Pagina-afbeeldingen
PDF
ePub

could imagine necessary. But after three days Jesus appears to his disciples alive, and a story is propagated that the disciples stole his body while the soldiers slept. This must evidently be false, as I shall prove; for had such a circumstance happened of the soldiers sleeping on their watch, they would have been put to death. And indeed what ground could there be for believing it to be true? had the disciples such amazing courage, or such a firm belief that their master would rise again, as to engage in such a dangerous enterprize? and even had they so done, what end could it have answered to them? They had followed him because they laboured under the general prejudice of their countrymen, in expecting a temporal deliverer, and seeing the miracles of Jesus, believed that he was the person; and this prejudice they still retained after his resurrection, for they even then ask him (Acts i. 6), "Lord, wilt thou at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?" Of what use then could be his dead body, even had they obtained it? They could not have made it a king; besides which, it is evident that when he was crucified all their courage forsook them, and they fled. But not only had they not courage to steal the body, but they had no inducement, having entirely given up all expectation of his resurrection; so that when the women who had seen Jesus reported it to the apostles (Luke xxiv. 11) their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed them not; and the two disciples who walked with him to Emmaus declare in the most simple manner their disappointment, by saying to Jesus (Luke xxiv. 18) “art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which are come to pass there in these days? and he said unto them, what things? and they said, concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how the chief priests and rulers delivered him to be condemned to death, and have crucified him; but we trusted it had been he which should have redeemed Israel; and beside all this, to-day is the third day since these things were done." And Thomas, who happened to be absent when Jesus visited his disciples, said, upon hear ing of the event," except 1 shall see in his hand the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe." Here then are men, not understanding or believing that Jesus would, or had risen from the dead, charged with the desperate enterprize of breaking open a sepulchre, which was sealed, and guarded by Roman soldiers, aided by the vigilance of never-sleeping bigotry -without any possible motive for such an action, and contrary to all their prejudices and belief. This is impossible in the nature of things, and consequently the body of Jesus must

have been still secure in the sepulchre, or he really was raised from the dead by the power of God; and notwithstanding all their prejudices, they are convinced that Jesus is risen indeed, acknowledge their error, and from cowards and sceptics, become courageous asserters of what they before could not give credit to. 1 here call upon the Deist to assign an adequate cause for this conviction wrought in their minds under all the circumstances of the case, independent of that which they have assigned, viz. that they had seen him, handled him, eaten and conversed with him, for forty days, so that it was impossible they could be mistaken; and if he cannot do this, then is the fact of the resurrection of Jesus fully established, and the Christian religion must be true.

Having thus secured the body in the sepulchre, by proving that it could not have been stolen by the disciples, and being also sure that the Jews and Romans would not favour the fraud by removing it, let us see what was the conduct of these heretofore cowardly disciples, after being convinced that their master was alive again. And here I will not enter into any argument to shew that they had no interest in the line of conduct they pursued; that will appear evident from the future consequences-I will only shew that they acted like men who were fully satisfied of the fact which they declared to be true, and that they gave their enemies a fair opportunity of detecting their imposture, if it had been such. They did not go to a remote place to propagate it where the means of detection would have been difficult, but into the very city of Jerusalem, where it had taken place; and that they did go to this place first is evident, as all history admits the fact, that whether Christianity be true or false, here it was first plantedthey did not publish it in holes and corners, and so as to evade the notice of men in power, but chose the most public places and public occasions for that purpose-they went where, if the death and burial of Jesus was false, every person could contradict them; and where, if the dead body had been stolen, they exposed themselves to punishment for the theft; but they are neither contradicted in the one, nor charged with the other.

All this 1 allow only proves the fact of the death and burial, and their innocence as to stealing the dead body; but in addition to this, it was the place where the magistrates could detect the falsehood of their story, as to the resurrection of Jesus, by producing the body, or establish the fact of its having been stolen by these men; yet we shall find that neither one or the other is ever attempted. Now let it be observed, that the conduct of the disciples has nothing of fanaticism about it -they do not run and proclaim the fact directly they are convinced of its reality, but patiently wait the fulfilment of a pro

:

mise made by Jesus, of their receiving power from on high to fit them for the important undertaking; and not till they have received this power, do they set about engaging in their mission; but no sooner are they thus qualified than they enter the city of Jerusalem, and declare the resurrection of Jesus, not only to the Jewish people, but before the high priest, senate, and the council-they not only declare his resurrection, but charge them with being his murderers. Here then is a sufficient inducement to lead these men to use every means to detect the imposture, and to vindicate their own character; and surely no men ever had it more in their power, admitting that the things which the apostles asserted as facts had been false but contrary to every thing we know of human nature, and of the practice of men in power under such circumstances, we find them neglecting to bring any proof of the falsehood of the assertions, and contenting themselves with either charging them not to speak any more of it, or else punishing them for so doing while we see the disciples, who at the crucifixion of Jesus had proved themselves such cowards, and after his resurrection so difficult to be convinced of the fact, with no inducement whatever if the thing was false, acting with a courage that it is impossible for impostors to feign --boldly defying all their threats, charging them to their teeth with being murderers, and insisting that the man whom they had thus put to death, and secured his body with seals and guards, was actually risen from the dead, and notwithstanding all their precautions was no longer in the tomb; for Peter, when questioned concerning a miracle he had performed, said that it was not by his own power or holiness he had done this, but (Acts iii. 13)" the God of Abraham, and Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his son Jesus, whom ye delivered up and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go; but ye denied the holy one and the just, and desired a murderer to be delivered to you, and killed the prince of life whom God hath raised up, of whom we are witnesses." Here is no mincing of the matter; this is not the method that impostors pursue to gain converts to their side, but every thing calculated to rouse the indignation of his auditors, to provoke enquiry into the fact, and to produce the strongest inclination to prove the falsehood of the assertion. But what is the effect produced? do they say you are liars and impostors; the man whom you say is living is yet in the tomb; let us go there, and let that determine the fact? No, but like all men who have no better argument, they appeal to the argument of authority and force (Acts iv. 1), "for as they spake to the people the priests, and the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees, came upon them (v. 3), and they laid hands on

