‘The Case for Christ’ Strengthens Believers, Challenges

Nonbelievers
“The Case for Christ” opened in theaters across America on
April 7. “Just the facts, Ma’am,” was Captain Joe Friday’s droll
request in the 1950s detective series “Dragnet.” And it was facts
– hard evidence – that swayed award-winning Chicago Tribune
legal editor Lee Strobel. An avowed atheist, Strobel believed
only what he could experience with his senses. “The only way
to truth,” he said, “is through facts.” Verifiable facts, in Strobel’s
mind, offered protection against superstition and against
tyranny.

How Conversion Threatened the Strobels’ Marriage

Lee Strobel and his wife Leslie were deeply in love, but their
marriage was tested after their daughter Alison experienced a
life-threatening medical emergency in a local restaurant. Alfie
Davis, a nurse who happened to be dining in the same
restaurant, intervened and saved the choking child’s life. As a
Christian, Alfie believed that God had influenced her to be in
that place at that time. Alfie’s deep faith was an inspiration to
Leslie Strobel, who began attending Alfie’s Christian church and
was eventually baptized. Lee, however, remained adamant in
his rejection of God, and he resented Leslie’s newfound faith.

The Strobels' dramatic story is told in “The Case for Christ,” a

new film from Pure Flix Entertainment and Triple Horse Studios.
Based on Strobel’s autobiographical best-seller by the same
name, the movie recounts Strobel’s struggles along the path
toward conversion.

The Strobels were on hand this week in Chicago for the premier
of “The Case for Christ.” That they were still in love was evident
in the way they shared the limelight and In the humorous
stories they told – like the heartwarming story of their first
meeting at the age of 14 and of how Leslie, charmed by her
new friend, went home and told her mother that she’d met the
boy she was going to marry. For twenty-five years Lee Strobel
has shared his story: how his wife’s conversion had ripped at his
heart and how he, a talented investigative journalist, had
sought the advice of experts in the hope of convincing Leslie of
her error. But each of the experts he interviewed brought him
closer to accepting the truth of the Gospel:

The Evidence from Archeology - Strobel asked Fr. Jose Maria

Marquez, a former archeologist turned Catholic priest, how we
could be sure of the reliability of the gospel manuscripts. Father
Marquez was convincing; he explained that while only 1,565
copies remain of Homer’s Iliad, only seven manuscripts from
the works of Plato and only five copies of anything by Aristotle,
there are 5,843 preserved manuscripts of the Greek New
Testament.

Then why, Strobel asked, if Jesus was truly the Son of God,
would He allow Himself to be crucified? Father Marquez
responded simply: It was Love. “That,” said the priest, “is what
got me out of the dirt and into the Church.”

The Evidence from Philosophy - Philosopher and Christian

theologian William Lane Craig talked with Strobel by phone
from Jerusalem. Dr. Craig proffered a simple formula: “God
made us. We messed things up. Christ paid for our sins. It’s as
simple as that.” The Evidence from Medicine – Dr. Roberta
Waters, a medical doctor and an agnostic, insisted that the
Resurrection could not be explained away by the “swoon
theory,” which hypothesized that Jesus had passed out on the
cross, been buried alive, then regained consciousness in the
darkened tomb. Despite her lack of faith, Dr. Waters said of the
swoon hypothesis, “It’s rubbish.”

After months of research, Lee Strobel was finally convinced that

it was his own stubbornness, not God’s absence, that kept him
from joining his wife and accepting Christ. “All right, God,” Lee
said. “You win.”

For the last 25 years, Strobel has shared his faith as an author of
more than 20 books, as a teaching pastor, as a television
evangelist and commentator, as a speaker and as a college
professor. “The Case for Christ” has sold more than 14,000
copies; and a more recent book, “The Case for Grace,” won the
2016 Nonfiction Book of the Year Award from the Evangelical
Christian Publishers Association.

“The Case for Christ” opened in theaters across America on

April 7. It’s a great film to buttress the faith of believers, to
pique the interest of nonbelievers, and to start a conversation
about the meaning of life.

