Jesus Bodily Resurrection – Another in a series on Essential Doctrines for a proposed book
Jesus is risen from the dead. He is alive. Paul writes to the Corinthians, “If Christ has not been raised your faith is futile; you are still in your sin” (1 Cor. 15:17). The reality of the physical resurrection of Jesus is at the very heart of the Christian faith.
Of course, skeptics from that day to this have tried to fabricate stories to deny the resurrection. Some have affirmed that Jesus merely swooned and then revived in the cool of the tomb, others that his disciples stole the body, or that the women went to the wrong tomb. Muslims even teach that Judas died in his place.
However, the facts about the resurrection are indisputable. Leading up to his arrest, trial and crucifixion Jesus, himself, predicted three times that he would die, be buried, and rise again the third day. (For example, see Luke 9:21-22, Luke 9:43-45, Luke 18:31-34.)
All four Gospels describe his resurrection. The small variations in the four accounts are just what we would expect from independent eye witnesses. Uniformity of multiple accounts would have been a sign of a fabricated account.
Those who were antagonistic to his person and teaching, having arranged his death, would have taken extreme measures to stamp out any rumour that circulated about his resurrection. They could have simply gone to the tomb and exposed this as false by showing witnesses his body. They did not and could not. All they could do was pay the guards to tell a fabricated story that the disciples had stolen his body.
The record is clear. On the third day, Jesus rose from the grave. The first to testify were women. When the centurion who supervised his crucifixion saw the manner in which Jesus triumphantly died, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God. There were also women looking on afar off: among whom was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the less and of Joses, and Salome;” (Mark 15: 40). The two Marys beheld the tomb in which he was laid. (Mark 15:47) Salome, mother of John, probably went with John to comfort Jesus’ mother, then rejoined the other two on Sunday. “And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him…they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun. And they said among themselves Who shall roll away the stone” (Mark 16:1-4). They found angels at the tomb and the stone already rolled away and the grave empty.
Seeing the empty tomb, the leader and younger of the group, Mary Magdalene, first told Peter and John then wandered into the attached garden in tears. There she encountered someone she at first thought was the gardener. “Jesus said to her, ‘Mary.’” Suddenly recognizing this person, she cried out in response, “’Rabboni!’ (which means Teacher)” (John 20:16). Meanwhile Peter and John having run to the tomb went inside. John saw the linen grave clothes and the folded napkin “and believed” (John 20:8).
Note that the account of the resurrection states that women were the first witnesses. Such an account, unless it was factual, would not have been written in this male-dominated culture.
A number of other facts appear here. The women knew where the sepulchre was. The stone was enormous but rolled away. How if not by angels? The guards having fallen in fear at their appearance had run off to tell their superiors. The grave clothes of Jesus were lying there with the napkin used to cover his face, folded and set aside. If the body was stolen why would the grave clothes be left and the napkin so carefully folded?
The sudden appearance of the risen Christ utterly transformed the disciples. The frightened, despairing disciples who locked themselves in a room lest they be arrested, were transformed into fearless evangelists who gladly faced martyrdom rather than deny his resurrection. This radical change is inexplicable unless the resurrection actually happened, which it did. Fear and doubt gone, many gladly faced martyrdom rather than deny the gospel. From scattered disciples, overnight the church grow by leaps and bounds?
Why would two dejected men going home from Jerusalem, suddenly turn around and race back to tell the disciples that Jesus had met them on the road. (See Luke 24:13-35.)
Thomas, the doubting disciple declared that he would not believe unless he could touch Jesus wounds. After his resurrection Jesus came to Thomas and said, “‘Put your finger here, see my hands, Reach your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.’ Thomas said to him, ‘My Lord and my God!’” (John 20:27,28)
The conversion of the chief persecutor, Saul, is itself sufficient to convince us of the resurrection. On his way to arrest new believers, he was confronted by Jesus on the road to Damascus and almost overnight become one of the most effective evangelists of the new churches. (See Acts 9.)
Saul, whose name Jesus changed to Paul, declared; “What I received I passed on to you as of first importance that Christ died for our sins according to the Scripture, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelves. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living…then he appeared to James [Jesus brother] then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared me also” ( 1 Cor. 15:3-8). There were hundreds of witnesses alive at that time! Yes, the facts are irrefutable. Jesus died, was buried, and the third day rose again. He is alive forever more.
Because he lives, our salvation is possible. Without the risen and reigning Christ, the gospel would be powerless. But because he lives, as we’ll see in succeeding chapters, the new birth, justification, adoption, and the power to grow “in Christ” and live the seemingly impossible life of becoming more Christ-like and holy is possible. He lives to shepherd us as prophet, priest, and king. He lives to build his church. Her lives to welcome us into heaven at the end of our pilgrimage. The cross deals with our guilt but the risen Christ ever lives to help us deal with our daily temptations.
[For a more detailed description of this subject from the pen of one who began his study as a skeptic read; Who Moved The Stone? By Frank Morison, Faber and Faber, London, first published 1930, often reprinted]
