John 11

Read John Chapter 11 :: Here

Devotional ::

“Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill. 3 So the sisters sent to him, saying, “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” 4 But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” 

5 Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6 So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was. 7 Then after this he said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.”

…he said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.” 12 The disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover.” 13 Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he meant taking rest in sleep. 14 Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus has died, 15 and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” 

17 Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. 18 Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off, 19 and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother. 20 So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. 21 Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22 But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” 23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” 24 Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” 25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” 27 She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.” 

28 When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying in private, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.” 29 And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to him. 30 Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met him. 31 When the Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary rise quickly and go out, they followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there. 32 Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” 33 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. 34 And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” 35 Jesus wept. 36 So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” 37 But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?” 

38 Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. 39 Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.” 40 Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” 41 So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. 42 I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me.” 43 When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” 44 The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

John 11:1-7, 11-15, 17-44 ESV 

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There are two verses in this passage that bring the story off the page and into each of our lives…if we have the courage to face them and wrestle with what God is saying to us through them.

“5 Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6 So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was…”

“…So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” 37 But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?” 

Sometimes, for reasons that are difficult for us to understand, God allows us to experience things that we perceive as difficult, painful, or even devastating.  OF COURSE Jesus could have kept Lazarus from dying!  But He chose not to do so…waiting where He was while Mary & Martha watched their worst fear come to pass, as Lazarus slipped from this life into the next.  And here’s the crazy part: Verse 5 tells us that Jesus did this because He LOVED all three of them.

Now we’ve come to the bit that’s difficult for us to understand…how could allowing them to experience loss be an act of love!?  There’s something going on in this story that can change everything for us if we catch a glimpse of it.  So what exactly is Jesus doing?

We know He doesn’t take pleasure in their pain…He weeps right alongside them, experiencing pain and sadness Himself, because they are hurting.  Yet He apparently thinks their pain worthwhile, that somehow it is bringing them into some kind of greater good…a better reality than if He had answered their prayer, and not allowed Lazarus to die.  We know this because we’re plainly told Jesus waits because He loves them!  

He is giving Mary, Martha and Lazarus a gift that is even better than the good things they already believe: “…I know Lazarus will rise again at the last day”.  Martha already has hope in the future; “sure Jesus, I know we’ll see him again…someday”.

And the rest of the grieving crowd are stuck in the past; “…if only Jesus has healed him, Lazarus would still be alive”. 

But Jesus gives them a life changing gift…a new paradigm in which to live their lives, when He says: “I AM the resurrection and the life…”.

He is inviting them to experience Him in the present moment!  They don’t have to carry the pain of the past.  True, Lazarus has died.  But now Jesus is here!

Nor do they have to place all their hope in some future event — Jesus can do ANYTHING, right here, right now!!!  Can you imagine how much joy, peace and confidence Mary, Martha and Lazarus must have lived in for the rest of their lives here on earth?  They’d already seen death undone, right in front of their eyes.  So what’s left to fear?  What could they possibly worry about?  They’d been given a priceless understanding: sooner or later, Jesus will come to us…and in His Presence, all things are possible to those who believe.

And in the telling of their story, the same gift has been given to us.

All things are possible.  Only believe.  We can trust Jesus, even when He waits.

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Reflect ::

•Have you experienced a loss, a time in your life when it seemed like Jesus “waited” until it was too late?

•What would it look like to trust Jesus, even in the loss?

•If you’ve experienced a “resurrection”, how could you encourage those who are still waiting for one?

•Is Jesus asking you to “roll away the stone” in an area of your life?  What might be possible if you did?

Prayer ::

 Jesus, we know that You ARE the Resurrection and the Life.  We’ve encountered things we don’t understand, but we believe that when the time is right You will come to us, and in Your Presence the whole story will make sense.  Give us grace to trust Your love for us, even when You wait.

Action ::

At least 3 times today, ask Jesus to make you aware of His Presence, then spend 5 minutes in silence.  Where Jesus is, anything is possible…