JESUS' RESURRECTION
Content
THE NECESSITY OF THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS
A CONSIDERATION OF CHAPRER 20 OF JOHN‟S GOSPEL
BY
Aldwyn Lake
Please read the Gospel of John chapter 20 before proceeding
THE NECESSITY OF THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS In fulfillment of the promise made by God to provide a redeemer for humanity who is lost in sin, Jesus was born as the seed of the woman, a descendent of Abraham through whom God promised to bless all nations, and also a descendent of David through whom God promised to provide a perpetual King. He is the one that was appointed and sent by God for those purposes and as such He is the Messiah or the Christ. Man‟s redemption was by way of paying a debt to God and that debt was the life of the redeemer. It was His life in the sense of living and dying in place of the debtors. According to the scripture, Jesus lived a prefect, that is to say, a sinless life and died a sacrificial death on behalf of those who would be redeemed. In His grace God provided evidence that the work which was done by Jesus was accepted by Him. The evidence came in the form of Jesus‟ resurrection form the dead. His resurrection was not as public as His death but it was just as necessary, if His redemptive work was to be completed. Chapter 20 of John‟s gospel gives us an account, not of the actual resurrection, but of the experiences of those who were the first to become aware of it during a two week period. Included in their experiences were seeing the resurrected Jesus and receiving the Holy Spirit of God. We will consider this chapter in order to answer the question: “Why was the resurrection of Jesus Christ necessary?” This account of Jesus‟ resurrection states that the first person to become aware of it was Mary Magdalene. She was one of Jesus‟ disciples. The scripture indicated that she came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and saw the stone already taken away from the tomb. That is, the large stone that was used to seal the entrance to the tomb. This clearly indicated that the resurrection had already taken place. In her shock and despair Mary did not stop to examine anything, but believing that Jesus‟ body was stolen, ran to His closest friends to tell them what she had discovered. The actual resurrection was a private affair between God the Father and God the Son; that, and the account of the activities that follow, provide nine reasons for its necessity.
2
1. The resurrection was necessary in order to show God’s approval of the life of Jesus whilst He lived on earth. In order for God to approve of Jesus‟ life, it had to have been a life lived without offence to Him in thought, word and deed. Every facet of the life lived had to have been totally satisfying to God throughout its entire period. That is to say that in His dealings with His fellow men, including His parents, His brothers and sisters, His aunts and uncles, the persons He went to school with, His neighbours, people with whom He worshipped and people in the community, all had to be without offence to God at all times. Obviously His interactions would have included what He thought of those persons, what He said to them, how He said the things that He said, His reactions to the way they treated Him, His body language and His motives. In addition to that His life would have included the way He thought of Himself and the things that He did which did not involve interacting with others. For example, His life would have involved dealing with things that were entrusted to Him, dealing with His body, the use of His hands, His feet, His ears and what He did with the things He heard, His eyes and what He did with what He saw and such like. All had to be pleasing to God. Also, His life would have included the way He interacted with God directly. This would have had to do with worship and direct service to God. None of it could have been done in pretence or in the mere performance of external duties. All of it at all times had to have been from the heart, according to God‟s truth and in the right spirit. All of it would have had to be for the honour and glory of God at all times. If during his lifetime on earth Jesus had fallen short in any of the areas mentioned above, God would not have raised Him from the dead. It must be that Jesus perfectly fulfilled God‟s holy law, and having approved of His life of perfect obedience, God demonstrated His approval by raising Him from the dead. It must be that after Jesus died and stood before God to be judged with respect to His life on earth, no fault was found in Him. Having been found not guilty of any sin God could not hold Him under death, which is the penalty for guilt of sin. As such, the scripture says in Acts 2:24 (NASB), But God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power.
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2. The resurrection was necessary in order to show God’s acceptance of the work that Jesus did on earth. Jesus‟ work was not only to live a perfect life on earth, as just mentioned, but it was also to die in the place of those who would be redeemed. In doing so He was required to take upon Himself the sins of the people for whom He died. He was their substitute as appointed by God. In His death He sacrificed Himself for His people. This is how the scripture puts it in Romans 5:6-8 (NASB). 6 For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. For God to accept any offering made to Him, the sacrifice must be perfect. Jesus‟ sacrifice was perfect in two ways. That is to say that (1) the body that was offered was without sin and (2) the manner in which it was offered showed that Jesus had the right attitude and the right motive in presenting His offering to God. I do not think anyone would have any difficulties in grasping the fact that the sacrifice offered to God was perfect, in that it had no blemish. But with respect to the second area of perfection, lest it is missed; be reminded that in addition to requiring a spotless body, God also requires that the offering be presented with the right motive and the right attitude in order for it to be accepted. Just going through the motion is not acceptable to God; the offering had to be from the heart and for God‟s glory. When His people brought offerings with a different attitude to that, God said they honoured Him with their lips but their hearts were far from Him. He rejected those offerings calling the people hypocrites. Jesus demonstrated that He had the right motive and attitude in taking the sins of His people and offering Himself as a sacrifice to God when He prayed, "Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done." Luke 22:42 (NASB) The resurrection shows that God accepted His sacrificial death.
