Christ was crucified, died, buried, remained under the power of death and rose from the dead on the third day. After the Sabbath, the Mary’s and Salome went to the tomb where Jesus was buried. They found the tomb stone rolled away from the opening.
“And when the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, bought spices, that they might come and anoint Him. And very early on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen. And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away, although it was extremely large. And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting at the right, wearing a white robe; and they were amazed. And he said to them, “Do not be amazed; you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen; He is not here; behold, here is the place where they laid Him.” (Mar 16:1-6 NAS)
The Mary’s went and told the disciples the news. The apostles witnessed Christ risen in His body. Jesus went and visited the twelve disciples. He also went and visited many other people. Paul wrote,
“For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; and last of all, as it were to one untimely born, He appeared to me also.” (1Co 15:3-8 NAS)
The apostles witnessed Christ alive in His physical body. When Jesus visited the disciples, Thomas would not believe unless he saw the scars from the nails in Jesus’ hands.
“The other disciples therefore were saying to him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I shall see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.” And after eight days again His disciples were inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst, and said, “Peace be with you.” Then He said to Thomas, “Reach here your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand, and put it into My side; and be not unbelieving, but believing.” Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.” (John 20:25-29 NAS)
Jesus did not raise merely as a spirit or an apparition. Nor was He a hallucination of the apostle’s mind. He rose from the dead in His actual body.
The resurrection is a promise from God through the prophets.
The apostles taught that the resurrection of the dead was the fulfillment of what had been promised in the Old Testament. Paul wrote,
“He promised beforehand through His prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh, who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom 1:2-5 NAS)
Peter quoted the Psalms, explaining that the prophet was looking ahead to the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
“And so, because he was a prophet, and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat one of his descendants upon his throne, he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that He was neither abandoned to Hades, nor did His flesh suffer decay. “This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses.” (Act 2:30-32 NAS)
The apostle Paul defended himself by declaring that both the Prophets and Moses foretold that the Christ would suffer and rise from the dead.
“For this reason, some Jews seized me in the temple and tried to put me to death. “And so, having obtained help from God, I stand to this day testifying both to small and great, stating nothing but what the Prophets and Moses said was going to take place; that the Christ was to suffer, and that by reason of His resurrection from the dead He should be the first to proclaim light both to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles.” (Act 26:21-23 NAS)
The Old Testament speaks of the resurrection of the dead. In the Psalms, referring to Jesus’ resurrection, it declares that His soul would be redeemed from Sheol and brought into the presence of God.
“For Thou wilt not abandon my soul to Sheol; Neither wilt Thou allow Thy Holy One to undergo decay. Thou wilt make known to me the path of life; In Thy presence is fulness of joy; In Thy right hand there are pleasures forever.” (Psa 16:10-11 NAS)
“But God will redeem my soul from the power of Sheol; For He will receive me.” (Psa 49:15 NAS)
Both Isaiah and Daniel said that the dead will awake from the dust of the ground.
“Your dead will live; Their corpses will rise. You who lie in the dust, awake and shout for joy, For your dew is as the dew of the dawn, And the earth will give birth to the departed spirits.” (Isa 26:19 NAS)
“And many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt.” (Dan 12:2 NAS)
Job wrote that even if his skin is destroyed, he will see God in his flesh.
“Even after my skin is destroyed, Yet from my flesh I shall see God;” (Job 19:26 NAS)
The idea of resurrection after death was not unique to the New Testament or the apostles.
The resurrection of Christ is fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy.
The Israelites were commanded to observe the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. On the first day of the week, the day after the Sabbath following the Feast of Unleavened Bread, they were to celebrate the Feast of Firstfruits. Leviticus says,
“In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at twilight is the LORD’s Passover. ‘Then on the fifteenth day of the same month there is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the LORD; for seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. ‘On the first day you shall have a holy convocation; you shall not do any laborious work… you shall bring in the sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest. ‘And he shall wave the sheaf before the LORD for you to be accepted; on the day after the sabbath the priest shall wave it.” (Lev 23:5-11 NAS)
The apostle Paul alludes to the Feast of Firstfruits being fulfilled in Christ’s resurrection from the dead. Paul wrote,
“But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all shall be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ’s at His coming.” (1Co 15:20-23 NAS)
Christ’s resurrection from the dead brings about the resurrection of God’s people, making them the firstfruits of His new creation.
“In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we might be, as it were, the first fruits among His creatures.” (Jam 1:18 NAS)
Christ raising from the dead on the first day of the week is an essential doctrine in the Christian faith.
Believing Christ rose from the dead is not optional in the Christian faith.
Those who deny Jesus Christ rose from the dead are not Christians, but, false witnesses. Paul states,
“Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain. Moreover, we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we witnessed against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.” (1Co 15:12-19 NAS)
Paul teaches the resurrection of Christ with such conviction that he declares if there is no resurrection, then the entire Christian faith is false. This firmly places those who deny the resurrection outside the bounds of Christianity. To reject the resurrection is to embrace a different religion altogether—one that has no right to be called Christian.
“That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved.” (Rom 10:9 NAS)
The resurrection of Jesus Christ on the third day is the cornerstone of the Christian faith. It is the divine confirmation that Christ’s sacrifice was accepted, that death has been conquered, and that eternal life is secured for all who believe. From the testimony of the apostles to the prophetic witness of the Old Testament, Scripture consistently affirms that Jesus rose bodily from the grave, fulfilling God’s redemptive plan. His resurrection is not merely symbolic—it is historical, physical, and essential. Those who deny this truth reject the very heart of the gospel. As Paul boldly proclaims, without the resurrection, our faith is in vain and we remain in our sins. But because Christ is risen, our hope is alive, our sins are forgiven, and our future resurrection is assured. To believe in the risen Christ is to believe in the God who raises the dead—and this belief is the dividing line between true Christianity and every counterfeit.