One Reason to Hope | Apr. 5, 2026 | Pr Raph

One reason to trust

Imagine you are a high-stakes investor, and you decide to put every single penny of your life savings, your children’s inheritance, and your very home into one single stock. If that company succeeds, you are a billionaire. If it fails, you lose everything. You are homeless.

The Bible doesn't say Christianity is "mostly true" or "good for your morals." The Bible says it all hangs on one historical, verifiable, and undeniable hook: the physical resurrection of Jesus Christ. If that didn't happen, we aren't just "mistaken"—we are fools.

1 Corinthians 15:12-17 12 Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. 15 We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.

You are fleeing a forest fire, and the only way to safety is across a deep canyon spanned by a single, narrow wooden plank. You have to carry your entire family across. If a single knot in that wood snaps, everything you love is lost. That is the intensity of Resurrection Day. We aren't betting on a "feeling"; we are betting everything on the historical integrity of that one Plank.

I know people who are very skeptical, to the point that if their mother says, “I love you," they begin researching to verify whether it's true or not. 

However, some people are very syncretic. Very easily persuadable. When I visit India, people have no problem listening to about Jesus. He is just another one in the pantheon of many deities.

Some believe in everything and anything and create their own definitions of good, evil, god, and demons. They are not seeking factual truth; instead, they construct their own version of truth. They know there is a truth, but they can’t say what it is or where it is.

Perhaps you are an agnostic—someone who believes that nothing can be known about the existence or nature of God, or anything beyond material phenomena. You claim neither faith nor disbelief in God. You are uncertain and therefore never commit to a particular issue. 

In all cases, whether non-believing or all-believing, you end up trapped in a reality that is fundamentally immoral, drunken, profane, and narcissistic, centered on self-absorption. That is ultimately a self-destructive life.

So, whether you are barricaded behind intellectual pride or simply acknowledging a 'historical Christ' that you never let into your heart, the outcome is a life centered entirely on the self. There is no moral framework or ultimate accountability; therefore, like Paul said.

1 Corinthians 15:19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.

1 Corinthians 15:32 […] If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.”

But maybe you don’t need to wait till tomorrow to die. Maybe you are dead now.

You come home, and your kids hide themselves from you.

You may be growing your business, but it is at the cost of your marriage.

You may be legetimate a good mother that takes care of your child, but at the cost of your health and conscience.

The cross, the grave and the church are the continuous proclamation of the truth of the gospel. 

The good news is that Jesus can take all our mess and make a message. Can take our tests and failures and turn them into a testimony.

If the grave is not empty, your parachute backpack is empty.

 If you want to determine whether Christianity is true, and therefore whether every contrary worldview is false, you only need to answer 1 question:

Did Jesus return from the dead, or did He not?

That is the entire issue.

Why? Because Jesus made transcendent, messianic, and divine claims about Himself. He claimed to be the Son of God. 

John 10:30 I and the Father are one.”

The audience understood exactly what He meant, because they picked up stones to kill Him, saying that He, a mere man, was claiming to be God.

Anyone can claim to be the Son of God. But if someone claims to be the Son of God, dies, and 3 days later rises from the dead, that is powerful evidence that He was telling the truth.

That is why the resurrection serves as the cornerstone of the Christian faith. 

The E’s Easter.

Execution

Early

Empty

Eyewitnesses

Execution

Before there can be a resurrection, there must first be a death.

There is virtually no dispute among scholars, including non-Christian historians, that Jesus died by crucifixion under Pontius Pilate.

Journal of the American Medical Association published an article concluding that the historical and medical evidence clearly shows Jesus was dead even before the spear wound was inflicted. 

We have not only multiple early New Testament sources, but also ancient non-biblical sources such as:

Josephus: Flavius Josephus, a 1st-century Romano-Jewish historian, provides important non-biblical evidence for the crucifixion of Jesus in his work *Antiquities of the Jews* (c. 93 AD). He notes that Pontius Pilate condemned Jesus to the cross based on accusations from prominent Jewish leaders.

Tacitus: a Roman historian and politician. He is widely regarded by modern scholars as one of the greatest Roman historians.

Mara bar Serapion: "Mara son of Serapion", was a Stoic philosopher in the Roman province of Syria. He is only known from a letter he wrote in Aramaic to his son, who was named Serapion, in which he refers to the execution of "the wise king of the Jews.”

The Jewish Talmud: It records the teachings, opinions and disagreements of thousands of rabbis and Torah scholars. The Babylonian Talmud contains limited, hostile references to a "Yeshu" (Jesus) who was hanged/crucified on Passover Eve for sorcery and leading Jews astray.

Even skeptical scholars concede this. As atheist New Testament scholar Gerd Lüdemann said, Jesus’ death as a consequence of crucifixion is indisputable.

