Did Jesus really exist? Is there historical evidence for Him?

We must destroy the Annals of Tacitus, the Biographies of Suetonius, the Letters of Pliny, if we wish to get rid of the testimony to the fact that in the reign of the Emperor Tiberius there lived one called Christ, that Judea and Galilee were the places of His teaching, that He was put to death by the command of Pontius Pilate, that after His death His doctrines and teaching spread rapidly through Greek-speaking and Roman-speaking lands, that multitudes of converts were made, who worshipped Jesus as God, and for His sake suffered bitter persecution.

Pliny the younger, writing to the Roman Emperor Trajan, reports to his imperial master with the impartiality of one who is reporting facts, drawn out under cross-examination of the Christians: "The Christians meet before daybreak, and sing among themselves a hymn to Christ as God." ... Lucian, in the second century A.D., said with contemptuous sarcasm, "The Christians are still worshipping that great man who was executed in Palestine."

Now there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it is lawful to call him a man, for he was a doer of wonderful works — a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him many of the Jews, and many of the Gentiles. He was the Christ; and when Pilate, at the suggestion of the leading men among us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him did not forsake him, for he appeared to them alive on the third day.

We gather from his remarks that an attempt had been made to dispute the genuineness of the testimony Josephus gave about our Lord, and to prove it false, and that the attempt had failed.

The history of Christianity no one attempted to deny when any denial of it would have been of the smallest value. They hated it, opposed it, sought to destroy it by force, and to overturn it by argument and ridicule; but it was there to be hated... It is well known that the Talmudists confirm the history of Christ's death, His flight into Egypt, and His miracles (though attributing them to sorcery He had learned there).

Their own guard became the clearest, most unwitting and least suspected witness of the resurrection.

How convincing would have been the proof that there was no resurrection of our Lord, if the chief priests could have got hold of the body and publicly displayed it. That would have settled the matter once and for all. Where was the body? The body was never produced.

"After that he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep." Never was a truth better attested... Even if a person were prejudiced enough to accuse the twelve of a plot, what unreasonable folly to think it of so large a body of ordinary disciples, beyond all suspicion of motive or position.

Who, except by admitting their inspiration, can explain the fact that a few fishermen conceived the idea of a character so perfect that no author, in the most enlightened age or country, ever equalled it? "The gospel bears a stamp of truth so great, so striking, so impossible to imitate, that its inventor would have been more wonderful than its Hero is."

The number and character of the memorials and actions, and the miraculous and extraordinary events they witness to, are of such a nature that if they had never occurred these memorials would never have been set up.