Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, 2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you--unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, 14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.
1 Corinthians 15:1-4. 14 ESV
In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2 until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. 3 He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.
Acts 1:1-3 ESV
The resurrection of Jesus is essential to Christianity and relevant to theism. Theism (deism, Judaism, Islam, ect...) can be true if the resurrection is not true, but Christianity cannot be true apart from the resurrection of Christ. The resurrection is relevant to theism in that if the resurrection is true, then so is theism, and consequently Christianity. The resurrection, if true, is the ultimate proof of the existence of God.
The resurrection is central to the Christian claim. If the resurrection is not true then Christianity is the largest hoax in the history of mankind. This is why we as Christians must begin to reemphasize it as the central tenant of the faith. I am writing this blog to encourage Christians of all creeds, especially young Christians, to focus on a defense of the historical resurrection of Jesus. This is where the battle is.
I encourage all who read to make this the most important focus of your theological studies. There are many other doctrines that the resurrection of Christ touches, but the resurrection is the most important.
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