The Bodily Resurrection and Exaltation of Jesus
As taught in the Pentecostal / Charismatic tradition
The victory over death and Christ's current ministry as our Great High Priest.
In the heart of the Pentecostal tradition, a central question vibrates through every prayer, every sermon, and every manifestation of the Spirit: If Jesus Christ is not alive, in the most literal and physical sense, then by whose authority and by whose breath does the Holy Spirit move among us today? For the Pentecostal believer, the bodily resurrection and the subsequent exaltation of Jesus are not merely dusty dogmas or historical footnotes; they are the absolute prerequisites for what we call the "Full Gospel." This theological framework, most famously articulated by Aimee Semple McPherson and codified in various Pentecostal confessions, identifies Jesus in four indispensable roles: Savior, Baptizer with the Holy Spirit, Healer, and Soon-Coming King.
By the end of this lesson
- **Identify** the specific physical evidences of Jesus’ resurrection as presented in the Lukan and Johannine accounts, distinguishing them from "spiritual-only" or "visionary" resurrection theories.
- **Distinguish** between the historical event of the Resurrection and the ongoing state of the Exaltation, explaining how each contributes to the "Full Gospel" (Savior, Baptizer, Healer, Coming King).
- **Explain** the theological necessity of the Ascension (Acts 1:9-11) as the prerequisite for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, according to John 16:7 and Acts 2:33.
- **Articulate** the significance of Hebrews 1:3 regarding Christ’s current "session" at the right hand of God and what this means for the believer’s direct access to the Father.
- **Trace** the development of the resurrection doctrine through the *Foursquare Declaration of Faith* and the scholarly contributions of Pentecostal theologians like Craig Keener.
- **Defend** the bodily nature of the resurrection against contemporary "mythological" interpretations, using the Greek terminology found in the New Testament (e.g., *soma*, *sarx*).
- **Apply** the reality of Christ’s exaltation to the daily practice of prayer, the exercise of spiritual authority, and the expectation of divine healing in the local church context.
- **Compare** the Pentecostal emphasis on the "Active, Living Christ" with cessationist views that may underemphasize the current, miracle-working ministry of the Exalted Lord.
Scripture
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