Empty Tomb Alternatives: What If Jesus Didn’t Die?

Introduction

Two necessities—that’s how our study on the resurrection of the dead began. In that series introduction, we said that:

The resurrection is a necessary doctrine.
Resurrection has a necessary precursor: death.

As to its doctrinal necessity, the resurrection is the cornerstone of Christianity. Apart from the resurrection, the Christian faith is useless and sad. We would be, according to the apostle Paul in Scripture, a pitiful people to hang on to Christ if the resurrection were not true. Paul wrote such a statement to a Corinthian church struggling to hang on to proper fidelity to the doctrine.¹

If even Christians were questioning the doctrine, it will come as no surprise that non-Christians would express skepticism regarding the claims about Jesus.

So if we couple the importance of the claim with the tendency of Christians and non-Christians alike to question the claim, then we Christians 2,000 years removed from the event owe ourselves, at some point in our lives, a certain level of scrutiny in exploring the doctrine. If you’ve never done so, welcome now to the exploration.

We owe ourselves … a certain level of scrutiny in exploring the doctrine [of the resurrection].

If you begin this process well—and if you perform it well—then the result will be:

A strengthened faith
A more honest faith
A useful faith (useful for yourself and for others)

Thus, this doctrine of resurrection is both necessary and edifying, and it is why it appears as an elementary principle of the Oracles of God.²

Putting the Resurrection to the Test

Here’s the logical progression of what we’ll talk about in our resurrection subseries going forward.³

First we’ll put its falsifiability to the test. After all, Paul says, if we can falsify the resurrection, it’s time to do something else. (I love pastoring the people of GraceLife, but if the resurrection didn’t happen, then preaching isn’t how I’d spend my Sunday morning. And if the resurrection weren’t true, it’s probably not how most people who currently attend GraceLife or any other church would spend their Sunday mornings either.)

If we can falsify the resurrection, it’s time to do something else.

The first way we entertained falsifying the resurrection was to challenge the accounts of the resurrection: Ah, see, one account says one angel at the tomb, another says two angels; one Gospel says it was this Mary, this other Gospel says it was that Mary, and that Gospel says it was yet another Mary who visited the tomb that first Easter morning; one account of the resurrection mentions the time being “when the sun had risen,” another “while it was still dark” (and so on). If the Gospel writers couldn’t get the story straight on the most important event, why listen further?

The past two sermons were spent challenging both the chronological and factual credibility of the biblical account of the resurrection. (The most recent one involved an exercise specifically intended to strengthen our view of Scripture.)

At this point, we can say, well, if there’s no fault in the internal consistency of the biblical accounts, perhaps there is fault to be found in the core content—the core claim. What if there was no empty tomb?

We’ll spend this sermon on that question, but let me tell you where we’ll head after that. (We will very likely be the only church in town celebrating the resurrection during Christmas.) If we establish the possibility of an empty tomb, we have to ask the question, So what if there’s an empty tomb? Does that necessitate resurrection? In the course of history, there are bound to be empty graves at some point, right?

And then we must ask, What do we mean by “resurrection” anyway? And then, What bearing does the doctrine of resurrection have on our understanding of what it means to be a human being? What is a body? What is the soul? How do they interact with one another? What happens when we die?

With those things understood, we can ask fun questions like, What does resurrection life look like? What does life before resurrection look like? (What is the intermediary state?)

We’ll ask—and especially if you’ve never thought of it, this is crucial—How does the resurrection affect my life now, in the present?

Finally, depending on the congregation’s interest and our time, we can take up some other fun questions, such as: Why didn’t the disciples understand resurrection? What was Jesus doing for those three days anyway? How can He have been in a tomb for three days if He was crucified on a Friday? What’s Hades? What’s Paradise? How does all of this tie into elementary principle #6 of our Oracles of God series (eternal judgment)?

The empty tomb alternative we’ll study in this sermon presents a double attack—an attack upon both necessities, doctrine and death. In short, this theory challenges the doctrine of the resurrection because it challenges that a death ever even took place. We’re going to address the challenges on two fronts:

First, we’ll weigh the matters apart from Scriptural evidence, if for no other reason than this: those offering alternative theories to an empty tomb obviously aren’t giving much weight to Scripture.
Then, we will answer these challenges with the support of Scripture, which not only speaks against alternative theories, but in doing so, strengthens our faith in the text and strengthens our faith in God who gave it to us.

