John 11:1-16
Now a man named Lazarus was sick. He was from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 (This Mary, whose brother Lazarus now lay sick, was the same one who poured perfume on the Lord and wiped his feet with her hair.) 3 So the sisters sent word to Jesus, “Lord, the one you love is sick.”
4 When he heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” 5 Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6 So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days, 7 and then he said to his disciples, “Let us go back to Judea.”
8 “But Rabbi,” they said, “a short while ago the Jews there tried to stone you, and yet you are going back?”
9 Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Anyone who walks in the daytime will not stumble, for they see by this world’s light. 10 It is when a person walks at night that they stumble, for they have no light.”
11 After he had said this, he went on to tell them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.”
12 His disciples replied, “Lord, if he sleeps, he will get better.” 13 Jesus had been speaking of his death, but his disciples thought he meant natural sleep.
14 So then he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead, 15 and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.”
16 Then Thomas (also known as Didymus) said to the rest of the disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” [1]
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It always strikes me when I read this passage how Jesus knew Lazarus was dying and yet did not go to see him or heal him. Jesus didn’t cause Lazarus’ illness. But He did nothing to cure it, though He was quite capable of doing so. And He had personal reason to do. The text points out that Jesus loved Mary, Martha and Lazarus. And this is how He shows His love? Letting His friend die? Well of course Jesus knew what He was going to do, and yet His plan put the sisters through a lot of turmoil and grief.
This touches on one of the hardest, yet most important parts, of our growth as disciples. God, who knows us and this fallen world better than we do, knows that our growth comes through trusting in Him and following Him in faith and hope, despite the pain and losses around us and in us. Mary and Martha were filled with grief, enough to confront Jesus for His inaction, yet their conversation in their grief led to Jesus speaking words that have brought comfort and hope to countless Christians over the centuries. “I am the Resurrection and the Life . . . “ John 11:25).
The point is that God allows things in our lives which are dreadfully hard and painful, because He can see not only the present pain and hurt, but also the possibility of blessing, healing, wholeness and growth. And just as He knew in this case that Lazarus would be raised, He knows that for all who belong to Him, the end of the matter is resurrection. And as Paul says, the trouble of this present life aren’t worth comparing with what He has in store for us (Romans 8:18).
What also struck me was Jesus words to his disciples that ”for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe.” When God is at work in hardship, it’s not just about the person at the center. He is at work in numerous lives, bringing opportunities for blessing and growth to sometimes countless people.
I’m thinking right now of the hardships that are going on around me. There have been quite a few in the past few weeks: Deaths, illness, grief, family troubles. Have they affected me as I have sought to minister? You bet they have! Has God been working in my life in the middle of these troubles and hardships? Yes, He has.
So this passage leads me today to pray first for those I’m aware of who are going through hardship and loss right now, who may feel that God isn’t responding to their summons, the way Jesus didn’t come when Mary and Martha called. I’m praying for faith and hope for them. But I’m also praying for my own faith and growth, that God’s work would be done in me in the middle of the brokenness around me.
What is the Word leading you to pray about today?
[1] The New International Version. 2011 (Jn 11:1–16). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
