Martha therefore, when she heard that Jesus was coming, went to meet Him, but Mary stayed at the house. Martha then said to Jesus, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died. Even now I know that whatever You ask of 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; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?” She said to Him, “Yes, Lord; I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God, even He who comes into the world.” Jn 11:20-27
We can avoid spiritual inertia by the power of Jesus’ resurrection from death. His resurrection strengthens every Christian against the world and gives hope to them for a heavenly future. Before our conversion, we hoped to find our joy in the world, but now our future is bound with Christ, and in Him we find our true hope. It is Christ who died for our sins and was raised back to life so that his elect are counted righteous by God. We are assured and made strong in our conviction and devotion to him because of the power of Jesus’ resurrection.
Jesus’ resurrection is real. Jesus’ resurrection is real because real evidences are given to prove He was risen.
– His tomb was empty. The body of Jesus was no longer in the tomb. (Acts 2:29,32)
– Apostle Paul’s conversion. Apostle Paul was the most unlikely convert. As Saul, he was a devout Pharisee with every reason to remain confident in the flesh. After encountering the risen Lord, Saul renamed himself Paul and was converted to the Christianity he once sought to persecute. (Acts 8:1; Phil 3:4-8)
– The disciples’ consistent narrative of Jesus’ resurrection. Jesus’ disciples suffered harsh persecution for their testimony of Jesus, but not one recanted their claim of Jesus’ resurrection.
– The many eyewitness accounts. All who witnessed the risen Lord and were converted gave eye-witness testimony of Jesus’ resurrection. (1Cor 15:7)
– The Bible says so. Above all, Scripture records that Jesus rose again. The Bible is the Word of God, inspired by the Holy Spirit. It is infallible, inerrant, and is the ultimate authority. (2Pet 1:21; Lk 16:31)
Jesus’ resurrection is more than a historical fact. To have saving faith and the hope of the future, mere knowledge of Jesus’ resurrection is not enough. The resurrection gave us an eternal and accessible relationship with the living God, and many are taught this truth in their churches. Still, many Christians today live as if Christ never lived again, living with a mindset not unlike the world. They live a life of weakness, unable to overcome the difficulty of their lives. They are powerless against sins, and their hearts are not hoping for the Kingdom of God.
Are you responding to Christ’s resurrection with faithfulness? There are five groups of people illustrated in John 11 that can represent how men respond to His resurrection today-
– Those who were sarcastic, worldly, and superficial had no hope and no faith in receiving help from God after the death of Lazarus. Today, these men are those who ignorantly hate Jesus, not understanding Him or His works.
– Martha was simply religious in her response to Jesus. She did not fully understand who stood before her. She limited Jesus’ power in her mind with her little faith, unable to believe what she couldn’t see. True living faith is born from a true understanding of Jesus, who was truly man and truly God. (Jn 11:19-24, Col 2:9) Today, these men are those who approach Christianity with a superficial understanding of Jesus, applying false limitations to the power of Christ.
– The onlookers of Christ were simply entertained by the works of Jesus, but they never came to Him with repentance and faith for the salvation of their souls. (Jn 11:37, Lk 23:1) Today, these are men who wholly approve of the works of Christ, and yet are unconvinced of their own needs for Christ.
– Those who believed and were converted saw Jesus raise the dead Lazarus, and they responded with saving faith. True salvation has in its foundation faith in the resurrection of Christ. (Jn 11:45; Acts 22:7-9) Today, these are men who faithfully respond to the Gospel.
– Those who have resolved in their hearts to reject Jesus witnessed Him raise Lazarus from the dead, but still rejected Him. Even with all the proof, evidence, and knowledge that shows Jesus is the Son of God, they did not believe Him. (Jn 11:46) Today, these are men who harden their hearts to be purposefully militant against Christ and His church.
The resurrection of Jesus Christ must be central to your faith, because there is no power to our religion without the power of resurrection. What then, is ‘faith’? True faith is that which assures us of God’s promises, empowering us to believe in what cannot be seen. Faith has three elements- noticia (knowledge), assensus (intellectual consent), and fiducia (trust). It works like this – the Scripture provides us the facts of who God is, who we are, and what God has done for us. (Jn 20:31) The truth of the Scripture, then, is learned and understood. Simply knowing and understanding the Christ of the Bible, however, is not enough. Faith is complete as you put your trust in Christ- by exerting your confidence of the Word by resting upon Him, committing your life to Him, and looking to and learning from Him for all things. The exercise of faith requires you realize your inability and need for salvation and God’s gracious offer of salvation. Faith in Christ brings assurance and peace to our hearts, because we know Christ has loved us, gave Himself up for us, (Gal 2:20) and then rose again from the dead.
BIBLE COMMUNITY CHURCH 
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