Posted: 17 April 2026

When Jesus Christ, the only Incarnate Son of the one and only Living God, was crucified on the cross for our sins and was resurrected from the dead three days later, was He resurrected physically or just spiritually? There are some groups, like the Jehovah's Witnesses for example, that claim that He was only resurrected spiritually and that His body was hidden away.

God in His infinite wisdom, knew this question would one day arise and confuse many and lead so many people astray and away from the truth, gives us the answer in His Inspired Word, The Holy Bible:

And as they thus spake, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. But they were terrified and affrighted, and supposed that they had seen a spirit. And he said unto them, Why are ye troubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts? Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have. And when he had thus spoken, he shewed them his hands and his feet. And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat? And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb. And he took it, and did eat before them.
(Luke 24:35-53)

There you have it as clear as the day. No way to twist Jesus' own words when he told them, "Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have." Sowing and proving to them he was risen physically from the dead and was not raised spiritually for he had "flesh and bones."

He additionally asked them, "Have ye here any meat? And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb. And he took it, and did eat before them."

A spirit does not need to eat or drink, and by eating in front of them he showed again he was NOT a spirit but was indeed raised physically from the dead. Many of these groups will ignore entire sections of Scripture and/or use partial Scriptures carefully selected from various parts of the Bible and twist them to fit their erroneous theology. By denying the actual physical resurrection of Jesus Christ, it is just another way of attacking His Deity and Divine Origin and who He really was and is, as well as limiting His power and authority. By being resurrected from the dead, Jesus also fulfilled His own prophecy when we are told:

Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.
(John 2:19)

The "temple" He was referring to was His own body. Scripture tells us:

What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
(1 Corinthians 6:19)

If any individual, organization, or even a Church tells you that Jesus Christ was not raised physically from the dead, then they are not of God and nothing they say or claim should ever be listened to.