The conclusion of this sort of exploration leaves no room for middle ground. As one explorer put it, “The resurrection of Jesus Christ is one of the most wicked, vicious, heartless hoaxes ever foisted upon the minds of men, or it is the most fantastic fact of history.”⁴

The conclusion of this sort of exploration leaves no room for middle ground.

The Swoon Theory

The Claim

Here’s the claim that we’ll take up in this sermon—a claim that is called the swoon theory:

Jesus really didn’t die—He merely swooned (lost consciousness) on the cross, causing those around Him to think He was dead. He then later revived while in the tomb and appeared to His disciples.

The Defense

To defend against the claim of this theory, we’ll first look at the nature of the crucifixion. We’ll start with the pre-crucifixion events, then look at the crucifixion itself, next study those who carried out the crucifixion, and finally review the post-crucifixion events.

Pre-Crucifixion Events

The Latin word for this trial (coercitio) that occurred before the crucifixion is where we get the English word coerce. Here’s an account of that trial in the Gospel of Mark:

Wishing to satisfy the crowd, Pilate released Barabbas for them, and after having Jesus scourged, he handed Him over to be crucified.

The soldiers took Him away into the palace (that is, the Praetorium), and they called together the whole Roman cohort. They dressed Him up in purple, and after twisting a crown of thorns, they put it on Him; and they began to acclaim Him, “Hail, King of the Jews!” They kept beating His head with a reed, and spitting on Him, and kneeling and bowing before Him. (Mark 15:15–19)

Before moving on, let me give you a warning about some of the content of the rest of this message. It’s important, but it’s also graphic, violent, and bloody. So if that sort of thing causes you to pass out (or something along those lines), please know you’ve been forewarned.

I think it’s important for us to consider exactly what any crucifixion victim would have gone through, but specifically what our Savior and Lord Jesus would have gone through in this crucifixion process. Much of what I’ll relay to you is sourced not from the Bible but from articles written by medical doctors—such as an article published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) entitled “On the Physical Death of Jesus Christ” (download it here to read in full).

Here is some commentary by medical doctors from various sources about the nature of pre-crucifixion events:

For scourging, the man was stripped of his clothing, and his hands were tied to an upright post. … The back, buttocks, and legs were flogged either by two soldiers (lictors) or by one who alternated positions [left and right]. The severity of the scourging depended on the disposition of the lictors and was intended to weaken the victim to a state just short of collapse or death. ⁵

The soldier would use a whip of braided leather thongs with metal balls woven into them. When the whip would strike the flesh, these balls would cause deep bruises or contusions which would break open with further blows. And the whip had pieces of sharp bone as well, which would cut the flesh severely.⁶

Eusebius, an historian and bishop of Caesarea in the fourth century AD, said this of this pre-crucifixion examination:

The sufferer’s veins were laid bare, and … the very muscles, sinews, and bowels of the victim were open to exposure.⁷

The Cross

What word would you use to describe the worst kind of pain possible? The word excruciating may come to mind. This word comes from the Latin, meaning “from out of the cross.”

You may recall that Jesus and other crucifixion victims were sometimes asked to carry their own cross. Because Christ was too weak to carry His own cross, Simon of Cyrene was asked to do so.¹⁰

Depending on when and where the crucifixion took place, there were different styles of crosses. Each cross would have had that cross member—a crossbar—that the victim’s hands would have been nailed to (and perhaps also tied to). That crossbar is called the patibulum. Sometimes the victim would have carried the whole cross, but sometimes he simply would have carried the patibulum, which would have been tied to the victim’s shoulders, back, and arms. As one source notes, “The patibulum, weighing 75 to 125 lb … was placed across the nape of the victim’s neck and balanced along both shoulders.”¹¹ In this process, as another doctor explains, the victim’s “arms would have immediately been stretched, probably about 6 inches in length, and both shoulders would have become dislocated.”¹²

Descriptions of Crucifixion

Here is a description of crucifixion itself:

The stresses on the muscles and diaphragm put the chest into the inhaled position; basically, in order to exhale, the individual must push up on his feet so the tension on the muscles would be eased for a moment. In doing so, the nail would tear through the foot, eventually locking up against the tarsal bones.¹³

I’ll spare you some of the description of where the nails go and the excruciating pain of hitting the nerves in the arm.

