Basic Teachings: Death & Resurrection

Death and Resurrection

Jesus’ Death and Resurrection

While in the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus wished that the suffering he was about to endure would go away (Matthew 26:39). But he ended up praying that God’s will be done, and He knew this was what he had to do. He suffered at the hands of men, being beaten, whipped, and hung on a cross. In the Old Testament, a sacrifice had to be given in order for sin to be forgiven. But now, Jesus was going to sacrifice for everyone’s sins for all time, and he did (1 John 2:2, Hebrews 9:12). Jesus gave his own life for us so that we could be saved from our sins and have eternal life with Him (Ephesians 1:7, John 3:16). 

But this story doesn’t end with a dead Savior. Jesus was buried in a tomb. He was wrapped in cloth and set in a tomb that was not His own. He was dead for three days. On the third day, he came back to life. He resurrected and overcame death so that we too can overcome death through Him (1 Corinthians 15:4). Paul says that we will have new bodies in the resurrection and we will have victory over death. Yes we may dies in this life, but we will live eternally because Jesus has been raised from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:57). 

Jesus is the Resurrection

Jesus first claimed that he himself is the resurrection, he is the life. Jesus tells Martha, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live,” (John 11:25). He tells Martha this after her brother Lazarus has just passed away. What Jesus meant by this statement, and what he would later prove is that he has power over death because he himself rose from the dead. This gives him the power of resurrection and the power of raising other people from the dead as well.

Resurrection of Believers 

We know that Jesus died and resurrected and it’s a core piece of the gospel (1 Corinthians 15:4). But I think the writer of Hebrews means more than just the resurrection of Jesus when he writes “resurrection of the dead”. There is a core concept that believers should have about believers also rising from the dead. Let’s explore this. 

This concept starts with Jesus. He tells us that the will of the Father is for those who believe to rise. John 6:40 says, “For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” Paul continues this idea in 1 Corinthians 6:14, “And God will raise us from the dead by his power, just as he raised our Lord from the dead.” Clearly pointing to a time when believers who have passed on will rise from the dead just as Jesus did. 

There were some in Paul’s day that were arguing against this idea saying that the dead would not rise again, that there is no resurrection. Paul lays into these futile arguments by saying that if believers would not rise again, then Christ didn’t actually resurrect and how foolish that is to believe. Since Christ rose from the dead, so believers will also rise again. However, Paul says there is an order to this rising. 1 Corinthians 15:23, “But there is an order to this resurrection: Christ was raised as the first of the harvest; then all who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back.” Those who have passed on, believers in Christ will not rise again until Jesus comes back. Jesus was the foundation, the first to set the example, then when he returns all believers who have passed will share in that resurrection and will rise together, being given eternal life. 

For the apostles, the resurrection was a foundation for the understanding of the gospel. Jesus rose from the dead. Since he was risen, believers in him will also rise from the dead when he returns. This is a basic concept we all need to understand. This is a message of hope and an eternal future. Life doesn’t end in death. Death is just the beginning.