Jesus’ Resurrection

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Jesus Resurrected and Mary Magdalene by Heinrich Hofmann: Jesus was resurrected early in the morning on the first day of the week (Mk 16:9).

Jesus’ resurrection refers to the event in which Jesus Christ rose from the dead three days after His crucifixion. According to the prophecy of the Feast of Firstfruits, He was resurrected on Sunday, the day after the Sabbath, as the firstfruits of those who had fallen asleep, breaking the power of death. His resurrection became a living hope of resurrection for the saints who believe in Him. The apostles and members of the early Church, inspired by the hope of being transformed into the glorified body like that of Jesus, spread Christ and the gospel throughout various regions, including Asia Minor.

The Process of Jesus’ Resurrection

The word resurrection means a return to life after death.[1] Jesus rose on the third day, which was a Sunday, following His crucifixion.

Friday (Day 1, Passion of the Cross)

On the day Jesus suffered on the cross, Friday evening, the day before the Sabbath, a rich follower named Joseph of Arimathea requested permission from Pilate to take Jesus’ body.[2] Nicodemus also brought spices, and together they carefully washed Jesus’ body with fragrant oils according to Jewish burial customs, wrapping it in linen cloths with great reverence.[3] The two men placed Jesus in a new tomb carved out of rock and rolled a large stone to seal its entrance.[4] In doing so, they fulfilled the prophecy in the book of Isaiah, which foretold that the Christ would rest in the tomb of a rich man.[5]

Saturday (Day 2)

The day after Jesus’ burial was the Sabbath, so they rested in accordance with the commandment.[6] The chief priests and the Pharisees, recalling that Jesus had said He would rise again after three days, went to Pilate and requested a guard for the tomb.[7][8] They secured the stone, stationed guards, and ensured it was tightly sealed and securely watched.[9]

Sunday (Day 3, Resurrection)

On the first day of the week, early Sunday morning, Mary Magdalene and other women went to the tomb to anoint Jesus’ body with spices.[10][11]

When they arrived, they found the tomb empty. In their distress, an angel appeared to them and told them that Jesus had risen just as He had foretold.[12] Upon hearing this news form the women, the disciples struggled to believe in Jesus’ resurrection.[13] Peter ran to the tomb and confirmed that it was empty, finding only the linen cloths lying there; Jesus’ body was nowhere to be seen.[14]

After the Resurrection

The Appearance of the Resurrected Jesus

The Incredulity of Saint Thomas by Caravaggio, 1573–1610: The resurrected Jesus appeared to His disciples in the same form they had known Him during His earthly ministry, despite their initial disbelief.

Jesus could have manifested in a glorious form, according to His will, and had the power to take on a physical body or appear in a completely different way. Not bound by the constraints of space, He could instantly appear anywhere and vanish just as quickly.[15][16] For example, Jesus appeared to the unbelieving disciple Thomas in the same form He had during His earthly ministry.[17] However, to Apostle Paul on the road to Damascus, He manifested as a blinding light, far brighter than the sun.[18] On the island of Patmos, Jesus revealed Himself to Apostle John in a majestic form, with eyes like blazing fire, feet like bronze glowing in a furnace, and a voice like the sound of many waters, displaying the grandeur of God’s glory.[19][20]


On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!”

John 20:19

Jesus’ Works After the Resurrection

After His resurrection, Jesus first appeared to Mary Magdalene.[21] He called her while she was weeping outside the tomb and instructed her to go and tell His disciples that He would ascend to God.[22]

Jesus also appeared to two disciples on the road to Emmaus from Jerusalem, though in a different form.[23][24] As the disciples walked and talked with Jesus, they did not recognize Him because their eyes were kept from doing so.[25] Jesus then explained through the Scriptures that the Christ had to suffer and enter into His glory.[26] After He broke the bread, gave thanks, and handed it to them, their spiritual eyes were opened, and they recognized Him as the Christ.[16]

That evening, the disciples gathered together in fear of the Jews and had locked the doors.[15] While the two disciples who had been on their way to Emmaus returned and shared their encounter with Jesus, Jesus suddenly appeared among them.[27] Startled, the disciples thought they were seeing the spirit of Jesus.[28] Jesus showed His hands and feet to them and even ate food in their presence to help them believe in His resurrection.[29]

Thomas, who had not been present with the others, refused to believe the news of Jesus’ resurrection. He insisted that unless he saw the nail marks and the wound from the spear, he would not believe.[30] Eight days later, Jesus appeared again to the disciples, including Thomas. Jesus showed Thomas His hands and side, urging him to stop doubting and believe. Seeing the evidence, Thomas finally confessed his belief. Jesus then told him, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed,” emphasizing the greater faith of those who believe what they have not seen.[17]

Later, Peter and six other disciples went fishing on the Sea of Tiberias (Galilee). Despite fishing all night, they caught nothing. Then Jesus appeared and told them to throw the net on the right side of the boat. Following His instruction, they caught a large number of fish. At first, they didn’t recognize Jesus, but then they realized it was He who had given the command.[31] After they finished fishing and returned, Jesus asked Peter three times, “Do you love Me?” Each time Peter answered that he loved Him, Jesus responded, “Feed My lambs,” “Take care of My sheep,” and “Feed My sheep.”[32]

Jesus then gave the eleven disciples the mission to go into all the world and preach the gospel to all nations.[33] He also instructed the disciples who had come to see Him in Galilee, saying, “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”[34]

The Significance of Jesus’ Resurrection

To the members of the early Church, who had been overwhelmed by sorrow after witnessing the suffering of the cross, Jesus’ resurrection became a profound assurance that death is not the end of life. This miraculous event, which broke the power of death, gave them a living hope of resurrection and emboldened them to proclaim the gospel with unwavering boldness and courage.

