A Question I've always been afraid to ask

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nfinke

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Ill just ask it: What was so special about Christ’s resurrection?

I understand the religious significance of Him defeating death, but we treat His resurrection as some super unique event in history…while also acknowledging it has happened multiple times before, and often by Jesus’ own hand. I’m not trying to be blasphemous, but what is fundamentally more magnificent about Christ rising from the dead of His own power, compared to Christ rising Lazarus from the dead, also with Christ’s own power? Or a man rising from the dead after coming in contact with Elisha’s bones?

Plus it’s not like Jesus truly “died”. His human body did, and his human nature suffered, but His divine nature couldn’t, so there wasn’t a point where he was totally dead anyway. He was a lot less dead then than I will be when my time comes, right?

I would think the incarnation, the moment where the infinite God who transcends time and space took on the flesh of a man and lived among us was way more amazing of a miracle than the resurrection.

We also call Christ the “first born from the dead” in alot of Easter hymns, when, like I said earlier, isn’t true.

And I guess that’s my main point: every Easter, we seem to pretend Christ’s resurrection was some incredibly unique unexpected event, when it was something that has happened to regular people before, and had happened to a bunch of OT saints just three days before.

Am I looking at this the wrong way?
 
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Can you name somebody else who predicted their own death and Resurrection and then had it come true?
 
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I guess not. Is it the fact He foresaw it that adds that extra element?
 
Of course there or a multitude of other reasons as well, but it gets to the foundational nature of Christianity. You asked about one specific reason for one specific event.

Reading the Gospel of John will help to put it in perspective. It is where Christ describes who he is and why is he is unique in the human race.
 
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I don’t think I can accurately and fully answer your question, but I will add something that you failed to bring up.

The resurrection of Christ was not a return to bodily life, but to a higher, more perfect form of being.

When Christ raised Lazarus, Lazarus was not able to appear and disappear and walk through walls as Jesus was able to after the resurrection. So I don’t know (literally i don’t know) if it was more amazing that he was alive again or that he was alive in a totally different way.

Something to think about?

Stephen
 
Ah this is a good point. When you put it that way, (not to lessen the work of God), bringing Lazarus back to life seems alot less miraculous in comparison, if that’s possible.

That does give me something to think about.
 
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nfinke said:
Ah this is a good point. When you put it that way, (not to lessen the work of God), bringing Lazarus back to life seems alot less miraculous in comparison, if that’s possible.

That does give me something to think about.
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Well, remember, too, that Lazarus died again later. The people healed and returned to life during Our Lord’s life were given a temporary reprieve from death. Christ’s obedience to death, in contrast, won an everlasting defeat over the terms of death. That is why His Resurrection is different: that is, because it is part of the Pascal Mystery by which God satisfied the non-arbitrary demands of justice on our behalf.
 
nfinke said:
Plus it’s not like Jesus truly “died”. His human body did, and his human nature suffered, but His divine nature couldn’t, so there wasn’t a point where he was totally dead anyway. He was a lot less dead then than I will be when my time comes, right?
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First of all, Our Lord Jesus Christ is the Second Person of the Holy Trinity with two natures, Divine and human, in the unity of His Divine Person. You’re right that His Divine Nature could not suffer; however, that doesn’t change the fact that Jesus truly died. To state otherwise is going towards Docetism. His Soul separated from His Body at the moment of His Death, i.e. He died.

Some of the Saints say that when St. Simeon told Our Lady “…and thine own soul a sword shall pierce…”, God revealed to Her the exact day and hour that His Only-begotten Son Jesus would die. If the Saints are right, then think of the sorrow that Our Lady had during ALL the years that Jesus was growing up. Every time She kissed His baby Hands and Feet, She would know that the day was coming when His Hands and Feet would be pierced with nails. His beautiful Head would be crowned with thorns. His Holy Face, so lovely would be covered in His Blood. She knew when He would die and accepted it.

The Saints also say that because of this, She is the Queen of Martyrs. They also say that if the grief of Our Lady was divided among all men everyone would die of grief.

Read The Glories of Mary by St. Alphonsus Maria de Liguori. A lot of what I posted is from him.

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Mother of Sorrows, pray for us!
 
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Isn’t docetism denying Christ had a “real” human body? That his body was some sort of celestial illusion and his suffering therefore just some kind of act? That’s not what I’m saying at all.

I’m saying that one of Jesus’ nature’s did not suffer or die, while the other clearly did. That’s heresy?
 
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nfinke said:
Isn’t docetism denying Christ had a “real” human body? That his body was some sort of celestial illusion and his suffering therefore just some kind of act? That’s not what I’m saying at all.

I’m saying that one of Jesus’ nature’s did not suffer or die, while the other clearly did. That’s heresy?
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Well, even we have immortal souls, so I suppose in that sense we don’t “totally die,” either…that is, when Our Lord was transfigured before He died, he was joined by Moses and Elijah.

I found this to be a very interesting short reflection on the meaning of the Transfiguration, and I think apropos to your question, OP:

 
I totally agree with you that Our Lord suffered only in His Human Nature and that His Divine Nature is incapable of suffering.

Re Docetism: Yes, you’re right (and just to clarify, I’m NOT accusing you of Docetism). However, one of the consequences of Docetism is that Jesus did not die, He just appeared to die. In fact, the original Nicene Creed had “…He suffered, and was buried…”. The word “died” was added to the Creed to make it perfectly clear that Our Lord did die on the Cross.

Maybe @edward_george1 or @InThePew can help.
 
