John 11:17-44 ESV
Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother. So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you." Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again." Martha said to him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day." Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?" She said to him, "Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world." When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying in private, "The Teacher is here and is calling for you." And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met him. 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. 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." 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. And he said, "Where have you laid him?" They said to him, "Lord, come and see." Jesus wept. So the Jews said, "See how he loved him!" But some of them said, "Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?" Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. 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." Jesus said to her, "Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?" So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. 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." When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out." 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."
Jesus comes and finds Mary and Martha in deep pain. In this passage, we see how God engages us in our pain.
He uses our pain
Martha acknowledges that Jesus has power. She said that He can ask anything of God and it would be granted. She believed that a resurrection would happen at end times. But Jesus says that He is the resurrection and the life. She says she believes, but her belief is shallow. It is mostly theological. We can see this when she tells Jesus that the body would smell. In many ways, Martha reflects us. We have a set of core beliefs that make us Christian. But even though we believe, it is abstract. We say Jesus is powerful, but we place limits on his power. We box God. We say Jesus forgives our sin, but how much of that is more than just theoretical? How much do we know in our hearts and in our experience? Often God uses painful circumstances to grow our faith. Those who suffer for God KNOW of his provision, his power, his strength, and his faithfulness.
He shares it
God is not just sitting in heaven pushing buttons. Does he understand what is happening to us during our dark times? Jesus not only understands it, he knows it better than us. How so? First, he is creator. He first created things as good, now he sees how things have been spoiled by sin. Jesus is deeply troubled, but most think that Jesus had a sense of anger and frustration. Death is not how it is supposed to be. Consider people who have been robbed. They come home to a ravaged home where someone has destroyed things. The anger, frustration, and feeling of violation is just an echo of God. Second, Jesus takes the wrath of God for generations of believers. This is not something we will ever know. Jesus knows intimately of pain and suffering much more than we do.
He redeems it
Lazarus is physically raised. Not given a resurrection body, but just a physical reduction. That's why Lazarus is still bound. When Jesus resurrected, he passed through the burial strips. In an instant, a crowd in mourning becomes one of shock and rejoicing. This is a miracle, but remember Jesus does miracles to point towards something greater. It points towards the greater resurrection in heaven. God will take these hardships and agonies and return to us glories and greater joy. We know this because Jesus came back with the nailmarks. Those pain filled scars on Jesus represent the death and humiliation. But those scars also represent the forgiveness of our sins, the hope of salvation in the death and resurrection of our Lord. When we get to heaven we will trade our tears for joy.
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