We're about to embark on a really joyful, memorable, enjoyable time of year, aren't we? Hope you all had a blessed Thanksgiving, a wonderful Thanksgiving time. And as we know, for those of us who love this time of year, the Thanksgiving holiday just kicks off a month, a month and a half or so of a lot of joy, a lot of enjoyment, time with family, rich traditions, lots of memories, parties with friends, from the music to the food to everything in between. This is a special time of year. It's a time of year that seems to be surrounded and mixed with so much rejoicing, so much vibrancy, lots of life, right? But it's easy to forget that behind the facade of all of that mirth, all of that enjoyment, all of that seeming life that pervades our culture, our society at this time of year, behind all that, is a reality that this world is actually not characterized by life, is it? It's a world that is actually dominated by death. Every human being on this earth faces this stark reality, the reality of death itself, both physically and spiritually, in our original state. That is our experience, isn't it? We're born in unbelief and those still in that state of unbelief are dead in their sins. That is what God's word tells us. They are dead in their sins because they have not yet aligned themselves by faith, believing in what Christ has done in his finished work and who he is and what we are going to see today. They have not yet aligned themselves with the reality of God's timeless truth. and it's as if they are lifeless. That's what God's word tells us. The reality of spiritual death reveals itself, frankly, in physical death too, doesn't it? And even we as believers, we're not immune to the ultimate reminder of sin's impact on the human race through death. This past year, we have seen people we love here at Cornerstone face that. This past year we have seen numerous members of this spiritual family have members of their personal, physical families face this reality, haven't we? Fathers, aunts, uncles, wives, moms, dear friends. And the list could go on and on. These relationships, even in the past year that have been affected by this sad reality. It's not on its face a very pleasant subject for us to focus on this morning, is it? But in our passage today, we have perhaps in Scripture, outside at least of the various accounts of Christ's death on the cross, one of which we looked at in Mark this past week. Outside of those accounts, this is probably the most moving and the most personal account of death anywhere in Scripture. We read this passage, we see the grief, we see the pain, we see the sorrow, and we can identify with all of those things because we in some way have experienced all of those things too. We look at Mary and Martha's reaction, the disciples' reaction, we can identify with that. But this passage is about something much more. This is not a message this morning centered on death, even though we started there. This passage before us today is about something very different. This passage is all about life. Something very special takes this message, this passage from being something about death and sorrow and sadness and despair, and turns it into something about joy, something about hope, life. And the difference is the person and the presence of Jesus Christ here. It is his presence here in this count that makes all the difference. And he is who we're going to observe and watch and learn from and be encouraged by today. What we're going to see for us is that this person makes all the difference, not just in the lives of those here in John chapter 11, But his person and his presence makes all the difference in those of us living in a world full of death today, now, 2016 as well. The message that God's word has for us today is clear. Jesus, here in John chapter 11, is the resurrection and the life. That is who he is. And you and I today must see that in this passage and choose to believe in that identity. This truth has major implications for all of us. Everyone who hears the truth from this text this morning, whether an unbeliever or a believer, because in him is hope, in him is joy, in him, in this Messiah alone is life. No matter what we have faced this year and no matter what your relationship to the hero of this story this morning is, This account portrays for us the gospel, what is at the core of the gospel of Jesus Christ that alone brings life to those who need it, those who are dead in their sins. And it also gives meaning to the life of those who already have it and yet still live in a world dominated by the effects of sin and death. So this is for everyone. And so everyone in here, from me to you, we all need what God's word has for us here this morning. So let's pray and ask him for eyes to see and hearts to receive the truth he has for us here. Let's go to him now. Father, we are grateful for your word and for its power. We are grateful most of all that your word reveals to us this person, this Christ, this Messiah, our Savior, the resurrection and the life, the one who personifies it, who embodies it, whose identity is synonymous with life. We praise you for what we will see and we plead with you to change us, to encourage us, to rebuke us, to challenge us because of what you have given to us here in Christ's name, amen. Throughout his gospel here in the book of John, this apostle has really got one great goal. He has one primary purpose in mind for his readers. He's providing a clear message that Jesus Christ is God the Son. That is what he wants his readers to see. He is the Messiah. He is the