Licona: Distinguish the ‘real’
Jesus from the counterfeits
By Paula R. Kincaid, The Layman, November 19, 2009
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The seminar “Who is the Real Jesus? History, Hogwash and Hot Air,” was one of many workshops at the 2009 National Conference on Christian Apologetics at Hickory Grove Baptist Church in Charlotte, N.C. Nov. 13-14. The event, “Apologetics and the Local Church,” was sponsored by Southern Evangelical Seminary.
Mike Licona, apologetic coordinator at the North American Mission Board, said that “You can distinguish the authentic Jesus from counterfeits by understanding the three “R’s of good history.”
Those three R’s are relevant sources, responsible method and restrained results.
Relevant sources
Licona first gave some basic principles for relevant sources:
- Principle of multiple reports.
- Principle of unsympathetic reports – He used John Adams, the second president of the United States, as his example. If Adams’ wife said he was an honest man, she would be considered a biased source. But, if someone who was critical of him said Adams was short-tempered, mean, etc., but he was honest, that source would be more credible. Josephus (AD 90), Pliny (AD 115) and Tacitus (AD 120) are all considered unsympathetic sources to the truth of Jesus’ life, because they were not Christians, but they mentioned Jesus in their records.
- Principle of early reports – The earlier the report was made, the more relevant it was. Licona said that Paul’s letters in the New Testament were written in AD 50-65 – approximately 20 to 70 years after Jesus ascended into heaven. They are deemed more relevant by scholars than some other accounts written in AD 150-300.
- Principle of eyewitness reports – “It’s better to have a report from eyewitnesses than from someone who heard from an eyewitness,” Licona said.
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Responsible method
“The first-century Christians who wrote the Gospels used the good, the bad and the ugly as they reported what happened as it happened,” he said. Those details add to the credibility of the Gospel.
Licona said that if the report causes “embarrassment to the cause” then it makes it appear more authentic. An example: The Gospels say that Jesus had four brothers, said Licona, but two of the Gospels say that none of this brothers believed Jesus was the son of God.
“This is embarrassing if his own brothers didn’t even believe in him,” Licona said.
Restrained results
When speaking of restrained results, Licona said, “I can prove some things in the Bible, but not everything can be proved, so for those we believe in faith.”
He said that it can be proved that:
- Jesus existed. “We have as many non-Christians that mentioned Jesus as Christians within 150 years of His life.”
- Jesus was a teacher.
- Jesus believed He was the son of God.
- Jesus predicted His violent death.
Licona has a Ph.D. in New Testament studies, which he completed with distinction from the University of Pretoria and an M.A. in religious studies from Liberty University. He is a frequent speaker on university campuses, at churches, for Christian groups and at retreats. He has appeared as a guest on numerous radio and television programs, and is a member of the Evangelical Philosophical Society, the Institute for Biblical Research, and the Society of Biblical Literature. For more information about him, visit his Web site or follow him on Twitter: @DidJesusRise.