Our text for this afternoon is framed in the verses 25, 26, and 27 of chapter 11 of John, part of the narrative that we have just read. Chapter 11, John. beginning to read verse 25 through the end of verse 27, make up the words of our text. And here we read the following. This is God's word. And Jesus said to her, to Martha then, and Jesus said to Martha, I am the resurrection and the life. He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And whoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? She saith unto him, yea, Lord, I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world. Thus far, the reading of God's holy word. May he once again add his blessing to the hearing, the reading, and the preaching of the word of God again this afternoon. Beloved congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ gathered with me in this place this afternoon. We have read together the narrative of the death or at least part of it, of the death and the resurrection of Lazarus. And it's a story we're all familiar with. Even our children can tell the salient points of the beautiful story. And it's such a wonderful story, but the particular text I want to look at with you this afternoon contain those precious words of our Lord, but he says, I am the resurrection and the life. And that statement of our Lord, of course, belongs to all of the other I am's of Jesus that we find recorded in the Gospel of John. Jesus himself tells us what he is for the world. In each of his I am's, he gives us a different view of himself, and he reveals to us how he meets the most diverse needs of the human heart. It does not matter with which need you come to him. He never disappoints you. You place your particular need before him, And he answers with a great, I am. I am just what you need. To the sheep of his pasture, Jesus says, I am the good shepherd. He feeds them. He leads them into green pastures for his namesake. He gently leads his sheep, even when they must walk through the valley of the shadow of death. To those who walk in darkness, Jesus says, I am the light of the world. Jesus lets his light shine on sin and guilt, and then he lets his light shine on redemption and justification. He lets his light shine on death and the grave and on the coming judgment. And to all who hope to enter into the kingdom of grace, he says, I am the door. I am the only way by which you can come to God. And then we've said nothing yet of his words of, I am the bread of life, or I am the way, the truth, and the life, or I am the true vine. But in our text of this afternoon, we hear Jesus say, I am, I am the resurrection and the life. And then he immediately adds the words, he that believes in me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. We hear it already. Jesus is speaking of immortal life. And once again, we are reminded that all of life on earth is but of a short duration. Life on earth is but a brief span. Some of God's creatures live only a day. But even if each of us were to live for 100 years, what is that compared to an eternity? We cannot even describe what an eternity is. And the Bible is full of explicit and implicit language to teach us that Human life on Earth, it is but transitory. In the Bible, the span of human life is described as a shadow, a dream, a breath, a tale that is quickly told. And as we get older, those words become very real to us. Oh, in our younger years, life seems endless. And oftentimes, as youngsters, we can be seen trying to push those years ahead, anxious. We're anxious to get on with our future. A child, a young child, anxiously awaits his first day at school. And then to be 16, to learn how to drive a car. And then to be old enough to date, to vote, to be married, to raise a family, have a career. We can hardly wait for those milestones. But as men and women mature, they soon realize the truth of the psalmist's words, life is but a breath, and we soon fade away. And when we then reflect on the brevity of human life, It can cause us to despair. You see, man longs for immortality, and rightly so, for man was created for eternity. By nature, men and women do not want to die. Man longs for life. He longs for life without end, and yet it is appointed for all men once to die, and then judgment, says the Bible. But now we hear in our text the wonderful words of Christ. He that lives and believes in me shall never die. There is then an immortal life. There is then a way to live forever. Christ teaches us that there is a way to immortal life, and that way, says Jesus, is through him. Here Jesus teaches us, I am the way. I am the way to immortal, immortal life. Our text of this afternoon speaks of these things, and I want to minister God's words you are using as my theme, simply immortal life. We want to hear Christ describe himself as the author of immortality. We then want to hear Christ describe the immortal life. We will hear Christ point the way to immortality, and then finally we want to make some practical application with regards to our own immortal life. So immortal