September 29, 2025 - John 11:25 - "Christ, The Resurrection and The Life"

John 11:25

"Jesus said unto her, I am the Resurrection, and the Life: he that believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:"

These words were spoken to Martha in the sorrow of her brother’s death. Her heart was heavy, and yet Christ delayed His coming on purpose, knowing He would raise Lazarus. This passage is not simply about a man who had died, but about Christ crucified and risen, the very One Who Himself is the Resurrection and the Life. He is not offering only comfort, but declaring His sovereign authority over death.

When Christ came into this world, it was to conquer sin, Satan, the world, and death. He conquered death through His own death, for He laid down His life of Himself, and He rose again (John 10:18). Death could not hold Him (Acts 2:24). That is true only of Christ. For us, death holds our bodies in the grave, but He is the Resurrection and the Life.

Martha said, “I know that He shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day” (John 11:24). But Christ points her not to an event, but to Himself. Resurrection is not just future—it is Christ Himself. It is the Person and the finished work of Christ crucified and risen. Salvation is not found in an act of man, nor in religion, but only in Him Who is the Resurrection and the Life.

Lazarus could not raise himself. He was four days in the grave. His body stank, and the people knew he was beyond hope. Yet at Christ’s command, he came forth. So it is with sinners—dead in trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1). No sinner can bring himself to life. It is the Sovereign Voice of Christ alone that gives life. As He said in John 5:21, “For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will.”  Salvation rests entirely in Christ’s will and power.

This is why Paul says in Ephesians 2:4–6, “But God, who is rich in mercy… even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ… and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.”   When Christ was raised from the grave, all His people were raised with Him. His death was their death. His resurrection was their resurrection. All hope rests in His completed work at the cross and His triumph over the grave. Paul declares in 1 Corinthians 15:20–22, “Now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept… for as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.”  Christ’s resurrection guarantees the resurrection of His people. If He had not risen, there would be no hope. But the fact that He rose proves that God is satisfied—that every jot and tittle of His holy law has been fulfilled, that sin has been put away, and that death has been conquered (Romans 4:25).

And so, when Christ says, “I am the resurrection, and the life,” He is our Assurance. He gives eternal life, and His sheep shall never perish (John 10:28). Those who believe in Him will never die eternally, because it is the LORD Jesus Who gives life to each one for whom He paid the debt. Their believing in Him is the effect of His gracious Spirit's work in their hearts, and not the cause. At the end of this earthly life for God's redeemed children, physical death is but a passage for them—from this mortal life into the Presence of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:8). And one day, at the last trumpet, “the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed” (1 Corinthians 15:52).

This is the victory. “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? … Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:55–57). May our hearts rest fully on Christ crucified, risen, and reigning—the Resurrection and the Life. In Him alone is Salvation, Assurance, and Eternal Hope.