Credible evidence

[Acts 17:22-34]

In the year O.J. Simpson turned 60, he was arrested and taken into custody without bail in a hotel room at the Palace Station Casino in Las Vegas. Simpson claimed ownership of high-value sports memorabilia in the hotel room, including baseballs, memorabilia plaques, photos, and a cellphone. According to the prosecution, Simpson and his associates attempted to detain two victims using firearms. Simpson faces a total of 11 charges, including first-degree kidnapping, robbery, burglary, attempted kidnapping, and attempted robbery. The first-degree kidnapping charge was later added. While this story may have faded from public memory, you may recall the O.J. Simpson case that created a stir in the mid-90s (Internet). At that time, O.J. Simpson, a former professional football player and renowned sports commentator, was accused of being a suspect in the gruesome murders of his ex-wife and her boyfriend near his upscale residence in L.A. However, he was ultimately acquitted of the double murder charges on October 3, 1995, when 12 jurors voted for his not guilty verdict in the Los Angeles Superior Court. Ironically, the families of the victims, Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Lyle Goldman, filed a civil lawsuit against Simpson for compensatory damages. Surprisingly, the L.A. court acknowledged Simpson's liability in the same case, and he was ordered to pay $8.5 million in compensatory damages to the victims' families. How could the same murder case result in a criminal verdict of not guilty and a civil verdict of liability for compensatory damages? Understanding this puzzle around the O.J. Simpson murder case reveals the fundamental principles of the U.S. legal system, distinguishing between civil and criminal judgments. The O.J. Simpson Double Murder Charge was a criminal case, and the court applied the "Beyond a Reasonable Doubt Standard." This standard requires federal or state prosecutors to prove the suspect's criminal charges beyond any reasonable doubt to the 12 jurors, making it the highest level of legal scrutiny. It means that all 12 jurors must unanimously agree that there is no reasonable doubt for the suspect to be convicted. On the other hand, the Wrongful Death Action filed by the victims' families against O.J. Simpson was a civil lawsuit (specifically a Torts Case). In civil lawsuits, a lower standard of legal scrutiny called the "Preponderance of Evidence Standard" is applied. This standard means that whichever party provides more persuasive evidence than the other side wins the case. For instance, if there is 49% evidence of Simpson's innocence and 51% evidence of guilt, the victims' families would win. In this scenario, only 9 out of 12 jurors need to agree for a guilty verdict. The reason U.S. law imposes such a high burden of proof on prosecutors in criminal cases is the belief that releasing ten guilty individuals is preferable to wrongfully imprisoning one innocent person. Consequently, Simpson was acquitted in the criminal trial due to the prosecution's inability to meet the high burden of proof. Therefore, the prosecution needed compelling evidence to support the facts alleged in the criminal case.

So, what is the sure or credible evidence that you and I believe in Jesus as our Savior? In other words, why do you believe in Jesus? God has provided us with credible evidence for believing in Jesus Christ, and that evidence is none other than the resurrection of Jesus. In other words, God raised Jesus from the dead (v. 31). The most powerful evidence for the historicity of the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the fact that His tomb was found empty. There have been various attempts to explain this empty tomb by theories, and here are about five of them (Internet):

The first theory suggests that no one knew about Jesus Christ's tomb.

Some historians argue, "The tomb where Jesus Christ was buried was unknown to anyone. Therefore, no one could verify the fact that Jesus Christ's tomb was empty." However, this theory has several weaknesses. According to Matthew 28:1, at least two women, including Mary Magdalene and the mother of James, confirmed that Jesus Christ's tomb was empty.

The second theory claims that the empty tomb was a different tomb.

This theory argues that Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, believing that Jesus Christ was buried, went to the wrong tomb. Since Joseph of Arimathea was a prominent Jewish leader, the low-status women could only observe from a distance and, therefore, mistakenly went to the wrong tomb later. However, Jesus Christ's tomb was not just one of the ordinary tombs in a common burial ground; it was a distinct tomb owned privately by Joseph of Arimathea.

The third theory suggests that the resurrection of Jesus Christ was a legend.

Some historians say that the resurrection of Jesus Christ is an artificially created legend that developed over a long period. They argue that since the stories about the resurrection of Jesus Christ were recorded 200-300 years after His death, during this time, legends or corruption of the scriptures could have occurred. However, the Gospels and the First Corinthians, which mention Jesus Christ's resurrection, were recorded and affirmed by eyewitnesses (individuals present at the resurrection) who directly experienced and testified to the resurrection event. Therefore, the idea that a large number of eyewitnesses (the empty tomb) conspired to fabricate the same resurrection event is nearly impossible.

