Good Friday

"And when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all people to myself." John 12:32

"...because we trust in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of those who believe." 1 Timothy 4:10

"And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world." 1 John 2:2

Interesting factoids:  In addition to early Christian testimony, Christ's death by crucifixion is explicitly confirmed by the following primary sources:

- Tacitus, 1st/2nd century Roman historian

- Josephus, 1st century Jewish historian

- Sanhedrin 43a in the Talmud (70-200 AD period)

- Lucian, 2nd century Greek satirist

Tacitus and Josephus specified that Christ was crucified under the Roman Procurator Pontius Pilate.

In addition, the earthquake and mysterious darkness at the time of Christ's crucifixion appear to have been mentioned in the writings of Thallus, a 1st century Roman historian, and Phlegon, a 2nd century Greek historian, as cited by 3rd century historian, Julius Africanus.  In the New Testament, the Gospel of Matthew records the earthquake, and the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke record the 3 hour darkness.

Finally, in historical Jesus research, Christ's death by crucifixion is considered one of three historical data that reaches the level of 'historical bedrock', i.e. its historicity is accepted by the vast majority of New Testament scholars, which includes atheist, agnostic, and 'liberal' scholars. The other two historical data will be unveiled on Easter Sunday.