easter

When people talk about the validity of Jesus’ resurrection, it’s inevitable that someone asks, “What are the chances?” It’s a fair question. After all, most of us know plenty of people who died…and stayed dead.

But is chance a good basis for belief?

Easter always stirs conversations about the credibility of the resurrection. Some believe the Bible’s version is trustworthy, while others give no credence to Scripture’s testimony whatsoever. In an attempt to bring balance to the discussion, one group offers a middle-ground theory they hope will work for everyone.

Here’s why it won’t.

In the summer of 1815, Europe’s eyes were fixed on the small town of Waterloo in what is now modern-day Belgium. There, an English and Prussian coalition bravely faced the army of Napoleon Bonaparte, a Frenchman who’d brought war to the entire continent.

The English were eagerly waiting for battlefield news…but they didn’t like what they were hearing.

In August of 480 BC, a few hundred Spartans led by King Leonidas battled against 150,000 Persian warriors led by King Xerxes. The heavily outnumbered Greeks held their ground, repelled the invaders, and controlled the battle for three days.

But there was one thing King Leonidas couldn’t control…and it would prove fatal.

Snakes can lead to really big problems, which is why they’re best handled by experts. When ridding themselves of the slithering nuisances, do-it-yourselfers face the risk of getting bit, getting hurt, or even getting killed.

Or, like one woman in Texas, they can even cause you to burn down your house.

Suleiman the Magnificent was the longest-ruling leader in the Ottoman Empire. The mighty sultan led successful military conquests on multiple continents and the legal system he set in place transformed the lives of millions for several centuries. But like all men, both great and small, he eventually died.

But through an elaborate hoax, his dead body was kept on the throne!

Nobody witnessed the crazed gunman sneak into Ford’s Theater the night Lincoln was shot, but many thousands saw the President’s body as it journeyed by train from Washington to Springfield where it was laid to final rest. The home stretch of Lincoln’s earthly travels deeply impacted the grateful people of a grieving nation.

Especially one nameless black woman from New York.

On Sunday, October 31, 1926, at precisely 1:26pm, a man named Ehrich Weiss died in a hospital room in Detroit, Michigan surrounded by his siblings, his wife, and a few medical attendants. The world gasped when they heard the news because they knew this man by a different name: Harry Houdini.

But most wondered if death could hold him; for years, Houdini boasted of a plan to cheat the grave.

Johnny Hart died at his drawing table on Saturday, April 7, 2007. It was fitting that the artist passed away on Easter weekend that year; after all, the Easter message had captivated his life’s work for decades.

And as a result of that work, over 100 million people read about the empty tomb in his comic strip, B.C.

John’s patience for crossing New York City on foot finally ran out so he flagged down a cab and crawled in. Once they got underway, John tapped the driver on the shoulder to give him the address. The driver screamed, snatched the wheel, sideswiped a bus, went up on the sidewalk, and stopped inches from a store window.