I don’t know if you’ve ever thought about how crucifixion kills someone. Perhaps you think that it’s a bloody affair and that eventually someone bleeds out from having nails in their hands and feet. This is not actually the case. Most of the blood loss would have come in that pre-trial examination. Crucifixion is a death designed to kill someone slowly—it’s a death by asphyxiation (i.e., suffocation).

Crucifixion is a death designed to kill someone slowly—it’s a death by asphyxiation.

As the person hangs on the cross, he is stuck in a permanent position in which, to breathe properly, he has to push his body up on the cross to enter into that process of inhaling and exhaling. In that process, the person’s back—which has been beaten with rods or a whip beforehand—is constantly rubbing against the wood of the cross. Here’s a doctor’s description:

After managing to exhale, the person would then be able to relax down and take another breath in. Again he’d have to push himself up to exhale, scraping his bloodied back against the coarse wood of the cross. This would go on and on until complete exhaustion would take over, and the person wouldn’t be able to push up and breathe anymore.

As the person slows down his breathing, he goes into what is called respiratory acidosis—the carbon dioxide in the blood is dissolved as carbonic acid, causing the acidity of the blood to increase. This eventually leads to an irregular heartbeat. In fact, with his heart beating erratically, Jesus would have known that he was at the moment of death.¹⁴

Another description:

A death by crucifixion seems to include all that pain and death can have of horrible and ghastly—dizziness, cramp, thirst, starvation, sleeplessness, traumatic fever, tetanus, shame, publicity of shame, long continuance of torment, horror of anticipation, mortification of untended wounds—all intensified just up to the point at which they can be endured at all, but all stopping just short of the point which would give to the sufferer the relief of unconsciousness.

The unnatural position made every movement painful; the lacerated veins and crushed tendons throbbed with incessant anguish; the wounds, inflamed by exposure, gradually gangrened; the arteries—especially at the head and stomach—became swollen and oppressed with surcharged blood; and while each variety of misery went on gradually increasing, there was added to them the intolerable pang of a burning and raging thirst; and all these physical complications caused an internal excitement and anxiety, which made the prospect of death itself—of death, the unknown enemy, at whose approach man usually shutters most—bear the aspect of a delicious and exquisite release.¹⁵

While each variety of misery went on gradually increasing, there was added to them the intolerable pang of a burning and raging thirst. ~Frederick Farrar

What about the Roman soldiers? Did they know and understand what they were doing when crucifying someone like Jesus? As resurrection scholar and believer N.T Wright says:

Roman soldiers … were rather good at killing people, and when given a rebel leader to practise on they would have had several motives for making sure the job was done properly.¹⁶

Post-Crucifixion Events

Let’s suppose for a moment that Christ survived crucifixion. Consider how slim the likelihood would have been of Him having the strength to perform the following:

Unwrap Himself from His burial clothes. (The two men who were there at his burial, Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea, wrapped Jesus in a linen cloth, presumably several times around.)
Remove the stone from in front of the tomb.
Walk around on nail-pierced feet.
Convince the disciples of His wellness. One person wrote this: “The disciples were impressed enough at Jesus’ appearance to conclude that he had been raised from the dead. Consider what his appearance might have been had he simply swooned and thus still bore the ill-effects of a botched crucifixion.”¹⁷

Here’s the last word according to medical experts:

It remains unsettled whether Jesus died of cardiac rupture or of cardiorespiratory failure. However, the important feature may not be how he died but rather whether he died. Clearly, the weight of historical and medical evidence indicates the Jesus was dead before the wound to his side was inflicted and supports the traditional view that the spear, thrust between his right ribs, probably perforated not only the right lung but also the pericardium and heart and thereby ensured his death. … Accordingly, interpretations based on the assumption that Jesus did not die on the cross appear to be at odds with modern medical knowledge.¹⁸

I’ve given you a lot of details from the medical community. I will now argue that the Lord is in those details.

The weight of historical and medical evidence indicates the Jesus was dead before the wound to his side was inflicted. ~Medical experts

The Lord Is in the Details: A Closer Look at the Gospel Narratives

I hope that the last sermon taught you that the Lord is in the details. We’ve addressed the swoon theory claim without reference to Scripture so far. But we now turn to Scripture to see how it informs us specifically about this crucial question: Was Jesus really dead?

