By Christopher Dryden
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.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. 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 Son of God, who is coming into the world.”
John 11:20-27 ESV
There is an approach to the word hope that’s uncertain. When someone suggests that they hope an outcome will happen, they’re giving it the wishful preference. They’re giving it the positive vibes and welcome it if it happens … but they also shrug their shoulders because it might not happen. They don’t want to get their … hopes up … just in case it comes crashing down. The idea of hope here is crossing the fingers and wishing for the best.
Jesus’ encounter with Martha helps us move from this degree of hope to another. Martha shows us an approach to what happens when we die. (It’s fascinating that her belief is not where her brother has gone but knowing that her brother will be returning.) That gave some consolation for the afterlife but didn’t do anything when a loved one died. Jesus, however, was there to update what happened then and what that means now.
That update is centred on a revelation of who He is – and how He is the fulfilment of what we desire for later and much more. He is the one who conquers death. He is the one who offers a life that defeats death. He is the embodiment of all that we look for in what it means to be human, and He points to God’s design for the human experience – the death-defying fullness of life that equips us to make the most of today as well as have a confident assurance of what will happen tomorrow. That confident assurance – Jesus’ idea of hope – of never dying. That confident assurance that when we see Jesus, we will be like Him for we shall see Him as He is and so because we have that hope for then, we purify ourselves today to be like Him as He empowers us to do.
Jesus, as the resurrection and the life, gives the believer His kind of hope. This hope overcomes every ailment and negativity of what passes for the world presently. What Jesus outlines is not just something to look forward to when we die. It’s something that affects how we operate now. The Living Hope is new life. This life is not just wishful thinking of pie in the sky when we die. This hope fills us with an approach to life that is about abundance of righteousness, peace, and joy. That life is available now through faith in the Son.
Ask: What view does Martha have on the afterlife and how is Jesus addressing it in His I Am statement?
Seek: How do you apply and live out the statement that those who live and believe in Jesus will never die?
Knock: Thank you that Jesus has risen from the dead, defeating it and all the power it has. Help us now to live in you and believe this for ourselves so that from our mouths and hearts will flow the Living Hope that gives purpose and meaning.
(Upper Photo by Pisit Heng on Unsplash)
(Inner Photo by simon wood on Unsplash)
