It's Not So Hard To Believe Now

“And when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked: and others said, We will hear thee again of this [matter].” (Ac 17:32 AV)

I have to admit; the doctrine of the resurrection has puzzled me.  Not that it isn’t possible.  Regeneration of expired flesh in no more miraculous than creating it to begin with.  If God created life from nothing, He can easily regenerate it.  That is not the source of my ignorance.  Rather, I had questioned for the longest time the need for it or the purpose of it.  If our bodies are to be resurrected and we are to be given new ones, why not simply let the old ones rot and give us a new one?  Why the extra step?  I think the above statement sheds much light on it.  If I were to ask the average human being if there is life after death, most would say yes.  They don’t know how they know that, but if there were to meditate upon it, they would probably conclude we would continue in some form forever and ever.  Where did we get that idea?  The Grecians above mocked the doctrine of the resurrection.  They did so because it had never been heard of before.  Other than the three people Christ rose from the dead, there was never, in all of human history, a record of someone coming back to life.  Especially in the manner that Jesus did.  Today, if we spoke of Jesus rising from the dead, many would not dispute this as impossible.  Why?  And for what purpose?

The resurrection is verifiable evidence of life after death.  If Jesus had never risen from the dead and ascended bodily into heaven, there would be no visible proof of life after death.  Even the three who Christ rose from the dead eventually died again.  The little girl, the young man, and Lazarus all met the end of earthly life.  Jesus Christ, on the other hand, rose from the dead and ascended in human form.  The men above reacted as one would expect.  Wouldn’t you?  The fact that life after death and the resurrection are at least a consideration today is a testament to the validity of the gospel.  That twelve men were so affected by the resurrected Christ that they preached a historical fact with conviction is the reason mankind believes in life after death.  The reason we can knock on a door and speak of eternal life without getting mocked today is because two thousand years ago, Jesus Christ rose from the grave, walked among men, and ascended on high.  The reason the vast majority of the western world will celebrate Christmas in a few short months and Easter next year is because God died on a cross, rose again, and now sits on the throne of heaven.  Because twelve men were so affected by the resurrection, they could not keep quiet and forever changed the world.

Had Jesus simply died and ascended to heaven in spirit only, the result would not have been the same.  Some would believe He lived eternally.  Others who were on the fence would have rejected.  Most would have ignored the gospel.  But a dead body resurrecting three days later after being drained of all bodily fluids is hard evidence to ignore.  For us today, the resurrection is proof that there is life after death.  That is why we use the resurrection as the dominant theme at a funeral.  It is the hope of eternal life.  Something our five senses can recognize.  The resurrection, as Paul correctly points out, is the cornerstone of our faith in eternal life.  If Jesus did not rise from the dead, our belief in the afterlife is in vain.  Praise God for the resurrection.  Because Jesus rose from the dead to live eternally in the presence of the Father, so too shall we!