Breaking the Power of Death

All humans, born into this world, are unable to escape death. Although considered the pinnacle of creation, humanity ultimately succumbs to its power and can be seen as slaves to it.[35][36] To save humanity from the chains of death, Jesus[37] came to this earth, promised forgiveness of sins and eternal life through the New Covenant Passover, and gave His life on the cross. And on the third day, He rose from the dead—an unprecedented and extraordinary event in human history. Jesus’ resurrection powerfully demonstrated that He is God, possessing the authority to break the power of death. It confirmed that those who believe in Him, the source of life, too, will be freed from death and will experience resurrection and transformation.


Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die.”

John 11:25–26


Fulfillment of the Feast of Firstfruits: the Firstfruits of Those Who Have Fallen Asleep

Jesus rose from the dead on Sunday,[21] the third day after His burial, fulfilling the prophecy of the Feast of Firstfruits in the Old Testament. The Feast of Firstfruits was a celebration in which a sheaf of the first grain harvested was waved before God as an offering. It was observed on the day after the Sabbath following the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which was on a Sunday.[38] The law serves as a shadow of things to come, and the firstfruits, symbolized by the first sheaf of grain, represent Christ.[39]


But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.

1 Corinthians 15:20


Jesus rose from the dead as the firstfruits of those who had fallen asleep, on the Sunday that coincided with the Feast of Firstfruits, thus becoming the offering of the feast. After His resurrection, the tombs broke open, and many of the saints who had died were also resurrected.[40][41]

Living Hope for the Resurrection

The resurrection of Jesus serves as a preview of the resurrection that saints will experience in the future. The Bible teaches that saved believers will be transformed into bodies of glory, like the body of Christ.[42] Through His resurrection, the apostles, who now had a glimpse of the spiritual realm, were no longer afraid of death.[43][44] This is because they believed that when their life on earth ended, they would be clothed with an imperishable, spiritual body—one like that of the angels in heaven.[45][46]


Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

1 Peter 1:3


The Driving Force Behind the Spread of the Gospel in the Early Church

The living hope of the resurrection, given by God, became a great strength for the early Church to boldly proclaim the gospel of Christ and the new covenant. Apostle Peter, as a direct witness of the Resurrection, testified about Jesus and led many to salvation.[47][48] Apostle Paul, once at the forefront of persecuting Christians, repented after encountering the resurrected Jesus and devoted himself to spreading the gospel, even in the face of numerous threats.[49] Additionally, many early Church believers, despite enduring persecution and suffering, did not hesitate to lay down their lives and remained steadfast in their faith until the end.[50][51] The resurrection of Jesus is a historical event that instilled the hope of eternal life, not only in the members of the early Church but also in all of humans, who are bound to face death.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Resurrection, Britannica
  2. ↑ "Mark 15:42–43".
  3. ↑ "John 19:39–40".
  4. ↑ "Matthew 27:57–60".
  5. ↑ "Isaiah 53:9".
  6. ↑ "Luke 23:54–56".
  7. ↑ "Matthew 27:62–64".
  8. ↑ "John 2:19–22".
  9. ↑ "Matthew 27:65–66".
  10. ↑ "Luke 24:1".
  11. ↑ "Mark 16:1–3".
  12. ↑ "Luke 24:2–7".
  13. ↑ "Luke 24:9–11".
  14. ↑ "Luke 24:12".
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 "John 20:19".
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 "Luke 24:30–31".
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 "John 20:26–29".
  18. ↑ "Acts 22:6–8".
  19. ↑ "Revelation 1:13–16".
  20. ↑ Ahnsahnghong, Chapter 22 What Will Become of Our Body at the Resurrection?, VISITORS FROM THE ANGELIC WORLD, Melchizedek Pub. Co., Ltd
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 "Mark 16:9".
  22. ↑ "John 20:11–17".
  23. ↑ "Luke 24:13–15".
  24. ↑ "Mark 16:12".
  25. ↑ "Luke 24:15–18".
  26. ↑ "Luke 24:25–27".
  27. ↑ "Luke 24:35–36".
  28. ↑ "Luke 24:37".
  29. ↑ "Luke 24:38–43".
  30. ↑ "John 20:24–25".
  31. ↑ "John 21:1–12".
  32. ↑ "John 21:15–17".
  33. ↑ "Mark 16:15".
  34. ↑ "Matthew 28:18–20".
  35. ↑ "Hebrews 9:27".
  36. ↑ "Romans 7:24".
  37. ↑ "Hebrews 2:14–15".
  38. ↑ "Leviticus 23:10–11".
  39. ↑ "Hebrews 10:1".
  40. ↑ "Matthew 27:52–53".
  41. ↑ "John 5:28–29".
  42. ↑ "Philippians 3:20–21".
  43. ↑ "Acts 7:55–60".
  44. ↑ Ahnsahnghong, Chapter 19 Our Body Is the Prison of Our Soul, VISITORS FROM THE ANGELIC WORLD, Melchizedek Pub. Co., Ltd
  45. ↑ "1 Corinthians 15:44–49".
  46. ↑ "Matthew 22:30".
  47. ↑ "Acts 2:32".
  48. ↑ "Acts 3:15".
  49. ↑ "2 Corinthians 11:23–27".
  50. ↑ "1 Corinthians 15:30–32".
  51. ↑ The Ecclesiastical History of Eusebius Pamphilus, Bishop of Cesarea, in Palestine, 1856, New York, T.N. Stanford, pg. 327-328
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