Today we celebrate three very dear friends of Jesus: Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. Their home in Bethany was a place where Our Lord often found rest and welcome. But in today’s Gospel, that home is filled with grief. Lazarus has died. Mary is mourning. Martha is heartbroken. And into that sorrow, Jesus comes.

This Gospel shows us something powerful: Jesus doesn’t avoid suffering—He steps into it. And in the middle of loss, Martha makes one of the greatest statements of faith in the entire Bible.

Martha sometimes gets a bad reputation—she’s the one who was “worried and upset about many things” while Mary sat at Jesus’ feet. But here in John 11, we see the real depth of Martha’s faith.

Her brother has died. She’s devastated. But when Jesus arrives, she goes out to meet Him. She doesn’t pretend everything is fine. She says plainly, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

That’s not a lack of faith. That’s honest prayer. Martha isn’t accusing—she’s bringing her pain to Jesus, trusting He can handle it.

And then she says something extraordinary: “But even now, I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you.”

Even now. In the middle of heartbreak. That is faith. Not just believing in miracles—but believing in the Person of Jesus, even when the miracle hasn’t come.

Then Jesus speaks. Not just words of comfort, but a revelation of who He is: “I am the Resurrection and the Life.”

Not “I will bring resurrection one day,” but “I am.” Right now. In this moment. In the face of death.

This is one of the most important titles Jesus gives Himself. Because it means that life is not something outside of Him—life is in Him. He doesn’t point us to hope—He is the hope.

When we are grieving, when we feel lost or afraid of death—our answer is not a theory, not a wish. Our answer is a Person: Jesus Christ, who has conquered death and opened the way to eternal life.

---

Jesus then asks Martha, “Do you believe this?” And she responds with deep faith: “Yes, Lord. I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.”

This is a confession as strong as Peter’s. It is the faith that saves. Not because it makes suffering go away—but because it unites us to Jesus, who is the Resurrection.

For Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, their story didn’t end in the tomb. And neither will ours.

Today’s feast is not just about three people in Bethany—it’s about what it means to be friends of Jesus.

Martha served. Mary listened. Lazarus received life. Together they remind us that the Christian life is not just believing in Jesus from a distance—but welcoming Him into our homes, our sorrows, and our joys.

And when we suffer loss, like Martha, we bring it honestly to Him.

When we pray, we remember: we are not speaking into the air. We are speaking to the Resurrection and the Life.

Brothers and sisters, we all carry grief. We all fear death, in some way. But Jesus speaks directly into that fear.

He says to each of us today:
“I am the Resurrection and the Life. Do you believe this?”

Let us answer with Martha:
“Yes, Lord. I believe.”
And let us live as His friends.