To debate that any particular group killed Jesus is to claim that he was under their control. In contrast, Jesus clearly stated that he would be exercising his own power when the end of his life came. He also stated that he would take his life back from death, and therein lies the real controversy over Jesus.
Where is the controversy over the Resurrection of Jesus? Did Jesus rise from the dead as he said he would? The Apostle Paul, himself a Jew, wrote that if the Resurrection of Jesus never happened, everything else believed about him is worthless. On the other hand, if Jesus did rise from the dead, then his deity is proven.
The Resurrection of Jesus is the critical event that people who view Mel Gibson’s film should judge–namely, if the Jesus portrayed died and remains dead to this day, or if he willingly gave his life so that he could take it back again and offer the same hope of new life to those who believe in him, whether Jew or Gentile.
