Introduction: 

We begin this course with reading Chapter 13 of The Reason for God followed by viewing several video clips of Tim Keller addressing some of the issues raised in his book. In this chapteter Keller observest that "most people think that, when it comes to Jesus’s resurrection, the burden of proof is on believers to give evidence that it happened. That is not completely the case. The resurrection also puts a burden of proof on its nonbelievers. It is not enough to simply believe Jesus did not rise from the dead. You must then come up with a historically feasible alternate explanation of the birth of the church. You have to provide some other plausible account for how things began." He then proceeds to discuss arguments agains the resurrection to include the supernatural superstitions of the populace in the age of Jesus and the fact that the Gospels were written well after the death of Jesus. Thereafter he makes these assertions about the historicity of the resurrection: "the resurrection of Jesus is a historical fact much more fully attested to than most other events of ancient history"... Every effort to account for the birth of the church apart from Jesus’s resurrection flies in the face of what we know about first-century history and culture.” 

After having completed the readings for this session and reviewed the accompanying video you may choose - on a purely optional basis - to answer the study questions and submit them at etwimber@hotmail.com or to contact Dr. Wimberley by phone or email to request a time for dialogue about what you have learned. You may do so by phone or dialogue via Skype or Facetime. Dr. Wimberley's phone number is 239.405.4164. We may convene group meetings of the class using the Zoom application on our computers. You can enroll in this course by emailing etwimber@hotmail.com or by texting Dr. Wimberley at 239.405.4164.

Readings: 

Keller, Timothy (2009) The Reason for God. New York, NY: Penguin, Chapter 13

Scripture:

1 Corinthians 15:3-6

3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins in accordance with scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures, 5 and that e appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred bretheren at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep.

Video: 

Tim Kellor on Encountering the Risen Christ; Jesus Vindicated.

Study Questions:

1. Keller claims: “If Jesus rose from the dead, it changes everything” (p. 202).  Do you agree with this claim? Or is this claim a hyperbole?  In your experience, are there clues that give merit to this claim? Or does your experience indicate that this claim is questionable?
2. Many Christians say they have had dreams and visions of Jesus where they feel that Jesus is with them, guiding them, and living on in their hearts in spirit (cf. p. 203).  Some people even credit these visions as being their moment of conversion.  Do these testimonies undermine the bodily resurrection of Jesus?
3. Keller writes: “In [non-Jewish thought of the 1st century Mediterranean world], resurrection was not only impossible, but totally undesirable.  The goal was to get free of the body forever…Unlike the Greeks, the Jews saw the material and physical world as good.  Death was not seen as liberation from the material world but as a tragedy.  The idea of an individual being resurrected, in the middle of history, while the rest of the world continued on burdened by sickness, decay, and death, was inconceivable” (pp. 206-7).  Are these worldviews still alive today?  Does the resurrection continue to be undesirable or inconceivable?
4. In his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul writes: “But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have died” (1 Cor 15:20).  Why do think God only brought about the first fruits of the resurrection?  What is the point of waiting so long for the last fruits?  Do think the gap in time between Christ’s resurrection/ascension and Christ’s return helps or hinders the cause of Christianity?
5. Keller seems to think there are two options: A person can either reject the resurrection as a fictional myth or embrace the resurrection as a historical reality.  Are there only two options?  Or could a person reject the historical evidence of the resurrection yet still embrace Christianity with the premise of Jesus living on spiritually?  Could a person accept the historical evidence of the resurrection yet still reject Christianity?
6. If you were asked to preach on Easter Sunday, who would be your target audience?  What would you say?