SESSION 7

 SESSION 7 

PART 7: DID JESUS RISE FROM THE DEAD? 

Chapter 25 "The Positive Case: The Best Explanation of the Facts" 

1. What do the three New Testament texts cited by Nabeel tell us about the early Christians' view of what happened to Jesus after his death? 

2. When Mike Licona debated Muslim scholar Shabir Ally regarding the resurrection of Jesus, what were the 3 facts Mike used in his "minimal facts approach"? 

3. Regarding "Fact 2," what are the three reasons that the earliest Christians believed they saw the resurrected Christ? 

4. Name two unbelievers who were converted to Christianity. How is the argument that "even unbelievers verified the resurrection" a powerful fact? 

5. How cana Christian respond to the charge that the resurrection appearances of Jesus were hallucinations? 

Chapter 26 "The Islamic Response: All Paul's Fault" 

1. What is the Muslim understanding of Jesus' resurrection and Jesus' ascension? 

2. Muslims believe that the true message of Jesus was corrupted very early in Christian history. Who corrupted Christianity's teachings, according to Muslims, and how was the corruption done? 

3. What three reasons did Shabir Ally, the Muslim debater, offer to support his view that Paul corrupted early Christianity? 

Chapter 27 "Assessing the Islamic Response: Paul and the Disciples in Proper Perspective" 

1. What did the two authors quoted by Nabeel say in their claims about Paul that fueled the debate about Paul and Christianity? 

2. What are two reasons that the consensus of scholars give to defeat the argument that Paul was a power-hungry deceiver in the early church? 

3. How does the New Testament present Paul's relationship to the early church leaders Peter, James, and John? 

4.What is the importance in knowing that Jesus came to "fulfill" the Law, not "follow" the Law? 

5. What did you learn about Paul and the historical Jesus? 

6. How does the Quran complicate the Muslim of view of Paul as a deceiver? 

7. How does Nabeel support his claim, "The truth is, even if we disregard Paul entirely, we still have good reason to think Jesus rose from the dead"? 

Chapter 28 "Conclusion: Jesus Rose from the Dead" 

1. How did Nabeel reach this conclusion:"The common Islamic characterization of Paul as the one who hijacked Christianity not only ignores Allah's promises in the Quran but also fails to provide a motive ora means for Paul's corruption of the church, and it requires a wholesale disregard for the records of the early church's history"? 

4. What is the importance in knowing that Jesus came to "fulfill" the Law, not "follow" the Law? 

Answer ( Chapter 27:4 ) Understanding that Jesus came to fulfill the Law, rather than merely follow it, is critical because it distinguishes between legalistic obedience and redemptive completion. 

Fulfillment versus Following

Following implies adhering to the letter of the law through human effort, which the Law itself proves impossible to sustain perfectly, thereby highlighting human sinfulness and inability. 

Fulfilling (Greek: pleroo) means to bring to completion, accomplish, or fill to fullness.  Jesus fulfilled the Law by:

Perfectly obeying its moral demands, establishing a righteousness no human could achieve.

Completing the ceremonial and sacrificial systems, which pointed forward to His death as the ultimate atonement.

Fulfilling the prophetic predictions regarding the Messiah found in "the Law and the Prophets." 

Theological and Practical Importance

Transition from Old to New Covenant: Because Jesus fulfilled the Law, the Old Covenant (conditional and temporal) is replaced by the New Covenant (unconditional and eternal).  Believers are no longer under the "written code" but are led by the Holy Spirit. 

Salvation by Grace: Salvation is not achieved by keeping the Law but is received through faith in Christ’s finished work.  The Law’s primary purpose was to reveal God’s standard and humanity’s need for a Savior, which Jesus provided.

Heart-Oriented Obedience: Jesus intensified the Law’s demands to the level of the heart and intent (e.g., addressing anger and lust, not just actions).  Believers fulfill the "Law of Christ" through love and the power of the Spirit, rather than external ritual compliance. 

Freedom from Condemnation: Recognizing Jesus as the Law’s fulfillment frees believers from the curse of the Law and the anxiety of trying to earn righteousness, allowing them to serve in the "new way of the Spirit" (Romans 7:6). 

In summary, Jesus’ fulfillment of the Law means He completed its requirements on behalf of humanity, making the Law’s old covenantal obligations obsolete while preserving its moral principles through the transformative work of the Spirit in the New Covenant.