Maybe people were so overcome by grief that they had a mass hallucination—something that defies the extremely private nature of hallucinations. Or maybe Jesus wasn’t really dead, but only very badly injured. Despite all of these alternatives stretching credulity to its breaking point, they still circulate today. But what if the best explanation is the simplest—that Jesus really did rise from the dead?

To be a Christian is to embrace some pretty challenging beliefs. And I’m not just talking about the nature of God, or that Jesus is both human and divine. There’s one belief that we hold that is especially difficult, but one upon which our entire faith stands or falls:

The resurrection of Jesus from the dead.

But why does the resurrection matter so much? Simply because with out the resurrection, Christianity isn’t worth believing.

Where did the belief in a resurrection come from?

The belief in a resurrection from the dead for God’s people is one that developed over time as God gradually revealed throughout the Old Testament. By the time of Jesus, it was generally accepted that, on the Day of the Lord, the dead would rise, some to everlasting life and others to everlasting judgment.

But when it came to the Messiah, the long-awaited Rescuer of God’s people, the idea that he would have to die to rescue his people was unheard of. The Messiah was a king, the Son of David, who would lead them to victory. So when the Messiah actually showed up, they didn’t recognize him. He more closely resembled the suffering servant of Isaiah 53 than a conqueror.

Jesus was a humble man about whom there was seemingly nothing special, at least as far as outward appearances were concerned. And he kept talking about how he was going to be “handed over to the Gentiles; he will be mocked, mistreated, and spat on. They will flog him severely and kill him.”

But death wouldn’t be the end. Instead, he said, “on the third day he will rise again.”

Jesus’ followers didn’t understand what he was talking about. Even the teachers of the Law, those who were supposed experts in the Scriptures, didn’t seem to get it either.

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