The Significance of Jesus’ Resurrection in the Gospel of John

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the decisive climax of John’s testimony that Jesus is the “Son of God.” There would not have been a resurrection if there had been no death, but death does not guarantee a resurrection. Jesus’ resurrection plays the ultimate role in John’s overall argument in the fourth gospel. In peculiar ways, John presented the resurrection theme to be seen at several points in the fourth gospel. The resurrection is the most significant part of the deliberate sequence of signs in the gospel according to John. Great individuals have come to the world scene and died as heroes, but without resurrection. Jesus died as the lamb of God who took away the sin of the world (John 1:29), but the resurrection event is the authentication that indeed Jesus is the Christ and that John’s testimony is true (John 21:24). Previous studies have not identified the resurrection stratum conveyed in images, symbols, and characterization in John’s Gospel. The objective of this study is to examine the role of resurrection in the Fourth Gospel through a literary analytical approach, exploring how it functions within the writer’s literary and theological agenda. As deciphered from the Fourth Gospel, the resurrection is the proof of Jesus’ divinity, a fulfilment of prophecy, a victory over death, and a spring of joy and hope (John 20:20) which has far-reaching implications on and foundational to Christian theology. Hence, the resurrection theme in John’s Gospel began softly, gradually building to a significant crescendo in the end.