As we look at this question, I’m not trying to make the argument that, by nature, the Gospels are purposefully or specifically apologetic in nature. The Gospels are simply the recordings of what actually happened. And because they’re true, and because they’re detailed, we’re able to use them in apologia—in an apologetic nature, that is, defending the truth of the faith.

The Gospels are simply the recordings of what actually happened. And because they’re true, and because they’re detailed, we’re able to use them in apologia … that is, defending the truth of the faith.

Luke 22:44 says this regarding Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane just before He was betrayed: “And being in agony He was praying very fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground” (emphasis added).

Again, two medical sources help us understand what’s going on in this passage. The Luke verse is describing a medical condition called hematidrosis. Here’s more about it from a doctor quoted in Lee Strobel’s The Case for Christ:

This is a known medical condition called hematidrosis. It’s not very common, but it is associated with a high degree of psychological stress. What happens is that severe anxiety causes the release of chemicals that break down the capillaries in the sweat glands. As a result, there’s a small amount of bleeding into these glands, and the sweat comes out tinged with blood. We’re not talking about a lot of blood; it’s just a very, very small amount. …

What this did was set up the skin to be extremely fragile so that when Jesus was flogged by the Roman soldier the next day, his skin would be very, very sensitive.¹⁹

And now, the JAMA article:

Although this is a very rare phenomenon, bloody sweat (hematidrosis or hemohidrosis) may occur in highly emotional states or in persons with bleeding disorders. As a result of hemorrhage into the sweat glands, the skin becomes fragile and tender.²⁰

So, this is not just some fanciful story in Luke about Jesus starting to sweat blood—there’s medical evidence that this is a known condition.

This is not just some fanciful story in Luke about Jesus starting to sweat blood—there’s medical evidence that this is a known condition [hematidrosis].

John 19 records some of Jesus’s words from the cross. These words have significance medically, pointing to the nature of what actually happened to Christ on the cross:

After this, Jesus, knowing that all things had already been accomplished, to fulfill the Scripture, said, “I am thirsty.” (John 19:28)

There may be other spiritual things we could say about this statement; however, Jesus, after undergoing the beatings and the subsequent crucifixion that He did, would have been experiencing what’s known as hypovolemic shock, a condition referring to a low supply of blood (hypo = low; vol = volume; emic = blood). Here’s one of our medical experts again:

This does four things. First, the heart races to try to pump blood that isn’t there; second, the blood pressure drops, causing fainting or collapse; third, the kidneys stop producing urine to maintain what volume is left; and fourth, the person becomes very thirsty as the body craves fluids to replace the lost blood volume.²¹

So even in what you might characterize as an insignificant detail—Christ saying on the cross “I am thirsty”—it’s a testimony to the sort of ordeal He underwent during crucifixion.

But How Do We Know He Really Was Dead?

The Gospel of Mark helps us answer the claim that perhaps they didn’t know He was dead—that no one was on the scene to give an authoritative opinion on that. Mark writes:

When the centurion, who was standing right in front of Him, saw the way He breathed His last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” …

Pilate wondered if He was dead by this time, and summoning the centurion, he questioned him as to whether He was already dead. And ascertaining this from the centurion, he granted the body to Joseph. (Mark 15:39, 44–45)

In these details, we see that a centurion was watching over Christ’s crucifixion. A centurion was the most important tactical officer in the Roman military, a leader of 100 soldiers. He would have been familiar with death; he would have been capable of inflicting death and recognizing death when he saw it. The Scripture gives the small detail that this centurion was “right in front” of Jesus, and thus he could judge better than anyone else whether Christ was dead.

I don’t know if you’ve ever been in a scenario in which you’ve observed a dead human body—particularly a body you weren’t expecting to see die/dead. I once came upon a car accident some minutes after it had occurred. There was a rusty white pickup truck stopped in the middle of the interstate with its windshield busted out. In front of the truck was the body of a person lying face down in the road. Traffic was stopped, and many people were standing on the side of the interstate, but none of them were near the person in the road. I was across the median, but it was easy for me to judge from certain clues (e.g., the busted windshield, the people surrounding him but standing somewhat back while not giving the man their attention) that the person lying on the road was dead. It was even easier for those standing near the road to ascertain whether this man were dead. I later checked the newspapers (this was in the pre-internet days) and found out this was, in fact, the case. Note that, even from a distance and even amidst my surprise by coming upon this scene, I could tell that the person was dead—just by how the crowd was standing and reacting to the body, etc.

