Apologist and New Testament scholar Dr. Jeremiah J. Johnston just released a Bible study, titled “Body of Proof,” that closely examines the events of Easter weekend.
The Bible study follows the release of Johnston’s apologetics book “Body of Proof: The 7 Best Reasons to Believe in the Resurrection of Jesus—and Why It Matters Today,” which was published last year.
In the four-session “Body of Proof” Bible study, Johnston closely examines the events of Easter weekend, presenting four reasons why Christians can trust in the resurrection of Jesus as a historical fact.
Johnston, who serves as president of the Christian Thinkers Society, the pastor of apologetics and cultural engagement at Prestonwood Baptist Church, and the dean of Spiritual Development at Prestonwood Christian Academy, told ChurchLeaders that his reason for writing the Bible study is that, “unfortunately, the resurrection of Jesus Christ is under-taught in today’s churches.”
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“It’s under studied, it’s under preached, and, unfortunately, it’s under believed. And that’s not the faith that we see reflected in the New Testament,” Johnston said. “There are 260 chapters in the New Testament. We have 300 references to the resurrection of Jesus Christ,” he continued. “[Of the] 89 chapters in the gospels, only four of them deal with the infancy narratives or Christmas; more than one half deal with the final eight days of Jesus’ life.”
Every sermon in the book of Acts centers on the physical, bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ, “so if we’re gonna have churches that reflect the faith of the New Testament,” Johnston explained, “Christians need to up our game in a society where there’s so many conflicting voices and boldly proclaim that our faith is based on a historical fact that Jesus walked out of the grave alive.”
Johnston shared that one of the top questions he’s been asked by the media recently is, “Can you be a Christian if you don’t believe in the resurrection?”
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According to the Apostle Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 15, “No, you cannot be a Christian if you don’t believe in the physical, bodily resurrection of Jesus,” Johnston said.
“Unfortunately, I’m seeing that in the church today, unless you attend a funeral that actually preaches the gospel,” he added, “or if you go to some churches on Easter, you rarely hear a sermon on the resurrection of Jesus. And yet, the resurrection is the centerpiece of a Christian worldview.”
