4.7 The Resurrection and Ascension
According to the Gospels, Jesus was crucified, died, and was buried. His body was placed in a tomb. A large stone covered the entrance. From a human perspective, this looked like defeat. If Jesus was the Messiah, why had He been rejected, humiliated, and executed?
Christians believe the answer is found in the resurrection. The resurrection is the Christian belief that God raised Jesus from the dead. Christians commonly describe this as happening “on the third day.”
Before His death, Jesus connected His death and resurrection with “the sign of Jonah,” saying that the Son of Man would be “three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” Some Christians therefore believe Jesus was buried on a Wednesday before a high Sabbath during Passover week and had already been raised by the time the women found the tomb empty early on the first day of the week. This view places Jesus in the tomb for the full three days and three nights, aligning with the sign of Jonah. Other Christians follow the traditional Friday-to-Sunday timeline and understand the phrase “three days and three nights” less literally.
The Gospels describe women going to Jesus’ tomb early in the morning after the Sabbath. Mary Magdalene is especially important in these accounts because she is named as one of the first witnesses to the empty tomb and, in John’s Gospel, as the first person to encounter the risen Jesus. Women were not usually treated as the strongest public witnesses in the ancient world, yet the Gospels still place women at the center of the resurrection discovery.
The Gospel accounts also describe heavenly messengers announcing to the women that Jesus was not there because He had already been raised, in fulfillment of the prophecies.
Mainstream Christianity teaches that Jesus was truly bodily raised from the dead, not merely remembered symbolically by His followers.
After this, the New Testament describes Jesus appearing to His followers over a period of forty days. His disciples had been fearful, confused, and scattered after His arrest and execution. After these resurrection appearances, the disciples became bold, convinced that God had raised Jesus from the dead.
For Christians, the resurrection changed everything. It meant that Jesus had not failed. His death was not the end of His mission. God had vindicated Jesus and shown that His message, His identity, and His faithfulness were true.
Why the Resurrection Matters
Without the resurrection, Jesus’ death could look like the tragic execution of a faithful teacher or failed Messiah. With the resurrection, Christians believe the cross becomes the place where Jesus’ obedience, sacrifice, mercy, and faithfulness are answered by God.
The resurrection also shows that Jesus’ death was not meaningless suffering. It confirms that God had accepted Jesus’ faithfulness and that sin and death had been overcome. Many Christians believe the resurrection secures forgiveness, justification, eternal life, and the hope that those who belong to God will also be raised.
For many Christians, the resurrection also carries deep spiritual meaning.
Jesus remained faithful to God through betrayal, humiliation, injustice, suffering, and death. He did not defeat evil by becoming evil. He did not answer violence with violence, deception with deception, or corruption with corruption. He remained obedient to God even when obedience led to the cross.
The resurrection shows that truth, goodness, and faithful obedience are stronger than death, violence, and human injustice. The world can reject truth, mock it, condemn it, and try to bury it, but Christians believe God raises and restores what is truly aligned with Him. They believe God vindicated Jesus, meaning God showed that Jesus had been faithful and that His message was true.
The resurrection also connects to the kingdom of God.
Jesus had repeatedly announced that God’s kingdom was near. He called people to repent, return to God, and live under God’s rule. His crucifixion seemed to contradict that message. Rome still had power. Religious corruption still existed. Violence and death still appeared to win.
Christians believe the resurrection showed that suffering, evil, and human injustice do not have the final word. God’s kingdom is not defeated or limited by death. Instead, the resurrection revealed that God’s power works deeper than political power, violence, and fear.
For Christians, the resurrection is therefore not only about life after death. It is also about the vindication of faithfulness, the defeat of despair, and the promise that God can bring life out of what looks completely lost.
The Ascension
About forty days after the resurrection, the New Testament recounts that Jesus ascended from the disciples’ sight. This departure represents Jesus being given honor, authority, and a continuing role in God’s work.
Before His ascension, Jesus told His followers to remain in Jerusalem and wait for the promise of the Father. The book of Acts identifies this promise with the Holy Spirit. The disciples were told that they would receive power from the Holy Spirit to bear witness. We will look more closely at the Holy Spirit in Module 5.
The New Testament also often describes Jesus as now seated at the right hand of God. This language does not mean that God has a literal physical throne with Jesus sitting beside Him in a simple earthly sense. The phrase is royal symbolism, as is commonly used throughout Scripture. It is meant to describe Jesus’ honor, authority, and exaltation.
For Christians, the ascension means Jesus is not only a figure from the past. He is the risen and exalted Messiah.
Jesus as Lord
After the resurrection and ascension, Christians came to speak of Jesus not only as the Messiah, but as the risen and exalted Lord.
The word “lord” can mean master, ruler, or one who has authority. It has been used for human rulers, respected authorities, and divine beings.
In the Roman world, titles like “lord,” “savior,” and “son of god” could also be used in political and imperial settings. Because of this, calling Jesus “Lord” was not only a private religious statement. It also meant that Caesar and other earthly rulers were not the highest authority.
When Christians call Jesus “Lord,” they are saying that God has exalted Him and given Him authority. This includes authority over His followers, authority connected to God’s kingdom, and authority to send His followers to continue His mission.
The resurrection became one of the central claims of Christianity: the crucified Jesus had been raised, exalted, and given authority by God.
Christians believe that the resurrection also points to a future return of Christ, which we will look at next in section 4.8.