life, Christ describes himself as the author of it. He describes what it is. We'll hear Christ point the way to immortality, and then our own immortal life. Our text opens up with the words, I am the resurrection and the life. And that statement contains two parts, but it expresses one and the same truth. Jesus here declares that in him there is a life over which death no longer has any power or authority. Jesus here alerts Martha and each of us to the fact that he has won the victory over death. I am the resurrection and the life. Here in our text, we come to a section of the Bible where the hope of an eternal life is clearly set forth for the first time. A general resurrection of all believers is clearly stated here, and the power behind that resurrection to immortality is identified as the Lord Jesus Christ. But before we look at Christ's statement of himself being the resurrection and the life, we want to take just a moment and set it in its context. In particular, we need to look at, for just a moment, look at the one to whom Jesus spoke these words, and we need to look at the circumstances in which he spoke them. You see, Jesus spoke these words to Martha, but his words are meant not for her alone, but for all Christians. You see, Martha here is an excellent example of a certain type of believer. She's also much like so many Christians we still often see today. You see, Martha, along with so many other sincere children of God, Martha does not really distrust the Lord, but neither does she have the fullness of confidence in Him that allows her to lay aside her own cares and to trust fully in His care. And we see that yet so often, all men and women believe but they're always troubling themselves with questions of why, why not, why me, or what if? And so they robbed themselves of so much joy in the Lord, and they missed so much of the blessing, and their hearts would be far less troubled if only they would believe more fully. And so too for Martha. Martha's primary problem was that she had failed to fully trust the Lord. and she attempts to limit God, or if you will, she pairs down or scales down God's promises. That's what we see here in Martha. She limits Christ's promise both to time and to place. We hear her say to Jesus, Lord, if you would have been here, my brother would not have died. According to Martha, if Jesus was to help, he had to be there, and he had to be there on time. And since he did not come, And since Lazarus had died, now it was too late. Now we need to remember that Jesus had deliberately delayed his return to Bethany for two days so that when he got there, when he did arrive, it was four days after the funeral. And Jesus waited for the time, he waited for the time appointed by his father. And when that time had come, he went to Bethany to raise up Lazarus in order that God would be glorified by all who witnessed it. But Martha did not understand all of this. And so when Jesus finally arrived, her words were, we could say, that her words were a bit of a rebuke to Jesus, as she expressed her own limited faith. Lord, if you would have been here, he would not have died. And obviously, Martha believed that if Jesus would have been there four days earlier, then he could have done something. But now, it's too late. Indeed, she goes on to say that even now I know that whatever you ask of the Father, he will give it. But obviously that whatever did not include a resurrection, for she was quick to again rebuke the Lord when he asked that the stone be rolled away. From the tomb, Lord, don't do that. Lord, don't do that. He's been there for four days, and he's already begun to decay. Lord, four days he's been in that tomb. By now, there will be a stench. So Martha indicates that she did not possess the strength of faith that would allow her to believe that Jesus could raise her brother from the dead. Oh, indeed, she believed that Jesus could help, but he had to have been there on time. And now it was too late. And people of God, there is no reason for us to believe anything other than that Martha was a sincere, precious child of God. Indeed, Martha had not yet understood the power of the Son of God, but she was certainly precious too and cherished by Christ. However, not only did Martha limit Christ's ability to heal by time, also Martha tried to limit Christ by place. Lord, if you would have been here, Martha argued that Jesus needed to have been in this place four days ago in order to be of any help. It's too late now, Lord. It's too late, Lord. Martha implied that Jesus needed to be physically present in order to grant his blessing. She did not believe that Jesus could heal from a distance. But we see still more evidence of her weak faith in that she treated the words of Christ impersonally, if you will. The very first recorded word of Jesus when he returned to Bethany was a tremendous promise. Your brother will rise again. But instead of taking it as a personal promise, she pushed the words off into the future as though the promise had no significance for her