In the same way, most witnessing the crucifixion from afar could have easily ascertained death. The centurion and guards nearby, however, could have drawn such a conclusion more easily and authoritatively. (For example, they would have noticed that the person was no longer forcing himself up on the beam in order to breathe.)

Other details give us further evidence. Notice the centurion’s language: It’s in the past tense: “This man was the Son of God” (emphasis added). In other words, He is now dead.

Modern skeptics don’t generally raise the claim of the swoon theory, because it’s an idea that they were smart enough to consider even back then, right after Jesus’s death. A higher authority, Pilate, wanted to know if Jesus was in fact dead, and Mark records the centurion confirming the fact back to Pilate. So the question of whether Jesus was really dead was raised and satisfactorily answered in antiquity by one who would best know.

The question of whether Jesus was really dead was raised and satisfactorily answered in antiquity by one who would best know.

We see more small details of these kinds in the other Gospels, and when you compile them, they together build the case for the death of Jesus. This case must be built in order to build the case for the resurrection, because we’re getting rid of unreasonable objections.

This case must be built in order to build the case for the resurrection, because we’re getting rid of unreasonable objections.

And as we appeal to these details, let me remind you that although we Christians now take these things to be the inerrant and authoritative word of God, affecting our lives and futures, the Gospels are nevertheless also historical documents. People study them as historical documents; even people who don’t believe them in terms of what they have to say about eternal and spiritual matters do still take them as historical accounts. In fact, no credible historian denies that Jesus existed or that He was crucified.

No credible historian denies that Jesus existed or that He was crucified.

Look at additional details given in the Gospel of Matthew:

Now on the next day, the day after the preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered together with Pilate, and said, “Sir, we remember that when He was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I am to rise again.’” (Matthew 27:62–63)

From these verses, we learn that even Jesus’s enemies believed Him to be dead. It wasn’t just His followers going around later claiming that He was alive even while knowing He wasn’t. Followers and enemies alike confirmed that He did die.

Even Jesus’s enemies believed Him to be dead.

Unbroken Legs and a Pierced Side

The apostle John wrote:

So the soldiers came, and broke the legs of the first man and of the other who was crucified with Him; but coming to Jesus, when they saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. (John 19:32–33)

Crucifixion was designed to kill a person slowly, but breaking a crucified person’s legs sped up the process of death. (The Romans didn’t invent crucifixion, but some have said they perfected the practice.) The breaking of the legs prevented the person from pushing himself up and thus from breathing and delaying his own death.

That Christ’s legs were not broken, while the others’ legs were, tells us that the other two were still living, but Christ had died, and there was no purpose in breaking His legs.

The next verse adds an odd but important detail: “One of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out” (John 19:34). Not only was Jesus crucified, but He also was pierced by a spear. What’s the significance of the water and blood, medically, biologically, and physically speaking? Again, here’s a medical expert:

Even before he died—and this is important, too—the hypovolemic shock would have caused a sustained rapid heart rate that would have contributed to heart failure, resulting in the collection of fluid in the membrane around the heart, called a pericardial effusion, as well as around the lungs, called a pleural effusion. …

[This is significant] because of what happened when the Roman soldier came around and, being fairly certain that Jesus was dead, confirmed it by thrusting a spear into his right side; …

The spear apparently went through the right lung and into the heart, so when the spear was pulled out, some fluid—the pericardial effusion and the pleural effusion—came out. This would have the appearance of a clear fluid, like water, followed by a large volume of blood, as the eyewitness John described in his gospel.²²

Another medical expert:

Some authors have interpreted the flow of water to be ascites [uh-SIGH-teez] or urine, from an abdominal midline perforation of the bladder. However, the Greek word (πλευρα, or pleura) used by John clearly denoted laterality and often implied the ribs. Therefore, it seems probable that the wound was in the thorax and well away from the abdominal midline. …

…the water probably represented serous pleural and pericardial fluid, and would have preceded the flow of blood and been smaller in volume than the blood. Perhaps in the setting of hypovolemia and impending acute heart failure, pleural and pericardial effusions may have developed and would have added to the volume of apparent water. The blood, in contrast, may have originated from the right atrium or the right ventricle … or perhaps from a hemopericardium.²³

Again, these contributions from the medical field describe what it is that happened to Christ, because He had in fact gone through such torture and died. Some things in the Gospel simply don’t make common sense unless He was actually dead.

