VICTORY IN JESUS

Jesus had just arrived in Bethany. His friend Lazarus had died four days earlier. Martha, the sister of Lazarus, was expressing her plaint that if only the Lord could have come sooner, Lazarus would not have died.

In John 11:23 Jesus assured Martha that her brother would rise again, and in verses 25 and 26 he taught her that for one that trusts Him as Savior, resurrection life is a present reality. Jesus said, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die." Jesus could utter those words because he is the cause or the source of the believer's resurrection and his everlasting life. Jesus was telling Martha that even though one who trusted in Him died physically his eternal life would not be interrupted by physical death because his soul is immediately in the presence of God in heaven. Furthermore, Jesus says in that passage, the one who lives and believes in Him will never die (spiritually) because that person's soul will never be separated from God. It will be separated from the body at physical death, but will go to be with God in heaven immediately.

In John 10:18 Jesus uttered words with an identical meaning. Concerning His own life He stated, "……I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again…….". Three days after His death, He proved to mankind forever that His words were true by rising victoriously from the tomb. He proved that He is the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in Him can be assured that His words to Martha in John 11:25 and 26 are true as well.

During this time of year when we remember the resurrection of Jesus, we can be assured that because of His presence in our lives, resurrection and life are assured. For anyone who does not believe in Him, only death is a reality. When He spoke of believing in Him, He wasn't talking about an intellectual knowledge of facts about Himself, but about trust in Himself as Savior. That trust must not be in a creed or a system, but in the Person of Jesus Himself. In 1 Corinthians 15:22 Paul teaches that only in Christ (having been baptized into His Body by the Holy Spirit because of faith) shall lost sinners be made alive. We invite you to experience the resurrection and life that Jesus Christ offers to those who trust Him as their Savior.