I disagree with Leighton Flowers. He is claiming the cross is not absolutely proven. I believe it is, because I can't find a naturalistic explanation to account for the eyewitness testimony of the Apostles. Nor can I find it reasonable that Atheists claim there is an infinite regress of cause and effects or that something in nature can come from nothing. Both these ideas are absurd.

Licona made the point well maybe an evil god caused Jesus to die on the cross in order to present the need for faith in a loving God. True faith is proven faith. This is Gnosticism where an evil god is involved in our creation. But this idea is easily disproven because God cannot have morals below our own. The greater can never be less than the lesser. Since we believe it is wrong to let Jesus die for no valid reason, we cannot say God is evil.