v 25 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.
This is one of the most stupendous claims Jesus made! To believe in Jesus and live in him was the way to live for ever. Hear these words in an age and society where the inevitability of death hangs over every person and thing that lives, and see Jesus’ claim for what it is. Every tree and shrub, every flower and blade of grass, every cat and dog, lion and lamb, prince and pauper – every living thing lives under a sentence of death. To live is to face the inevitability of dying.
Then along comes Jesus and dares to say ‘Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die.’ It runs counter to every observation of life, doesn’t it. But then note, Jesus makes an even more startling claim ‘I am the resurrection and the life’ he tells them. He is the source of all life, the first creation, and the new creation that his resurrection ushered in. The Christian message is not just that Jesus lived, died, and rose again, but that he freely offers this resurrection life to all who will believe.
That is some message to tell a world that exists under a sentence of death.