The resurrection of Jesus Christ has transformed the world for the last two thousand years. As the victorious culmination of His sacrificial death, it has exceedingly great power to change lives and shape destinies. Christ's resurrection has brought salvation, comfort, encouragement, and hope for all nations and peoples. It is the wellspring of doctrine and practice for those who serve God, and apart from it, there can be no true hope for eternity. "He rose again the third day."

He rose prophetically. He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures (1 Cor 15:4). His resurrection was ordained from all eternity and revealed in time through the prophets. David said concerning Him, "You will not leave my soul in Sheol, nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption" (Psalm 16:10). Isaiah prophesied of Him that He would die, but even so, He would yet see His seed, prolong His days, and be satisfied with the labor of His soul (Is 53:10-11). Christ Himself, long before His death, took aside the twelve apostles and said to them, "Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of Man will be accomplished; For He will be delivered to the Gentiles and will be mocked and insulted and spit upon. They will scourge Him and kill Him. And the third day He will rise again" (Luke 18:31-33). And on the day of His resurrection, he explained to the two on the road to Emmaus in all the scriptures the things concerning Himself.

He rose evidentially. He was dead. His tomb was sealed and guards placed to secure it (Matt 27:62-66). But on the third day, His tomb was found empty with His burial garments still inside. Angels attended the scene, saying, "He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay" (Matt 28:6). The tomb was empty! It was witnessed by the women, the apostles, the Roman guard, and even those who killed Him. More than that, He appeared after His resurrection. He showed Himself to Mary Magdalene and the other women; to the two on the road to Emmaus; to Peter and the rest of the apostles; "After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once" (1 Cor 15:6); and last of all, He was seen by the apostle Paul, who was as one born out of due time (1 Cor 15:8). His appearances were many and indisputable. To the apostles "He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God" (Acts 1:3); and to remove Thomas' doubts, He said to him, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing" (John 20:27).

He rose bodily. In essence, He retained the very nature of God, but He remained united to His physical body. His hands, feet, and side still bore the wounds of His suffering. He said to the apostles, "Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have" (Luke 24:39). His testimony was sufficient, but to remove any question, "He said to the them, 'Have you any food here?' So they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish and some honeycomb. And He took it and ate in their presence" (Luke 24:41-43). Some greatly error, presuming that the Christ who came forth from the tomb did not have a physical body; but as the representative of man before God, He has united His divinity to humanity, and in Him all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in bodily form (Col 2:9). What a representative we have! The perfect man! The Son of Man!

He rose triumphantly. He was declared to be the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead (Rom 1:4). He was victorious over death because it was not possible that He should be held by it (Acts 2:24); and through death, He destroyed him who had the power of death--that is, the devil (Heb 2:14). His resurrection is the seal of His triumph over sin and the grave. He now reigns in the heavenly places, "far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come" (Eph 1:21). He is highly exalted, so that at His name every knee should bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Phil 2:10-11).

He rose gloriously. He is the radiance of God's glory and the express image of His person (Heb 1:3); but it is written that no man shall see God and live (Exodus 33:20); therefore, His deity was veiled while He was on the earth. His resurrection was not a return to His earthly humility but the restoration of His former glory. Before His death, He had prayed, "now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was" (John 17:5). His exaltation is seen in the apostle John's description of Him in heaven: "His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and His eyes like a flame of fire; His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace, and His voice as the sound of many waters; He had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength" (Rev 1:14-17)--and when John saw Him, he fell at His feet as dead. What radiance! What a glorious King! Having suffered, He entered into His glory (Luke 24:26).

He rose eternally. "Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him" (Rom 6:9). Were He to have risen for only a time, His resurrection would bring little security and comfort. But He has been raised eternally! He never dies again! He will never again be subject to weakness, suffering, humiliation, or death. He shall never again endure separation from His Father, for His sacrifice of Himself for the sins of His people has been fully accepted. He shall never know a time in which His reign will cease, for of His Kingdom there will be no end. "His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom the one which shall not be destroyed" (Dan 7:14). He was dead, but now He is alive forevermore (Rev 1:18).

He rose essentially. If Christ were not raised, then those who have died in Him have perished, and we who hope in Him for this life are of all men most pitiable. More than that, we would be false witnesses of God because we have testified that He raised His Son from the dead. "And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins" (1 Cor 15:17). But now Christ is raised from the dead (1 Cor 15:20)! He came forth from the tomb alive, having obtained eternal redemption (Heb 9:12). He made a perfect atonement for sin by which we can be saved. He accomplished the work that His Father gave Him to do, and He now lives to make intercession for His people. His resurrection is the guarantee of our salvation, the basis of our hope. How necessary that He came forth alive from the tomb! How needful that His atonement was accepted by the Father!

He rose vicariously. He endured death for His people so they would bear the likeness of His resurrection. He rose to grant them a resurrected life. Just as He was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so His disciples are enabled to walk in newness of life (Rom 6:4). "For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin" (Rom 6:5-6). He rose to grant them a resurrected body. His people are now said to sit together in the heavenly places in Christ (Eph 2:6), and because He has been raised, they also will be raised from the dead. "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive" (1 Cor 15:22). On that glorious day, they will shine like the sun in the Kingdom of their Father. They will reign as Kings and Priests forever in the likeness of His resurrection. They will be like Him, for they will see Him as He is (1 John 3:2).

He rose beneficially. The resurrection guarantees that there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ (Rom 8:1). He "was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification" (Rom 4:25). But His salvation is not bestowed apart from faith and repentance; therefore, He now commands that all men everywhere should repent (Acts 17:30) and promises "if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved" (Rom 10:9). The resurrection is also the source of Christ's gifts to the church. "When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men" (Eph 4:8). He continually showers His blessings upon His people. And what greater blessing has His resurrection provided than the giving of the Holy Spirit? He said to His disciples, "It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you" (John 16:7). What He had promised, He has fulfilled. He has poured out His Spirit upon the church, and by that one Spirit, His people are all baptized into one body (1 Cor 12:13). The Holy Spirit is the teacher, comforter, guide, and helper of His people. What a gift to have the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit--the presence of God Himself! "And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever--the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him" (John 14:16-17).

He rose expectantly. His resurrection is the precursor of His return. He will come again as the judge, bringing about the resurrection of the dead, both of the just and the unjust (Acts 24:15). He will come in flaming fire, taking vengeance on those who do not know God and who do not obey the gospel (2 Thes 1:8). He will create a new heavens and a new earth wherein righteousness dwells, and He will grant His people the Kingdom prepared for them before the foundation of the world. "...Then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: 'Death is swallowed up in victory. O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?'" (1 Cor 15:54-55). His promise is as sure as His life, a living hope for His people (1 Pet 3:3). Therefore, His children await His promise: "In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also" (John 14:2-3).

If you would like to receive further information concerning these matters, please contact Joseph Montalto.