Roman Catholic and Orthodox Christians teach that real presence means transubstantiation of the essence of the elements into the essence of the body and blood of Jesus, though the attributes are unchanged. So if a chemist were to test the elements, he would find only bread and wine. Anglicans argue for real presence but are content to leave the mode of that presence a mystery. Lutherans believe the real presence is in, with, and under the forms of the bread and wine. No Lutherans use the term consubstantiation for their position, though many others do define it with that word. Reformed Protestants teach a real presence where the Spirit makes Christ present in the service but not especially in the elements.

Many Christians have overreacted to this sacrament understanding, and have reduced Communion to a mere remembrance of something that happened a long time ago. These people follow the teachings of Ulrich Zwingli (1484-1531). They understand Communion as a memorial commemoration of the wonderful gift of Jesus’ death in our place for our sins. They insist that Jesus is not present in the elements literally, as taught by Catholicism, or spiritually, as taught by Lutheranism. In such cases the Communion service itself is often nothing more than a graceless ceremony tacked on to the normal church service. It is done quickly to point out that the work of Jesus is completely finished and that he is not present in any way. (Mark Driscoll, Vintage Church, pp. 125-126).

Chart 1 illustrates the parallels between the last week of Jesus’ ministry and the Passover week.

Chart 2 illustrates the time line given in Scripture in regards to the last 3 days of Jesus’ life and the 1st day of His resurrection.

Question 1: What MUST be definitively true?

1. Christ was actually dead, pre-resurrection.
2. Christ was dead for 3 days.
3. It was actually Christ that resurrected, not someone else. (See Refining the Doctrine of the Resurrection, Part 1)
4. It was a physical resurrection. (See Refining the Doctrine of the Resurrection, Part 2)
5. There were post-resurrection appearances.
6. Christ’s resurrection defeats death.
7. In Christ’s resurrection, we have hope for our resurrection. (See Refining the Doctrine of the Resurrection, Part 2)

Question 2: What are the implications if this is NOT definitively true?

2. Christ was dead for 3 days. If this is not definitively true, then:

1. We must rethink what “3 days” means in Scripture (cf. Matthew 20:19; Mark 9:31; Luke 18:33)
2. Jesus is potentially a liar. He said he would raise in 3 days.
3. He either didn’t die on a Friday or didn’t rise on a Sunday.
4. We can’t be sure that he was dead.

Question 3: With our knowledge of Scripture and our use of logic/reason, is our understanding of these implications under/over developed?

2.1. – 2.4. We must rethink what “3 days” means in Scripture.

The above Scriptures all mention that Jesus will rise on the “third day” (this is consistent with all of Jesus’ predictions as well). This means that Christ wasn’t necessarily going to be in the tomb a full 72 hours.

Some people are greatly disturbed over the fact that Jesus did not remain in the grave full seventy-two hours. But he repeatedly said that he would rise on the third day and that is precisely what happened. He was buried on Friday afternoon. He was risen on Sunday morning. If he had really remained in the tomb full three days and then had risen after that, it would have been on the fourth day, not on the third day. The occasional phrase “after three days” is merely a vernacular idiom common in all languages and not meant to be exact and precise like “on the third day.” We can readily understand “after three days” in the sense of “on the third day.” It is impossible to understand “on the third day” to be “on the fourth day.”

Robertson, A. (1997). Word Pictures in the New Testament (Mk 16:2). Oak Harbor: Logos Research Systems.

It was Jewish belief that a soul did not depart from a body until the 3rd day in the grave (cf Luke 24:17, 21)

Christ’s resurrection reordered the Sabbath. Jewish Sabbath was on Saturday since its institution as the center of the law in the Old Testament. When Christ resurrected, it was moved to Sunday as the new Sabbath day. Only something as monumental as the resurrection could have reordered one of the most central themes in the Jewish law and lifestyle.

Question 4: What still MUST be definitively true?

Jesus MUST have been dead from sometime on Friday of Passover until that Sunday when he rose.

Feel free to post additions to this or other questions that you may have. More to come soon.



Question 1: What MUST be definitively true?

1. Christ was actually dead, pre-resurrection.
2. Christ was dead for 3 days.
3. It was actually Christ that resurrected, not someone else. (See Refining our Doctrine of the Resurrection, Part 1)
4. It was a physical resurrection.
5. There were post-resurrection appearances.
6. Christ’s resurrection defeats death.
7. In Christ’s resurrection, we have hope for our resurrection.

Question 2: What are the implications if this is NOT definitively true?

4. It was a physical resurrection. If this is not definiiively true, then:

1. Christ has no definitive power over death.
2. We must question the incarnation.
3. We have no hope of physically rising from the dead.
4. It could have been a spiritual resurrection only.

Question 3: With our knowled \ge of Scripture and our use of logic/reason, is our understanding of these implications under/over developed?

4.1. Christ has no definitive power over death.

Why did the resurrection have to be physical for Christ to overcome death?

Scripture teaches that Christ resurrected in the body:

He was seen post-resurrection as a physical person (Matthew 28:17; Mark 16:10-11, “he was alive”; Luke 24:13-33, he walked with them; 24:36-40; John 20:14-18, “Supposing him to be the gardener; 20:19-23; 21:4-8)

He was touched post-resurrection (Matthew 28:9, “they…took hold of his feet”; John 20:17, “Do not cling to me”; 20:24-29)

He ate post-resurrection (Luke 24:42-43)

The tomb was empty post-burial (cf. Matthew 28; Mark 16; Luke 24; John 21)

Scripture teaches that Christ defeated death (Romans 6:9; 1 Corinthians 15:54-57)

Logically speaking, a physical death can only be defeated by a physical resurrection.

