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100 Reasons to Believe New Testament History
10. Eyewitnesses to Jesus (Peter, John)
The accounts written by notable historians such Herodotus, Thucydides, Seutonius, and Tacitus cover events not witnessed by the historians themselves. Despite this, most scholars would agree that their accounts probably reflect actual historic events reasonably accurately.
In a court of Law, however, an eyewitness' testimony carries substantially more weight. Notice that the New Testament contains the testimonies of at least two eyewitnesses to Jesus:
"For we did not follow cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty." 2 Peter 1:16
"That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life, (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us. That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ." 1 John 1:1-3
In a court of law, an eyewitness testimony is considered truthful unless it can be shown that the witness is unreliable. This is in accord with daily life, where only the paranoic goes around with the belief that everyone is lying to them. Those that apparently wrote the eyewitness sections of the New Testament were the same men that helped transform the moral fabric of society. There is nothing to suggest that they were either deluded madmen or consummate liars. The only "fault" with their reports, it would seem, would be that they contain miracles. But, as we noted earlier, if we can believe in a God that can act, it is very possible there have been acts of God. We cannot safely write their testimonies off as fiction based on their accounts of miracles alone.