Read: John 11:13-27
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live.” (v. 25)
Jesus’s disciples learned that his friend, Lazarus, was very sick. They knew that Jesus could heal him as he had healed many others, so they urged an immediate departure. But Jesus waited two days to start. By the time he arrived, Lazarus was dead. Martha, Lazarus’s sister, knew who to blame: “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died” (v. 21). Jesus replied, “Your brother will rise again” (v. 23). Martha gave a response that shows she understood Jewish teaching and tradition: “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day” (v. 24). Jesus answered, “I am the resurrection and the life” (v. 25). Martha’s response reveals that she thought the resurrection was a future event. Jesus was saying something shocking in response. The resurrection was a present person—the resurrection was him.
We’re appalled by people who think they’re more important than the events they attend. We’d think that about Jesus if the conversation ended there. But Jesus ordered the stone covering the tomb to be rolled away, then loudly called, “Lazarus, come out” (v. 43). And Lazarus did—Jesus reached beyond death in that moment. He overwhelmed the event.
Are you willing to welcome Jesus into the events of your life so that he can transform your life into an expression of his life?
As you pray, invite Jesus to meet you in your own life and bring his new life into you.
Fred Van Dyke is a conservation biologist dedicated to the care for God’s creation. In this role Fred has served government agencies, private consulting firms, and academic institutions doing research, management, and teaching in conservation science. He is also the author of two books on faith and environmental stewardship.
