In the Bible we see that Jesus had the power over death. He raised at least three people from the dead and He Himself was raised to life.

1. Lazarus – in John 11:38-44 we see Jesus raised Lazarus to life. He had been dead and buried for four days, but Jesus brought him back.
2. Jairus’ daughter – in Matthew 9:18-26 Jesus raised the officials daughter after she died. The man came and asked Jesus to heal her, but she died while he was away. Jesus raised her to life.
3. Widows only son – in Luke 7:11-15 Jesus came across a funeral procession. He told the young man to get up and he was raised to life. Jesus then gave him back to his mother.

As I read these three stories afresh they gave me a great hope. Hope that nothing is impossible to Jesus in this life. He even has the power over death!

As Christian we know that when we die we will be raised to life to be with Jesus. We will meet Him in heaven first and we will come back with Him when He calls time on this world.

1 Thessalonians 4:15-18 NLT
[15] We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet him ahead of those who have died. [16] For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the believers who have died will rise from their graves. [17] Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. [18] So encourage each other with these words.

Knowing that Jesus has the power over death means that nothing is impossible for Him in this life. Knowing that when this life is over we will spend eternity with Him gives me hope.

Today I want to encourage you with this great hope – nothing is impossible for Jesus. He can raise the dead and He can give us eternal life as we put our hope and trust in Him.

If you have not trusted Jesus for your salvation, I would encourage you to visit my finding salvation page.

1 Timothy 1:15-16 NLT – This is a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”-and I am the worst of them all. [16] But God had mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of his great patience with even the worst sinners. Then others will realize that they, too, can believe in him and receive eternal life.

In these verses Paul summarises the Good News – Jesus came into the world to save sinners, and no sinner is beyond His saving power.

Jesus didn’t come in to the world to show us how to live better lives or challenge us to be better people. He came to offer us salvation that leads to eternal life.

Jesus tells us in Luke 5:31-32, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor-sick people do. [32] I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners and need to repent.”

Paul understood this and humbly admits that he too was a sinner who also needed to be saved. Paul knew who he was before he met Jesus and he did not shy away from his past. He used it to bring glory to God and people to Christ.

As Christians I think we need to be honest about our past when sharing our faith. There are times when I have shared my past life with people who did not think God would accept them.

The key for us is to realise that none of us are good enough to make it to heaven on our own. We all need Jesus and His death on the cross to pay the price for our sin. Only then are we good enough and ready for eternal life.

It is my hope and prayer that like Paul you have realised your need for Jesus and have found salvation in Him. If you have not found Jesus, I would encourage you to visit my “Find salvation” page here.