them, and put them in hold unto the next day; and then they assemble all the men in power and interrogate them." But even here the Apostles are not intimidated! they do not alter their story, but boldly repeat the charge of the murder of Jesus, asserting also that God had raised him from the dead, and that they had performed a miracle in his name.

66 we

Now what are the steps taken by the council? do they refer to the sepulchre? do they produce the dead body which would have settled the business beyond all dispute? No, but they content themselves with commanding that they should speak no more of these things, and threatening them with punishment if they did. Surely this is not a line of conduct that would have been pursued by men in power, had they known what the Apostles asserted to be false, and that the body was still in their possession. But what is the conduct of the Apostles on this occasion? do they act like impostors, or like men convinced of the truth of those things they had taught? Surely no impostors would have acted as they did, for they boldly declare that they act under the the authority of God, and say cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard." Again, we find (Acts v.) that, when the preaching and miracles of the Apostles had converted great numbers to the faith, the high priest rose up, and all they that were with him, and were filled with indignation, and laid them in the common prison; but on the next day (whether by a miracle or any other cause) they were found at large! They did not, as impostors would have done, fly from the power of their accusers; but they enter into the temple, and teach those very things for which they had been imprisoned; and there they remain till the officers of justice lead them before the council; and when they had come before the council, the high priest asked them, "did we not strictly command you that ye should teach no more in this name, and behold ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrines, and intend to bring this man's blood upon us." Here, let it be remarked, there is even now no attempt to prove the falsehood of what the Apostles had taught, or to convict them as impostors. They do not say, let us go to the sepulchre, or let the dead body be brought to give the lie to your assertions; or, admitting the dead body had been sto len, they did not charge the disciples with the theft. Surely, had they been in possession of such proofs, they would not have failed to adduce them; therefore their not doing it is proof that the body was not in the sepulchre, and that they did not believe the disciples had stolen it. And here let me observe the ob jection will not avail, that the body was putrified or decayed, as the manner in which Jesus was buried precluded the possibility. He was not put in a grave and covered with earth, but

in a tomb, dug out of a rock, and his body was embalmed; so that there could not have been the smallest inconvenience in producing it, had it been there. Here again the council acted as men who were conscious that they had no evidence against the persons accused, while the Apostles conducted themselves in a way that must prove to every impartial man they knew that they were right; for they do not alter their story-they do not court the favour or mercy of their accusers and judgesthey do not soften their language; but "then Peter and the other Apostles (not one but all) answered and said, we ought to obey God rather than men: the God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree, and we are his witnesses of these things." But what effect does this provoking and intrepid conduct produce? does it call forth any evidence to shew they had been uttering falsehoods? No, "but they took counsel to slay them; and then stood up one of the council, a Pharisee, named Gamaliel, a doctor of the law, and held in reputation among all the people, and commanded to put forth the Apostles." And what does this great doctor say? Does he advise them to produce the dead body? or, Knowing it was not then in the sepulchre, does he say let us convict these men of having stole it, and then punish them for the theft? He does not-he speaks like a man, who, knowing they had no evidence to controvert the fact, would therefore propose the best expedient, under all the circumstances, of ascertaining whether it was true or false; for after mentioning' the rise and fall of several impostors who had pretended to be the Messiah, he says, and "now I say unto you, refrain from these men, and let them alone; for if this council, or this work, be of men, it will come to nought; but if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it, lest haply ye be found fighting against God." But, I ask, why leave it to this discussion? Why not produce the dead body?-They had taken every precaution to secure it, and if what the Apostles asserted was false, in the sepulchre it must have been at this very time. But without any other reason or evidence adduced by Gamaliel, it is said, to him they agreed; and when they had called the Apostles and had beaten them, they commanded that they should speak no more in the name of Jesus, and let them go.

2%

[ocr errors]

Thus the council acted like men who had no possible means of disproving the charge of murder brought against themselves, nor the fact of the resurrection; while the disciples displayed a perseverance and courage that nothing but the strongest conviction could inspire, "for daily in the temple and every house they ceased not to teach and proclaim Jesus as the Messiah."

Here then we have facts, which, if the Apostles were impos

« VorigeDoorgaan »