He Is Risen: The Heart of Our Faith Studies
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He Is Risen: The Heart of Our Faith
Beginner Easter Special

He Is Risen: The Heart of Our Faith

Admin User · 20 March 2026

Easter is more than bunnies and eggs — it's the hinge on which all of history turns. This study explores the resurrection of Jesus: what happened, why it matters, and what it means for you today.

1 Opening

Welcome to Easter

If you're here, you might be wondering what all the fuss is about. Easter is the biggest day on the Christian calendar — bigger than Christmas, bigger than any other celebration. Why? Because without Easter, there is no Christianity. Without the resurrection, Jesus is just another good teacher who died tragically. But with the resurrection, everything changes.

This isn't a study about spring or new beginnings or feel-good platitudes. This is about a historical event that split time in two: Jesus of Nazareth died, was buried, and three days later walked out of the tomb alive.

If that's true — and we believe it is — then nothing is the same. Not death. Not sin. Not your past. Not your future. Everything is different because of Easter morning.

This Week's Question

What really happened on Easter morning — and why does it matter?

2 Scripture

KJV NET

1In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulchre. 2And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it. 3His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow: 4And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men. 5And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. 6He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. 7And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead; and, behold, he goeth before you into Galilee; there shall ye see him: lo, I have told you. 8And they departed quickly from the sepulchre with fear and great joy; and did run to bring his disciples word. 9And as they went to tell his disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, All hail. And they came and held him by the feet, and worshipped him. 10Then said Jesus unto them, Be not afraid: go tell my brethren that they go into Galilee, and there shall they see me.

1Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them. 2And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulchre. 3And they entered in, and found not the body of the Lord Jesus. 4And it came to pass, as they were much perplexed thereabout, behold, two men stood by them in shining garments: 5And as they were afraid, and bowed down their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why seek ye the living among the dead? 6He is not here, but is risen: remember how he spake unto you when he was yet in Galilee, 7Saying, The Son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again. 8And they remembered his words, 9And returned from the sepulchre, and told all these things unto the eleven, and to all the rest. 10It was Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary the mother of James, and other women that were with them, which told these things unto the apostles. 11And their words seemed to them as idle tales, and they believed them not. 12Then arose Peter, and ran unto the sepulchre; and stooping down, he beheld the linen clothes laid by themselves, and departed, wondering in himself at that which was come to pass.

1Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; 2By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. 3For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; 4And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: 5And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: 6After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. 7After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles. 8And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time. 9For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. 11Therefore whether it were I or they, so we preach, and so ye believed. 12Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen: 14And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain. 15Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ: whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not. 16For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised: 17And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. 18Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. 19If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. 20But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept. 21For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. 22For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. 23But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming. 24Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. 25For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. 26The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. 27For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him. 28And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.

1The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre. 2Then she runneth, and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken away the LORD out of the sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid him. 3Peter therefore went forth, and that other disciple, and came to the sepulchre. 4So they ran both together: and the other disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the sepulchre. 5And he stooping down, and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying; yet went he not in. 6Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lie, 7And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself. 8Then went in also that other disciple, which came first to the sepulchre, and he saw, and believed. 9For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead. 10Then the disciples went away again unto their own home. 11But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping: and as she wept, she stooped down, and looked into the sepulchre, 12And seeth two angels in white sitting, the one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had lain. 13And they say unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? She saith unto them, Because they have taken away my LORD, and I know not where they have laid him. 14And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus. 15Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away. 16Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni; which is to say, Master. 17Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God. 18Mary Magdalene came and told the disciples that she had seen the LORD, and that he had spoken these things unto her.

3 Explanation

The Story: What Happened at the Tomb

Let's start with the facts. Jesus was crucified on Friday. He died — not metaphorically, not symbolically, but actually dead. A Roman soldier confirmed it. His body was taken down, wrapped in burial cloths, and laid in a borrowed tomb. A massive stone was rolled in front of the entrance. Roman guards were posted to make sure no one stole the body.

And then, early Sunday morning, everything changed.

