The primary source of the appeal of Christianity was Jesus - His incarnation His life His crucifixion and His resurrection.
The symbolic language of the crucifixion is the death of the old paradigm resurrection is a leap into a whole new way of thinking.
Life is a series of steps. Things are done gradually. Once in a while there is a giant step but most of the time we are taking small seemingly insignificant steps on the stairway of life.