Christmas is twenty-four days away, one of my favorite things to do during this season is watch Christmas movies. It has been said that Christmas movies elicit good feelings and that some of the joy experienced while watching a Christmas movie stems from a Pavlovian response. Christmas movies, particularly the classic ones like Miracle on 34th Street, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, and A Charlie Brown Christmas invoke similar feelings as experienced while watching as a child. Most Christmas movies contain an element of the miraculous; faith, hope, love, joy, and redemption. Whether intentional or not, the connection to miracles in Christmas movies stems from the ultimate miracle and reason for the season, the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I do not think it is a coincidence that the “I AM” statement for this month itself is a miracle.
In the eleventh chapter of John, verses twenty-five and twenty-six, Jesus said, “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.” These words were spoken to Martha immediately preceding Jesus performing a miracle. Martha, Mary, and their community were mourning the death of Lazarus, their brother and beloved friend. Jesus arrives in Bethany four days after the death of His friend. Martha, Mary, and the community, who loved Lazarus, thought His arrival was too late to make a difference, but Jesus is never late. He arrived right on time to teach a life changing and faith deepening lesson.
Many in the community failed to understand the depth of Jesus’ divinity and wept as those without hope. Martha did not fail to believe; she knew that Believers in Jesus would be raised to life at the end of time, but her understanding was limited. She had an Old Testament understanding of resurrection (Job 19:25–27, Psalm 49:13–15, Daniel 12:2–3, Hosea 6:1–2). She had no clue that Jesus was about to update that understanding with this, the fifth, “I AM” statement. Jesus’ update was not in word only, this update included an action step, a visual demonstration, a miracle. Like the miracles which often serve as the turning point in Christmas movies, the resurrection of Lazarus from the dead served as the turning point in this Biblical story.
The faith and spiritual understanding of Martha, Mary, their community changed as they witnessed the miraculous. When Jesus commanded them to remove stone and called Lazarus from the grave, their faith was deepened, it matured. They had given up on the possibility of Lazarus living again because he had been dead for four days. They were aware that the decaying process had already begun, and Lazarus was fully dead. They did not count on Lazarus responding to Jesus’ voice and walking out of the grave. While they had heard of miracles, they had not counted on the miraculous occurring.
In this “I AM” statement, Jesus revealed and demonstrated that He had all power in His hands (Matthew 28:18) and that death is not the end nor the final word for those who believe in Him. Jesus used the demonstration teaching method to solidify this learning for those in attendance and each of us today. He knew we would all would need a powerful object lesson to grasp the depth of His power over life and death. Jesus did not say that He would cause Lazarus’ resurrection, He said, He is the resurrection! The miraculous raising Lazarus from the dead was to teach us that we who claim Jesus as Savior have the guarantee of life eternal because Jesus is the resurrection and the life.
Jesus clarified His divinity by teaching this powerful lesson. Martha and those with her learned; the resurrection is not an event but a person. Martha and those with her learned; time is not an obstacle for the miracles Jesus chooses to perform. Death had and has no power over Him and over those who belong to Him. He not only gives life, He is the source of life (1 John 5:11). Because we belong to Him, death will not defeat us and is not the end for us (1 Corinthians 15:53). I am grateful for the lesson Jesus taught through the resurrection of Lazarus and I am blessed to be reminded that Jesus, the source of life, still resurrects.
In addition to being a fan of Christmas movies, I am an avid HGTV watcher. I have watched countless episodes of shows in which contractors restore houses. Some of the houses were destroyed by natural disasters, naughty contractors, or owner neglect. Every show begins with the house in one condition and ends with that same house being restored to something beautiful. Restoration is a synonym for resurrection. When something or someone is restored, they are returned to a former owner, place, or condition. Resurrection is not returning to something but being transformed into something else. The renovated houses are still houses at the end of each episode but when Jesus resurrects, a new creation is made. After his resurrection, Lazarus was transformed, he became a bold witness with a profound impact.
Jesus, the resurrection and the life, continues to transform. He transforms the minds of those who choose to accept Him as Lord and Savior (Romans 12:2). Whosoever accepts Him receives the gift of a life guided by The Holy Spirit. Jesus, the resurrection and the life, transforms the desires of those who choose to accept Him (Psalm 37:4, Matthew 16:24-26, Galatians 5:24). Whosoever accepts Jesus receives the gift of a kingdom focused life. Jesus, the resurrection and the life, transforms the purpose /direction of those who choose to accept Him as Lord and Savior (Matthew 28:19-20, John 15:16, 1 Peter 2:9). It is my prayer that you will allow Jesus, the resurrection and the life, to do the miraculous and transform your life this Christmas.
Join me Under The Church Hat for this month’s exercise:
In less than 250 words write your response to the question Jesus posed to Martha;
“Do you believe”?
Write a prayer of gratitude for the times Jesus has “arrived” at the right time in a dire situation in your past.
In less than 250 words, describe a time in your life that can be used as an object lesson to demonstrate the miraculous power of Jesus.
Describe how your life has been transformed because you have accepted Jesus, the resurrection and the life, in less than 250 words.
Choose a passage of scripture from this devotion to meditate on throughout the month.