Lesson 3 · 15 min
Jesus: Who He Claimed to Be and the Evidence for the Resurrection
Jesus' own claims to divinity and the historical case for his bodily Resurrection, the cornerstone of Christian faith.
Introduction
What this is
This lesson covers Jesus' own claims to divinity and the historical evidence for his bodily Resurrection.
Why it matters
The Resurrection is the hinge of the entire Christian faith; without it, as Paul says, our faith is in vain.
Jesus' Claims About Himself
Jesus repeatedly made claims that only make sense if he considered himself divine. When he told the Jewish leaders, 'Before Abraham was made, I am' (John 8:58), he was invoking the divine name God gave Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:14), and his hearers understood this clearly — they immediately took up stones to kill him for blasphemy. He also claimed authority to forgive sins (Mark 2:5-7), something the scribes rightly noted only God can do. C.S. Lewis famously argued that a man who made such claims could only be a liar, a lunatic, or truly Lord — the 'trilemma' — since 'a merely human teacher' would not be worth calling a great moral teacher if his central claims about himself were false. The Gospels present Jesus not merely as a wise teacher but as one who identified himself with the God of Israel.
The Empty Tomb and Early Testimony
St. Paul's letter to the Corinthians, written around AD 54-55, hands on a creed scholars date to within a few years of the crucifixion: 'Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures... was buried... rose again the third day according to the scriptures: and... was seen by Cephas; and after that by the eleven... after that, he was seen by more than five hundred brethren at once' (1 Corinthians 15:3-6). This is remarkably early attestation — far too close to the events for legend to have developed, by the standards even secular historians apply to ancient sources. All four Gospels report that women were the first witnesses to the empty tomb (Matthew 28:1-10; John 20:1-18), a detail unlikely to be invented since women's testimony was not considered legally reliable in that culture — a strong argument for authenticity known as the 'criterion of embarrassment.'
The Transformed Apostles
Perhaps the strongest evidence is the transformation of the apostles: men who fled and denied Christ at his arrest (Matthew 26:56, 69-75) were, within weeks, boldly proclaiming his Resurrection in Jerusalem itself, before the very authorities who had crucified him (Acts 4:1-20), and nearly all of them died martyrs' deaths rather than deny what they claimed to have witnessed. People will die for what they believe to be true, but rarely for what they know to be a lie they invented. St. Ignatius of Antioch, writing around AD 107 on his way to martyrdom, testifies that Christ 'was truly raised from the dead' and that this apostolic faith had already spread and been defended with blood (Letter to the Smyrnaeans 1-3). The Resurrection is the hinge of Christian faith: 'if Christ be not risen again, your faith is vain' (1 Corinthians 15:17).
Knowledge check
Answer each item, then read why the answer is correct.
What did Jesus mean by saying 'Before Abraham was made, I am' (John 8:58)?
True or False: The 1 Corinthians 15 creed is dated by scholars to decades after the crucifixion, making it unreliable.
Match each piece of evidence to what it supports.
Match each item to its pair.
Explain C.S. Lewis's 'trilemma' argument regarding Jesus' identity.
Apologetics practice
Choose the response you would give, then see how it holds up.
Objection
“"The Resurrection accounts are just legends that developed decades after Jesus died."”
Objection
“"The disciples just stole the body and made up the Resurrection story."”
Key points
- Jesus explicitly claimed divine identity, e.g. 'Before Abraham was, I am' (John 8:58).
- 1 Corinthians 15:3-6 preserves an extremely early creed testifying to the Resurrection.
- Women as first witnesses is a strong 'criterion of embarrassment' for authenticity.
- The apostles' willingness to be martyred supports the sincerity of their testimony.
Lesson summary
Main points
- Jesus explicitly claimed divine identity through his words and actions.
- The 1 Corinthians 15 creed is extremely early testimony to the Resurrection.
- The apostles' martyrdoms support the sincerity, though not automatically the truth, of their testimony.
Important verses
John 8:58 · 1 Corinthians 15:3-6 · 1 Corinthians 15:17
Important quotations
“He was truly raised from the dead.”
St. Ignatius of Antioch — Letter to the Smyrnaeans 1-3 (c. AD 107)
Quick defense answer
The early creed in 1 Corinthians 15:3-6, dated within years of the crucifixion, plus the apostles' willingness to die for their testimony, together make a strong historical case for the Resurrection.