Literally.
Like God resurrected Jesus.
Jesus, however, suggested something very different—and much bolder: that resurrection happens first in us and then through us just as it happened in him and then through him—and not at his death—but long before, at his baptism.
All the healings, all the miracles, all the parables, all the beatitudes, all the moments of deep insight and soaring enlightenment he brought to people like Nicodemus, the rich young ruler and Mary’s sister Martha and even to the occasional religious or political authority who was receptive to his message, portray a far broader, richer and, at the same time, more immediate—even urgent—definition of resurrection as something life-giving here and now.
Jesus understood resurrection not just as God's response to one's final moment of death but as a way of living one's life…as something in which we actively participate and so help bring into being—into reality in our own lives, into the lives of those around us and ultimately, into the life of the world.
Yes, resurrected life is happening to us moment by moment, breath by breath, heartbeat by heartbeat, but isn’t actually complete or fulfilled until it happens through us as it did in and through Jesus.
The most relevant Easter question is not, “Was Jesus literally resurrected from death?” but rather, “Am I open to being—and seeing—and participating in God’s on-going resurrection just as Jesus was?” After all, this is what has the power to make all things new in and through us.
Any lesser understanding of Jesus’ resurrection is far too small for God…or you...or me.
“See, I am making all things new!” (Rev. 21:5 NRSV)
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