4.2. We must question the incarnation.

Why would the lack of a physical resurrection hinder the incarnation?

Christ’s incarnation means that he was God in the flesh. If Christ did not raise physically, then he didn’t defeat death (see above). If Christ didn’t defeat death, then death either defeated Christ, or it simply hasn’t been defeated yet. If Christ (God in the flesh) was defeated by death, then Christ’s divinity as the all-powerful God is not true. The defeated cannot be the all-powerful.

4.3. We have no hope of physically rising from the dead.

Why can’t we physically rise from the dead if Christ didn’t?

Paul says that our hope beyond this life (resurrection) is directly connected to the physical resurrection of Christ (1 Corinthians 15:12-19). If Christ has not been physically raised, Paul says our hope ends at death, and if “we have hope In this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.” (1 Corinthians 15:19).

If man could defeat that which God couldn’t (physical pain and death), God would cease to be God.

4.4. It could have been a spiritual resurrection.

Why couldn’t have Jesus risen spiritually and not physically?

James, the brother of Jesus, states in his Epistle that “the body apart from the spirit is dead” (James 2:26). And if Christ’s body is still dead, the above arguments come into play.

Humanity is a marriage of body and spirit. Without spirits, we are animals (or zombies). Without bodies, we are angels (or phantoms). This is why Christ is the perfect “High Priest” as the writer of Hebrews says. Jesus is the great High Priest because he has “past through the heavens” and come to us. Without his body, Christ loses His humanity. Without His spirit he loses his divinity. Either way, He loses His priestly nature.

Question 4: What still must be definitively true?

Christ’s resurrection MUST have been physical in order for Him to have ultimate power and victory over death.

Christ’s resurrection MUST have been physical in order for Christ to be God in the flesh.

Christ’s resurrection MUST have been physical for us to have hope of our own resurrection.

Christ’s resurrection MUST be physical AND spiritual.

The Issue: The Resurrection of Jesus Christ From the Dead.

Question 1: What MUST be definitively true?

1. Christ was actually dead, pre-resurrection.
2. Christ was dead for 3 days.
3. It was actually Christ that resurrected, not someone else.
4. It was a physical resurrection.
5. There were post-resurrection appearances.
6. Christ’s resurrection defeats death.
7. In Christ’s resurrection, we have hope for our resurrection.

Question 2: What are the implications if this is NOT definitively true?

3. It actually Christ that resurrected, not someone else.. If this is not definitively true, then:

1. We have no certainty of hope.
2. Christ is not the Son of God.
3. There were no post resurrection appearances. (see refinement of #5 for more)

Question 3: With our knowledge of Scripture and our use of logic/reason, is our understanding of these implications under/over developed?

3.1. We have no certainty of hope.

No certainty of hope for/in what? If it wasn’t Christ who resurrected, what have we lost hope in and for?

No hope for justice (Acts 17:31). No hope of salvation from our sins (1 Peter 1:3-5; 1 Corinthians 15:17). No hope of our own resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:12-13). No hope (of any kind) for those who have already died (1 Corinthians 15:18).

3.2. Christ is not the Son of God.

If it wasn’t Christ who resurrected, why can we not be certain of His divinity?

Christ does not merely say that He is a speaker of truth, He says he is Truth (John 14:6). It is part of his essence and nature. In being Truth, Christ proclaimed that he would raise from the dead (Matthew 12:38-40; Mark 8:31; 9:31; 10:33-34; John 2:18-22). If Christ, in fact, didn’t raise from the dead, we must question His Truth, as well as those thing he proclaimed as Truth. The most spectacular Truth claim that Christ makes is that He is the divine Son of God. Therefore, if Christ proclaimed to be Truth, predicted his resurrection falsely, then we must question his Truth claims, the largest of those being His divinity.

3.3. There were no post-resurrection appearances. (see the refinement of #5 for more)

Question 4: What still MUST be definitively true?

In order for us (or those who are dead) to have certain hope for justice, salvation from our sins, and our own resurrection, it MUST have been Christ who resurrected.

In order for us to have certainty of Christ’s divinity as the Son of God, He MUST have resurrected.

If we can’t be certain about Christ’s resurrection, we CANNOT be certain about his post-resurrection appearances.

Feel free to post additions to this or other questions that you may have. More to come soon.



This is the process we will follow to refine our beliefs in seeking out and holding to sound doctrine (cf. Titus 2:1).

Here is how the process will go:

Matthew = Red; Mark = Green; Luke = Orange; John = Blue; My additions: = Black

After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene, the other Mary (Mary the Mother of Jesus), and Salome went to look at the tomb and brought spices so that they might anoint Jesus’ body. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.

Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise (while it was still dark), the women (including Mary Magdalene) took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. On their way to the tomb they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?” When they arrived, they looked up and saw that the stone, which was very lard, had been rolled away from the tomb and removed from the entrance. When they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. As the entered the tomb, they were wondering about this and suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them (one young man dressed in a white robe sat on the right side of the tomb) and they were alarmed. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground.

The men (angels) said to the women, “Do not be afraid or alarmed, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, the Nazarene, who was crucified. Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he is risen, just as he said. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.‘” Then they remembered his words. “Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples and Peter: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.’ Now I have told you.” Trembling and bewildered, the women hurried away and fled from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. They said nothing to anyone because they were afraid.

When they came back from the tomb, they came running and told all these things to the Eleven (specifically to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved) and to all the others and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!” It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them who told this to the disciples. But they did not believe the women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense. Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. Then Simon Peter, who was behind him, arrived and went into the tomb. Bending over, he saw the strips of linen as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus’ head lying by themselves, folded and separate, and he went away, wondering to himself what had happened. Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) Then the disciples went back to their homes…