The Resurrection and the Life

The last few weeks have been rich in revelation of the Lord. You may remember from yesterday's post that I described the "revelation-response" principle in Scripture. Here's a quick recap for you:

"This is a classic revelation-response formula within Scripture. Out of a revelation of God comes a response from my heart. God's action initiates a human reaction. There are many such examples (see, for example, Romans 12:1-2 and Colossians 3:1-4). And so out of a revelation of God's goodness, what should my response be?"

This revelation-response principle pervades the Bible. Your very salvation is built upon it, as is your ongoing walk with the Lord. Think for a moment of how you entered into a relationship with the Lord in the first place: It was when you had a realisation (revelation) of who Jesus is - that God sent him into the world as your Saviour, that he died on the Cross in your place and that he rose back to life so that you too could experience new life. And what was your response to that revelation? Repentance and faith! You turned your back on your old life, that was separated from God, and embraced a new life with Jesus as Lord.

This revelation-response principle is also governing my walk with the Lord during this trial of faith. As I gain a new understanding of who the Lord is in my life, my response is also one of repentance and faith. And on this basis, I want to share with you what the Lord has been revealing of himself through John 11. I hope I'm not stealing my parent's thunder on this, because all of us have been independently getting revelation out of this passage, and my parents have yet to share the insight they have been getting. They will do this soon and I will then share with you.

But in the meantime, let's take a look at John 11:1-44. I encourage you to first read the entire passage by clicking on one or more of the links below...

John 11:1-44 - New International Version
John 11:1-44 - King James Version
John 11:1-44 - New King James Version
John 11:1-44 - New American Standard Version
John 11:1-44 - English Standard Version
John 11:1-44 - Amplified Bible
John 11:1-44 - New Living Translation
John 11:1-44 - The Message

Note: As we go through this post, you can also view each verse we study in your preferred version, simply by clicking on the hypertexted (underlined) scripture reference, and then selecting your translation of choice.

When Jesus hears of the death of his friend, Lazarus, he responds with these words in verse 4:

"...This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God's glory so that God's Son may be glorified through it."

These words have struck me strongly in the last couple of weeks. Please understand that there are some sicknesses which do end in death (despite the faithful praying of concerned believers). There are times when we do not know why - our faith was strong, all known issues were dealt with in the sick person's spiritual life - yet it just seems that it was God's decision to take that person early.

But there are also times when God speaks clearly into a situation and says: "This is what I will do to bring glory to my name." I believe that this is what God is now doing in my life - not because I am adverse to death, but rather because I believe I have not yet finished the race God has set down before me (see "Torn Between the Two" for more details). Just as Jesus responded to the disciples' question about the blind man in John 9:1-3 by saying, "...this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life", so I too believe that God has allowed me to face this life-and-death crisis in order to display his own work, and in the end his name will be exalted.

By the way, I just this very moment interrupted my writing and called Carlos Durán (The Online Bible College's General Manager) through Skype and had a great time of prayer with him via VoIP chat. He did not know what I was writing in this morning's post, but in his prayer (in Spanish, which he translated into English for me as he went), he quoted John 11:4 and proclaimed that "this sickness will not end in death, but will be for God's glory so that God's Son may be glorified through it." How's that for on-the-spot, divine confirmation?

Now if all we had was the first part of John 11:4 - where Jesus says, "This sickness will not end in death" - we would never understand what happens next in the story, for Lazarus does indeed die. But it is the second part of Jesus' statement - "No, it is for God's glory so that God's Son may be glorified through it" - that provides for us the clue as to what is to happen next.

Jesus purposely delays his return to Bethany and by the time he arrives at the village, Lazarus has already been dead and buried for four days, and by this time his body has begun to decompose (see verse 39). All hope of an easy reversal of the problem has disappeared, which was precisely the intent of Jesus, because only in such an impossible situation would "God's Son...be glorified."

When Jesus finally does arrive, Martha goes out to meet him. Her response to Jesus is very revealing. In verses 21-22, she says:

"Lord...if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask."

Many people, when reading this story, remark on Martha's lack of faith. It is true that she rebukes Jesus (which is understandable, given her grief), and that she did not at this time believe that Jesus could or would immediately raise Lazarus back to life. Yet even here she expresses a "mustard seed" of faith (Luke 17:6). Even here, at the utter limits of her faith, she declares that Jesus had authority over the situation.

Jesus' response to this "mustard seed faith" was to make a promise: "Your brother will rise again" (verse 23), to which Martha replies: "I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day" (verse 24).

There was nothing fundamentally wrong with Martha's theology. Her statement was factual and theologically sound: it is true that in the resurrection at the last day, when Jesus returns, the dead in Christ will be raised (see 1 Corinthians 15:51-53; 2 Corinthians 4:13-14; 1 Thessalonians 4:16). But having correct theology is not enough. It is theology applied in everyday life which matters to God.

And so Jesus stretches her faith one more step. Verses 25-26 tell us:

"Jesus said to her, 'I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?'"

You'll notice that Jesus is leading Martha from her abstract theology to a personalized theology - in other words, theology that is incarnated in the person of the Lord Jesus himself. John 1:1 describes Jesus as "the Word," and then John 1:14 says, "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us..." Theology works in the same way. It is one thing to have a remote theology that mentally acknowledges something about God. It is an entirely different thing for that theology to "become flesh" in Jesus Christ and to be expressed in my current situation and to influence my course of actions here and now.

To give an example, your theology might include the belief that Jesus died on the Cross. But this "remote theology" doesn't do you an ounce of good unless it becomes personalised in the "here and now". It is only when I acknowledge that Jesus died on the Cross for me that this becomes what is called "saving faith." In the same way, you might put up your hand in agreement with the statement, "God is all-powerful", but it is an entirely different kind of theology which says, "God is all-powerful in my life, in this situation, here and now."

This was the faith challenge that Jesus brought to Martha. Jesus personalised the theology of the resurrection within himself! He isn't just the one who raises the dead. He is the resurrection and the life! He doesn't just impart resurrection life; he is the resurrection life.

In verses 27 , Martha responds:

"Yes, Lord...I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world."

Martha did not understand much, but she did understand this: Jesus is "the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world." She did not yet comprehend what impact this would have on Lazarus' death, but her faith was totally focused in the person of Christ. And that is always the starting point of the revelation-response principle.

Many times, we cannot see beyond our current revelation of the Lord. Our past understanding of the Lord, which has served us so well up till now, can often blinker us when it comes to a new crisis of faith. This is why the Lord always comes with a fresh revelation of himself - a revelation tailored for this exact situation.

It is the revelation of Jesus as "the resurrection and the life" which has gripped me for the last few days. Theologically, I've long known that it is the resurrection of Jesus Christ that is the dynamo which drives my spiritual life. But now I'm discovering this "resurrection theology" on a whole new dimension. For Romans 8:11 (NLT) tells me:

"The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as he raised Christ from the dead, he will give life to your mortal body by this same Spirit living within you."