In every culture, in every tribe, in every civilization, we see people speculating about the question of death and the afterlife.

The obvious question is, when I die, is that the end? Is the whole of my existence summed up between the two points of birth and death, such as our marked on people's graves?

Or is there something else? Is there something more?

Although people often say that death is simply a natural part of life, in a real sense it's unnatural and intrusion into this fallen world,

and I believe that's one reason why whether you're a Christian or an atheist, even though we experience suffering and grief frequently, we don't get used to it. It still hurts.

Hi, I'm Nathan W. Bingham, and thank you for joining us today for renewing your mind.

Jesus came into this fallen world, a world filled with death and sorrow, and he made a bold claim, and one that is more comfort and hope to countless people since those words were uttered.

I am the resurrection and the life.

Today, as R.C. Sproul continues his study of Jesus' I am saying, he considers this death-defying declaration, and what it means for you and me.

Again, we continue now with our study of the I am's of Jesus, and today we're going to look at a very important declaration that Jesus made on the occasion of his visit to Bethany to the home of Lazarus and Mary and Martha after the death of Lazarus, in which occasion Jesus said,

I am the resurrection and the life.

And to set the context for that, let's look, if we may, at the 11th chapter of the book of John, where it begins telling us that Lazarus had become ill,

and so his sister sent a message to Jesus, imploring him to come and help, saying, behold, the one you love is sick.

And when Jesus heard that, his response was this, this sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God that the Son of God may be glorified through it.

Now that, of course, would be a very encouraging response when Jesus declared that the illness of Lazarus was not unto death, but the purpose of it was to glorify God.

Now, we're told in verse 5 that Jesus loved Martha and her sister in Lazarus.

So when he heard that he was sick, he stayed two more days in the place where he was, which is a jolting statement here in the text, because you would think that when Jesus gets this request in the news of the severity of the illness of Lazarus, and right after John tells us how much he loved Lazarus, you would have expected, as the sisters of Lazarus certainly did, that Jesus would come immediately.

But instead, he stayed two more days where he was. And then after that, he said to the disciples, let us go to Judea again.

And the disciples said, rabbi, lately, the Jews sought the stone, you and you're going to go back there.

And Jesus said, are there not 12 hours in the day, if anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world.

But if one walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him. These things, he said, after it had been said to them, our friend Lazarus sleeps.

But I go, but I may wake him up, and the disciples said, Lord, if he sleeps, then he will get well. But Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that he was speaking about simply taking rest in sleep.

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