promised one, come from God, proclaimed from the beginning to crush the serpent's head, to crush Satan's power over people. to fulfill the Father's plan. And all throughout this account, all throughout this book, John brings up Christ's proclaiming numerous I am statements. And we're familiar with some of those, many of us are. These statements throughout the book of John where Christ says I am something. And we have to remember that for the Jewish listener and for the Jewish reader, those would have actually been direct statements of deity from the mouth of Christ. Because God himself, his name was I Am. Jesus Christ said things like this. I am the bread of life. I am the light of the world. I am the door to God. I am the access point to God the Father. I am the good shepherd. I am. And here in our passage, he really proclaims that apex I am statement for us. And then he acts out that statement in the ultimate messianic sign, the ultimate sign that points to his identity as the promised one, as God's son, come to fulfill God's plan. He says in this passage, and we'll see it in just a few moments, I am the resurrection and the life. And we get to see that this morning. We read the first 16 verses earlier just to kind of get our bearings, to get a background on what is happening here in this account with Christ and his disciples. So what is going on here? Well, there's a lot on which we could focus, but the point here is simply that Christ, what he says and what he does in the first 16 verses, the passage we already read, he is preparing his followers to learn an important lesson that he is going to portray and display to them in the verses to come. the most powerful and important truth about who he was and what he had come to do. He is preparing them, he is planting a seed, he is setting the stage for what the disciples need to see, what Mary and Martha need to see, what the onlookers that are going to be there watching need to see. Even though his dear friend is deathly ill, Christ delays going to his side. Even though he could have healed him, he has proven again and again that he has power over disease and those effects of sin. He could have gone, he could have healed, but he chose to delay until Lazarus is dead. Why? Why would he do that? Well, he gives us some hints in the first verses that we read. He says in verse four, it is for the glory of God. so that the Son of God may be glorified through it. Verse 15, so that you may believe. Christ also explains Lazarus' death to his disciples in terms that are very confusing to them. They don't understand at first. He says things like, he is asleep, something that they clearly misunderstand. And he says that the illness won't ultimately end in death. These things are confusing to us as well as we read them, especially considering the fact that we already know because we've been told by the narrator that Lazarus is dead. And when the disciples misunderstand, he confirms to them that Lazarus, no, he's not sleeping. He has died. In the midst of grief, the disciples are really confused. And you can see that in their responses through this passage. But Christ is about to show them what he means with these things that he has said in verses one through 16. And he's gonna do it with marvelous, amazing clarity for them. but they don't see that yet, and so they journey to Bethany in mourning, and that's where we pick up the story in verse 17. So here, into a context of mourning, into a context of the horrible effects of sin, into a situation full of death, steps Jesus. We'll see first of all in verses 17 through 27 that death reveals the need for Messiah. Note the hopelessness here in these verses, especially verses 17 through 22. The reality of death presents apparent hopelessness here for those who are present. Let's read verses 17 through 19 here first to see how hopeless this really is, how hopeless it appears. Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them. concerning their brother. So by the time that Jesus arrives, Lazarus has been in the tomb for four days. Now that's poignant enough for us as we read in the 21st century, but actually there is a nuanced cultural detail here that will help this even be more of a powerful description of apparent hopelessness for us. Because it was prevailing in aspects of the Jewish culture to believe and to assume, it was kind of a superstitious thought in some circles, that the soul of a person actually hovered over the body of the person for three days, hoping to re-enter it. And then on the fourth day, once the soul realizes that that is hopeless and that's not going to happen, then the soul departs. Now that's kind of strange for us, kind of weird for us, but that's the context here. That is what is going on in the minds of some of the Jews here that have come to console Martha and Mary in all likelihood. And so now Lazarus has been in the tomb for four days. So here, the fourth day, there is no more hope. of that happening, right? Death was certain. Life is unrecoverable here. It's hopeless. Many friends and neighbors from as far away as Jerusalem, which is about two miles over the top of the Mount of Olives to the west, they come to console, to mourn with Mary and Martha because they too have the assumption, Lazarus is dead, there is no hope. So death's reality brings mourning here in verses 17 through 19. But as the next three verses show us, death doesn't just bring mourning, it also raises some questions in the minds of people. Look at verses 20 through 22. So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. Martha