I AM JesusSample

“I AM THE RESURRECTION AND THE LIFE.”

Ever seen someone raised from the dead? Me neither. But if I had, rest assured I’d acknowledge the power of the one doing the resurrecting. At least I think I would. I’m not a big LeBron fan, but are we still debating if he’s the G.O.A.T? To the Pharisees, stat lines, or resurrections don’t matter.

Let’s back up four days. Word gets to Jesus that His dear friend Lazarus is dead. Hearing the news, Jesus immediately responded, “Lazarus’s sickness won’t end in death.” Newsflash: He died. As Jesus arrives on the scene presumably late, four days late, Martha pipes up and says, "Lord, if only you had been here, he wouldn't have died." Jesus confidently tells her Lazarus will rise again and she responds, “Yep. When everyone else does on the last day.” Jesus' response takes us to the climax of His I AM statements, "I am the resurrection and the life." The crowd is skeptical, Lazarus' sisters are crying, and even Jesus wept. Asking where Lazarus had been buried, Jesus moved into action. At the objection from Martha not wanting the stench of a dead body to magnify the pain, Jesus boldly declares, "Roll the stone aside." With one last shout, Jesus calls Lazarus from the grave and reveals the breadth of His power.

The Pharisees' response? “We have to kill him.” No, seriously. Their reasoning? Because if He continues doing things like this, people might actually believe in Him! On the surface, I can see how we’d dismiss the ignorance of this response, making accusations in our mind of how ridiculous the Pharisees were. But are we that far removed?

I have a friend who, unfortunately, has battled weight issues for years. His wife has the same struggle. One day he got inspired, bought workout gear, joined a gym, and showed up at home to share his excitement with his wife. When he did, she looked at him, smirked, and said, “Let’s see how long this lasts.” The deeper issue beyond deflating her husband's new inspiration was her fear that if he started to change, she might have to as well. That’s the Pharisees. Rather than embrace the power of God, they tried to kill Him before people actually started transforming. What is lingering, deep within our souls, that we’d kill our intimacy with Jesus over before we’d actually think of letting it go?

I’ve got better news – the resurrection and the life have already taken it to the grave and rose victoriously over it. All we have to do is believe.