--- title: The Bodily Resurrection of Jesus url: https://jw-apologetics.app/arguments/bodily-resurrection/ markdown: https://jw-apologetics.app/arguments/bodily-resurrection.md type: argument perspective: Protestant (historic Nicene) response to Jehovah's Witness teaching topics: [Deity of Christ] challenges: [Jesus Is a Created Being, The Soul Ceases to Exist at Death, Jesus Was Not Physically Resurrected] verses: [1 Corinthians 15:14, Luke 24:39, John 2:19, John 20:27, 1 Peter 3:18, Romans 8:11] strength: Strong tone: Excellent attribution: Mike Winger / Dr. James White added: '2026-03-31' last_reviewed: '2026-05-24' index: https://jw-apologetics.app/llms.txt --- # The Bodily Resurrection of Jesus *A spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have* ## Doorstep Question > "Did you know the Watchtower teaches that Jesus' body dissolved in the tomb and he was raised as a spirit creature? But Jesus himself said, "A spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have." Who do you trust — Jesus or the Watchtower?" ## JW Claim Jesus was not bodily resurrected. His physical body was either dissolved into gases or is preserved somewhere. He was raised as a spirit creature — Michael the Archangel returned to spirit form. "The man Jesus is dead, forever dead." (Studies in the Scriptures, Vol. 5, p. 454) ## Strategy This is a core gospel issue. 1 Corinthians 15:14 says if Christ has not been raised, our faith is useless. Start with Luke 24:39 where Jesus explicitly denies being a spirit after his resurrection. Then go to John 2:19-21 where Jesus says "destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up" — John explains he meant his body. Finally, use John 20:27 where Thomas touches the nail marks — the same body that was crucified is the one that rose. ## Key Insight Jesus went out of his way to prove he rose bodily. He ate fish, he invited Thomas to touch his wounds, he said "a spirit does not have flesh and bones." The Watchtower has to explain away all of this. ## JW Responses & Counters ### Response 1 **JW says:** "Jesus materialised temporary bodies to appear to the disciples" **Counter:** Then Jesus was deceiving his disciples. He said "See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself" — not "this is a temporary body I created." And John 2:19-21 says he would raise "this temple" meaning his own body, not create a new one. ### Response 2 **JW says:** "1 Peter 3:18 says he was made alive in the spirit" **Counter:** "Made alive in the spirit" describes the realm or power by which he was raised — by the Holy Spirit — not the nature of his resurrection body. Romans 8:11 says the Spirit who raised Jesus will also give life to your mortal bodies. Same pattern — raised by the Spirit, in a body. ### Response 3 **JW says:** "Jesus materialised a human body just as angels did before — the resurrected Christ was a spirit creature putting on flesh temporarily." **Counter:** Then read Luke 24:39 in your own NWT: "See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself; touch me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones just as you see that I have." Jesus directly contrasts himself with a spirit — and the body he shows them has the same hands and feet that were nailed to the cross. In John 20:27 he invites Thomas to put his finger in the very nail marks. Angels who materialised in the Old Testament did not carry crucifixion wounds from a previous body. Jesus is showing the disciples the same body that died — risen, glorified, but bodily. ## What to Avoid Don't get drawn into debates about what a "glorified body" looks like. Stay focused on the simple point: Jesus said he had flesh and bones, he showed his wounds, he ate food. The Watchtower says his body dissolved. One of them is wrong. ## Homework Read Luke 24:39 in its setting, from Jesus standing among the disciples to the fish he ate, until you can retell it from memory: the hands and feet, 'touch me and see', the meal. Then read John 2:19–21 and John 20:27 within Thomas's whole story. Look up Luke 24:39 in the NWT yourself so you can ask them to read it aloud from their own Bible. Practise the doorstep question aloud, keeping the focus on what Jesus said and showed rather than on what a glorified body looks like. Expect 'Jesus materialised temporary bodies'; rehearse pointing to the nail marks Thomas was invited to touch, which show the same body that died. Have Romans 8:11 ready for 'made alive in the spirit' in 1 Peter 3:18. ## Next Moves - [The Trinitarian Resurrection — Who Raised Jesus from the Dead?](https://jw-apologetics.app/arguments/trinitarian-resurrection.md) - [Jesus Must Be a Man Now — The Melchizedek Priesthood](https://jw-apologetics.app/arguments/melchizedek-priesthood.md) - [Jesus Is Not Michael the Archangel](https://jw-apologetics.app/arguments/jesus-not-michael.md)