said to Jesus, Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you. Martha obviously is confused too. When Martha meets Jesus near the village of Bethany, he makes a couple of seemingly contradictory statements here. She doesn't rebuke Christ for not coming. She is respectful to him in that way as a teacher. So she doesn't rebuke him, but rather she does reveal from what she says, the confusing nature of death, even for a believer, right? You see that here? If you had just been here, I know you can heal. I know you have a direct line of communication to God himself in prayer. I still believe in you, but why? This doesn't add up. Christ chooses to answer here with truth about himself because even though there is apparent hopelessness here in death, the identity of Christ provides abundant hope. And this really is at the core of our passage this morning. Look at verses 23 through the first part of verse 25. Jesus said to her, your brother will rise again. Martha said to him, I know that he will rise again in the resurrection in the last day. Jesus said to her, I am the resurrection and the life. So what is Jesus doing here? Well, Martha believed in the truth that was prevalent, it was a prevalent teaching, again, throughout the Jewish community, that at some point in the future, a believing Jew, a believing Old Testament Jew would be raised bodily to life. It was a prevalent teaching at that time. And Christ's words when he says, your brother will rise again, those are an encouragement to Martha, but she still misses the point. The point that Christ is going to make plain in his actions to come, and it's this, Christ's identity is synonymous with life. That is what Christ is telling, Martha. He embodies it. He personifies it. There is resurrection. It is real. But it's ultimate expression isn't simply in the future for God's people, Martha. It is right here before you in the person of the master himself. He is life personified. Now Christ calls on her to believe in that truth. Christ's identity is worthy of faith. Look at the rest of this section, the rest of this paragraph. Picking up in the middle of verse 25. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live. and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this? She said to him, yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Christ, the Messiah, the promised one, the son of God who is coming into the world. There is no resurrection and life apart from him. Even that future resurrection is only possible because of the identity of this Messiah. of this son of God. And only those who choose to identify in faith in him are going to experience that resurrection, that life eternally. The phrase, everyone who lives and believes in me, that's simply a statement of two coexistent realities that Christ is saying there. Everyone who lives and believes in me, if you believe in me, you also live. That is Christ's point. Those who have believed in me will never die. Those who believe in him will not perish, but have everlasting life in this Messiah. But then Christ makes it very personal for Martha. Do you believe this, he says. Do you believe this? Martha, I am synonymous with life itself. In me is life. Martha, does your belief go beyond a vague hope of future resurrection without understanding where it is coming from and who makes it possible? Does it go beyond that to a vibrant trust in me as the source of that life, as the source of that resurrection? Essentially, Christ is asking Martha to acknowledge that he's more than a good teacher, he's more than a rabbi, he's more than a prophet, he is Messiah. He is the son of God. God in the flesh with the authority given to him to grant eternal life. And she confesses that faith. She says, I believe that. And that faith is about to be strengthened all the more, isn't it? But before Christ can portray that power over death, We see an important glimpse here of Christ's perspective on death. That's what we're going to see in verses 28 through 37 of this passage. He looks around at the effects of death on those who are his close friends, those who are closest to him, and the implications for those who are looking on, and the implications for all of mankind. And he responds in a very complex and a very telling way. for us in these next verses. And here, so in verse 28 through 37, we will see that death brings great sorrow for Messiah. The next five verses seem at a glance just to be a little bit of narration, just to kind of tell us what is going on here as Christ then meets with Mary, the other sister. And that's true, but there's actually a revelation of a deep connection here between this sorrowing family And Jesus, he deeply loves those affected by death. He loves the world in spite of their sin. And he dearly loves those who'd have chosen to put their belief in him as more than just a prophet and a teacher, as the Messiah, as the promised one, as the son of God, who still face the ramifications of death. He deeply loves those affected by death. Look at verses 28 through 32. When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying in private, the teacher is here, and he's calling for you. And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met him. And when the Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary rise quickly and go out, they followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there. Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, sound familiar? Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. Martha tells Mary that Jesus is calling for her and the whole account of Martha and Mary coming to Christ outside the town seems to reveal this desire for privacy between dear loved ones here. That's what we have. Here in the middle of all of these professional mourners and well-wishers and casual observers and everyone else who is there around about the town, there's a special connection between this family and their master here. From the beginning of the chapter, if we would look back in verses three and four that we read already, to the things that we are told elsewhere in scripture about the relationship between this family and Christ and Christ's disciples, there is a special connection here. We know of this relationship, this loving relationship that is here. Mary's statement to Jesus is the same as Martha's. It reveals a presence of faith in him, but the need for that faith to be greatly strengthened. Do you see that? In both of these accounts. And as Mary departs the place of mourning there in the house, and she prepares to go to Jesus, all the other mourners that are around her assume she's going to mourn at the tomb, and they follow her to what was intended to be a private interaction with the master. making this interaction between Jesus and Mary a really public one. And it's gonna continue to be public all the way through the end of our passage this morning. And that's on purpose. Because this is setting the stage for what is about to happen. Because there is something that both those who are closest to Christ and those who don't yet know him need to see. There is something that those who have a relationship with this Savior and those who are casual observers, they both need to see what is about to happen. Verses 33 through 37 are pretty loaded with meaning here for us too. These verses show us that Christ has this multi-layered response to the effects and the ravages of death in this setting. Not only does he deeply love those affected by death, but he is also deeply troubled by the effects of death. Look at verse 33. When Jesus saw her weeping and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. Deeply moved. That is a really interesting word in the original language. It's really complex. It covers a broad range of emotions. It could be translated with anything like gravely stern, anything from that to deeply saddened to even outraged. This is a very complex word because Christ's response to what he sees here in Bethany on this day is complex. It greatly troubles him. What are the effects of death that are troubling here? Well, the verses give us some hints here. Look first of all at verses 34 and 35. And he said, where have you laid him? And they said to him, Lord, come and see. Jesus wept. He knows this grief. Jesus wept as he gazes on this scene of death and he sees this sorrow. He sees the effects of sin here ravaging this world. Sickness and now death, havoc, gut-wrenching sorrow, tears. And he bears it too. Why? because he was there at the beginning. He knows that it didn't need to be this way. And it is because of this sin and because of the ravages of sin and sin's penalty death, it's because of that that he had come, right? It is for this purpose that he was there on this earth, preparing to do what he was about to do. He is a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. Surely he has borne our griefs. Surely he has carried our sorrows. That's what the Old Testament said about this Messiah. This foreshadows the time very shortly where Jesus himself, as a sinless sacrifice, is going to take on the horrible consequences of the iniquity of mankind and he is going to face, in brutal reality, the wages of sin. Death. just like we looked at last week. He bore all this for us. When God's people feel pain, he knows. When we face the realities of this fallen world with all of the suffering, with all of the trouble, he knows. Not only does he know our grief, but he's also troubled by unbelief. Look at verses 36 and 37. So the Jews said, see how he loved him. But some of them said, could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying? They're two very different reactions here from different portions of the Jewish onlookers. And each reaction reveals actually the same root problem, doesn't it? Some Jews interpret Christ's troubled spirit, when they see him weeping, when they see how clearly he is visibly troubled by what he is seeing, they just interpret it as simply sadness for the loss of a friend. As if he really couldn't do anything else about it. See how he loved him. What a shame that he couldn't do more. and others in verse 37 actually state possibly some skepticism here. At best, they are limiting Christ's ability simply to the fact that he has healing powers, the healing powers that he has already displayed for them, and many of them had seen personally for themselves. Both statements actually show unbelief, that at some level chooses to reject who Jesus is. This prophet sent from God, he could heal, but couldn't he have also kept this man from dying? They reject who Jesus is, the son of God, the Messiah, the resurrection, the life. That is who is standing before them, not simply a mourner that can do nothing about it. These onlookers need their eyes open to his identity, the identity that Martha and Mary already believe, even though their belief needs to be strengthened too. So in these few verses, Christ is deeply troubled. He's even angry. He is stern because of what he sees. He sees both the grief that death has caused and the unbelief of those who are present. And he's actually about to show that he is the solution to both. Death reveals the great need for Messiah. Death brings great sorrow for Messiah. but he is the resurrection and the life. And he is worthy of faith and trust because death is no match for Messiah. That's the message of verses 38 to 44. Christ here is about to reveal what he came on earth to do, to glorify the father by conquering death. Note first of all Christ's determination to point to God the Father in verses 38 to 42. Christ's life-giving work reveals the glory of the Father. That is what he came to do. Look at verses 38 to 40. Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave and a stone lay against it. Jesus said, take away the stone. Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, Lord, by this time there will be an odor for he has been dead for four days. Jesus said to her, did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God? So what is Christ doing here? Well, he is calling on the onlookers, both then and now, us, to believe that the father reveals himself. God does that. God chooses to reveal himself to mankind through Jesus. If you believed, you will see the glory of God. That's what Christ tells Martha. Throughout John, Christ's purpose has been to disclose the Father. He says it over and over again. He has come to reveal God the Father to mankind. In chapter 17, at the beginning of the high priestly prayer, where Christ is praying on behalf of those who believe in him and will believe in him, he begins with these words. He says, Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, so that the Son may glorify you. This is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. He says elsewhere in John that those who have seen me have seen who? The Father. Because of Christ's connection to the Father, because of Christ's connection to God himself, even in the face of death, this Messiah is to be trusted. Why? Because he will only ever do what brings God glory. He will only ever do the right thing. The thing that glorifies God. Christ's coming to earth and his subsequent exaltation, Paul tells us in Philippians 2, is for what purpose? To the glory of God the Father, right? That is why Christ came. And then Christ leads in a public prayer to that Father and this prayer isn't ultimately for his benefit because he already knows what he can do and what he is going to do. He prays for the benefit of the onlookers, doesn't he? He prays for those with no faith. He prays for those with faith in need of strengthening. Since everyone here, just like everyone there, falls into one of those two categories. And here it's for our benefit too. Believe the father reveals himself. And now in verses 41 through 42, believe that the father sent the son. And when he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, Lazarus, come out. And the man who had died came out. And his hands and feet were bound with linen strips and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, unbind him and let him go. That they may believe that you have sent me. the heart of the gospel, and at the conclusion of this prayer, Christ turns to this reopened tomb, and what he does next proclaims one final aspect of his earthly work. Look at this prayer that he prays. In verses 42 and 43, immediately preceding what we just read, and the amazing visual that is there, why did that happen? Verse 42, I knew that you always hear me. But I said this on account of the people standing around that they may believe that you have sent me." That's amazing. That is why he raised this man. And then Christ's life-giving work, it reveals the Father, doesn't it? It reveals to us the glory of the Father. And then in these last two verses, it reveals the identity of the son. It confirms the identity of the son himself. He doesn't just provide the resurrection and the life. He is the resurrection and the life. And we almost sometimes when we read this passage, we wish that we could get a little more insight into Lazarus's response or the sister's response. We get a little bit of response from the onlookers if we would continue reading throughout the chapter. but the focus stays squarely on Christ here for a reason, because he is the resurrection and the life. His work is central to what is going on. Christ alone has authority over death. That's what verse 43 shows us. With the same voice that spoke creation into existence, the same voice that created life in the first place. Christ exercises the authority given by the Father to the Son to give new life, right? In the midst of a fallen world and death itself submits to the authority of the Son. And then in verse 44, Christ alone releases the prisoners of death. The man who died came out. Amazing words. Loose him and let him go. Remember, this act is the ultimate messianic sign. This is the promised one. This is the one who has come to crush Satan's power over people. To take away the sting of the penalty for sin. And it's also the ultimate foreshadowing of something that is coming likely in just a mere few days, weeks at the most. where Christ is going to cross that Mount of Olives into the city of Jerusalem, and he's going to pay the penalty for sin. He is going to die. And then, three days later, he will loose himself from death. He will enable, through that act, all those who believe in him to have life. This is true for the dead in Christ, and it's also true for those who are dead in sin. Those who believe in him have life. In a world full of death, in a world full of hopelessness, there is objective, confident hope, and it's only available through this Messiah here. He alone is able to