What is the appeal of Jesus? Part 1

What is the appeal of Jesus?

(A theological exploration in 9 parts)

Part 1: Turning crucifixion into resurrection

When the first disciples met Jesus, they felt as though they were face to face with God. After due reflection, John summed this up in the words that Jesus is God’s only Son, who has made the Father known; grace and truth have been given to us in the person of Jesus.

Then he was killed. It seemed as though all he stood for had been negated. All the disciples’ hopes had been destroyed. They loved Jesus, but his enemies appeared to have defeated him.

If the resurrection did not happen – because we are not relying on anything miraculous – then the disciples’ belief in his resurrection is the most spectacular psychological turn-around you can possibly have. They must have had the most amazing religious experiences you can possibly imagine. What might their content have been?

When they considered all that Jesus had meant to them and all that he stood for, but that all that seemed to have been taken away from them, the thought suddenly struck them, that, no, in fact, those things can never be taken from them. Even though what most impressed them was that God’s grace was revealed in the person of Jesus – hence why they emphasised the doctrine of the incarnation so much – they were able to make the transition that it was in fact their experience of grace – and love, peace, spiritual purity etc – that was the essence of what Jesus meant to them. As they considered this, their grief at what they had lost turned to joy at the enduring legacy of Jesus’ life – which was that the gift that he had left with them or opened up to them through his personal presence could never be taken away from them. As these experiences flooded their minds, they either had a religious experience of Jesus being alive again, or they used the idea of Jesus’ resurrection as the only way to do justice to their new realisation that the gifts Jesus had given them can never be taken away from them, can never be destroyed; they are stronger than death because they have overcome the grief of Jesus’ death and left them with only joy and new life.