G. Easton states, “The importance of Christ’s resurrection will be seen when we consider that if he rose the gospel is true, and if he rose not it is false.” In 1 Corinthians 15:14-18 Paul stated, “And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty. Yes, and we are found false witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ, whom He did not raise up – if in fact the dead do not rise. For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen. And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins! Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.” If there is no resurrection then all who have died will remain dead in the ground, and we are still left dying in our sins. That is a pretty dismal and hopeless thought.

In our message this morning I am going to ask the question, “Is the resurrection of Jesus Christ a cunningly devised fable?”, thus the title of our message: “A Cunningly Devised Fable?” What we are going to do is look at a common argument made against the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and then look at some simple proofs of the resurrection. It is my sincere hope that by the time this message is over we will come to realize that the resurrection did indeed happen, and that it is far from being a cunningly devised fable. Let’s begin by looking at Matthew 28:11-15.


A Worn Out Argument (Matthew 28:11-15)

Does this sound somewhat familiar to you? The main argument that many of those educational programs will use to refute the resurrection, is they say that Jesus’ disciples came and stole his body from the tomb. In The New Bible Dictionary we read, “But if the tomb was empty it would seem that there are only three possibilities: that friends took the body away, that foes took the body away, or that Jesus rose.” It seems as though many people choose to believe in the former two arguments. Stuart Weber, in the Holman New Testament Commentary, tells us in response to this passage, “In fact, this remains a popular explanation of the Resurrection among skeptics even today.” I wish to state that this is a worn out and overused argument. How many times are people going to try to ride the same dead horse? This argument has been used since the very day of Jesus’ resurrection, for more than 2000 years! I just want to say, “Give it up people!” If you want to believe that the disciples stole Jesus’ body away, at least take a look at what the Bible has to say about it. Right here in the Bible, written nearly 2000 years ago, we are warned that people would try to say that Jesus’ body was stolen, and we are told that this is a common saying even today – that is, the day in which this particular gospel was written. However, in light of our own age we can apply this saying to “today, as in the twenty-first century.” Even in the twenty-first century people still say that Jesus’ body was stolen by his disciples.

So, it’s been suggested that the disciples stole Jesus’ body away. Well, in just a moment we’re going to take a look at some of the claims of the disciples’ seeing the resurrected Lord, and the sheer numbers of eyewitnesses should be sufficient for putting this well-worn argument to rest. It has also been suggested that perhaps Jesus’ enemies, such as the soldiers, came and took his body away. Common sense shows us how implausible this argument is. Mr. E. Browing states that, “Jesus’ enemies’ chief ambition was not to remove the body, but keep it in the tomb, hence their application to Pilate for the guard to be set at the tomb. Had they removed the body, they would have produced it and confused the disciples as soon as they preached Jesus’ resurrection. Yet the apostles were allowed to preach it within a few yards of the empty tomb.” “Matthew Henry in his ‘Commentary,’ . . . remarks, ‘The grave-clothes in which Christ had been buried were found in very good order, which serves for an evidence that his body was not ‘stolen away while men slept.’ Robbers of tombs have been known to take away ‘the clothes’ and leave the body; but none ever took away ‘the body’ and left the clothes, especially when they were ‘fine linen’ and new. Anyone would rather choose to carry a dead body in its clothes than naked. Or if they . . . were supposed to have stolen it . . . [and] left the grave-clothes behind, yet it cannot be supposed they would find leisure [time] to ‘fold up the linen’.” Anyhow, let’s move ahead to the eyewitnesses, as we look at 1 Corinthians 15:5-8.


Hundreds of Eyewitnesses (1 Corinthians 15:5-8)

If the resurrection never occurred, then why was Jesus seen by so many eyewitnesses? In these select few verses alone we read where the resurrected Lord appeared to more than five hundred twenty-five people. That is a whole lot of people who testified to having seen Jesus raised from the grave, and this is just one example where numerous eyewitnesses saw the resurrected Lord Jesus. John testifies of Jesus in 1 John 1:1, “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, concerning the Word of life . . .” Luke testifies in Luke 24:36, 39-40, “Now as they said these things, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them, and said to them, ‘Peace to you . . . Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.’ When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet.” In Easton’s Bible Dictionary we are informed, “It is worthy of note that it is distinctly related that on most of these occasions our Lord afforded his disciples the amplest opportunity of testing the fact of his resurrection. He conversed with them face to face. They touched him, and he ate bread with them.” Therefore, people not only saw Jesus, but they touched him as well, experiencing the reality of his physical manifestation with more senses than just their sight alone.