personally. Sure, I know he will rise again. I know that. I know he will rise again in the general resurrection along with all believers on that last day. Notice with me now how skillfully Jesus corrects Martha by turning her from the distant future to the immediate present. He fixes her eyes upon himself. Jesus would teach her that it is not the distant future that must occupy her mind. No, she must focus on the person of Christ himself. Jesus turns to her and speaks the words of our text. Martha, Martha, I am the resurrection and the life. Notice with me how graciously the Lord proceeds to instruct her clouded mind. Notice how tenderly Jesus touches her still open wounds. He leads her from grieving over her brother to believing more fully in the Savior. Jesus Christ here in just a few words, he moves Martha from dwelling on the dead Lazarus to focusing fully on him who is the Lord of life. He moves her from thinking only of a general resurrection and a latter life to him who is the resurrection and the life already now. And Jesus turns to Martha and says, I am the resurrection. And his words are directly related to the faith of Martha, who had said, I know, I know that he will raise again on that last day. Martha was preoccupied with that distant future. She did not dare to think of the present. And Jesus gently brings her back to the here and the now. Jesus wants her to know that not only is he the author of the resurrection of the future, but he's also the resurrection now, while standing in the very presence of Martha. Martha, I am the resurrection. And that's what Jesus was and still is. He had proven that to be a fact. Three times Jesus had already raised the dead. You remember the daughter of Jairus, a young child. Then the son of the widow of Nain, a young man. And now Lazarus would be the third, a full-grown adult. So obviously, the life-giving power of Jesus covers all ages, children, youth, and adults. But a more important thought needs to be grasped by us here. As significant and as important as those three resurrections were, An even more important resurrection was just on the horizon. You know the story. In just a little while, Jesus himself would suffer. He would die and be buried, but he would rise from the dead. And Jesus had taught his disciples that he was the good shepherd who would lay down his life for the sheep. We remember his words, I have the power to lay down my life and I have the power to take it up again. And by his resurrection, he had proven that he was the resurrection. But that had not yet happened. And although they had been told as yet, they did not understand. And so Jesus explains to Martha that he is the resurrection, not only for Lazarus, not only for Martha, no, Jesus had become the resurrection and life for many, You see, Jesus still opens graves. Oh, not the physical graves as we see here of Lazarus. No, that will be done on that last great day. But my dear precious people of God, every day all over the world, Christ is still awakening men and women from spiritual death and bringing them to spiritual life. Christ still sends his word and his spirit to call out to dead hearts. In fact, Jesus Christ stands before you today. He stands before you at this very moment and calls out from this very pulpit, arise, O sleepers, arise from the dead. And at the time of our text, many had already been awakened out of the sleep of death by the voice of Jesus. We remember the Samaritan women, and we know of Levi, and Paul, and Lydia, and a jailer in Philippi. They all heard him. They heard him calling. They heard his word and they came. They came from death to life. And still today, millions are being awakened and raised to life from death through Jesus Christ. Oh, indeed, Jesus is the source of resurrection from death to life. I am the resurrection and the life. Oh, indeed, Jesus is the resurrection, but he's also the life. I am the resurrection and the life. Come to this with me. Everyone who answers the call of Christ experiences a spiritual resurrection. We call it regeneration, or if you will, we call it being born again. And these men and women are born again to new life, but their new life must now be nurtured in order that it might grow. And if Jesus did not constantly nourish, if Jesus does not constantly nourish our new lives, not only would they not grow, they would stagnate and die. And so daily, Jesus pours new graces into us, causing our new life to grow. We are not born as seasoned veterans in the faith, no. Regardless of what age we are when we are born again, we are reborn again as babes. We're born as infants in the faith, if you will. And just as a little infant must be fed and nourished in order to grow strong and healthy, so too must our faith be fed, nourished, and nurtured. How? By feeding on the very word of God in Christ. Oh, but by feeding on the very word of Christ, by the preaching, the reading, the studying, and the meditating upon the word of God in Christ, our faith becomes more firm and the mists of our doubt begins to clear. And as we