Resurrection Hope

 “I am the resurrection and the life,

those who believe in me, even though they die,

yet shall they live.”

John 11:24

          Clergy at a graveside often repeat these words, and that is fitting because they were first spoken at a graveside.  Lazarus lay in a tomb four days, and he’d been pretty sick a while before that.  Only afterward did Jesus show up, and Martha was a little irritated at the delay.  “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”  She had faith enough to believe that Jesus could have made a difference when Lazarus lived, but now she thought it too late because death always has the final word.

          Jesus challenged that assumption with a promise of resurrection and life.  For those who stand over an open grave this assurance is the only thing that keeps knees from buckling and shoulders from sagging.  This hope speaks to more than the fear we all have of the great void.  It speaks to more than our ability to let go or say goodbye.  The resurrection is God’s promise that this life also has meaning and purpose.  What we believe and how we live as a consequence do matter.

          The reason Jesus attached this promise to faith is because it is faith that ultimately guides and strengthens us.  Erase faith and hope falls out of the picture and where hope fades our future matters not at all.  All we are left with is ourselves, and for many that is too much to bear.

          When next you stand at a graveside and hear these words, remember they are not just for some far distant future.  They are for us today – right now.