Passports

25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; 26 and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”27 “Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.” John 11:25-27

My three kids and I have an opportunity to go with a team from our church on a mission trip this summer to Mexico. We are excited about having this chance to go and serve beside a missionary couple that we know personally. But we can’t just buy our plane tickets and go.

First, we all have to apply for and obtain passports. If you’ve never done this, let me tell you, it’s a process. You have to fill out a form. You have to collect and present several documents to prove your identity. If you’re a minor, you have to have both parents in attendance with you ready to sign your forms. And, of course, you have to pay the fees.

But this document, once secured, is critically important to have when traveling out of the country. It is required. No exceptions. It will be checked and inspected and the outcome of your trip depends on it being valid.

As we get nearer and nearer to Easter Sunday -- Resurrection Day -- I find myself thinking a lot about what Jesus did for me when He willingly died on that cross and was raised again. And since I also have all this passport process on my mind, I am realizing some similarities.

In this passage from John 11, Jesus is talking to Martha, whose brother, Lazarus, recently died and was buried. Jesus tells Martha that whoever believes in Him will live. Jesus is the resurrection and the life. He goes on to raise Lazarus from the dead later in this chapter. And through His own death and resurrection, He has provided the "passport" to eternal life for us.

Jesus has given us our identity as co-heirs to the kingdom of God. Through our belief in Jesus and His blood shed for us on the cross, Jesus completed our “passports” to eternity. He paid the fees. All we have to do is accept the gift by believing that He is who He says He is--the son of God.

There is no other “document” that we can count on for eternal life. Jesus alone is the way. Our access to eternity in heaven will either be granted or denied based on this one important decision: Do we believe in Jesus and trust Him as our Savior?

If so, we can rest in the glorious promise that Jesus made here to Martha. Jesus is the resurrection and the life! That is certainly something to cherish and hold dear -- way more important than a U.S. passport!

Thank You, Jesus, for submitting to God's perfect plan, for enduring the humiliation, suffering, and pain on the cross, for paying the fees for my sin, that I might know eternal life with You one day.  May I never forget what You have done for me!  Help me to boldly share this gospel with others that they, too, will enter Your kingdom and know eternal life.