EASTER: Rising From Misconceptions

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The truth of Christianity rests on the truth of the resurrection. If Christ did not really rise from the dead, then we are only fooling ourselves. Paul said the same thing: “And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.” (1 Cor. 15:14). Even though there is plenty of evidence to affirm that the Savior truly rose, the resurrection is still not safe from many forms of misinformation. More and more ideas are being presented—not necessarily to deny it outright, but to confuse people about what it actually means. This Easter Sunday, let’s discuss some of them:

WHAT IS IT REALLY NOT?
Resurrection does not mean resuscitation.
Some believe that Christ’s resurrection was only a revival from unconsciousness. They argue that His coming back to life did not mean He actually died, but that He only woke up from a coma. This view is both imaginative and baseless, especially considering the Gospel accounts of His intense suffering. The Roman soldiers were experts in execution—it is highly unlikely they mistakenly declared Him dead.
Resurrection does not mean Christ came back to an ordinary human life.
The Bible records several resurrections (1 Kings 17:17–24; Matt. 9:18–26; John 11:38–44; etc.). But when the early believers proclaimed the resurrection of Christ, they did not mean it was like those other cases. His resurrection was unique: unlike the others, Christ never died again, and He ascended to heaven with His glorified body (Mark 16:19; Luke 24:50–51; Acts 1:6–11).
Resurrection does not mean His spirit was simply alive with God.
Before His death, Christ said: “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” (Luke 23:46). Based on this, some modern thinkers claim that His resurrection only means His spirit remained alive with God. They even argue that this is the same state for believers after death (Luke 20:37–38). But this view clearly contradicts the biblical record. Christ had a physical, resurrected body when He appeared after rising (Luke 24:36–43; John 20:24–29; etc.).
Resurrection does not mean Ascension.
Critics who reject the supernatural argue that the resurrection is only symbolic of Christ being exalted to the Father after death. They say He didn’t physically rise; He just “returned” to heaven. But this is a misunderstanding of what really happened. Yes, Christ did ascend to heaven—but that was forty days after the resurrection (Acts 1:3). These are two separate events. The resurrection tells us what happened to Christ’s body after death. The ascension reveals what happened to Him with His resurrected body (Mark 16:19; Luke 24:50–51; Acts 1:6–11).
Resurrection does not mean He just lives on in the hearts of His followers.
For some, the resurrection simply means that Christ remained “alive” in the memory and hearts of His disciples even after His death. This may sound poetic, but it is far from sufficient to explain the real encounters of countless people with the risen Christ (1 Cor. 15:5–8; Luke 24:36–43; John 20:16–17; etc.).
There is no escaping the truth: Christ truly rose from the dead. Because He lives, everything He said about Himself is true. And His resurrection also gives us hope—that one day, God will also raise us from the grave (1 Cor. 15:20), bringing us into a future more glorious than we can ever imagine.

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