grow in grace and in knowledge through our faithful use of the means of grace, we begin to stand strong in the Lord. Our walk in holiness, our road of sanctification becomes ever more constant and consistent. And all of this congregation is thanks, thanks to the work of Jesus Christ, who pours his spirit into us through his resurrected power. I am the resurrection. and the life. Oh, praise God that Christ grants us not a partial but a complete salvation. Christ is not only the author but also the finisher of our faith. He makes it alive, and then he makes it to grow. But just precisely what has Jesus taught Martha here? His words were directed to her and to her condition and circumstances, first of all. And she had attempted to push the resurrection off to that last day. And Jesus had replied that he was the resurrection and the life. People got the answer to the question here is that Jesus described for her the meaning of immortal life. He describes how Martha and all men and women must come into possession of it. And he describes what that means for the living and for the dead. We hear his words. He that believes in me, though he may die, yet shall he live. So Jesus here relates resurrection to two different elements. Our Lord speaks, first of all, to those who have died and correctly so. Martha's brother had just died. And Jesus here tenderly, compassionately, tactfully leads her darkened mind into a glorious truth. Jesus had already comforted her by drawing attention away from her dead brother to himself with the words, I am the resurrection and the life. And now he immediately adds the words, he who believes in me, though he may die, he will live. Jesus is speaking of the believing dead. Jesus is speaking here of those who have died in the Lord. But just what does Jesus mean? Well, think with me. Simply put, Jesus is simply saying that those who die in the Lord are still alive. They still live. They live on in another and a higher world. And though their bodies have died and have returned to the dust of the ground, their souls live on unto God and Christ. They now worship with God around the great white throne in heavenly glory, and their life is now a life to which our earthly lives cannot even be compared. They live a joyous life without care, without burden, without sorrow or pain. They live in God's heavens. They live in God's house. They live with God and with all the angels and the saints that have gone before them. and they together worship and rejoice around the very throne of God. How do I describe the glory and the beauty of heaven to you? I cannot. But Jesus is saying even more. Jesus does not simply say that our souls will live beyond the grave. That's true, of course. That's true. But that's not what Jesus is saying. Your own old Jesus uses the future tense. He that believes in me, though he die, yet he will live. In other words, Jesus here declares also a promise for the body. Immortal life also promised for our bodies. Jesus is not a partial Savior. Don't you remember your own profession of faith? I believe that in body and soul, in life and in death, I belong to my faithful Savior, Jesus Christ. Both body and soul belong to the Lord, and both body and soul have been redeemed. In other words, the believing dead, the believing dead, they will walk together in their glorified bodies in that new Jerusalem, on that new earth, under a new heaven. He that believes in Me, though he die, he will live. That's the promise of Christ with regards to all of those who die in the Lord. But even more good news is given us here. Not only does Christ have a promise to and about those who have died, but He also holds out a promise for those who are still alive. He that believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live, and yet whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Try to imagine in your minds how strange those words must have sounded to Martha. Lazarus had believed, had he not? Lazarus had been a follower of Christ, had he not? And yet and yet he had died, did he not? The words of Jesus must have sounded like a complete contradiction to Martha. Here she is standing at the grave of her believing brother, and she hears Jesus say, whoever believes in me will never die. Martha must have thought, Lord, this doesn't make any sense to me. Lazarus had just died. And furthermore, as she looked around her, and as she saw believers and unbelievers, she saw no distinction. The angel of death spared no one. The pious and the impious. Believers and unbelievers were equally dying and being carried off and buried. Those were the hard facts of reality. See here the example of my brother, Lord. How can you say, Lord, that believers will never die? My brother died? Oh, my dear, precious people of God. Bit by bit, piece by piece, step by step, Jesus was taking Martha by the hand. And he was leading her into the ever more glorious truths of the resurrection of the believer. Oh, indeed believers along with unbelievers become sick and believers along with unbelievers die. Believers