I Found Jesus!

Myth: The bones of Jesus have been discovered

You’ll notice that this particular lesson kinda breaks with the flow of the others but this item appeared in the news this week.

Perhaps you’ve heard about the Discovery Channel special tonight : The Lost Tomb Of Jesus

Film-maker James Cameron claims to have discovered a tomb in Jerusalem  with the bones of Mary, Joseph, Jesus,  the wife of Jesus and their son, Judah.  The identity of the bones comes from markings on bone boxes found in the tomb.

Cameron claims DNA evidence backs up his assertion that Jesus that one of the Mary’s found in the tomb was Jesus’ wife and Judah was their son.

Markings on 6 of the 10 ossuaries include:

.

1. Yeshua bar Yehosef - 'Jesus son of Joseph' (speaks for itself)

2. Maria - the Latin for the normal 'Miriam' or Mary (mother or sister of Jesus?)

3. Yose - alternate form of 'Joseph'    ( Matthew 13:54 lists 4 brothers of Jesus—James, Joses, Simon, Judas—and unnamed and unnumbered sisters)

4. Yehuda bar Yeshua—'Judah son of Jesus' (some claim this refers to Jesus of Nazareth's son)

5. Mariamne e mara—'Miriamne the master' (some say Mary of Magdala's real name was Miriamne; mara is the same term as Maranatha "Come, oh Lord [mara]" in 1 Corinthians 16:22 )

6. Matya—'Matthew' or 'Matthias' (possibly a husband of one of the women in an unmarked ossuary)

What are the odds these names would appear together?

University of Toronto mathematician calculated that the odds that the tomb does not belong to the Jesus of the Gospels is 1/600

If indeed, the bones of Jesus were found, what would it mean for Christianity?

Check out 1 Corinthians  15:12-34

The Resurrection of the Dead

 12But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. 15More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. 16For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. 17And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. 18Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. 19If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.

 20But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man.

Reality: Jesus  rose from the dead and ascended into Heaven

Amos Kloner, the archaeologist who oversaw work on the site upon its discovery, 10 YEARS AGO dismissed its new-found Hollywood treatment. "It was an ordinary middle-class Jerusalem burial cave," he told reporters in Jerusalem. "The names on the caskets are the most common names found among Jews at the time.  The idea fails to hold up to archaeological standards It makes a great story for a TV film. But it's impossible. It's nonsense."  He also added: it’s a beautiful story but without any proof whatsoever.

Indeed Mr. Cameron failed to go the traditional route of having archaeologists review his findings before going to press.

A Hungarian scholar wrote: In that time, there were not as many different personal names as today in the time of mixed cultures. If we are talking about ten or twenty different names, the coincidence is perfectly possible, in fact quite probable

From The Hindu:

Israeli archaeologists pointed out that despite the statistical work commissioned by Mr. Jacobovici, the names scratched into the boxes were all popular and common in the first century. —

From The Bible:

It is unlikely that Mary and Joseph would have been buried in a tomb commonly used by the middle class. They were poor.

Luke 2:22-24

22When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23(as it is written in the Law of the Lord, "Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord"^[b]), 24and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: "a pair of doves or two young pigeons."^[c]

Leviticus 12:8 8 If she cannot afford a lamb, she is to bring two doves or two young pigeons, one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering. In this way the priest will make atonement for her, and she will be clean.' "

They couldn’t have afforded the tomb!

People in the crowd addressed by the Apostles at Pentecost were eyewitnesses to Christ’s post-Resurrection appearance:

Acts 2:31-32  31Seeing what was ahead, he spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to the grave, nor did his body see decay. 32God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact.

It should be stated again that Mr. Cameron is not an archaeologist but a film-maker who cashed in most notability on his film”Titanic.”  He waited 10 years to share his “discovery” with the world.

What do you think his motivation was for sharing this discovery now?

$$$$

The Ascension is described in Acts 1:7-11

 He said to them: "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. "Men of Galilee," they said, "why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven."