Resurrection: The Forgotten Half of the Gospel

It’s not uncommon in churches today to hear detailed explanations of why Jesus died on the cross: to bear the punishment of sin, to defeat the powers of evil, to reconcile us to God. Even though these explanations vary across traditions (penal substitution, Christus Victor, moral influence) most Christians can give some answer to the question: Why did Jesus die?

But if we ask a different question – why did Jesus rise from the dead? – and many struggle to articulate a full answer. The Resurrection often gets treated as a kind of divine exclamation point, a happy ending to the drama of Good Friday. But theologically, the Resurrection is essential to the gospel. Without the Resurrection, the cross is incomplete. Without the Resurrection, Christianity collapses.

This post will explore five theological reasons why the Resurrection matters; not just emotionally or symbolically, but as an essential part of God’s saving work.

1. The Resurrection Vindicates Jesus 

Throughout the Gospels, Jesus makes enormous, blasphemous sounding claims: that he is the Son of God, the Messiah, the one who can forgive sins. He declares judgment on the Temple, speaks with divine authority, and predicts that he will be killed and rise again. These are not the words of just a wise moral teacher. They’re dangerous words. 

Had Jesus stayed dead, his execution would have confirmed Rome’s verdict, that he was a failed revolutionary, and confirmed the Jewish leaders view, that he was a blasphemer. The Resurrection, however, is God’s public vindication of Jesus' identity and mission. 

‘...who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.’ Rom. 1:4 

Jesus is not just a crucified Messiah; he is a risen one. The Resurrection demonstrates that God has overturned and declared Jesus to be true in His claims. It is God saying, this is my Son, the world was wrong.

2. The Resurrection Is the Defeat of Death

In the Bible, death is not just a natural consequence of biology, but a spiritual power and the last, greatest enemy (1 Cor. 15:26). Ever since Eden, death has held dominion over humanity, a sign that sin reigns in the world (Rom. 5:12-21). If Jesus came to deal with sin, he must also deal with death. That’s why the Resurrection is essential: it is not just evidence of victory, it is the victory. 

‘Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man.’ 1 Cor. 15:20–21 

In rising from the dead, Jesus breaks the power of death from the inside. He enters the dominion of the grave and walks out the other side. He doesn’t merely survive death; he conquers it. As the paschal troparion says, ‘Christ is risen from the dead, by death trampling death, and to those in the tombs granting life! 

This matters not just for theology but for hope. Because Jesus rose, death is no longer the end of the story, for him or for us.

3. The Resurrection Completes the Atonement

In the New Testament, the Resurrection is part of atonement. The death and Resurrection are not two separate acts but one seamless movement of redemption.

‘He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.’ Rom. 4:25

Justification (God’s legal declaration that we are righteous) is not based just on Christ’s death, but on his Resurrection. It is through his rising that we are brought into new life. The death deals with penalty, the Resurrection grants us participation in righteousness.

Think of it this way. If the crucifixion is the payment, then the Resurrection is the receipt. If the cross is the battle, then the Resurrection is the flag planted on enemy soil. Christ didn’t merely cancel sin; he replaced it with a new creation.

4. The Resurrection Unites Us with Christ

Paul constantly repeats the phase ‘in Christ.’ Our salvation is not just a legal transaction but a relational union which depends on the Resurrection. In baptism, Paul says, we are united with Christ in his death and resurrection.

‘If we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly also be united with him in a resurrection like his.’ Rom. 6:5

 The Christian life is resurrection life. We are not merely forgiven sinners, but new creations (2 Cor. 5:17), brought into Christ’s risen life. Without the Resurrection, we have no share in his Spirit, no new identity, no power to live differently. Because Jesus is alive, however, we are spiritually raised with him (Eph. 2:6), and we will be physically raised with him.

 The Resurrection is not just about where Jesus is, but about where we are, and where we are going to be.

5. The Resurrection Launches the New Creation

The Bible doesn’t end in heaven. It ends with resurrection bodies on a renewed Earth (Rev. 21–22). Christianity is not about escaping the world; it’s about God redeeming and remaking it, and Jesus’ Resurrection is the beginning of that new world.

‘Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.’ 1 Cor. 15:20

Jesus’ resurrection body is not just a resuscitated corpse; it is the prototype of the new creation. He eats fish yet passes through locked doors. He is the same yet transformed. In his resurrected body, heaven and earth come back together.

This might be why the Resurrection happens on the first day of the week (Jn,. 20:1). It’s a deliberate echo of Gen. 1. The Resurrection is the start of a new creation, and Easter Sunday is the world’s birthday.

N.T. Wright says, ‘The message of the Resurrection is that this world matters. That the injustices and pains of this present world must now be addressed with the news that healing, justice, and love have won.’ The Resurrection is not the end of the gospel, but the beginning of the Church’s mission to live in it.

Death Without a Resurrection Is No Gospel

Paul puts it bluntly, ‘If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins’ (1 Cor, 15:17). This means the Resurrection is not just a bonus feature to the gospel but the hinge of everything. Without it, there is no hope, no transformation, no forgiveness, no future.

Because Jesus is risen, everything has changed. His bold and controversial claims to be the Son of God, the Messiah, and the one with authority to forgive sins, are vindicated. The Resurrection is heaven’s stamp of approval on everything Jesus said and did. Death, humanity’s oldest enemy, has been defeated from within. The atonement is not only accomplished but completed, sealed by life emerging from the grave. We are now united with Christ, not just in his death, but in his risen life, sharing in his victory and righteousness. And with that a new creation has begun, the world has turned a corner and a whole new future has broken into the present.

The death is the place of sacrifice, the Resurrection is the place of victory. Together, they are the power of God for salvation (Rom. 1:16).

So, this Easter, don’t just celebrate that Jesus died for you. Rejoice that he lives for you.