The resurrection of Jesus on the third day after his crucifixion has profound theological implications. It proves his divinity, affirms the efficacy of the atonement, validates his teaching and pre-empts our own future resurrection. These are concepts that are expounded in detail by a plethora of other works which I don’t intend to duplicate here. Neither will I provide a detailed apologetic for the historicity of Christ’s resurrection, for I have previously analysed the impressive historical evidence for this event in two of my other books, 7 Reasons To Believe and Finding God When He Seems To Be Hiding.[1] For the sake of completeness, however, I simply list and summarise the categories of evidence as follows:
- The historical fact of the empty tomb. No one could produce Christ’s body or adequately explain its absence from the tomb.
- The dramatic transformation of the disciples. They were transformed from terrified and defeated followers to passionate and courageous evangelists, willing to die for their belief in their resurrected Lord.
- The absence of literary refutation. The New Testament accounts of the resurrection were written during the lifetime of the eyewitnesses. If the resurrection was NOT true, if it was just a story concocted by the disciples, we should expect to find a whole swathe of documents in the historical record refuting that story. But instead, what we do find is a complete absence of literary refutation. The reason for this absence is that people simply couldn’t refute the resurrection because so many people had seen Jesus alive! The absence of literary refutation is a powerful form of evidence for any historical event under critical examination.
- Corroboration by hostile or disinterested testament. There are several extra-biblical historical references to Christ’s resurrection.[2]
In this brief post, however, I want to focus on the post-resurrection appearances of Jesus recorded in the New Testament and explore their implications for our understanding of both his incarnation and our ongoing mission. There are at least eleven post-resurrection appearances of Jesus that are documented in the New Testament:
- Mary Magdalene and the other women at the tomb (Matthew 28:1-10)
- Peter (Luke 24:34, 1 Corinthians 15:5)
- The disciples on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35)
- The eleven disciples (Luke 24:36-49, John 20:19-23)
- Thomas and the disciples (John 20:24-29)
- The seven disciples by the Sea of Tiberias (John 21:1-14)
- A large group of disciples in Galilee (Matthew 28:16-20)
- Over 500 followers at one time (1 Corinthians 15:6)
- James (1 Corinthians 15:7)
- A meal with his disciples, possibly in Jerusalem (Acts 1:4)
- With the eleven disciples at his ascension (Acts 1:6-12)
Before we discuss any of these individually, the first thing to note is that these appearances occurred over a period of 40 days (Acts 1:4). Clearly, Jesus was not in a hurry to depart from planet Earth! In fact, Acts 1:1-3 tells us that Jesus continued to “instruct” his followers and teach them about “the kingdom of God” during this time. We have no record of the content of this instruction in the Gospels, but the fruit of it is seen in the New Testament letters that were subsequently written, which show deep insight and highly developed theology.
During this 40-day period, we are also told that Jesus gave his followers “many impressive proofs that he was alive” (Acts 1:3). The use of the word “many” implies that there were many more post-resurrection appearances during this period than the eleven that are specifically mentioned in the New Testament. Jesus apparently continued to live among his followers for the entirety of those forty days. For instance, we can reasonably assume that he would have spent time with Mary, Martha and Lazarus, his dearly loved friends who would have mourned his death deeply. There would have been many joyful dinners shared with many who loved him and whom he loved in return.
This prolonged period of post-resurrection appearances was intentional. Jesus wanted there to be no doubt in the minds of his followers that he had, indeed, risen from the dead. As a result, by the time he ascended back into heaven, Jesus’ followers were completely convinced. They had seen him. They had touched him. They had eaten with him and listened to him for many hours. They possessed an existential certainty regarding his resurrection. Soon after, with the coming of the Holy Spirit, this existential certainty would be transformed into bold evangelistic zeal that would set the world on fire and lead to the rapid spread of Christianity. It would also lead many of Christ’s followers to give up their lives for their belief in his resurrection, as they were unwilling to renounce their faith in something that they had seen with their own eyes.
This is one of the reasons why the resurrection of Christ cannot be lightly dismissed as a myth. The large number of Christians who testified to seeing Jesus alive again and were willing to die for that belief at the hands of their Roman and Jewish persecutors is an established historical fact. The most logical explanation is that Jesus had, indeed, risen from the dead.
Christ’s Resurrection as an Affirmation of His Incarnation
Beyond all this, the resurrection appearances of Jesus also have profound implications for our understanding of the incarnation. Jesus’ bodily resurrection underscores that his humanity was not temporary or illusory. Jesus did not rise from the dead as a ‘wispy’ spirit. He rose with a physical body. His incarnation, where the Word became flesh (John 1:14), did not come to an end at his death. Instead, his resurrection body, though glorified, retained the marks of his crucifixion (John 20:27). This physical continuity emphasises that the incarnation was a genuine and permanent union of divinity and humanity.
The early church father, Athanasius, in his work “On the Incarnation“[3], argued that the resurrection was necessary to demonstrate the victory over death of the “Word made flesh”, thereby confirming the purpose of the incarnation—to restore and redeem humanity.
The Transformation of Human Nature
The resurrection of Christ also illustrates the transformation of human nature through Christ’s victory over death. Jesus’ glorified body, which could appear and disappear (Luke 24:31, John 20:19), signifies the eschatological hope that all believers now have. Paul writes in Philippians 3:21, that Christ “will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body.” We see, in Jesus’ resurrected body, a foretaste of our own future resurrections.
N.T. Wright, in his book, “Surprised by Hope“[4], elaborates on this transformation, explaining that the resurrection is not merely about life after death but about the physical renewal of creation. Christ’s resurrection is the prototype of the new creation, where redeemed humanity will share in his glory.
Continuity and Discontinuity
The resurrection appearances highlight both continuity and discontinuity in Jesus’ incarnate existence. His post-resurrection body was the same yet different. He could eat and be touched (Luke 24:42-43, John 20:27), affirming the continuity of his physical human experience. Yet, he also exhibited qualities that transcended normal human limitations, such as entering a locked room, by apparently walking through solid doors (John 20:19) and being able to disappear and instantly reappear elsewhere (Luke 24:13-35).
This paradox of continuity and discontinuity reflects the mystery of the incarnation itself, where the divine and human natures are united in one person without confusion or division. The Council of Chalcedon (451 AD) articulated this doctrine, emphasizing that Christ is “truly God and truly man.” While this confluence of two natures was clear enough throughout his years of ministry, it becomes blazingly evident in his post-resurrected state. It is as if a degree of self-restraint and even obfuscation has been removed and Jesus is free to reveal his glory in more obvious and dramatic ways.
Yet, as we are about to see, the enhanced glory of Christ’s post-resurrection body pales into insignificance compared to the unimaginable glory that he resumed at his ascension.
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FOOTNOTES:
[1] Available from my website, smartfaith.net
[2] See my books, 7 Reasons To Believe and Finding God When He Seems To Be Hiding.
[3] Athanasius, On The Incarnation, public domain, translated by Dr Tom Morris, 2011, ISBN 978-1-257-63746-1
[4] N. T. Wright, Surprised By Hope, Society For Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2011