He is “The Resurrection and the Life”

Because He is “The Resurrection and the Life” 

I was sitting at my Nanna’s funeral in 1994 when the minister read these words: 

“Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die.’”  John 11:25

I don’t remember much else from that day—maybe we sang an old Wesleyan hymn—but I will never forget those words. They cut through the atmosphere and pierced my grief. In the sorrow of losing my beautiful Nan, a quiet certainty settled in my heart: I would see her again. 

Life is fragile and uncertain. 

Jesus spoke those words to Martha as they walked toward her brother Lazarus’s grave. He had been dead for four days. Jesus didn’t deny the reality of death, nor did He try to avoid it. Instead, He stepped into Martha’s pain and hopelessness and made a bold, radical declaration: 

“I am the resurrection and the life.” 

This wasn’t a theology lesson. Jesus wasn’t saying, “One day I’ll rise,” or “I can pray and bring people back.” He was saying, “Resurrection isn’t just something I do. It’s who I am.” 

He is the Author of Life. 

In John 14:19, Jesus said “Because I live, you also will live.” 

To touch Him, to know Him, is to encounter resurrection and life. 

The Greek word for resurrection is ἀνάστασις (anastasis)—it literally means “a standing up” or “a rising again.”  

Death is certain. It hangs over us all. We’re reminded every time we lose someone we love. Our hearts break, and we feel the finality of life. 

But Jesus steps into that grief too. Because of Him, we grieve with hope. 

We have the actual “Standing Up One, the Rising Again One”, living in us, walking with us.  

And one day—if you happen to attend my funeral—I’m sure someone will read this same Scripture from John 11. 

But on that day, I won’t be believing it by faith anymore. 

It will be my reality. 

(And hopefully, they’ll remember to sing a couple of hymns too!) 

- Roz Zaia