The Church of the Resurrection of Christ is located above the Holy Gates of the Rostov Kremlin. These gates with the church are situated in the center of the northern facade of the Kremlin and face the main temple of the complex, the Assumption Cathedral. The Church of the Resurrection was built in 1670 and became the first of the household churches, representing the initial stage of the architectural design by Metropolitan Jonah for the creation of the Metropolitan Courtyard. The church survived two major fires in 1730 and 1758. After 1788, services were not held in it, as in other household churches of the Kremlin, and the lower floors were used as storages and ice houses. In the 19th century, the church building, like other structures of the Kremlin, began to decline. In 1861, thanks to the initiative of Rostov merchants, mainly I. I. Khranilov, repairs were carried out, which were limited to the roof and frescoes. Due to the use of the lower floor as a storage, the foundation bricks became damp and began to deteriorate, and despite the repairs, the church remained in an emergency state. In 1890, restoration of the first floor was carried out, preventing the building from collapsing and restoring the decor. In 1953, a tornado blew off the roof and four domes of the church. The restoration was entrusted to the Yaroslavl Scientific Restoration Workshop under the guidance of architect Vladimir Banige, who restored the original shape of the covering and the drainage system. In 1954 and 1955, under the guidance of Vera Bryusova, the interior frescoes were updated.

The Church of the Resurrection is a gate church standing on a high podium with the gate passages, called the Holy Gates, which were once the main entrance to the Kremlin. The main facade of the church faces north, towards the Assumption Cathedral. On either side of the gates are two round towers, creating a symmetrical composition with the western facade of the temple. On the lower part of the facade is a gate icon depicting the Resurrection of Christ. The Kremlin complex was conceived by Metropolitan Jonah as a representation of the heavenly Jerusalem, and passing through the Holy Gates symbolized entry into the Kingdom of Heaven. The southern and western facades of the church face the inner courtyard of the Kremlin, while the eastern facade, hidden from view, adjoins the building of the former Judicial Order. Here, crimes subject to ecclesiastical trial were judged. The altar part of the church faces the place of judgment, reminding of the impending Last Judgment. Previously, the main entrance was located on the southern facade, but in the 18th century, the grand porch was dismantled. Now the main entrance is also on the southern facade and consists of a small door to the left. Inside begins the tour "Along the Walls of the Rostov Kremlin." The entrance leads to a narrow staircase that ascends to the western gallery, from where one can access the church and the passages along the Kremlin walls. The church is covered with a barrel vault supported by two arches on paired columns. The eastern part is occupied by the solea in front of the altar and the iconostasis. The altar is separated from the main volume of the temple by a stone wall, and on the eastern wall is a painted iconostasis, characteristic of Rostov household churches. The interior is illuminated through seven windows of the upper tier, symbolizing the church sacraments and ecumenical councils.

The wall paintings of the church are related to well-known monuments of Russian art of the 17th century. The date of creation and authorship of the frescoes remain subjects of debate, but it is assumed that they were created by the best artists of that time. The chief restorer Vera Bryusova believed that the painting was done by several masters. The frescoes are divided into three groups: altar paintings, church paintings, and gallery paintings. In the altar part, the images are divided into upper and lower zones, symbolically representing the upper as the open sky. In the dome of the church, God the Father is depicted, surrounded by cherubim and patriarchs. The vault is painted with images of the Paschal circle, related to the events of the Resurrection of Christ. The Crucifixion fresco depicts the crucified robbers, soldiers, and Pharisees, as well as a panorama of Jerusalem. The eastern wall is painted like an iconostasis, consisting of traditional rows. On the walls of the temple, there is an evangelical cycle illustrating the life of Christ. The artists borrowed plots from Dutch engravings that inspired masters in the 17th century. An interesting plot is the Sealing of the Tomb, rare for that time. It tells about sealing the tomb to certify Christ's death.

The gallery painting was likely done simultaneously with the church painting. The plots are divided into three groups: Days of Creation and the history of Adam, Noah, and Abraham; The Exodus of the Jews from Egypt; and the Apocalypse. In the northern part of the gallery, scenes from the Book of Genesis are depicted, in the southern part, scenes from the Book of Exodus, and in the western part, the cycle of the Apocalypse. The walls depict angels and saints, as well as scenes from biblical stories, such as the appearance of God to Moses and the Exodus of the Jews. The cycle is completed by a fresco depicting the struggle of the archangel Michael with Satan for the body of Moses. At the end of the southern part of the gallery is depicted the Ladder of John Climacus, symbolizing the path of spiritual perfection. In the western part of the gallery unfolds a cycle of images illustrating the Revelation of John the Theologian, describing events before the Second Coming of Christ.