The Resurrection and the Life

Hi guys! Today, I was reading from Max Lucado’s book “Jesus: the God Who Knows Your Name” (I will add a link below to this book because it is AMAZING!) and reflecting on John 11 when Lazarus was raised from the dead, and my heart is so full right now! Mary, Martha, and Lazarus were close friends with Jesus, and this is the same Martha that washed Jesus’ feet in Luke 7. When Lazarus fell ill, Martha was hoping that Jesus would come to heal him before he died, but Jesus never came. Lazarus sadly passed away and was buried for 4 days before Jesus came. Aren’t we guilty of expecting God to heal our loved ones, but sometimes He allows them to pass away? Do we blame God for the death of someone we love? This is exactly what Martha did when she saw Jesus 4 days later.

She says “Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died. ” (John 11:21) Martha was VERY frustrated and discouraged when she saw Jesus, and all she could think was “why didn’t You come earlier?!!” Haven’t we said these things before? Are we guilty of saying “Lord, why didn’t you heal my mother, father, sister, brother, aunt, uncle, grandpa, grandma, friend?!!!” “Why did you have to take them?!” “I prayed for you to heal them and you didn’t! Here’s a news flash, HE DID HEAL THEM, just as He healed Lazarus. God has an eternal reason for why He allows death, and through death, He creates life eternal. When we pray, we are praying for the spiritual body, that God may be glorified in our triumphs. This metaphor is expressed through the physical death of Lazarus that although He is dead, He lives through Christ and spends eternity with Jesus thereby.

It’s not easy to reflect on this idea when we experience tragedy because sometimes we expect God to show up RIGHT NOW to fix our issues when He’s trying to exercise our faith in Him during our time of pain. Martha was frustrated when Jesus showed up 4 days after Lazarus had died, but Jesus’s patience with her caused Martha’s frustration to turn into earnestness for His help. He told Martha “I’m the RESURRECTION AND THE LIFE. He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die…”

Our spiritual self is MORE IMPORTANT than our physical selves, and although His miracles are true and powerful, He desires that our spiritual bodies NEVER DIE. When we choose Jesus, we become DEAD to our iniquities and sinful lifestyles to live through Christ eternally!

Jesus walked up to the tomb and with a loud voice, He shouted “LAZARUS!!! COME FORTH.” The wind ceased, and the clouds hovered over t

he sun. Everyone was silent as Lazarus slowly got up and walked out of the tomb, covered in linen cloths. HE WAS ALIVE! WHAT???!!!!! Jesus and His healing power brought Lazarus back to life! From a spiritual perspective, this is what happens when we choose to follow Jesus and leave our old bodies behind. We are brought back to life again to rule and reign with Christ! Jesus then said, “loo

se him and let him go,” which is what happens when chains are broken and “death is swallowed up in victory!” (1 Corinthians 15:54)

This is such a beautiful story filled with pain, suffering, and hurt, which is what we experience throughout our lives, but through Christ, we gain strength, nourishment, fullness, and comfort knowing that one day, we will spend eternity with Him in paradise!

Max Lucado’s Book: https://www.amazon.com/Jesus-God-Knows-Your-Name/dp/1400214696