In order to feel better about lying, we tend to separate “little lies” from “big lies,” as though some lies are permissible. In God’s eyes a lie is a lie, be it “little,” or “big.” To lie is to sin and sins always pays it “wages!”  Sadly, lying has become a way of life for many people.  
Dictators and politicians of every ilk have learned that if a lie is spoken often enough and loud enough it will, eventually, be believed. As a matter of fact, the bigger the lie, the greater the chances for its success! So, when nothing else works imply resort to lying! 

What was the biggest lie that you’ve ever heard? What was the biggest lie someone spread about you? Without question, the biggest, most daring and the most damaging lie ever told was the lie circulated by the Roman soldiers who guarded the tomb of Jesus.  We read in Mathew 28: 12 that “When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money telling them, ‘You are to say, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole Him away while we were asleep.” They were promised protection from prosecution.  To take such a risk they must have been paid very large sum of money!
   
Why is this the most damaging lie ever told? The ap. Paul reminds us that the Gospel we preach, stands, or falls, with the resurrection of Jesus Christ. If Christ did not rise from the dead then we’re wasting our time believing in God (I Cor. 15:14). As Leo Tolstoy, the great Russian writer once remarked, “The Church becomes mere theater.”
   
Sadly, the lie that Jesus’ disciples stole His body while the Roman soldiers slept has had a very powerful impact on the Jewish people to this very day. Every year, prior to Easter, a book entitled  “The Passover Plot” is advertized in cities with a large Jewish population.  The author claims that Jesus really didn’t die on the cross.  He merely lost consciousness.  After being put in the tomb He regained consciousness and escaped. 

How can such an outlandish lie be overcome? Can it be overcome? For proof of Jesus’ resurrection we can turn to friendly witnesses. These would include: 1) Mary Magdalene, the first person to see Jesus after His resurrection, 2) the other women who came to the tomb on the morning of the third day, 3) the eleven disciples to whom Jesus appeared.  behind closed doors, 4) the two disciples to whom the Risen Savior appeared on the road to Emmaus, 5) more than 500 disciples mentioned by the ap. Paul in I Cor.15:6 and, finally, to a Pharisee named Saul of Tarsus who, after his encounter with the Risen Savior on his way to Damascus became Jesus’ most dedicated apostle. 

Someone may retort that all these witnesses, except Saul of Tarsus, were Jesus’ friends.  A good observation indeed!   So let’s turn now to witnesses hostile to Jesus who, by their own action, helped provide irrefutable proof that Jesus most certainly rose from the dead.
    
First, there is the Roman centurion who reported to Pilate that Jesus was dead.  One of his soldiers had pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. 
    
Second, the chief priests and Pharisees, Jesus’ fiercest enemies, helped provide proof of Jesus’ resurrection by asking Pilate to give them Roman soldiers to guard the tomb. The religious leaders of Israel personally made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the tomb – a rope put across the stone and sealed with clay on either end – and posting the Roman guard. Helpless and defeated by their own machinations, they now resort to a lie, the last weapon left in their arsenal.
    
The most powerful weapon in overcoming the most damaging lie ever told are the lives of Christians who have had a personal encounter with the Risen Savior. Historical facts alone are not enough to convince people of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. A miracle of such magnitude requires living proof. The only way to convince the world that Jesus rose from the dead and is alive today is by allowing Christ to live out His life in us!

Dr. George Boltniew