New Testament scholar Jeremiah J. Johnston believes the most compelling archaeological evidence for Jesus is the famed Shroud of Turin, a burial cloth believed by some to show an image created during Christ’s resurrection.
“I’ve published 300,000 words on the resurrection of Jesus,” Johnston recently told CBN News. “That’s my personal expertise. I’m a historical Jesus scholar, did my PhD on the resurrection.”
But until recently, he hadn’t written about the shroud — something he was once quite skeptical of, but has since fully embraced.
“I have traveled the world meeting with the physicists, the scientists, the mathematicians, the medical doctors who have staked their academic reputation that the Shroud is not only authentic, but that there’s a one in 200 billion chance it’s not the Jesus of the Bible,” Johnston continued, “And I essentially collate all the data that I’ve learned over the last three years on the Shroud … and say, ‘Here is the best arguments for the shroud,’ because the shroud is a divine, literally itemized receipt of how much Jesus loves us.”
The scholar believes that, outside the Bible, it’s the only artifact that documents the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, thereby distinguishing it from other findings.
“Nothing else does that,” Johnston said. “And so I find the shroud to be the most compelling.”
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In his new book, “The Jesus Discoveries: 10 Historic Finds That Bring Us Face-to-Face with Jesus,” the scholar explores the Shroud of Turin and nine other discoveries that point to the historicity of Jesus. Johnston believes knowing more about these discoveries will help people better navigate faith discussions.
“I’m just simply serving it up to them, guiding them by the hand to say, ‘Hey, here’s 10 discoveries that are unimpeachable that you can use to evangelize others and start with your own children,'” he said.
Johnston hopes to help people see some powerful truths about Jesus: that the Lord never shames people when they doubt. Instead, Johnston said, Jesus “sharpens us.” Johnston hopes to inspire readers to see the archaeological evidence for Jesus as a compelling tool.
“We all have moments of doubt, and so one thing I wanted to do in my book, ‘The Jesus Discoveries,’ was really affirm the body of Christ, that our faith in Jesus is well placed,” he said. “It’s historically accurate, it’s scientifically provable, and it is absolutely spiritually transformational.”
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