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3. Jesus’ resurrection was necessary so that His disciples would understand and believe the truths the scriptures teach about Him. This is presented in John 20:8-10 (NASB) where it says: 8 So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed. 9 For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. 10 So the disciples went away again to their own homes. Jesus spent about three years teaching and training His disciples but even at the end of that period there were many things about Him and about the scripture they did not understand. One of those things was His death and resurrection but there would have been many others. This is made clear by one of the things that Jesus did after He rose from the dead. In Luke 24:42-47 (NASB) it is recorded: They gave Him a piece of a broiled fish; 43 and He took it and ate it before them. 44 Now He said to them, "These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled." 45 Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46 and He said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, 47 and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. From reading those passages of scripture it is made clear that in order for the disciples to believe the truths about Jesus they had to understand the scripture. The same is true for people today; in order to believe in Jesus we must understand the scriptures.
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4. Jesus’ resurrection was necessary so that He could provide comfort and assurance of life in Him to His disciples. This is illustrated in the interaction that Mary had with Jesus when she met Him at the tomb. From verse 14 it says: 14 When she had said this, she turned around and * saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus *said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?" Supposing Him to be the gardener, she *said to Him, "Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away." 16 Jesus *said to her, "Mary!" She turned and *said to Him in Hebrew, " Rabboni!" (which means, Teacher). 17 Jesus *said to her, "Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, 'I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.'" John 20:14-17 (NASB). When Mary encountered Jesus at the tomb, He spoke to her calling her “woman”. But, she did not recognize Him until He called her name. It is when Jesus calls His disciples by name that they recognize His voice and follow; placing their trust and confidence in Him.
5. The resurrection was necessary so that Jesus could ascend to God the father in a glorified body. As you have just read, “Jesus said to her, „Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.'" Because of that, all those who trust in Him would likewise ascend to heaven in a glorified body. This truth is presented in 1 Cor 15:42-44 (NASB) which says: 42“So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown a perishable body, it is raised an imperishable body; 43 it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; 44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.
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6. Jesus’ resurrection was necessary in order that he would remove fear from His disciples and provide them with peace. After the arrest and crucifixion of Jesus, his disciples were afraid. They were afraid of the authorities and what they might do to them. They were uncertain as to what would happen now that their leader was dead. They had no peace in themselves because of the uncertainty of their future. The resurrected Jesus would be their source of peace. In Him they would be able to be at peace with themselves, with one another and with God. The most important of these would be peace with God because in the resurrection the evidence is given that God‟s hostility towards the sinner has been removed in Jesus. That peace was promised by Jesus to His disciples when He spoke with them before He was crucified. In John 14:27 (NASB) it says “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.” When he came to them after the resurrection He pronounced that peace saying, "Peace be with you." John 20:19 (NASB)
7. The resurrection was necessary so that Jesus could give His Holy Spirit to His disciples. This is presented in John 20:22-23 (NASB) And when He had said this, He breathed on them and *said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained." The gift of His Holy Spirit was promised by God to those whom He would redeem. By that gift He was to reside within those redeemed by Christ. It is an essential part of the redemptive work. It is because Jesus rose from the dead, having accomplished the first part of the redemption, that He could now proceed to this second part and give the Holy Spirit to them.
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8. The resurrection was necessary so that the signs He performed after His resurrection would be recorded in the scripture so that those who read it would believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing they would have eternal life in Him. This truth is found towards the end of the chapter. There the apostle states that his specific reason for writing the signs that Jesus performed, is so that those who read his account of Jesus‟ life would believe the truth as to whom Jesus is and that their belief would result in eternal life for them. This is how he states it: John 20:30-31 (NASB)30 Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name. Included in those signs is the one that Jesus performed when, after His resurrection, He entered a room that was closed with locked doors, without opening the doors. He did that on two occasions when the disciples were assembled. This shows that His death did not diminish His power that was demonstrated before, when He healed the sick, cleansed the leper, cast out demons and calmed the sea, for example. It must be noted that the apostle did not stop at saying that a person‟s belief must be that Jesus is the Son of God. This is important to see because the Bible teaches that the demons knew and believe the same thing and they tremble at their contemplation of the truths concerning Jesus (Matthew 8:28-29, James 2:9). But, their belief does not result in salvation from sin for them. True belief in who Jesus is must result in salvation for all who believe in Him, or their belief is useless. Jesus‟ resurrection was necessary so that those who believe in Him on account of the signs He performed, including His resurrection, would believe that true life is in Him only and that they would trust in Him for it.