The fourth theory is the spiritual resurrection theory.

This theory claims that Jesus Christ's body decayed in the tomb, but only His soul was resurrected. However, when Jesus resurrected, He asked His disciples to touch His hands, feet, and side wounds to verify that He had a resurrected physical body, not just a spiritual one.

The fifth theory is the hallucination theory.

This theory argues that the witnesses of Jesus Christ's resurrection experienced hallucinations. Hallucinations only occur in individuals with specific mental disorders. However, the eyewitnesses of the resurrected Jesus Christ had various backgrounds and different personalities, including both men and women. Hallucinations are highly individual experiences, so it is nearly impossible for two people to experience the exact same hallucination. Moreover, Jesus Christ appeared to more than 500 people simultaneously (1 Cor. 15:6), interacted with His disciples, shared meals with them, and allowed them to examine His resurrected form. Such events are impossible in the context of hallucination.

Looking at Acts 1:3, Jesus mentioned, "After His suffering, He presented Himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that He was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God." New Testament scholar George Beasley-Murray provided six credible pieces of evidence for the resurrection of Jesus: (1) the empty tomb, (2) Jesus appearing in His resurrected body, (3) the existence of the Church and worship of Jesus, (4) testimony emerging from the experiences of Christians, (5) the prophecies of Jesus, and (6) the alignment of resurrection and biblical predictions. Why did God raise Jesus from the dead? The reason is to establish Jesus as the judge of the entire world. Acts 17:31 states, "For He has set a day when He will judge the world with justice by the man He has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising Him from the dead." This fact ultimately teaches two things (Yoo):

The repentance of people from all nations involves forsaking the idols they worshiped.

Therefore, when Paul preached to the Adenites, a people known for their strong religious inclinations, gathered at the official resolution body of the city called the "Areopagus," which held significant authority in matters of religion and education (v. 22), he admonished them in verse 30: "In the past, God overlooked such ignorance, but now He commands all people everywhere to repent." In the era before the resurrection of Jesus, people who worshiped various pagan gods without acknowledging the Creator and the sovereign order of divine providence went unpunished. However, with the decisive advent of the new era of salvation brought about by the resurrection of Jesus, God, who had previously overlooked such ignorance, now commanded all people to repent (Yoo).

It teaches the need to believe in the resurrected Jesus.

Observing the Adenites' worship of various gods, including an altar dedicated to the "unknown god," Paul declared in verse 23, "What you worship as unknown, I now proclaim to you." He revealed the true God, the Creator and Lord of all, who governs providence (vv. 24-25). Paul preached about God's creation of all nations through one man (v. 26), the primary purpose of creating humanity to dwell on the earth together, establishing harmony and setting the boundaries of time and territory for people to seek God (v. 26). Paul emphasized that God's ultimate purpose was to lead humanity to seek Him (v. 27, Yoo). Therefore, Apostle Paul proclaimed to the Adenites that they should repent of the sin of idol worship and turn to serve the true God alone. This incredible power of the gospel and the history of salvation manifested itself prominently in Thessalonica. Consider 1 Thessalonians 1:9: "for they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us. They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God." Paul's preaching led the Thessalonians to receive the word of God, which is indeed at work in they who believe (1 Thess. 2:13) and become imitators of the Lord in the midst of much affliction, receiving the joy of the Holy Spirit through receiving God's word (1:6-7). The response of the Adenites to Paul's preaching is recorded in today's passage (Acts 17:32-34), showing varied reactions to his message. Some responded with mockery or expressed a desire to hear more later (v. 32). However, a few individuals, including Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus council, a woman named Damaris, and others, believed in Paul's message (v. 34).

How will you respond? Indeed, how will you respond to the Word of God, which declares that Jesus Christ died on the cross, and God raised Him from the dead, appointing Him as the Judge of the whole world? Clearly, God has ordained the day when He will judge the world with justice (v. 31). Moreover, He has appointed the resurrected Jesus Christ as the Judge. The voice that God speaks to us through today's passage can be summarized in two messages: the first message is "Repent" (v. 30), and the second message is "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household" (16:31).

Praying for restoration of tears of repentance,

James Kim

(Wishing for the widespread proclamation of the gospel of salvation)