The Significance of the Resurrection

Romans 5:10 says, “For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! This verse talks about how believers have a new life through Jesus’ resurrection. This verse also emphasizes that believers will be saved from God’s wrath in the last days. Before this, Paul argued that one can now be declared righteous by the shedding of Christ’s blood. The phrase in verse nine, “by his blood,” is also a direct parallel to the phrase “by the death of his son” in verse ten.

The second argument and Paul’s more significant argument is that people were initially enemies of God. His Son now reconciled people. Reconciliation is a change in relationship or attitude from enmity to peace, the cessation of hostility in attitude or action. It is also essential for Christianity. In short, God reconciled the world to himself by sending his one and only Son, Jesus, to die on the cross for one’s sins, therefore, allowing Christians to have a relationship with God. This was done by Jesus’ resurrection, to quote Michael Bere, “The resurrection of Jesus Christ was the act by which He, of His own will, came back to life bodily after His death and burial. It is of paramount importance to understand what the Bible teaches about this key doctrine.” What makes Christ’s resurrection so significant is that he arose but never died again. Each person in the Bible who was resurrected ended up dying again except for Jesus.

Christ also resurrected using his own power. In the past, whenever people during Bible times were resurrected, it was not by their own doing. For example, when Lazarus was resurrected, he did not resurrect himself; Jesus resurrected him. Christ’s resurrection also demonstrates his Lordship, and it proves what he said was true. To quote C.S. Lewis, “On the one side clear, definite moral teaching. On the other claims, if not true, are those of a megalomaniac, compared with whom Hitler was the sanest and humble of men. There is no halfway house, and there is no parallel in other religions.” If Jesus is not who He says he is, then Christianity is pointless.”

1 Corinthians 15:12-19 says, “Now if Christ is preached that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen. And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty, and your faith is also empty. Yes, and we are found false witnesses of God because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ, whom He did not raise up—if, in fact, the dead do not rise. For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen. And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins! Then also, those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable.”

The Corinthian Church believed that Jesus rose from the dead and did not deny His resurrection. What the Corinthian Church did was deny their own resurrection. They listened to Greek philosophy which stated that the world beyond was just wishful thinking. When Paul was writing to the Corinthians, he made it clear that the resurrection of Jesus proved his resurrection and the principle of resurrection. Paul also explained to the Corinthian Church that if they did not believe in their resurrection, then Jesus was still dead. Paul then states that if the resurrection did not happen, he and the other Apostles were preaching in vain. Paul brought up another argument that if Christ did not rise from the dead, he was a liar and a false teacher. He then explains how a Christian’s faith would be futile and how one would still be stuck in sin. Another point to Paul’s argument is that if Jesus did not rise from the dead, then the dead are gone forever. Finally, Paul sums this passage by stating, that if Jesus did not resurrect from the dead, then men have no hope in Christ and all Christians live a pointless life. In short, Paul says it this way if Jesus did not resurrect from the dead, then it is all for nothing, and Christians live a life that is nothing but a fantasy.

People still try to argue that Jesus’ resurrection is insignificant today. One such argument is called the Theft Lie. The people who came up with this theoretical idea believe that Jesus’ disciples came in at night and stole Jesus’ body while the Roman soldiers were sleeping. The problem with this theory is how could fishermen or tax collectors get past Roman soldiers who were trained to kill.

Another argument that people use is called the Swoon Theory. Using this theory, people claim that Jesus never died. but just fainted, and then a combination of cool air from the tomb and spices woke him up. The problem with this theory is that, once again, the Roman soldiers were trained killers, they knew how to do their job. They made Jesus carry His cross to Golgotha after receiving thirty-nine lashes and that is not even including the fact of how Jesus was stabbed with a spear and nailed to a cross. How would someone survive this? In conclusion, if he is not who He was, He is nothing but a liar or a lunatic, and Christianity is nothing but a sick joke. But if Jesus is who He says He is, then the resurrection is the focal point of Christianity.