Romans 1:4

Have you ever known someone who was dead? Especially someone who was dead for 3 or 4 days? Have you ever had someone come to your door whom you had already seen buried?

It's easy to judge the actions of the people in a story, but I'm not sure I would have reacted much differently from the apostles after the Crucifixion. It must have been very frightening and confusing. I empathize a bit with Thomas' doubt, not because I still doubt but because it is such an extraordinary story. It is in fact impossible...and that's why the truth of Christ's Resurrection is so amazing and transforming.


Here in Romans it's an established truth the Jesus did rise from the dead, and that truth establishes other truths. Like a line of dominoes where one falling down causes another to fall down, Paul says here that when Jesus rose from the dead it caused certain other amazing things to happen. By His Resurrection the "Spirit of holiness" declares Him to be the Son of God. One thing causes another: the Resurrection designates Him as God's own Son. I think it's important to note that He did not become the Son of God at the Resurrection but rather He was "marked" as being the Son of God. Both "dominoes" are completely impossible without divine intervention yet because He intervened once to make the impossible happen we know that the other impossibility is also true.