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Have you driven past a survey crew working along a highway or in your neighborhood? Surveyors use some sophisticated equipment. Lasers determine straight lines and GPS receivers often provide coordinates. It hasn’t always been this way. In the past, they used devices that combined a compass and two metal slits to determine a straight line in a particular direction. Someone peaked through the slits and waved at an assistant to mark a spot. They also dragged chains between markers to measure distance. How did they know they found the right spot to mark the corner of a land tract? Geometry. They worked from one or more known markers to measure where the new marker should be.
History is the same. Whether considering testimony in court or reading historians, facts are confirmed by using multiple sources. How do we know Jesus actually lived? Well, the writers of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John testify to his life. But they are not alone. The Roman historian Tacitus wrote in 112 A.D. that Nero battled the rumor he ordered Rome burned by falsely charging Christians with responsibility. Tacitus explained the origin of Christians in this way, “Christus, the founder of the name, was put to death by Pontius Pilate, procurator of Judea in the reign of Tiberius.”* Ten other ancient writers also mention Jesus, though none provide the account of his life found in the gospel writers.
The fact Jesus walked this earth has been confirmed by multiple sources.
*Josh McDowell, Evidence that Demands a Verdict (Campus Crusade for Christ, 1972), pp 84-89.
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Bumper music “Landing Place” performed by Mark July, used under license from Shutterstock.