It was a warm summer morning adorned with birds and flowers. I strolled along the shady, level path, realizing I may never pass this way again. I was on Addison’s Walk on the grounds of Magdalen College in Oxford, England, a long way from home.
This is the path where C.S. Lewis took a significant step toward faith in Christ. He and friends Dyson and Tolkien were on a midnight stroll. Lewis had been quite taken with ancient stories, including the “myth” of Jesus. But this night, as the three 30-something English professors conversed and walked in the wee hours of the morning, something changed in Lewis’ erudite mind. He later explained that the story of Christ stood out “with this tremendous difference. It really happened.” The truth of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus confronted Lewis.
Extra-Biblical sources confirm the basic facts: Jesus of Nazareth was a real person who lived and died by execution under Roman ruler Pilate. Jesus’ followers worshipped Him as God, claiming that He was resurrected from the dead. In the face of persecution and death, early Christianity experienced explosive growth throughout the Mediterranean region. When you add the Biblical account, you understand God’s purpose in these historical events.
The message of the early church focused on the convincing power of Jesus’ literal and physical resurrection, which was witnessed by hundreds of people including named individuals. One of the earliest Christian confessions places the focus on the resurrection: “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (Rom. 10:9). The empty tomb is evidence that Jesus is who He claimed to be. His purpose was to renew and save believers from being separated from the God of love and grace. “I am the resurrection and the life,” Jesus said. “He who believes in Me will live even if he died” (John 11:25).
The resurrection of Jesus is central to the gospel. Without it, preaching and faith are pointless, and the gospel is a useless canard. Christianity does not exist without a risen Christ. If true, it means life has meaning and death is not the end. The story of Jesus “illuminates and orders all other phenomena, explains both our laughter and our logic, our fear of the dead and our knowledge that it is somehow good to die,” Lewis wrote. By faith, we are raised in Christ to new, eternal life, the fearless life God means for you to have.
Follow Lewis’ thoughtful stroll along Addison’s Walk by considering the reality of Jesus’ resurrection. It may well be the walk of a lifetime if you, as did Lewis, come to realize that it is true. The resurrection matters – Jesus did it for you.