Easter and the Resurrection: 35+ Resources
Easter is the one Sunday of the year when people who rarely think about church think about Jesus. It is also the claim the whole faith rests on: that a man who was publicly executed was seen alive three days later, by people who then spent the rest of their lives saying so.
This page gathers RENEW.org's teaching on Easter in one place. What the week itself contains, how strong the historical case for the resurrection actually is, what the cross accomplished, and what it means to live as though the tomb really is empty.
What Easter Is
Why this matters: Holy Week has a shape, and knowing that shape changes how the days feel. These pieces cover what Good Friday, Easter, and the season leading up to them actually are.
- Daniel McCoy"What Is the Meaning of Easter?"
- Bobby Harrington"Why Do We Celebrate Easter? J.E.S.U.S. gives us 5 Easy-to-Remember Reasons."
- Bobby Harrington"What is Good Friday? Its Events, Context, and Significance"
- Daniel McCoy"Timeline of Holy Week"
- Daniel McCoy"Good Friday Quiz"
- Corey Scott"Lent & the Value of Subtraction"
Evidence for Easter
Why this matters: The resurrection is a historical claim, which means it can be examined. Bobby Harrington's three-part series works through the evidence in order, and the resources alongside it take up the questions skeptics raise most often.
- Bobby Harrington"Does History Demonstrate that Jesus Existed? – Evidence for Easter (Part 1)"
- Bobby Harrington"The Historicity of the Two Men Who Authorized Jesus' Death – Evidence for Easter (Part 2)"
- Bobby Harrington"The Historical Evidence for the Death, Burial and Resurrection of Jesus – Evidence for Easter (Part 3)"
- Zach Breitenbach"How Confident Can We Be of Jesus' Resurrection?"
- Jon Hembree"The Resurrection: a Creative Lie or the Key to Life?"
- Jonathan Young"Should We Care About the Shroud of Turin?"
- Brett Seybold"The Earliest Creeds in Christianity & What Conclusion They Point To"
- Daniel McCoy"Did the Gospels Borrow from Pagan Mythology?"
- Daniel McCoy and Andrew Jit"Five Clues That the Christian Story Is True"
The Cross: Why Jesus Died
Why this matters: Easter makes no sense without Friday. These resources ask what the cross accomplished, and why Scripture describes it the way it does.
- Daniel McCoy and Zach Breitenbach"How does Jesus' death save me from my sins?"
- John Whittaker"How did Jesus die for our sins?"
- John Whittaker"What is Penal Substitutionary Atonement?"
- John Whittaker"N. T. Wright on the Atonement: New, but Not Improved?"
- David Young"Progressivism and Substitutionary Atonement"
- John Whittaker"Review of Andrew Rillera's 'Lamb of the Free'"
- Daniel McCoy and Andrew Jit"Christ the Victor"
The Resurrection
Why this matters: The New Testament treats the resurrection as an event rather than a symbol, and as the pattern for what happens to everyone who belongs to Jesus.
- Bobby Harrington and Anthony Walker"What Is the Resurrection of the Dead?"
- Matt Stafford"Walking through a Psalm of Resurrection"
- David Young"Progressivism and the Resurrection of Jesus"
- Scott Sager"Resurrection: From Fuzzy Hope to Living Reality"
- Virgil Hurley"Refusing to Believe: A Retelling of Jesus' Appearance to Thomas"
- Daniel McCoy"Jesus and the Buddha: What Happened After They Died?"
- Craig Archer"Swallowed Up: What One Hebrew Word Reveals About Victory and Death"
- Larry Pechawer"Keys to Unraveling Revelation: What Is the First Resurrection?"
Living in Light of Easter
Why this matters: If Jesus is alive, that changes Monday as much as it changes Sunday. These resources are about what Easter asks of a church, and of a person.
- Debbra Stephens"How the Resurrection Fuels Disciple Making"
- Bobby Harrington"Five Ways to Disciple People in Light of Easter Weekend"
- Rowlie Hutton"Communion: An Opportunity for the Easter-Christmas Crowd"
- Daniel McCoy and Susanna McCoy"This Easter Reminds Me of Another Easter"
- Dave Stovall"Lack of Easter Feels"
- Daniel McCoy"Jesus Washing Feet: Why Humble Service Makes a Lot of Sense"
- Jason Henderson"What I Learned from Walking in Jesus' Footsteps"