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While the death of Jesus is at the heart of the New Testament message, it is never considered apart from the resurrection. If Jesus was not raised from the dead, all his earlier claims and promises are invalid, and death remains victorious. It is therefore important to see that the writers of the New Testament and all the early preachers of the gospel lay great stress on the bodily resurrection of Jesus.
1. We see in Luke 24:4,11,12 that the disciples were puzzled about what was going on. Read Luke 24:5-7, 25,27,32,44-46. Why should they have not been surprised that Jesus was alive?
2. How many people can you find in this chapter who personally saw Jesus alive?
3. Some of the disciples wondered if what they were seeing was a ghost or a vision (Luke 24:37). Read Luke 24:28-31, 39-40,42-43. In what ways did Jesus make it clear to the disciples that it was really him risen from the dead, not merely a ghost?
4. Read 1 Corinthians 15:3-8. To how many people does Paul say the risen Jesus appeared?
5. How important did Paul regard the fact of the resurrection to be? (1 Corinthians 15:14-19).
6. Paul says in these verses that the claims of Jesus and the apostles are all meaningless if their reports about the resurrection are false. But because Jesus really did rise from the dead, all Jesus’ claims are proved to be true. Read Romans 1:4; Acts 2:31-36; 3:12-16. What do these passages show the resurrection demonstrating?
7. The death of Jesus represented the sentence of divine judgement carried out on him for our sakes. The resurrection proves that divine justice has been satisfied. Sin and death have been dealt with. How does Paul express this? (1 Corinthians 15:55-57).
8. If in the resurrection Jesus dealt with the death penalty, what does that mean for us in our death? (1 Corinthians 15:20-22).
9. When we were considering the nature of sin, we saw that it was something that we inherit as descendents of Adam. When we become Christians, we are adopted into God’s family. Jesus became the head of a whole new human race. How does Paul describe this new beginning? (1Corinthians 15:21-23, 45-49)
10. Read Romans 8:10,11. In what ways do we share in the blessings of Jesus’ resurrection?
For the early disciples it seemed too good to be true that Jesus was alive again. We now know even more how good it is. It is also true! Spend some time praising the risen Jesus, and God, the Father, who raised Jesus from the dead and has brought us into newness of life.
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