Finally, consider this verse in the Gospel of Luke: “Behold, two of them [Cleopas²⁴ and an unnamed disciple] were going that very day to a village named Emmaus, which was about seven miles from Jerusalem” (24:13). We learn in this passage that Jesus also walks with the two disciples. Seven miles is quite a distance to travel for a recently crucified individual, especially considering nail-pierced feet. Now consider that he had to return to Jerusalem that very day, bringing the total to 14 miles.

Application

When we’re compiling evidence like this, some will be challenged more than others to understand how to apply such a sermon to your life. Some love anything related to apologetics, and the joy of just talking about it will be application enough—I hope you will, in that moment, realize that joy over the faith, and joy over this kind of discussion, is a mode of worship. Such joy is welcome! As I’ve said, I hope these exercises build your faith.

But some may hear all of these details and struggle with what to do with them all. You may be wondering, “How do I apply this collection of facts to my own life?” For those in this camp, I leave you with this application about the body of Jesus: The violence done to Jesus is something you must dwell upon. It is, of course, not the complete story, but it is part of the story, and it’s part of our story (yours and mine), because it is we, not Jesus, who deserved the punishment of sin: “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21).

The violence done to Jesus is … not the complete story, but it is part of the story, and it’s part of our story (yours and mine), because it is we, not Jesus, who deserved the punishment of sin.

This violent crucifixion is part of the story that was known by God before it happened. Isaiah 53, written before crucifixion was invented, tells us of the horrors that awaited the Messiah. It tells of the Suffering Servant:

Who has believed our message?
And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot,
And like a root out of parched ground;
He has no stately form or majesty
That we should look upon Him,
Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.
He was despised and forsaken of men,
A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief;
And like one from whom men hide their face
He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.

Surely our griefs He Himself bore,
And our sorrows He carried;
Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten of God, and afflicted.
But He was pierced through for our transgressions,
He was crushed for our iniquities;
The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him,
And by His scourging we are healed.
All of us like sheep have gone astray,
Each of us has turned to his own way;
But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all
To fall on Him.

He was oppressed and He was afflicted,
Yet He did not open His mouth;
Like a lamb that is led to slaughter,
And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers,
So He did not open His mouth.
By oppression and judgment He was taken away;
And as for His generation, who considered
That He was cut off out of the land of the living
For the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due?
His grave was assigned with wicked men,
Yet He was with a rich man in His death,
Because He had done no violence,
Nor was there any deceit in His mouth.

But the Lord was pleased
To crush Him, putting Him to grief;
If He would render Himself as a guilt offering,
He will see His offspring,
He will prolong His days,
And the good pleasure of the Lord will prosper in His hand.
As a result of the anguish of His soul,
He will see it and be satisfied;
By His knowledge the Righteous One,
My Servant, will justify the many,
As He will bear their iniquities.
Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great,
And He will divide the booty with the strong;
Because He poured out Himself to death,
And was numbered with the transgressors;
Yet He Himself bore the sin of many,
And interceded for the transgressors. (Isaiah 53)

So whether it’s in Isaiah or the New Testament accounts, whether it’s in modern film renditions or the reading of graphic medical descriptions, we take offense at the treatment of Christ’s body on the cross. We think, No human body should be subjected to such, much less the body of the innocent, the body of our Lord.

I challenge you with this: If you take offense at how the (physical) body of Christ was treated in the crucifixion, let us also consider how we treat what is now referred to as His body, the church. For before Paul corrects the Corinthian church’s doctrine of the resurrection, he reminds them, “Now you are Christ’s body, and individually members of it” (1 Corinthians 12:27).

If you take offense at how the (physical) body of Christ was treated in the crucifixion, let us also consider how we treat what is now referred to as His body, the church.

Let us then seek to honor the body of Christ, the church, and not to harm it—to seek its unity and not contribute to anything that would dislocate that which should be joined. Let us honor it by contributing to its health, its nourishment, its longevity, its function.

We honor Christ when we understand that the gathering that is the church, the body of Christ, is our way of fulfilling even the Great Command. For if we love the church, we love God and we love our neighbor as ourselves, because we are all part of the body of Christ.

Table of Contents