Is Easter Unbelievable?
Is Easter Unbelievable?: Four Questions Everyone Should Ask About the Resurrection Story
By: Rebecca McLaughlin
[Fulfilled ‘Book with a title that is a question’ for Shelf Reflection’s 2023 Reading Challenge]
“Whether you think that hope of everlasting life is pure naivety or you’re wondering if there might just be a God who has a plan for your life, this book is for you.”
Is Easter unbelievable?
Yes, and I believe it.
It’s unbelievable because it was a miracle and beyond our imagination. I believe it, not only because I trust God and his Word, but because there is historical evidence to support it.
This is a very short (60 pages) and practical book to give a brief overview of why we can believe such an unbelievable thing as a resurrection.
It is the sequel to McLaughlin’s book ‘Is Christmas Unbelievable?’ in which she looks at the miracle of the virgin birth and the person of Jesus.
There is a little overlap in this book as she also addresses the person of Jesus (obviously).
Here are the four questions she poses:
Is Jesus’s life historical?
Is Jesus’s death ethical?
Is Jesus’s resurrection credible?
Is Jesus’s offer desirable?
To the first point she talks about extra-biblical sources that talk of Jesus and his crucifixion and the historical reliability of the Gospel accounts, addressing (and debunking) the theory of The Da Vinci Code which claims the Bible was censored to present a certain political agenda.
To the second point she addresses people’s questioning how a good God could punish people for their sin or how the death of an innocent man could be a good thing. She helps us look at the world and reflect on what sin is and our role in it. She also reminds us that Jesus willingly and lovingly chose to go to the cross. It was not an involuntary slaughter. It was a personal sacrifice of love. For us.
(FYI- there is a spoiler in there for the movie No Time to Die if that matters to you…)
To the third point she presents four ‘exhibits’ that give the resurrection credibility:
The Outbreak (the spread of Christianity, the diversity of Christianity)
”How a man born into a subjugated ethnic group in an obscure Roman province— who lived poor, died young, who never wrote a book, raised an army, or sat on a throne— has come to be the most impactful human in all human history does require some kind of explanation.”The Message (the fundamental need of the resurrection for the basis of Christianity, the disciples willingness to die for their beliefs countering the theory that they made it up)
The Romans (the efficiency and thoroughness of the Romans in their killing methods countering the theory that Jesus didn’t actually die on the cross)
”Jesus’ crucifixion was by far the most high-profile that day. The idea that the soldiers botched the job and what the disciples witnessed was a resuscitation and not a resurrection is at best implausible.”The Women (the fact that all four Gospels list women as the first witnesses of the resurrection which was culturally and historically considered ‘unreliable)
To the fourth point she talks about the person of Jesus, his love for us, his promises to us, and the real meaning of heaven.
“If heaven is primarily a place to which we might be sent— like some fabulous vacation destination in the sky— the claim that only those who trust in Jesus ‘go to heaven’ seems unfair. But Jesus says he is the destination. Those who turn to Jesus now will find themselves with Jesus for eternity. Those who don’t want Jesus now won’t get him for eternity.”
There is just one pretty big thing I thought was missing from point three: The Body. McLaughlin didn’t talk at all about how no one was able to produce the body of Jesus when it would have been very important to for those who wanted to put down the spread of a miracle. I think this is a very compelling argument to include.
If the disciples hid the body, would they have given their lives for that lie? And if it was someone else, it would have probably been more beneficial to produce the body to the searching public than keep it a secret.
Easter is in a few days as I write this. Easter has largely been hijacked by rabbits and eggs. It may also be one of the few times people actually attend church. Which is great— but if we haven’t surrendered our whole lives to the One who surrendered his for us, it’s all meaningless.
Church isn’t what saves us. Christ is.
Eggs being associated with Easter originally started because an egg is a sign of new life. Out of that egg comes a new animal, a new life. Similarly, belief in Christ, his miraculous birth, his perfect life, his sacrificial death, and his miraculous resurrection gives US new life. We are reborn into the family of God, resting in the power, love, and faithfulness of our Creator.
“If Jesus did come back to life, it means the Maker of all time and space has stepped into the universe for love of you. It means that you were worth his death and that he wants you in his life. It means you are more seen and known and loved than you could dare to hope and that the greatest offer ever made is sitting on the table, waiting for you to take it up.”
Happy Easter everyone!
Other books by Rebecca McLaughlin:
Confronting Christianity: 12 Hard Questions for the World’s Largest Religion
Confronting Jesus: 9 Encounters with the Hero of the Gospels
Is Christmas Unbelievable?: Four Questions Everyone Should Ask about the World’s Most Famous Story
Jesus Through the Eyes of Women: How the First Female Disciples Help Us Know and Love the Lord
The Secular Creed: Engaging Five Contemporary Claims
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