Kathy Schiffer Kathy Schiffer is a Catholic blogger. In addition to

her blog Seasons of Grace, her articles have appeared in the
National Catholic Register, Aleteia, Zenit, the Michigan Catholic,
Legatus Magazine, and other Catholic publications. She’s
worked for Catholic and other Christian ministries since 1988,
as radio producer, director of special events and media relations
coordinator. Kathy and her husband, Deacon Jerry Schiffer, have
three adult children.
The Case For Christ #2
The Case for Christ records Lee Strobel’s attempt to “determine
if there’s credible evidence that Jesus of Nazareth really is the
Son of God.” The book consists primarily of interviews between
Strobel (a former legal editor at the Chicago Tribune) and
biblical scholars such as Bruce Metzger. Each interview is based
on a simple question, concerning historical evidence (for
example, “Can the Biographies of Jesus Be Trusted?”), scientific
evidence, (“Does Archaeology Confirm or Contradict Jesus’
Biographies?”), and “psychiatric evidence” (“Was Jesus Crazy
When He Claimed to Be the Son of God?”). Together, these
interviews compose a case brief defending Jesus’ divinity, and
urging readers to reach a verdict of their own.
Review
A Seasoned Journalist Chases Down the Biggest Story in History
The Project: Determine if there’s credible evidence that Jesus of
Nazareth really is the Son of God. The Reporter: Lee Strobel,
educated at Yale Law School, award-winning former legal editor
of the Chicago Tribune—with a background of atheism. The
Experts: A dozen scholars, with doctorates from Cambridge,
Princeton, Brandeis, and other top-flight institutions, who are
recognized authorities on Jesus. The Story: Retracing his own
spiritual journey, Strobel cross-examines the experts with
tough, point-blank questions: How reliable is the New
Testament? Does evidence exist for Jesus outside the Bible? Is
there any reason to believe the resurrection was an actual
historical event? . . .
This remarkable book reads like a captivating, fast-paced novel.
But it’s not fiction. It’s a riveting quest for the truth about
history’s most compelling figure. What will your verdict be in
The Case for Christ – Publisher

From the Publisher

A Seasoned Journalist Chases Down the Leads in the Biggest
News Story in History If you were a journalist, how would you
handle a news story so big it would utterly eclipse all other
world events? How thorough would your investigation be? How
many hard-hitting questions would you ask? How carefully
would you consult with top experts to get detailed, accurate
answers? Lee Strobel knows firsthand. It was as a reporter for
the Chicago Tribune and an avowed atheist that he first
investigated the greatest news story of all—the Gospel of Jesus
Christ. Now, in The Case for Christ, he presents compelling
evidence and expert testimony for the claims of Christianity. As
a seasoned journalist with a Yale law background, Strobel
systematically tracks down his leads and asks the blunt, tough
questions readers themselves would want to ask—questions
that can make or break the Christian faith. He refuses contrived,
simplistic answers. Instead, he pieces together hard facts
through interviews with more than a dozen of the country’s top
scholars. Written in the style of a blockbuster investigative
report, The Case for Christ is apologetics at its most imaginative
—gripping, compelling, marshaling expert testimony and
incontrovertible evidence. With unerring instincts, Strobel
ferrets out Historical Evidence: Do we possess reliable
documents concerning the life, teachings, and resurrection of
Jesus? Scientific Evidence: Is there archaeological substantiation
for the historical accounts about Jesus? Did Jesus perform
miracles?
Psychiatric Evidence: Did Jesus really claim to be God? What
evidence is there that he fit God’s profile? Fingerprint Evidence:
What does prophecy have to say about Jesus? Other evidence:
Jesus’ death, the missing body, eyewitness accounts, and claims
of personal encounters. The Case for Christ reads like a
captivating, fast-paced novel. But it’s not fiction. It’s a riveting
journey to the truth about the most remarkable event in
history: the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. And
it’s a revealing, personal testimony to his power to transform
people yet today—even the most cynical, hard-bitten journalist.

From the Author

Lee Strobel, with a Master of Studies in Law degree from Yale,
was an award-winning journalist for 13 years at the Chicago
Tribune and other newspapers. He was a spiritual skeptic until
1981. Today he serves as teaching pastor at Willow Creek
Community Church in suburban Chicago. He is the best-selling
author of Inside the Mind of Unchurched Harry and Mary, What
Jesus Would Say, and The Case for Christ
From the Back Cover
A Seasoned Journalist Chases Down the Biggest Story in
HistoryIs there credible evidence that Jesus of Nazareth really is
the Son of God?Retracing his own spiritual journey from
atheism to faith, Lee Strobel, former legal editor of the Chicago
Tribune, cross-examines a dozen experts with doctorates from
schools like Cambridge, Princeton, and Brandeis who are
recognized authorities in their own fields.Strobel challenges
them with questions like How reliable is the New Testament?
Does evidence for Jesus exist outside the Bible? Is there any
reason to believe the resurrection was an actual event?Strobel’s
tough, point-blank questions make this Gold Medallion-winning
book read like a captivating, fast-paced novel. But it’s not
fiction. It's a riveting quest for the truth about history’s most
compelling figure.What will your verdict be in The Case for
Christ?“Lee Strobel probes with bulldog-like tenacity the
evidence for the truth of biblical Christianity.”Bruce M. Metzger,
Ph.D., Professor of New Testament, Emeritus, Princeton
Theological Seminary“Lee Strobel asks the questions a tough-
minded skeptic would ask. His book is so good I read it out loud
to my wife evenings after dinner. Every inquirer should have it.”
Phillip E. Johnson, Law Professor, University of California at
Berkeley
About the Author
Lee Strobel was the award-winning legal editor of The Chicago
Tribune and is the best-selling author of The Case for Faith, The
Case for Christ, and The Case for a Creator, all of which have
been made into documentaries by Lionsgate. With a journalism
degree from the University of Missouri and a Master of Studies
in Law degree from Yale, Lee wrote 3 Gold Medallion winners
and the 2005 Book of the Year with Gary Poole. He and his wife
live in Colorado. Visit Lee’s website at: www.leestrobel.com.