Key Verses to Sit With
"After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 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… The angel said to the women, 'Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said.'"
— Matthew 28:1-2, 5-6
"For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time."
— 1 Corinthians 15:3-6
"I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades."
— Revelation 1:18
Why the Resurrection Matters

Paul says it bluntly in 1 Corinthians 15:17: "If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins." In other words, if Jesus didn't rise from the dead, Christianity is a lie. We're wasting our time. Go home.

But if He did rise — and the evidence says He did — then everything changes:

  • Death is defeated. Jesus didn't just survive death; He conquered it. The grave couldn't hold Him. And because He lives, we will live too (John 14:19).
  • Sin is paid for. The cross dealt with our sin. The resurrection proves it worked. God accepted the sacrifice. The debt is paid in full.
  • Jesus is who He said He was. He claimed to be the Son of God. He said He would rise on the third day. He did. His resurrection is God's stamp of approval on everything Jesus said and did.
  • We have hope. Not wishful thinking — hope. A confident expectation that because He rose, we will too. Death is not the end. The tomb is not the final word.
The Evidence

Some people say the resurrection is a myth, a legend that grew over time. But the evidence doesn't support that:

  • The empty tomb. No one — not the Romans, not the Jewish leaders, not Jesus' enemies — could produce a body. If they had, Christianity would have died in a week.
  • The eyewitnesses. Over 500 people saw Jesus alive after His death (1 Corinthians 15:6). Many were still alive when Paul wrote that letter — meaning people could fact-check him.
  • The transformation of the disciples. These were men who ran away when Jesus was arrested. Peter denied Him three times. But after the resurrection, they were willing to die for the message that Jesus was alive. People don't die for something they know is a lie.
  • The birth of the church. Within weeks of the crucifixion, thousands of Jews in Jerusalem — the very city where Jesus was killed — were proclaiming that He had risen. If it was a hoax, it would have been exposed immediately.

The resurrection is not a fairy tale. It's the most well-attested event in ancient history. And it changes everything.

I know some of you are skeptical. That's okay. The disciples were too. Thomas refused to believe until he saw Jesus with his own eyes and touched His wounds. Jesus didn't condemn him for doubting — He showed up and gave him the evidence he needed. If you're struggling to believe, ask God to show you. He's not afraid of your questions. He's not threatened by your doubt. He's big enough to handle it. And He's patient enough to meet you where you are.

4 Application

Making It Personal

The resurrection isn't just a historical fact — it's an invitation. Jesus didn't rise from the dead to prove a point. He rose to offer you life. Real life. Eternal life. Life that starts now and never ends.

Here's the question: Do you believe it?

Not just intellectually. Not just "Yeah, I guess that probably happened." But do you believe it enough to stake your life on it? To let it change how you live, how you see yourself, how you face death?

Because if Jesus really rose from the dead, then:

  • Your past doesn't define you. He makes all things new.
  • Your sin doesn't disqualify you. He paid for it on the cross and proved it at the tomb.
  • Your death doesn't end you. Because He lives, you will live too.

This Easter, don't just celebrate a holiday. Encounter the risen Christ. He's not dead. He's alive. And He's calling your name.

Reflection Questions
  • What would change in your life if you truly believed that Jesus is alive right now?
  • What doubts or questions do you have about the resurrection? Bring them to God honestly.
  • How does the resurrection give you hope in the midst of your current struggles?
  • Who in your life needs to hear that Jesus is alive? How can you share that hope with them?

Reflection Questions

What evidence does the Bible give us that the resurrection really happened?

Why does Paul say our faith is "futile" if Christ has not been raised? (1 Corinthians 15:17)

How did the disciples change after encountering the risen Jesus? What does that tell us?

What would change in your life if you truly believed that Jesus is alive right now?

How does the resurrection give you hope in the midst of your current struggles?

Log in to record your answers.

5a Prayer

Lord Jesus, You are not dead. You are alive. You conquered sin, death, and the grave — and You did it for me. Help me to believe it. Not just in my head, but in my heart. Let the reality of the resurrection change how I live, how I love, how I face each day. You are risen. You are alive. And because You live, I can face tomorrow. Thank You. In Your powerful name, Amen.

5b Closing

He Is Risen!

"He is not here; he has risen, just as he said." — Matthew 28:6

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