Did Jesus really rise from the dead?

Very few people deny that Jesus actually existed, that He was born and lived his life and then was crucified by the Romans and died. There is far too much evidence to the contrary to deny these facts. You'd sound like a fool if you tried. Besides all the extra-Biblical accounts of His life and His followers, how can anyone deny the advent of Christianity or the calendar change where everything before His life is called BC (Before Christ) and everything after His life is called AD (After death).  Did some master manipulators make up a fable about Him and invent stories of His life and then pull the wool over thousands of people's eyes so effectively that His religion is still alive and growing today and government officials changed the human calendar?? 

But the real question is: Did Jesus rise from the dead? This is the question you need to ask yourself. Why? Because the answer is the most important thing you'll ever need to know in this life.

If Jesus Didn't rise from the Dead
He wasn't the Son of God
He lied because He said He would rise again.
His followers were liars too because they swore they saw Him after he rose.
Christianity would be a farce because our faith rests in the fact that Jesus was the Son of God
There would be no salvation, no forgiveness, no hope of a grand eternity. No point.

But, if Jesus did rise from the dead
He is the Son of God
And because He is the Son of God, our faith is not in vain AND we can believe everything He said:
He is the only way to God and the only means by which people can reconcile with God and go to Heaven
There is forgiveness of sin and hope for a grand eternity!
There is meaning and purpose to this life.

So, you see how important this question is. Depending on what you believe, it could change EVERYTHING
But, you may say.. it's a matter of faith. We just have to believe and I just can't believe something I can't see. But will you believe evidence? If you were a juror in a court room and didn't actually see the crime, wouldn't you be compelled to believe the testimony of those who had witnessed it?

The Bible tells us that over 400 people saw Jesus after he rose from the dead. So what? They could have made that up, right? Sure... but how do you explain the rise of Christianity?
What about all the Christians who were intensely persecuted during the Roman rule? I mean, people who were thrown to the Lions and hung on poles and set on fire? What about the Disciples themselves? Every one of them (Except John) were murdered for their faith, hung on crosses, sawn in half, stoned to death, struck with a sword, boiled in oil..etc..
Would anyone you know endure that willingly for something they knew was a lie? Yes, people have been martyred all through the ages for things they believed in, but I guarantee you they didn't willingly subject themselves to a torturous death for something they knew was a fable or a myth. So, if the Disciples made up the stories about seeing Jesus alive again, then they knew what they believed in was a lie. Why willingly go to your death for a lie?

To me, that is the most compelling evidence for the Resurrection. And it is why I believe Jesus is the Son of God, and why I believe in His Word, and why I believe He's coming again very soon!