In the Baptist Study Edition of the New King James Version we are informed that there are at least ten documented appearances of Christ after his resurrection and prior to his ascension. The order of these appearances is as follows: “(1.) to Mary Magdalene near the tomb (John 20:11-18); (2.) to the women returning from the tomb (Matthew 28:9, 10); (3.) to Peter (Luke 24:34); (4.) to the disciples approaching Emmaus in the evening (Luke 24:13-32); (5.) to all the disciples except Thomas, who was absent (Luke 24:26-43); (6.) to the disciples, including Thomas, on Sunday night one week later (John 20:26-31); (7.) to seven disciples beside the sea of Galilee (John 21:1-25); (8.) to more than five hundred people possibly on an appointed mountain in Galilee (Matthew 28:16-20); (9.) to James the half brother of Jesus (1 Corinthians 15:7); and (10.) to the apostles at the ascension (Acts 1:3-11).” This same listing is also confirmed in Easton’s Bible Dictionary. Once again I am going to ask, “If the resurrection never occurred, then why was Jesus seen by so many eyewitnesses?” Jesus wasn’t lying dead somewhere, or else so many people could not have seen him, and experienced him. You either believe it or you don’t. If you don’t believe it simply because it’s written in the Bible, and you doubt whether the Bible was truly inspired by God, well then, that is another issue which you need to settle first. Keep in mind though that 2 Timothy 3:16 says, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.” Now, let’s move on ahead to 2 Peter 1:16-19.


Jesus Was Not A Fable (2 Peter 1:16-19)

The apostle Peter stated here, “We did not follow cunningly devised fables . . .” (v. 16). What did he mean by a “fable?” Well, the word “fable” is defined as “a fictitious narration intended to enforce some useful truth or precept” and “to invent; to devise and to speak of, as true or real.” Peter was telling us that when he “made known to [us] the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ . . .” that he was not telling us a fictitious, or made-up, story. He was telling us the truth. He was so convinced by what he proclaimed that he was willing to stake his life upon this truth, for “church tradition holds that he suffered martyrdom at the hands of the Roman Emperor Nero sometime in the middle of the first century A. D.” Why was Peter so convinced in what he believed and proclaimed? He shows us why in verses 18-19 when he said, “And we heard this voice which came from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain. And so we have the prophetic word confirmed . . .” Peter heard the voice of God proclaiming Jesus to be God’s very own beloved Son. Peter was speaking from experience, just as those who saw the resurrected Lord. Peter, along with the hundreds of eyewitnesses to the resurrected Jesus, knew for certain that Jesus Christ was not a “cunningly devised fable.” They knew this based on their experience. If experience doesn’t count for something, then why do so many employers look for people who have experience? Peter was making an appeal to experience here, and he was saying that based on his experience, Jesus was every bit of who he said he was. Jesus was indeed “the prophetic word confirmed.”


Time of Reflection

I want to wrap up our message this morning by keying in on the last thing that Peter stated here. Jesus was “the prophetic word confirmed,” the long predicted and awaited Messiah and Savior of the world foretold by the prophets of old. Concerning this confirmation of the prophetic word, Peter tells us, “You do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts” (v. 19). If you will believe the revelation of Jesus Christ concerning the virgin birth, his life, and his crucifixion; if you will believe the evidence of hundreds of eyewitness concerning Jesus’ resurrection; your belief will enable the light of Christ to penetrate the dark recesses of your heart. When the morning star of Jesus arises in your heart, you will inherit eternal life. Romans 10:9-10 says, “If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” I wish to invite you this morning to allow the morning star to come in. Invite Jesus into your heart as Lord and Savior of your life. Believe in and confess Jesus Christ as the Savior of the world, and put aside the skepticism which causes you to wonder if the claims about Jesus are just cunningly devised fables. Accept him and you’ll be saved from the consequences of your sin, which is spiritual death, and you will be given eternal life; and the resurrected Lord Jesus will resurrect, or raise, your soul into heaven whenever your body is placed in the ground.