"I Am the Resurrection and the Life. Those who put their faith in Me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives and has faith in Me will never die." John 11: 25-26
Over the last few days, I have been reading the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. It's a remarkable story, to say the least. It's also an intriguing one. There's more to it than Jesus simply raising a man from the dead. More than Jesus giving Mary and Martha their brother back. And more than giving us the promise of eternal life.
The story goes that Jesus is away from his friends when Lazarus becomes ill. Word was sent to Jesus to come, but instead of going right away to heal Lazarus, He waits until his friend dies. Then He goes to Bethany, telling His disciples beforehand that He is going to show them something glorious when they get there.
Upon their arrival they are greeted by Martha, who promptly tells Jesus, "If you had been here, my brother would not have died." She also says something peculiar. "But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask." She doesn't actually voice what she would ask for, but Jesus knows and gives her a very assuring answer.
"Your brother will rise again."
Martha answered, "I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day."
In her heart she is hoping for something else, but she's afraid to ask for it directly, and she doesn't think Jesus could possibly mean what she is secretly wishing could happen, that her brother would be brought back to life here and now right before her eyes. Only a crazy person would believe such a thing was actually possible. Life after death someday...somehow that seems possible, but life today...not so much.
I think that by now people were becoming used to Jesus performing miracles of healing the sick. And when word was sent to Jesus that a good friend of His was ill and dying, there was an expectation that Jesus would come and heal Him. And yet He doesn't. Not this time. Instead He waits until death has come, and then He goes "to wake him up".
Jesus could bring healing, there was no doubt about that, but could He go one step further? Could He not only prevent death but also overcome it?
Yes! And He did. Death was not the end for Lazarus, and He tells Martha plainly that death is not the end for anyone who puts their faith in Him. This is one of the fundamental beliefs of the Christian faith. Life after death. This world is not all there is. Life was meant to be lived eternally. That's the hope we have in Jesus.
But what about now? What hope do we have for this life on earth as we know it? When Jesus says, "I Am the Resurrection and the Life," what does that mean for us today? I think there is a spiritual principle we can draw from His words beyond the truth that there is life after death and that "someday" we will experience such a phenomenon. We can also find life after death now. What do I mean by that? I mean that there are things in this life that are similar to death. The Bible tells us that "the wages of sin is death." And this death can take many forms. Mistakes, poor choices, and outright sins always have negative results at some point. We have all experienced that reality. Maybe you are there now. Maybe as a result of one mistake, or maybe as a result of many. But here's the hope: you don't have to stay there. Putting your faith in Jesus not only means that you will overcome death to live eternally, but also that you can overcome sin and live today.
"I Am the Resurrection and the Life. Those who put their faith in Me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives and has faith in Me will never die."
Even though "death" comes, life is still waiting. Jesus promises that. And for those who choose to live in the reality of God's love, mercy, and truth: death can be avoided all together. The pit of sin and shame and hopelessness need not ever be visited again.
Having faith in Him is about more than just forgiveness. Mercy is the first gift, but there is so much more to this "life" Jesus gives than mere forgiveness. There is power to overcome sin. There is something waiting on the other side of "death" that sins have caused. No, you haven't done everything perfectly, but it's okay. Yes, you really messed that up, but you can go on from here and choose a new path. Wrongs can be righted. Good things can still happen. That sin you don't think you can shake, you can! You can still have hope for the future no matter how bleak things are now. You can rise from the ashes. You can hear Jesus calling to you in the grave saying, "Come out. I Am the Resurrection and the Life. This is not the end for you."
Don't count yourself out of a blessed life. It's never too late to rise again. Have faith in Him. Have faith in His love. Have faith in His power. Have faith in His ability to do the impossible for you. Because He can, and He will. Just believe.
"If calamity comes upon us...we will stand in your presence and cry out to you in our distress and you will hear and save us." 2 Chronicles 20:9
Over the last few days, I have been reading the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. It's a remarkable story, to say the least. It's also an intriguing one. There's more to it than Jesus simply raising a man from the dead. More than Jesus giving Mary and Martha their brother back. And more than giving us the promise of eternal life.
The story goes that Jesus is away from his friends when Lazarus becomes ill. Word was sent to Jesus to come, but instead of going right away to heal Lazarus, He waits until his friend dies. Then He goes to Bethany, telling His disciples beforehand that He is going to show them something glorious when they get there.
Upon their arrival they are greeted by Martha, who promptly tells Jesus, "If you had been here, my brother would not have died." She also says something peculiar. "But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask." She doesn't actually voice what she would ask for, but Jesus knows and gives her a very assuring answer.
"Your brother will rise again."
Martha answered, "I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day."
In her heart she is hoping for something else, but she's afraid to ask for it directly, and she doesn't think Jesus could possibly mean what she is secretly wishing could happen, that her brother would be brought back to life here and now right before her eyes. Only a crazy person would believe such a thing was actually possible. Life after death someday...somehow that seems possible, but life today...not so much.
I think that by now people were becoming used to Jesus performing miracles of healing the sick. And when word was sent to Jesus that a good friend of His was ill and dying, there was an expectation that Jesus would come and heal Him. And yet He doesn't. Not this time. Instead He waits until death has come, and then He goes "to wake him up".
Jesus could bring healing, there was no doubt about that, but could He go one step further? Could He not only prevent death but also overcome it?
Yes! And He did. Death was not the end for Lazarus, and He tells Martha plainly that death is not the end for anyone who puts their faith in Him. This is one of the fundamental beliefs of the Christian faith. Life after death. This world is not all there is. Life was meant to be lived eternally. That's the hope we have in Jesus.
But what about now? What hope do we have for this life on earth as we know it? When Jesus says, "I Am the Resurrection and the Life," what does that mean for us today? I think there is a spiritual principle we can draw from His words beyond the truth that there is life after death and that "someday" we will experience such a phenomenon. We can also find life after death now. What do I mean by that? I mean that there are things in this life that are similar to death. The Bible tells us that "the wages of sin is death." And this death can take many forms. Mistakes, poor choices, and outright sins always have negative results at some point. We have all experienced that reality. Maybe you are there now. Maybe as a result of one mistake, or maybe as a result of many. But here's the hope: you don't have to stay there. Putting your faith in Jesus not only means that you will overcome death to live eternally, but also that you can overcome sin and live today.
"I Am the Resurrection and the Life. Those who put their faith in Me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives and has faith in Me will never die."
Even though "death" comes, life is still waiting. Jesus promises that. And for those who choose to live in the reality of God's love, mercy, and truth: death can be avoided all together. The pit of sin and shame and hopelessness need not ever be visited again.
Having faith in Him is about more than just forgiveness. Mercy is the first gift, but there is so much more to this "life" Jesus gives than mere forgiveness. There is power to overcome sin. There is something waiting on the other side of "death" that sins have caused. No, you haven't done everything perfectly, but it's okay. Yes, you really messed that up, but you can go on from here and choose a new path. Wrongs can be righted. Good things can still happen. That sin you don't think you can shake, you can! You can still have hope for the future no matter how bleak things are now. You can rise from the ashes. You can hear Jesus calling to you in the grave saying, "Come out. I Am the Resurrection and the Life. This is not the end for you."
Don't count yourself out of a blessed life. It's never too late to rise again. Have faith in Him. Have faith in His love. Have faith in His power. Have faith in His ability to do the impossible for you. Because He can, and He will. Just believe.
"If calamity comes upon us...we will stand in your presence and cry out to you in our distress and you will hear and save us." 2 Chronicles 20:9
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