The Resurrection
On the third day he rose again …
What does the resurrection of Jesus mean for you? Is it necessary for your faith?
Thorwald Lorenzen in his book, Resurrection and Discipleship, says when we speak about the resurrection of Jesus Christ we are not dealing with a question of faith, but with the question of faith. It is the origin and ground of a faith, which he says, has broadly developed into four categories.
1. The Traditional Approach
This approach says the resurrection is an historical fact, which can be understood and appropriated by human reason. The transcendent God acted in history by raising the dead Jesus out of the tomb. This event took place in time and space, and as such is open to historical reason.
2. The Liberal Approach
The reality of the resurrection must be expressed within the parameters set by modern science. Liberals say they cannot believe that God would suspend the laws of nature and history in order to resurrect a dead person, albeit Jesus. However, when asked what did happen to Jesus after death and burial, the response is, “We don’t really know”.
3. The Evangelical Approach
In contrast to the Traditional approach, the Evangelical realises that such a divine event cannot be measured and validated by generally accepted scientific, historical and rational methods. They maintain that the resurrection event contains historical manifestations like the empty tomb and the appearances to the disciples, but ultimately they insist that since the resurrection is an act of God, and of God alone, its depth and reality is only accessible by faith.
4. The Liberation Approach
This approach takes up motives from the other approaches and relates them to the creation of hope and justice in the world. It insists that liberation is the anticipation of salvation in the here and now. Liberation theologians want to unmask social, political and ecclesiastical structures that create and sustain injustice, and they want to relate the Gospel, grounded in the resurrection of the Crucified Christ, as a liberating and saving reality to these structures of injustice.
William’s View
Initially, when Jesus died, hope died. The apostles grieved at his death. Followers were scandalised. The synagogue said good riddance to a troublemaker. Then, out of apparent failure, came a new life, stronger than it had been before. What happened here? It was not a ”Resuscitation”, but a “Transformation”. Followers of Jesus, now realised they had actually known the Christ, the anointed one of God for whom they waited. However, he did not return to live among them. He simply “came” to them. As John says (chapter 20) he “appears” in different ways to different followers. These experiences culminate in the Ascension.
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