His death on the cross can also reveal to you the Bible’s most important message. Maybe, like the centurion, you also can exclaim:

Mark 15:39 39 …“Truly this man was the Son of God!”

Once you do that, then John 3:16 can speak to your heart.

John 3:16 16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life

But because the stone has been rolled away, your "policy of morality" is a useless forged document with no value at the bank of heaven. 

So the first E is this: Jesus was executed. He truly died.

Perhaps you have come here today leaning on your own understanding, perhaps even feeling a sense of pride in a hardened skepticism.

But I must ask: is that intellectual distance actually a shield for your heart? Or maybe you are the person who readily acknowledges the 'Historical Jesus'—you’ve seen the evidence, you know the facts of the cross—yet that knowledge remains 'dead' because it has made no difference in how you live.

2. Early Accounts

We have reports that Jesus rose from the dead that originated extremely early, virtually immediately after His death. This matters because legends take time to develop.

Maybe you are the one who thinks that the resurrection is a legend that grew over 100 or 150 years.

The early creed

1 Corinthians 15:3-8 3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.

1 Corinthians 15:3–8 is an early Christian creed stating that:

Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose on the third day. He appeared to eyewitnesses. This creed names specific witnesses, including skeptics and opponents whose lives were radically changed.

But what I like about this creed is verse 8. It is actually an invitation for anyone at any time in history to also see the resurrection and be born again.

John 3:3 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

Do you want to be born again? Press the reset button and start over. Receive a new nature and start a new walk of life. There is a way. May your eyes be open today so you can see the resurrected Christ. 

It is way more than a mental ascential, but it is a complete change of mind and heart because you receive God. 

So the second E is this: The resurrection proclamation is early—far too early to be dismissed as legend.

This tradition was formulated within months of Jesus’ death, no time for a legend. As a reference for comparison, the earliest surviving detailed accounts about Alexander the Great were written about 300–450 years after his life. Legends typically develop over approximately two generations (about 60–100 years). This is because eyewitnesses no longer need to be present or influential at that point.

What we are sharing here is not a fairy tale. It is not a development of a fictitious character like Superman or Spider-Man. This is history that can change your story.

For the disciples’ conviction that they encountered the risen Jesus, we have numerous ancient sources inside and outside the New Testament.

3. Empty

The third E stands for empty. Jesus’ body was placed in the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea, and that tomb was found empty on the first Easter morning.

Luke 24:4-11 4 While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men [angels] stood by them in dazzling apparel. 5 And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6 He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, 7 that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” 8 And they remembered his words, 9 and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. 10 Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles, 11 but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them.

Jesus was publicly crucified in Jerusalem. If the tomb had not been empty, it would have been very difficult for a resurrection movement to explode in the very same city where He was killed.

In that culture, women were not considered reliable legal witnesses. If the story were invented, the writers would not have chosen women as the primary witnesses. They would have chosen men to make the story more credible.

Jesus’ opponents did not say, “The tomb is not empty.” Instead, they said, “The disciples stole the body” (Matthew 28:11–15). They were not denying the fact; they were trying to explain it away.

Who could have taken the body? The Romans—since they wanted Jesus dead. Not the Jewish leaders—they also sought His death. Not the disciples—they lacked the motive, means, and opportunity.

The most plausible explanation is that Jesus was physically resurrected from the dead.

4. Eyewitnesses

The fourth E stands for eyewitnesses. Jesus did not simply leave behind an empty tomb. He also appeared alive in multiple settings over time, to individuals and groups, indoors and outdoors, by day and by night.

He was seen by more than 515 people (1 Corinthians 15:3–8).

These groups included believers, skeptics, doubters and former opponents.

People interacted with Him by talking, touching, and sharing meals.

John 20:26-27 26 Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.”

He can also touch you today.

It is a historically certain that the disciples had experiences after Jesus’ death in which Jesus appeared to them as the risen Christ.

 Were these hallucinations? That explanation doesn't hold. A psychology expert said hallucinations occur in individual minds, not 500 simultaneously. Such a mass hallucination would be a greater miracle than the resurrection. The disciples suffered for their testimony, enduring deprivation and persecution because they claimed Jesus had risen. People may die for mistaken beliefs, but not for knowing something is false.

So the fourth E is this: There were eyewitnesses to the risen Jesus.

John 1:12 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,

Understand that you needed to receive the free gift of forgiveness and eternal life that Jesus purchased for you on the cross.

Ephesians 2:8-9 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

You can become a child of God today.

God answers prayers. Accept Jesus and see the transformation happen by grace through faith.

Your priorities will change.

Your character will change.

Your values will change.

Your relationships will change.

Your marriage will change.

Your parenting will change.