The I AM

John 11:^25-26 “Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?”

Resurrection and Life is not an event or a time. Resurrection and Life is a person. Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life, not a theological expression anymore but a living breathing human being. Jesus stood there and Martha was pointing to a future event and Jesus said, ‘I am Alpha and Omega, that future event is complete in Me. I am the Resurrection and the Life, the resurrection you want in the future, you can have now.’ The things you are trusting God for when you get to heaven, Jesus is saying, you can have them now in Him, it is available now in Christ Jesus. Do you believe? One of Jesus’ “disturbing” habits is, positing Himself as The Answer to a critical issue. He says, “I am the Resurrection and the Life”.

That was very disturbing for people in that culture. This was Jesus, the carpenter’s son who was not even up to forty years old that they knew, and He is saying, “I am the Resurrection and the Life”. Can you think of other examples where Jesus posited Himself and pitched Himself as The Answer to life’s problem? One of such is when He said, I am the Bread of Life [John 6:35], come and eat Me and have life. Jesus, seriously? He says, ‘yes anyone who does not eat My flesh and drink My blood does not have life.’ Very disturbing! Another is, ‘I am the Way, the Truth and the Life [John 14:6], no one comes to the Father except through Me.’ Again, very disturbing.

But He did not stop there, Jesus said, ‘In case you think I am saying, ‘I am a Way’, I am not a way, I am The Way and nobody comes to the Father except by Me’. Jesus was so religiously intolerant, very disturbing, and politically incorrect. Jesus was saying, take it or leave it, ‘I am the Way, the Truth and the Life.’  I am the light of the world [John 8:12], I am the Good Shepherd [John 10:11-18]. I am the gate [John 10:7]. I am the vine and you are the branches; without Me, you can do nothing [John 15:5]. That is who Jesus is and He did not leave any room for guesswork. This is one of the things you have to love about Jesus, He did not leave space for speculation. He says, ‘This is it; I am who I am, take it or leave!’

John 11:³⁵ “Then Jesus wept.” The word here is edakrysen, it appears only in the New Testament. It means “silently tearing up, with tears running down the cheeks.” This is important because, in John 11:33, the word used to describe the weeping and wailing of Mary and her friends is klaio which means an outburst of uncontrollable tears and crying. Mary and Martha cried, they wept, and Jesus wept. The word weeping and wept in the English version, is not the same in the original, the Greek version. One is grief, silent tears rolling down His cheek and the other one is screaming and wailing. Why did Jesus weep? One of the answers is in John 11:33. When Martha came, did Jesus weep? No, it was a logical intellectual exchange but when Mary came, Jesus wept.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are who You say You are. I ask that You help me approach You with the understanding of who You are. Take Your place as Lord in my life, in Jesus Name. Amen!