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9. The resurrection was necessary to show to all men that God has made Jesus the final judge of the world. This truth must be of greatest importance for the simple reason that every person must all face God‟s final judgment. The scripture says that it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment (Hebrews 9:27). This is an appointment that every person must keep whether they would have died before Jesus returns or whether they are alive when He does. That final judgment would be according to the standard of righteousness exhibited by Jesus when He lived on earth. God demonstrated His approval of that standard when He raised Him from the dead. Hence, He, Jesus, would be the one used by God as the final judge. This is how it is stated in the scripture. Acts 17:30-31 (NASB) 30Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, 31 because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead." In light of that you must examine yourself to see if your righteousness is acceptable to God. If you see that it is not, then you must come to Christ to get His righteousness or you would be condemned at the judgment. May God help you to understand the scriptures so that you would believe the truths concerning Jesus, to the end that you come to Him to receive of His live; new life, that is given and received because He, Jesus, rose from the dead.
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The following passages of scripture provide further reasons for the necessity of the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. Romans 4:23-25 (NASB) Now not for his sake only was it written that it was credited to him, 24 but for our sake also, to whom it will be credited, as those who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, 25 He who was delivered over because of our transgressions, and was raised because of our justification. Romans 6:4-11 (NASB) Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; 7 for he who has died is freed from sin. 8 Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Romans 8:33-34 (NASB) Who will bring a charge against God's elect? God is the one who justifies; 34 who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was [1] raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. 1 Cor 15:20-21 (NASB) But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. 21 For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. Eph 1:19-21 (NASB) These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might 20 which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 1 Thess 1:9-10 (NASB) For they themselves report about us what kind of a reception we had with you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God, 10 and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come.
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A CONSIDERATION OF CHAPRER 20 OF JOHN‟S GOSPEL
BY
Aldwyn Lake
Please read the Gospel of John chapter 20 before proceeding
THE NECESSITY OF THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS In fulfillment of the promise made by God to provide a redeemer for humanity who is lost in sin, Jesus was born as the seed of the woman, a descendent of Abraham through whom God promised to bless all nations, and also a descendent of David through whom God promised to provide a perpetual King. He is the one that was appointed and sent by God for those purposes and as such He is the Messiah or the Christ. Man‟s redemption was by way of paying a debt to God and that debt was the life of the redeemer. It was His life in the sense of living and dying in place of the debtors. According to the scripture, Jesus lived a prefect, that is to say, a sinless life and died a sacrificial death on behalf of those who would be redeemed. In His grace God provided evidence that the work which was done by Jesus was accepted by Him. The evidence came in the form of Jesus‟ resurrection form the dead. His resurrection was not as public as His death but it was just as necessary, if His redemptive work was to be completed. Chapter 20 of John‟s gospel gives us an account, not of the actual resurrection, but of the experiences of those who were the first to become aware of it during a two week period. Included in their experiences were seeing the resurrected Jesus and receiving the Holy Spirit of God. We will consider this chapter in order to answer the question: “Why was the resurrection of Jesus Christ necessary?” This account of Jesus‟ resurrection states that the first person to become aware of it was Mary Magdalene. She was one of Jesus‟ disciples. The scripture indicated that she came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and saw the stone already taken away from the tomb. That is, the large stone that was used to seal the entrance to the tomb. This clearly indicated that the resurrection had already taken place. In her shock and despair Mary did not stop to examine anything, but believing that Jesus‟ body was stolen, ran to His closest friends to tell them what she had discovered. The actual resurrection was a private affair between God the Father and God the Son; that, and the account of the activities that follow, provide nine reasons for its necessity.
