Why Were Christians Willing to Face a Brutal Death?

Hey there. Well, the fact that these 11, regular, remaining guys, who were afraid for their lives when Jesus was arrested, came out into the public to proclaim His death and resurrection, even to the point of being killed for their testimony, shows that what they believed was NOT a lie.

Sure. People all over the world do today. I mean just look at the many messed up religions this world offers – people die for what they believe in all the time. But for the Apostles of Jesus to have changed from coward to fearless in just 3 days is extraordinary!

Well, they didn’t just believe that Jesus would be raised from the dead, they witnessed it. They saw Jesus walking around, talking with them, eating with them, in the flesh, 3 days after they watched Him die on the cross (and the Centurion made sure Jesus was dead by puncturing His heart with a spear). This was no trickery, no lie – this was real! And so just from the fact that they witnessed this themselves, and that Jesus encouraged them to follow Him, they knew the importance of sharing this with everybody, even if it meant that they’d die in the same manner as did their Messiah.

There were also many more people, not just Jesus’ core group, who saw Jesus walking around 3 days after He’d died on the cross. Paul said Jesus showed Himself to 500 people at one time after His resurrection! These people had all the evidence they needed to believe in Jesus and His resurrection at this moment. They witnessed it, they were there, and they were changed.

Think of it today like 9/11/01. Anybody born after September 11, 2001 would be completely unaware of the emotion and immediate events that occurred on that day, or even why we went to war after it happened. Some might even say it’s difficult to believe it ever happened in the first place, since they weren’t there to experience it themselves. But they can all say they know someone who was alive when it happened, saw it happen, whether on TV or in person, and some may even be able to say they’re related to someone who died in one of the planes or one of the towers. We can also tell them just what happened, who claimed credit, why we went to war, how much of NATO joined in to help.

In his book, “More than a Carpenter“, Josh McDowell explains that “the New Testament accounts of Christ were being circulated within the lifetimes of his contemporaries. These people whose lives overlapped His could certainly confirm or deny the accuracy of the accounts. In advocating their case for the Gospel, the apostles had appealed (even when confronting their most severe opponents) to common knowledge concerning Jesus. They not only said, “Look, we saw this” or “We heard that,” but they turned the tables and said right in the face of adverse critics, “You also know about these things. You saw them. You yourselves know about it.” — in fact, I think you’d really like chapter 7 in this book, “Who Would Die for a Lie?”

It’s easy to question the events of things that happened before we were alive, because we’re taking the word of others. But the evidence is also in the behavioral changes that were affected by the events. For instance, how people changed from it (mentally, emotionally, many physically…) how culture changed, how the world changed. For instance, airline security. Before all this happened, guests could park their cars and wait for their friends and loved ones INSIDE THE GATES. Now, we have to drive around the airport a few times and hope they step out to the road so we can quickly pick them up before being yelled at by security for sitting too long.

Before Jesus was killed:

• Simon Peter acted tough and all, but when faced with persecution, arrest, even being connected with Jesus at all when a slave girl asked him in the presence of Roman soldiers, he cowered, violently swore oaths that he didn’t even know who Jesus was, and rejected Him altogether.
• The other 10 all scattered
• After Jesus was killed, the Bible says that they were “hiding” behind closed doors, praying. They were HIDING from the public for fear of being arrested, and thus killed as Jesus was.
• Even after Jesus had risen from the dead, they all still returned to their previous trades (many went fishing).

After Jesus’ Resurrection

• Pentecost: When everyone ran out of the house and began sharing the Good News about Jesus Christ to people of different nationalities and languages, people thought they were mad, or drunk. But then, Simon Peter stood out among them and not only explained what was going on, but also shared about Jesus right there, among thousands of people, and led most of them to Christ.
• All the disciples, guys who were originally afraid to poke their heads out because of the chances of being arrested and killed, were suddenly traveling everywhere to share about the Good News about Jesus’ death and resurrection.

These previous cowards literally became courageous overnight!

Jesus Before His Resurrection

Then you have people who had previously mocked Jesus before His resurrection, only to later become respected leaders in the early church:

• Judas (Jude) and James, Jesus’ 2 half brothers from Mary and his step-dad Joseph, who had previously mocked Jesus. Jude wrote a letter to one of the churches, which was added into the Canon, and James had become a leader in the early Jerusalem church.
• Paul (formally known as Saul) is known today as an Apostle of Jesus Christ, and also the author of most of the New Testament. Before accepting the Good News of Jesus, he was one of the most feared persecutors of Christians. He was present and supported the stoning of Stephen, he chased down Christians who’d fled to other cities, and he took part in sentencing them to their deaths.

Transformations by People Who Know Jesus

*Almost every one of them died for the Good News about Jesus Christ (*John died of natural causes, but went through unimaginable torturing before then), and they all did so willingly for the sake of Christ. This was a complete 180 degree turn from who and what they were before Jesus’ resurrection.

When we accept Jesus today, we come to know Him personally. The Holy Spirit that makes His home in us then makes us witnesses to the Good News about Jesus Christ. There’s also a transformation made in us — we can look back on who we were before knowing Jesus and honestly say we’re not the same people we were then. Those who knew us then can vouch for us, and we share our testimonies with others as evidence of this.