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nfinke said:
Plus it’s not like Jesus truly “died”. His human body did, and his human nature suffered, but His divine nature couldn’t, so there wasn’t a point where he was totally dead anyway. He was a lot less dead then than I will be when my time comes, right?
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Wrong. Jesus is fully human, ie He has a human body and human soul. Biologically, we can say death is the death of our body, our soul does not die in that sense. But, theologically, death is the separation of the body and soul. This is the more proper definition of death. And it affects the soul. The soul is created for the body. Jesus died in the same sense, His human soul was separated from his body.
 
@nfinke

Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Occasionally you might run into a person who is offended, but God isn’t offended. Often times, the reason people become offended is because deep down they also have questions but they are too fearful to ask them and bring those doubts to the surface, so they get angry and defensive when other people do.

Anyway: yes, people being brought back to life already happened in the Old Testament and Jesus brought people back to life in the New Testament. Other people were brought back to life when Jesus was resurrected and then spread the news. The difference is that Jesus was God and he was sinless and he used his death and passion to open the gates of paradise. Prophets in the past were martyred in love and obedience to God, but they too needed a redeemer. The sacred author says:

For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. 1 Peter 1: 18-20

Also, Jesus truly did die. His spirit continued to exist, but so does any person’s spirit.

Peace.
 
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If you were shopping in Walmart and a gunman opened fire, how would you feel if a person you didn’t know stepped in front of you and took the bullet instead of hiding behind something? Would you stand there in shock?

Would it impact your life? Would you wonder for a long time why someone would take a bullet for you and save your life? and forfeit their own?

I think when it becomes personal, that Jesus took my place and your place, and paid that awful price that he did, it can knock you off your feet. That’s what Love looks like.

Then to add that he resurrected and opened heaven for us, it’s overwhelming.

The Incarnation is an amazing event as well. We have trouble understanding these things on this side of heaven.
 
nfinke said:
We also call Christ the “first born from the dead” in alot of Easter hymns, when, like I said earlier, isn’t true.
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Sacred Scripture also refers to Christ as “the first born from/of the dead.” (Colossians 1:18; Revelation 1:5) So, Christ may not be the first born from the dead in ever possible sense but he is the first born from the dead in some sense.

The expression, “first born from the dead,” could mean that Christ was chronologically the first to experience a certain kind of resurrection from the dead, namely, a glorious resurrection, such that he will never die again. Presumably, everyone who was resurrected before him later died a second time.

The expression, “first born from the dead,” could also be understood in a non-chronological sense, as the LORD said of King David, “And I will make him the first-born, the highest of the kings of the earth.” (Psalm 89:27) Remember, David was the youngest of Jesse’s eight sons and he became king of Israel after Saul.
 
Our Lord Jesus Christ performed a miracle by raising Lazarus from the dead…but remember, it was not a glorified body that was never to die again. Lazarus was still going to die one day; he was just brought back to life from the grave for a time.
 
Great question! One I had to ponder before I became a Christian.
My answer would be that Jesus resurrection is unique because no one else was raised in an eternal sense like he was. The term some saints have used to describe the resurrection of the other saints such as Lazarus is revivification. That is, reviving back to life in the same manner that they were. So, they were raised and they were still sinners who would die again. They weren’t resurrected. For resurrection biblically always has to do with glorification and eternal life. Lazarus and the others did not receive this on their revivification.
Jesus is rightfull called the Firstborn from the dead since he was truly the first person resurrected. He was raised in a glorified body, a resurrected body, which is different from a revived sinful body.
And as St. Paul says our faith would be in vain if it weren’t for the resurrection of Jesus. For if he wasn’t raised, we will not be raised. It is one of the foundations of Christianity. Without it, we have nothing. And it is one of the greatest proofs of the truth of Christianity, for if Jesus was truly resurrected then everything he said and taught and did was true. He is truly God, He is truly man, He truly saves us from our sins.
If Jesus wasn’t raised from the dead, our sins could not be forgiven for he would be just another dead person. But he was resurrected!

Hope this helps

God Bless! And have a Merry Christmas!
 
nfinke said:
Ill just ask it: What was so special about Christ’s resurrection?

I understand the religious significance of Him defeating death, but we treat His resurrection as some super unique event in history…while also acknowledging it has happened multiple times before, and often by Jesus’ own hand. I’m not trying to be blasphemous, but what is fundamentally more magnificent about Christ rising from the dead of His own power, compared to Christ rising Lazarus from the dead, also with Christ’s own power? Or a man rising from the dead after coming in contact with Elisha’s bones?

Plus it’s not like Jesus truly “died”. His human body did, and his human nature suffered, but His divine nature couldn’t, so there wasn’t a point where he was totally dead anyway. He was a lot less dead then than I will be when my time comes, right?

I would think the incarnation, the moment where the infinite God who transcends time and space took on the flesh of a man and lived among us was way more amazing of a miracle than the resurrection.

We also call Christ the “first born from the dead” in alot of Easter hymns, when, like I said earlier, isn’t true.

And I guess that’s my main point: every Easter, we seem to pretend Christ’s resurrection was some incredibly unique unexpected event, when it was something that has happened to regular people before, and had happened to a bunch of OT saints just three days before.

Am I looking at this the wrong way?
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How is Lazarus’ rising even comparable? Lazarus rose by Jesus’ power, not by his (Lazarus’) own power. Same thing with the man who came into contact with Elisha’s bones. He did not rise on how own power but by God’s power.

Jesus, however, raised himself from the dead. That is not something Lazarus can claim. Further, Lazarus returned to a mortal state. He died again and now waits for his final resurrection. Jesus rose into a glorified state.

Jesus was completely and truly dead in the same sense that we will all die: our souls are separated from our bodies just as his soul was separated from his body. Further, natures don’t suffer. Persons do.

Jesus is the first-born of the dead because he is the first born into what our final inheritance is. Lazarus and the widow’s son did not rise into that inheritance. They have yet to receive that at the end of time.
 
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