bring you from a place of hopeless death, both in this life and eternity, to a place of eternal life. There is no resurrection, there is no life for the dead person spiritually apart from this Messiah. It would be interesting to go on and view how the onlookers responded to what they saw here before Lazarus' tomb. First of all, many of the onlookers believe they chose to place their faith in this God-man, the one who alone gives life. God opened their eyes and they saw Christ for who he was and they believed. Others though, like the chief priests, like the Pharisees, they choose to reject Christ in favor of their own self-righteousness, their own self-centeredness, unbelief in the one that God has sent. There are likely some here who cannot respond to Christ's question for Martha back in verse 27 in the affirmative. Do you believe this? There are some here who cannot say, I believe. And so my, plea for you, Christ's message for you is that he alone is able to bring you from a place of spiritual death now and forever to a place of spiritual life now and forever. Resurrection from the dead, a reconciled relationship with God, those things are only found in a relationship of simple belief and faith in this Jesus. Choose to place your faith, express it in him alone today. He is worthy of life-giving faith and he is the only one able to give it. Believer, he is worthy of your faith too. Remember what he has already made a reality for you. Think about this for a second. His identity is synonymous with life and scripture makes it very clear that you and I, those of us who are in Christ, we are unified with Christ. And so because of that, our identity is also synonymous with life. That is a fact. In Christ, you have been made alive for a purpose though, to walk in newness of life. Your identity no longer is associated with darkness and despair. You're no longer dead in your trespasses and sins. That is a positional reality for you because of what Christ has done, because of your simple trust and faith and belief in who he is. You are no longer dead in your trespasses and sins. You are alive. Choose by his grace to walk in that life through obedience, through applying his word. We are no longer to be conformed to the passions of our former ignorance, but to pursue holiness, to be set apart, to be unique with his help because of what he has done. We can walk in that life in ongoing faith, no matter the trial, the ongoing hope of eternal life. Perhaps you've recently seen the loss of a loved one. Or perhaps you face a possibly terminal illness and you're anticipating the distinct possibility that death is not far off. Or maybe the onset of the twilight of life on this earth. Maybe that is what you are facing and you fear, you fear what is to come. These questions we see in Martha and Mary's minds, they are questions that we can identify with. What my Savior says, who he says he is, and what I am experiencing, they don't really seem to match up right now. The Messiah is the answer to death and your identity in him means that what you face, as Christ says, does not end in death. My first clear memory of the sorrow of death. came when I was in junior high. My grandmother, who we were very, very close to, she lived about a half mile from us growing up. Very close to her. She was rapidly declining in health and she had been moved into an assisted living facility in the town where we lived. And I remember one evening being taken to visit her, just like we had done almost every day for the last several weeks. My parents had responsibilities at home that night and so a close family friend had been asked to sit with my grandmother that evening and then to meet us there. And as we traveled and parked the car and began to walk in, what we didn't realize was that in the past few minutes, she had gone to heaven. And as we walked up to the entrance to the assisted living home here, this friend who was like a second dad to us, to my brother and I, He met us with tears in his eyes, and he simply said, Grandma's gone. Those words, as all of us have experienced, they pierce you with all of those different feelings that you feel in the face of a loved one's passing. And as we were processing all of that, he followed up with these words as he embraced us. My brother and I held us close. He said this, Grandma's gone, but just for a little while. How could He say that? Why could He say that? Why can we believe that? Because Jesus is the resurrection and the life. Those who live and believe in Him, though they die, yet shall they live. Praise the Father for sending this Son. Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting? The sting of death is sin and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Do you believe this? Let's pray. Our Father, we pray that you would strengthen our belief this morning in the one whose identity is synonymous with life. We pray for those who have not yet trusted in simple faith this Savior. We pray that you will continue to use your word through your spirit to convict to show them this morning that he alone is worthy of their full faith and trust. And we thank you that this identity of your son, the fact that he is the resurrection and the life is great encouragement to believers too. We pray that you would encourage us and comfort us in our identity, in our union with him, that we are now made alive to walk in newness of life, that we are made alive and our life is eternal and what we experience here in this fallen death filled world does not end in death. For him, we praise you and in his name we pray.