Authentic Mission 04

by | Jul 29, 2021 | Authentic | 0 comments

Explore the Evidence for Jesus’ Crucifixion and Determine the Veracity of His Death.

In mission four, you’ll attempt to historically establish Jesus’ real, physical death as described in the Bible.

Mission 4: Explore the Evidence for Jesus’ Crucifixion and Determine the Veracity of His Death.

1. Eyewitness Testimony

Debriefing

After thinking through the questions, click the Answers tab to see our thoughts.

⇒ List 3 concrete evidences that show Jesus really died?

⇒ What are some additional miraculous verifications?

⇒ List 3 concrete evidences that show Jesus really died?

⇒ He was put through a full Roman crucifixion, John was there along with 4 female witnesses, and the expert soldiers verified it by piercing his side.

⇒ What are some additional miraculous verifications?

⇒ Darkness at noon, temple curtain torn, earthquake

11. Prophecy

Old Testament Prophecy: Isaiah 53:5,8b (c. 750 B.C.) “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed… For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was punished. Psalm 22:16-18 (c. 1044 B.C.) “Dogs surround me, a pack of villains encircles me; they pierce my hands and my feet. All my bones are on display; people stare and gloat over me. They divide my clothes among them and cast lots for my garment.”
Debriefing

After thinking through the questions, click the Answers tab to see our thoughts.

⇒ How do the accounts foretell details about Jesus’ death?

⇒ Why would the Messiah be crushed, punished, & wounded?

⇒ How do the accounts foretell details about Jesus’ death?

⇒ Both reference the piercing nails used in crucifixion.

⇒ Why would the Messiah be crushed, punished, & wounded?

⇒ To bear our sins, bringing peace, healing & salvation.

111. Ancient Non-Christian Historical Accounts

Cornelius Tacitus (Greatest 1st Century Roman Historian - His Roman heritage and hatred for Christians make him an unbiased, extra-biblical historical source.) "Consequently, to get rid of the report, Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace. Christus, from whom the name had its origin, suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus, and a most mischievous superstition, thus checked for the moment, again broke out not only in Judaea, the first source of the evil, but even in Rome, where all things hideous and shameful from every part of the world find their centre and become popular." (The Annals 15.44, c. 116AD)
Thallus (1st Century Roman Historian - Though lost, his works continue in quotes like this from Julius Africanus in Chronography, 18:1, c. 220AD.) "On the whole world there pressed a most fearful darkness; and the rocks were rent by an earthquake, and many places in Judea and other districts were thrown down. This darkness Thallus in the third book of his History, calls, as appears to me without reason, an eclipse of the sun. For the Hebrews celebrate the Passover on the 14th day according to the moon, and the passion of our Saviour falls on the day before the Passover; but an eclipse of the sun takes place only when the moon comes under the sun… how then should an eclipse be supposed to happen when the moon is almost diametrically opposite the sun?" (History, as Quoted in Chronography, c. 50AD)
Debriefing

After thinking through the questions, click the Answers tab to see our thoughts.

⇒ What was the extreme penalty that Tacitus references?

⇒ How does Thallus verify the darkness at the crucifixion?

⇒ What was the extreme penalty that Tacitus references?

⇒ Christus’ (or Christ’s) crucifixion under Pontius Pilate.

⇒ How does Thallus verify the darkness at the crucifixion?

⇒ He accepts the event as reality, but wrongly calls it an eclipse, which Julius proves impossible at Passover.

1V. Archeology

Archeological Support: Yehohanan’s Crucifixion Foot (Jerusalem, Israel) Though the practice of crucifixion is well established historically, there is little evidence for its implementation outside of the Bible. Most historians attribute this fact to the torture’s incredibly cruel and gruesome nature. Even the Romans, who used it profusely, found it too distasteful to describe in detail. Due to a lack of physical evidence, some scholars concluded that the biblical account was full of fabrications. That changed in 1968 with the discovery of Yehohanan’s ossuary. It not only contained the nailed foot pictured above, but his remains also showed signs of punctures to the wrists and shattered leg bones that validate a number of the details described in the Gospels.
Debriefing

After thinking through the questions, click the Answers tab to see our thoughts.

⇒ How does the Yehohanan foot add credence to the story?

⇒ How does the Yehohanan foot add credence to the story?

⇒ The writers were not making up the nails to fit with their Old Testament prophecies. It really happened.

V. Science & Philosophy

Jesus’ Crucifixion: The most attested fact in history! “Jesus’ death as a consequence of crucifixion is indisputable.”1 - Gerd Ludemann (Atheist New Testament Historian) “One of the most certain facts of history is that Jesus was crucified on orders of the Roman prefect of Judea, Pontius Pilate”2 - Bart Ehrman (Agnostic New Testament Textual Critic) “That he was crucified is as sure as anything historical can ever be.”3 - JD Crossan (Jesus Seminar New Testament Scholar) Why does Jesus’ historical death matter so much? Besides being required for a resurrection, it’s also a fundamental issue to the reliability of the Bible, especially in contrast with the Qur’an. Qur’an, An-Nisa’ 4:157 (c. 650 AD): And [for] their saying, "Indeed, we have killed the Messiah, Jesus, the son of Mary, the messenger of Allah." And they; but [another] was made to resemble him to them. And indeed, those who differ over it are in doubt about it. They have no knowledge of it except the following of assumption. And they did not kill him, for certain. Bible, John 19:16b-18, 33-35 (c. 70-100 AD): So they took Jesus, and he went out, bearing his own cross, to the place called The Place of a Skull, which in Aramaic is called Golgotha. There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, and Jesus between them... But when they did not break his legs. But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water. —that you also may believe. Only one can be right, & unbiased historians clearly side with the Bible!
Debriefing

After thinking through the questions, click the Answers tab to see our thoughts.

⇒ How does the Bible’s account of Jesus’ death hold up to historical criticism, especially compared to the Qur’an?

⇒ How does the Bible’s account of Jesus’ death hold up to historical criticism, especially compared to the Qur’an?

⇒ It’s the most attested fact in all of ancient history.

Deductions: John and Matthew, two of Jesus’ closest followers, both wrote eyewitness testimonies about Jesus’ physical death by crucifixion. This matches with the prophets’ descriptions surrounding the Messiah’s death, including pierced hands and feet while lots were cast for his clothes. Tacitus confirms Jesus’ crucifixion sentence under Pilate by referring to it as the “extreme penalty.” Thallus, as quoted by Julius Africanus, further authenticates the biblical account by providing credible evidence to one of the Bible’s more miraculous claims about darkness. The Yehohanan foot validates the Scripture’s description of how nails were used in Jesus’ crucifixion, and it removes any previous doubt about exaggerated stories that were made up to fit in with prophecy. Qualified historians overwhelmingly attest that Jesus’ actual, physical death on the cross is the most certain fact from ancient history. Confirmed: There was no conspiracy or any made-up stories. Jesus truly died a real, physical death on the cross just as the Bible says.
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