Out of the Mouths of Babes

10.6.2008 by Christian

Ellianna (our 4 year old): “Who raised Jesus from the dead?”

The question seems simple enough, but is actually quite profound.  Many people (and hymns, songs, etc) talk about Jesus rising from the dead as if of His own accord, but Paul in Romans, 1 & 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, and Colossians as well as Peter say that God raised Jesus from the dead.

2 Responses to “Out of the Mouths of Babes”

  1. Chad Says:

    Right on. Indeed, the only passages in scripture that hint otherwise are in John. In John 2.19, for example, Jesus says “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days”. He says something similar in John 10.17-18, “…I lay down My life so that I may take it again. No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again.” But interestingly enough, at the tail ends of verse 18 jesus says “This command I received from my Father.”

  2. Christian Says:

    There are a couple of other passages in John that are ambiguous in the English (as to who is doing the raising.) I haven’t studied those passages in the Greek to know if the answer is in there.

    You can also throw in the issue of the Trinity. The Father, Son, and Spirit are one God. Of equal character and ability but all with different roles. So maybe the authority and power is held by all, but the function or work performed by the Father?

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