In some ways, the sheer power of “Christ crucified” (1 Corinthians 1:23) almost makes it tempting to stop at the foot of the cross. But as anyone familiar with the Gospels knows, the story of Jesus of Nazareth by no means ends with his death and burial. We have to press on and ask the question: What about the resurrection? Why did the closest disciples of Jesus come to believe that he had been raised from the dead? And what did it mean for them, as first-century Jews, to say that Jesus was “resurrected”? What is resurrection?
