Jesus performed many miraculous works when He was on the earth. In his gospel account, the apostle John calls the miracles Jesus did signs. He included just a few of the many signs Jesus did. John reports them in order that his readers may believe in Jesus and have eternal life. “And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name” (John 20:30-31).
One of the signs John included was the raising of Lazarus form the dead (John 11:1-44). The response to this sign in real time is not surprising, “Then many of the Jews who had come to Mary, and had seen the things Jesus did, believed in Him” (John 11:45). John included in the story of Lazarus coming back to life, the wonderful words Jesus spoke to his sister, Martha on that occasion. Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26).
What a great and precious promise! The believer in Christ may die, but on the last day, the day of Christ’s coming, his body will be raised, and he will live forever! But that’s not all. It is also true that the believer will never die. His body may die, but he will live on in his spirit with Christ in heaven until the resurrection. As Paul said, “So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord. For we walk by faith, not by sight. We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord”
(2 Corinthians 5:6-8).
As Jesus asked Martha, “Do you believe this?”