2
1. The resurrection was necessary in order to show God’s approval of the life of Jesus whilst He lived on earth. In order for God to approve of Jesus‟ life, it had to have been a life lived without offence to Him in thought, word and deed. Every facet of the life lived had to have been totally satisfying to God throughout its entire period. That is to say that in His dealings with His fellow men, including His parents, His brothers and sisters, His aunts and uncles, the persons He went to school with, His neighbours, people with whom He worshipped and people in the community, all had to be without offence to God at all times. Obviously His interactions would have included what He thought of those persons, what He said to them, how He said the things that He said, His reactions to the way they treated Him, His body language and His motives. In addition to that His life would have included the way He thought of Himself and the things that He did which did not involve interacting with others. For example, His life would have involved dealing with things that were entrusted to Him, dealing with His body, the use of His hands, His feet, His ears and what He did with the things He heard, His eyes and what He did with what He saw and such like. All had to be pleasing to God. Also, His life would have included the way He interacted with God directly. This would have had to do with worship and direct service to God. None of it could have been done in pretence or in the mere performance of external duties. All of it at all times had to have been from the heart, according to God‟s truth and in the right spirit. All of it would have had to be for the honour and glory of God at all times. If during his lifetime on earth Jesus had fallen short in any of the areas mentioned above, God would not have raised Him from the dead. It must be that Jesus perfectly fulfilled God‟s holy law, and having approved of His life of perfect obedience, God demonstrated His approval by raising Him from the dead. It must be that after Jesus died and stood before God to be judged with respect to His life on earth, no fault was found in Him. Having been found not guilty of any sin God could not hold Him under death, which is the penalty for guilt of sin. As such, the scripture says in Acts 2:24 (NASB), But God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power.
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2. The resurrection was necessary in order to show God’s acceptance of the work that Jesus did on earth. Jesus‟ work was not only to live a perfect life on earth, as just mentioned, but it was also to die in the place of those who would be redeemed. In doing so He was required to take upon Himself the sins of the people for whom He died. He was their substitute as appointed by God. In His death He sacrificed Himself for His people. This is how the scripture puts it in Romans 5:6-8 (NASB). 6 For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. For God to accept any offering made to Him, the sacrifice must be perfect. Jesus‟ sacrifice was perfect in two ways. That is to say that (1) the body that was offered was without sin and (2) the manner in which it was offered showed that Jesus had the right attitude and the right motive in presenting His offering to God. I do not think anyone would have any difficulties in grasping the fact that the sacrifice offered to God was perfect, in that it had no blemish. But with respect to the second area of perfection, lest it is missed; be reminded that in addition to requiring a spotless body, God also requires that the offering be presented with the right motive and the right attitude in order for it to be accepted. Just going through the motion is not acceptable to God; the offering had to be from the heart and for God‟s glory. When His people brought offerings with a different attitude to that, God said they honoured Him with their lips but their hearts were far from Him. He rejected those offerings calling the people hypocrites. Jesus demonstrated that He had the right motive and attitude in taking the sins of His people and offering Himself as a sacrifice to God when He prayed, "Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done." Luke 22:42 (NASB) The resurrection shows that God accepted His sacrificial death.
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3. Jesus’ resurrection was necessary so that His disciples would understand and believe the truths the scriptures teach about Him. This is presented in John 20:8-10 (NASB) where it says: 8 So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed. 9 For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. 10 So the disciples went away again to their own homes. Jesus spent about three years teaching and training His disciples but even at the end of that period there were many things about Him and about the scripture they did not understand. One of those things was His death and resurrection but there would have been many others. This is made clear by one of the things that Jesus did after He rose from the dead. In Luke 24:42-47 (NASB) it is recorded: They gave Him a piece of a broiled fish; 43 and He took it and ate it before them. 44 Now He said to them, "These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled." 45 Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46 and He said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, 47 and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. From reading those passages of scripture it is made clear that in order for the disciples to believe the truths about Jesus they had to understand the scripture. The same is true for people today; in order to believe in Jesus we must understand the scriptures.
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4. Jesus’ resurrection was necessary so that He could provide comfort and assurance of life in Him to His disciples. This is illustrated in the interaction that Mary had with Jesus when she met Him at the tomb. From verse 14 it says: 14 When she had said this, she turned around and * saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus *said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?" Supposing Him to be the gardener, she *said to Him, "Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away." 16 Jesus *said to her, "Mary!" She turned and *said to Him in Hebrew, " Rabboni!" (which means, Teacher). 17 Jesus *said to her, "Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, 'I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.'" John 20:14-17 (NASB). When Mary encountered Jesus at the tomb, He spoke to her calling her “woman”. But, she did not recognize Him until He called her name. It is when Jesus calls His disciples by name that they recognize His voice and follow; placing their trust and confidence in Him.
