Did Jesus die on the cross or did He only swoon?  Who should we believe: Jesus or Mirza Ghulam Ahmad?

 

1. The biblical evidence demonstrates Jesus died on the cross.

 

Jesus taught He would die

 

Matthew 16:21

From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.

 

The Gospels record Jesus’ death on the cross

 

John 19:32-35
The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other.
But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs.
Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water.
The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe.

 

The Apostle John was an eyewitness to Jesus' death on the cross

 

John 19:16-30
Finally Pilate handed him over to them to be crucified.
Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha).
Here they crucified him, and with him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle.
Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS.
Many of the Jews read this sign, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the sign was written in Aramaic, Latin and Greek.
The chief priests of the Jews protested to Pilate, “Do not write ‘The King of the Jews,’ but that this man claimed to be king of the Jews.”
Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”
When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes, dividing them into four shares, one for each of them, with the undergarment remaining. This garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom.
“Let’s not tear it,” they said to one another. “Let’s decide by lot who will get it.” This happened that the scripture might be fulfilled which said, “They divided my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing.” So this is what the soldiers did.
Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.
When Jesus saw his mother there, and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Dear woman, here is your son,”
and to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time on, this disciple took her into his home.
Later, knowing that all was now completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.”
A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips.
When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

 

Pilate ascertained that Jesus was dead

 

Mark 15:42-45
It was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath). So as evening approached,
Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the Council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body.
Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already died.
When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave the body to Joseph.

2. The medical evidence demonstrates Jesus died on the cross.

 

After looking at crucifixion in the ancient world an article in one of the most prestigious medical journals in the world concluded:

 

Clearly, the weight of historical and medical evidence indicates that Jesus was dead before the wound to his side was inflicted and supports the traditional view that the spear, thrust between his right rib, probably perforated not only the right lung but also the pericardium and heart and thereby ensured his death. Accordingly, interpretations based on the assumption that Jesus did not die on the cross appear to be at odds with modern medical knowledge. [1]

 

 

Also see: The Medical Evidence: Was Jesus’ Death a Sham

 

3. The historical evidence demonstrates Jesus died on the cross.

 

Ø  Josephus (Jewish historian born around 37 AD and died 100 AD) refers to Jesus’ death (Antiquities 18.3.3). 

 

Ø  Tacitus (AD 55-120), a renowned historian of ancient Rome wrote around 115 A.D. that Christ was “executed” by Pilate (Annals 15.44).

 

Ø  The early enemies of Christianity (e.g., Celsus and Lucian), conceded that Jesus was put to death. 

 

4. Mirza Ghulam Ahmad appealed to unreliable evidence when he dismissed the fact of Jesus’ death on the cross,

 

After all that has been stated, it should be kept in mind that in the gospel of Barnabas, which must be available in the British Museum, it is stated that Jesus was not crucified, not did he die on the Cross. Now we can very well say that though this book is not included in the gospels and has been rejected summarily, yet there is no doubt that it is an ancient book, and it belongs to the period in which the other gospels were written. Is it not open to us to regard this ancient book as a book of history of ancient times and to make use of it as a book of history? (Jesus in India)

 

 

The Gospel of Barnabas is not to be regarded as “a book of history” because it was not written by the Barnabas who lived in the 1st century AD.  Indeed, this work appears to have been written in the 16th century AD, “The Gospel [of Barnabas] is considered by the majority of academics (including Christians and some Muslims) to be late and pseudepigraphical…” (Gospel of Barnabas) 

 

 

Conclusion: Mirza Ghulam Ahmad is a false Messiah because he denied the historical fact of Jesus’ death on the cross.  Jesus, the true Messiah, warned about men like Mirza Ghulam Ahmad,

 

“Watch out that no one deceives you.
For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. (Matthew 24:4-5)

 

 

…if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it.
For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect—if that were possible.
See, I have told you ahead of time.
“So if anyone tells you, ‘There he is, out in the desert,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. (Matthew 24:23-26)

 

Prayerfully consider these things and read the Gospel of Matthew.  I invite you to embrace Christianity as the truth and only way of salvation.  Jesus said, “I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be, you will indeed die in your sins” (John 8:24).  Believe in Jesus and be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins and you can have certainty that you will inherit eternal life.  This certainty is rooted in what God has done in the real world with respect to the death of Jesus on the cross, His burial, resurrection, and ascension into heaven.

 

 

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[1] William D. Edwards, MD; Wesley J. Gabel, MDiv; Floyd E. Hosmer, MS, AMI; “On the Physical Death of Jesus Christ”; Journal of the American Medical Association 21 March 1986; Volume 255, 1463.