Applications of the Resurrection to Christian Life

The Crucifixion and Resurrection were central to the Apostolic message (Acts 2:22-24; 3:12-15; 4:5-13; 5:27-32; 1 Cor 2:2; 15:1-4)

Explanation: The Book of Acts gives insight about the actions of the early Church following the Ascension of Jesus. The Church was birthed on the Day of Pentecost, about 50 days after the Crucifixion (Passover). The first several messages from Peter and the Disciples focused on the sacrificial death of Jesus and His triumphant Resurrection!

Acts 2:24: “whom God has raised up”

Acts 3:15: “and you killed the Prince of life, whom God has raised from the dead.”

Acts 4:10: “Jesus ...whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead”

Acts 5:30: “The God of our fathers raised up Jesus”

1 Cor 15:4: “And that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day”

Argument: Church History attests to the reality of the Resurrection being the primary preaching point in the first several centuries of the Church. The Resurrection was seen as important to the early Christians as it gave them hope in the dark period of persecution.

Examples:

Yes! I do deny the resurrection and I’m guessing that you do too! So, I’m trusting that it doesn’t much matter whether or not you or I or anyone believes or doesn’t believe in the physical resuscitation of Jesus’ corpse. What a stupid argument. What matters is that LOVE rises. The LOVE which is the SACRED MYSTERY which is the LOVE that we call “GOD”. (words of ‘pastor’ Dawn Hutchins from her website: pastordawn BEYOND CHURCH; https://pastordawn.com/2022/02/13/yes-i-do-deny-the-resurrection-i-suspect-that-you-do-too-1-corinthians-15/; accessed on 4/18/2025)

“The meaning of Easter is more transcendent than the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Whether you are Christian or not, through a commitment to helping others we are able to save ourselves.” (Twitter post dated 4/4/21 from Ralph Warnock, Georgia Senator and Pastor of Atlanta’s Ebenezer Baptist Church)

Application: The modern Church must not move away from the position of Christ’s bodily resurrection from the grave. The Resurrection was, and continues to be, the foundational truth of Christianity.

Romans 10:9–10 “because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.”

The Crucifixion was planned by God but was the direct result of sinful humanity (Acts 2:22-23)

Explanation: It is also very important for us to realize the Crucifixion was not an unplanned accident that was the result of mob violence. God knew before He ever created that man would rebel against His perfect plan and fall into sin. The substitutionary death of Jesus as payment for humanity’s sin debt was the only means of satisfying the wrath of a Holy God. The crucifixion was God’s Plan A before the foundation of the world. This is why Peter could state that Jesus was “delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God” (v.23a)

The Jewish Elders who framed Him, the Jewish mob that called for His death, and the Roman authorities who carried out the sentence are still guilty of Jesus’ death. Each member of these groups willfully choice to act together in killing an innocent person. Each is guilty before God for their choices in the death of Christ

Argument: The bible teaches two truths that pertain to this understanding of the Cross [There are many more than 2 truths in Scripture - these two relate to humanity’s guilt in relation to the Cross}

Every single person has sinned (Romans 3:23) We are born with a sin nature and we act according to our nature.

Jesus is the Lame of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29)

Application: Even though we were not physically present during the Crucifixion of Jesus, we are equally guilty of His death. Jesus only died one time and His death was an all-sufficient payment (Heb 9:26)

While Jesus’ death is the only sufficient payment for sin, it is not automatically applied to everyone. it is only Efficacious for those who have surrendered to the Lordship of Christ through faith.

The Resurrection IS the Validation of as Messiah (Matt 16:21; 1 Cor 15:17)

Explanation: The four Gospels record the public ministry of Jesus. All four of them record instances in which Jesus predicts that He will undergo suffering at the hands of the Jewish leaders and that He would also be murdered. Then He tells His disciples that He would “be raised again the third day” (Matt. 16:21). If Jesus had remained dead, He would be a liar. Paul states it like this: “If Chris be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins” (1 Cor 15:17)

Argument: The bodily Resurrection of Christ is THE foundational and essential truth of Christianity. The Resurrection of Jesus sets Christianity apart from ALL other world religions. Jesus, and only Jesus, is the One who has overcome death and the grave. The Resurrection validates (confirms) the Truth that He is all that He claimed to be (cf John 11:25)

Application: The Resurrection gives us hope in that we understand we aren’t just looking back on a dead hero. Instead, we look forward with confidence to our Blessed Hope (Titus 2:13)

Proclaiming the Resurrection of Jesus disturbs the ungodly (Acts 4:1-3; Acts 17:31)

Explanation: The disciples got in trouble with the authorities for proclaiming the Resurrection of Jesus. The leaders understood this truth set Jesus apart as someone more than just a man. God was using the teaching of the Resurrection to transform lives and as more and more heard about this, the more disturbed the leaders got. After all, they were the ones responsible for giving Jesus over to the Romans and demanding His death.

Illustrate: an old painting in the attic is found and you decide to sell it at a yard sale for $25. The guy who bought it recognizes it is a masterpiece. He has it appraised and sells it for 1.2 million dollars. How do you feel?

Argument: The Resurrection proves that Jesus was the Messiah. These leaders were members of a faith community who had been looking for the Messiah for over a 1,000 years! When He does arrive, they are the ones who have Him killed.

Application: sinful man instinctively moves away from the idea of personal accountability and judgment. Paul preached to a crowd of philosophers and unbelievers in Athens, and they listened to him until he taught them of the coming judgment that was assured because of the Resurrection of Jesus (Acts 17:31). When they heard of the resurrection “some mocked” (Acts 17:32)

The Church must continue to proclaim the Message of the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus because He alone is the means of Salvation (Acts 4:11-12)

Explanation: Peter never backed down from laying the blame for Jesus’ death on the Jewish leaders. They were the ones who rejected Jesus’ claim of Messiah, in spite of all the signs and wonders. Peter told them that they had indeed rejected Jesus, but that God had assigned Jesus as the Corner Stone.

Application: Many people have rejected the claims of Christ. Beginning with the Jewish leaders up until the atheists and secularists of the modern age, many people are unwilling to yield to the Nazarene. By doing so they condemn themselves to Eternal separation from the presence of a Holy God. The truth Peter shared with the religious leaders almost 2,000 years ago remains the same: outside of Christ there is no salvation because “there is no other Name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)