5. The resurrection was necessary so that Jesus could ascend to God the father in a glorified body. As you have just read, “Jesus said to her, „Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.'" Because of that, all those who trust in Him would likewise ascend to heaven in a glorified body. This truth is presented in 1 Cor 15:42-44 (NASB) which says: 42“So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown a perishable body, it is raised an imperishable body; 43 it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; 44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.
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6. Jesus’ resurrection was necessary in order that he would remove fear from His disciples and provide them with peace. After the arrest and crucifixion of Jesus, his disciples were afraid. They were afraid of the authorities and what they might do to them. They were uncertain as to what would happen now that their leader was dead. They had no peace in themselves because of the uncertainty of their future. The resurrected Jesus would be their source of peace. In Him they would be able to be at peace with themselves, with one another and with God. The most important of these would be peace with God because in the resurrection the evidence is given that God‟s hostility towards the sinner has been removed in Jesus. That peace was promised by Jesus to His disciples when He spoke with them before He was crucified. In John 14:27 (NASB) it says “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.” When he came to them after the resurrection He pronounced that peace saying, "Peace be with you." John 20:19 (NASB)
7. The resurrection was necessary so that Jesus could give His Holy Spirit to His disciples. This is presented in John 20:22-23 (NASB) And when He had said this, He breathed on them and *said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained." The gift of His Holy Spirit was promised by God to those whom He would redeem. By that gift He was to reside within those redeemed by Christ. It is an essential part of the redemptive work. It is because Jesus rose from the dead, having accomplished the first part of the redemption, that He could now proceed to this second part and give the Holy Spirit to them.
22
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8. The resurrection was necessary so that the signs He performed after His resurrection would be recorded in the scripture so that those who read it would believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing they would have eternal life in Him. This truth is found towards the end of the chapter. There the apostle states that his specific reason for writing the signs that Jesus performed, is so that those who read his account of Jesus‟ life would believe the truth as to whom Jesus is and that their belief would result in eternal life for them. This is how he states it: John 20:30-31 (NASB)30 Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name. Included in those signs is the one that Jesus performed when, after His resurrection, He entered a room that was closed with locked doors, without opening the doors. He did that on two occasions when the disciples were assembled. This shows that His death did not diminish His power that was demonstrated before, when He healed the sick, cleansed the leper, cast out demons and calmed the sea, for example. It must be noted that the apostle did not stop at saying that a person‟s belief must be that Jesus is the Son of God. This is important to see because the Bible teaches that the demons knew and believe the same thing and they tremble at their contemplation of the truths concerning Jesus (Matthew 8:28-29, James 2:9). But, their belief does not result in salvation from sin for them. True belief in who Jesus is must result in salvation for all who believe in Him, or their belief is useless. Jesus‟ resurrection was necessary so that those who believe in Him on account of the signs He performed, including His resurrection, would believe that true life is in Him only and that they would trust in Him for it.
8
9. The resurrection was necessary to show to all men that God has made Jesus the final judge of the world. This truth must be of greatest importance for the simple reason that every person must all face God‟s final judgment. The scripture says that it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment (Hebrews 9:27). This is an appointment that every person must keep whether they would have died before Jesus returns or whether they are alive when He does. That final judgment would be according to the standard of righteousness exhibited by Jesus when He lived on earth. God demonstrated His approval of that standard when He raised Him from the dead. Hence, He, Jesus, would be the one used by God as the final judge. This is how it is stated in the scripture. Acts 17:30-31 (NASB) 30Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, 31 because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead." In light of that you must examine yourself to see if your righteousness is acceptable to God. If you see that it is not, then you must come to Christ to get His righteousness or you would be condemned at the judgment. May God help you to understand the scriptures so that you would believe the truths concerning Jesus, to the end that you come to Him to receive of His live; new life, that is given and received because He, Jesus, rose from the dead.
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The following passages of scripture provide further reasons for the necessity of the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. Romans 4:23-25 (NASB) Now not for his sake only was it written that it was credited to him, 24 but for our sake also, to whom it will be credited, as those who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, 25 He who was delivered over because of our transgressions, and was raised because of our justification. Romans 6:4-11 (NASB) Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; 7 for he who has died is freed from sin. 8 Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Romans 8:33-34 (NASB) Who will bring a charge against God's elect? God is the one who justifies; 34 who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was [1] raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. 1 Cor 15:20-21 (NASB) But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. 21 For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. Eph 1:19-21 (NASB) These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might 20 which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. 1 Thess 1:9-10 (NASB) For they themselves report about us what kind of a reception we had with you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God, 10 and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come.
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