as well as unbelievers suffer tragedies and are killed. Believers and unbelievers have suffered the consequences of the COVID virus and have died. Believers and unbelievers suffer the consequences of that horrible war in the Ukraine, and believers and unbelievers alike are killed and carried off to the graves. They are mourned. Their names are removed from the census rolls among the land of the living. And yet, and yet, and yet, as Jesus is here explaining, for the believer, death is not death. For the believer, death, in all of its horrible reality, it passes them by. You know what I mean. You know what I mean. Death in reality is not only a separation of body and soul, but true death is an eternal separation from God. And that death will not be experienced by those who die in the Lord. For Christ himself has experienced that God-forsakenness on the accursed cross on Golgotha. You remember, don't you? My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Christ himself had experienced that God forsaken us on the accursed cross in the place of the believer. Death for the believer, then it's not a sinking off into outer darkness. No, as our catechism pens it so poignantly for the Christian, death is not death. It simply puts an end to our sin, and it is our entrance into glory. And therefore, Christ says, I am the resurrection and the life. And he who believes in me, though he dies, yet will he live. And he that lives and believes in me will never die. Death for the Christian is not death. It is an ascension into the Father's house of many mansions. Praise God, then, not only that you must die, but that you may die to be joined with your Father in heaven. But we are to capture even more in this short discourse between Martha and her Lord. You see, Jesus here, in these few words, shows her the way to eternal life, not once, but twice. Listen to him with me. believes in me, though he die will live. And he that lives and believes in me will never die. Jesus here is speaking of the glorious immortal life, and he says that the way to that blessedness is through a belief in him. People of God, we're beginning to hear the old, old story again this afternoon. It is the old, old gospel that we have before us again this afternoon. My dear precious saints of God gathered here in Jordan with me this afternoon. Everything recorded in your Bible of the Christ has given us to open our eyes to the fact that Jesus has earned eternal life for guilty sinners. Once again, we hear the glorious message that God, in his great love, rather than leaving us in the chains of death and hell that ensnared us, in his great love, rather than leaving us in those chains of death and hell, he has sent us his only begotten son, so that whosoever would believe in him would not perish, but would have life everlasting. For that sole purpose, he walked and talked and suffered in the form of a man, for that sole purpose to save guilty sinners, to rescue them from darkness and destruction and hell, for that sole purpose Christ drank a cup to his bitter dregs, he left not a single drop for us to drink, and he arose from the grave in order to demonstrate the death Now no longer was the stronger. Death was now a thing of the past. Whoever believes this has eternal life. He will never die. That's the gospel. That's the gospel that I am privileged to bring to you in which you have been blessed to hear and to receive. And now, my dear precious people of God, now comes the moment of decision. Jesus turns to this grieving and confused friend, and he makes it personal. He asks, do you believe this, Martha? But my dear people of God, our Lord asks that question not only of Martha, but of every one of us. Jesus himself stands in our midst this very afternoon, and he asks, do you believe? that the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is your only hope. He that believes in me, though he die, he will live, and he that lives and believes in me will never die. Jesus stands before Martha. Jesus stands before us. Jesus stands before you. Jesus stands before me. Jesus stands before you, too, children. Jesus stands before the world and he says, what will it be for you? Will it be weal or woe? Will you live or will you die? Do you believe this, Martha? If you do, you will live. If you do not, you will surely die. Imagine the elation in Martha's heart and soul as she begins to answer her Lord's question. Martha begins to understand the mystery. Martha begins to put the pieces of the puzzle together. Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world. Oh, how beautifully fitting. You see, Martha, Martha was an Israelite. Martha knew the Old Testament prophecies concerning the coming promised Messiah. And Martha here confesses that she believed that He who was to come had come. In fact, He was standing right there beside her. As Martha's confusion cleared and her mind cleared, she knew herself to be in the presence of God in Christ. In fact, she goes even a step further. She confesses that He is the Son of God for whom but God would have the power over the grave. Oh, what a glorious confession this child of God makes of her faith in these few words. Martha stands there before the Lord, and she confesses that she agrees with her heart and her soul and her mind with all that Christ had said about himself. Jesus asked Martha if she believed all that he had said about himself concerning the resurrection, and Martha had answered with a simple, yes, Lord. Congregation volumes of entire books have been written and published trying to explain the nature of faith. But even the most scholarly of well-written books pale in comparison and have less value than the simple statement of faith made here by Martha. Oh, she doesn't give a well-reasoned, careful explanation or definition of her faith. She doesn't enter into a theological debate or discussion with Jesus. No, her confession was a simple, simple yes, Lord. Martha was saying yes, Lord, yes, Lord, yes, Lord, to all of the promises of God which she had revealed. in His Son. And, people of God, the question of Christ and Martha is still being asked of every man, woman, and child in the world. It is the all-encompassing, the all-inclusive question of life and death. The all-inclusive question is this. Do you believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, come in the flesh to reconcile the lost world unto God by His blood? Actually, the question is even more specific and more personal. The question is, do you believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, come in the flesh to reconcile you unto God by his blood? No, is the answer of unbelief. But faith bends the knees, falls at the cross of gold fences. Yes, Lord. Yes, Lord. Yes, Lord. I believe. Christ stands in this fallen world, and he asks, do you believe that I am the resurrection and the life? And do you believe that all who believe in me will not die, but will in body and soul live forever? The unbeliever answers, no, are you kidding? That's impossible. Don't be so absurd. Life ends at the grave. Death is the end. It's the end of life. But faith. The faith of a believing child of God cries out triumphantly, yes, Lord, yes, Lord. I see a grave, Lord. I see a coffin. I see a corpse. I see a cemetery and a gravestone. But, but, but, through the eyes of my faith, I see a glorious resurrection into life eternal. My dear precious people of God, once again, we were reminded that in the sphere of true religion, there is no such thing as neutrality. All must answer and decide between the yes of faith or the no of unbelief. One or the other will be the confession of all of mankind. Oh, indeed, the Lord does not demand that all confessional profession of faith would immediately be strong and immovable. For many, faith is initially hesitant and weak And God does not despise the things of small beginnings. I repeatedly explain to my confession of faith class year over year that neither God nor the consistory asks them to be doctors of theology before publicly professing their faith. God asks the same all-inclusive question of Martha, of the troubling hearts of my catechumens, and God then listens intently to their answer. He hears their quiet whisper of, yes, Lord, I believe. And then God gently leads these young people on in order that their faith may grow and become as strong as a mighty oak. Is that not precisely what we have seen Christ doing with Martha? Had Christ not already taught her for several years? Had she not sat at his feet? And had he not patiently taught her step by step? Had Christ not gently taken her by the hand, and had he not bit by bit led her in the way of life everlasting? Had Martha herself not been confused about so much of this? Had Martha not consistently believed that she always must be busy for the Lord? And had Christ not taught her that a quiet, steadfast belief, a quiet trusting in Him was most needful first of all? He will do the same for you. and for me. He will teach each of us to say, Lord, yes, Lord. He calls you and he calls me. He calls to us as lost sinners. And do we say, yes, Lord? He calls you and me to come to him with our guilt and our shame. Do we say, yes, Lord? Christ invites us to kneel at the foot of the cross. And do we say, yes, Lord? And finally Christ asks of us, if we believe that he is the son of God, come in the flesh to redeem you personally from death and hell. Christ stood before you this afternoon and he asked, do you, do you believe that Christ came and died for your sin? He asked, do you believe that he died for your transgression? and was raised for your justification. What will your answer be? Oh, cry out with me, yes, Lord. Yes, Lord, I believe. Help thou my unbelief. Shall we pray? Father, my faith looks up to thee, thou Lamb of Calvary, Savior divine. Now hear us when we pray. Take all our guilt away. Oh, let us from this day be wholly thine. When ends life's transient dream, when death's cold, sullen stream would o'er us roll, blessed Savior, then in love, fear and distrust remove. Oh, bear us safe above a ransomed soul. Amen.