Richard Deji-Tijani
Jesus regains the life Lazarus from the cruelty of the grave and also wins the souls of many Jews from the peril of darkness into salvation and light.
His resurrection miracle on Lazarus is a seamless and unambiguous confirmation that He is the source of life. He has authority over death. He takes life and makes life. He makes man to die and makes man to be born. Everything in heaven and on the earth were created by Him for Him and through Him. In exercising this power, He restores life back on the near-decomposing body of Lazarus. He can give. He can take.
Even the central tenet of His teaching was made manifest through the reawakening of Lazarus from death. Throughout His ministry, His message centres on our ability to believe in Him. He demonstrated this in the case of Lazarus. “Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God? (John 11: 40).” Bethany could not contain its joy the day the unexpected happened.
Jesus equally foreshadows His own death and resurrection through Lazarus. Lazarus’s experience is Jesus’ experience all over again. The only important exception is that Jesus had to endure the grave for only three days while Lazarus lasted four days.
My Lazarus must come forth reinforces my hope in the ability of Jesus to repay and restore whatever I may have lost to the devil. Lazarus, who lost his life to death, regained it back the moment Jesus made His grand appearance on the scene. The journey of life, is in itself, chapters of sorrow, loss, pain, disappointment, sadness, missed opportunity, tragedy and deep gloom. That is on one level. The journey of life, on the other hand, can be chapters of joy, kindness, favour, revival, happiness, praise, comfort , goodness, love, peace and fulfilment.
Jesus is the comforter to the hopeless. He is the source of life, has the copyright to my life, works His perfect timing in me, intervenes at His own time and calms my desperation with His presence. He encourages my hope, my utter dependence on His unfailing assurance, loyalty, faithfulness, provision and infallibility.
The opening passage of John 11:1 was dramatic. It talked of a need. “Now, a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany….” Lazarus is deathly ill and needs a desperate healing. The story of Lazarus, Mary and Mather shows that in every Christian life, there comes a time when God seems distant, cold and uninterested in our circumstances no matter how desperate we are. Once Mary and Martha realised that the sickness of their brother could lead to death, it only seemed right to send for Jesus. They knew the power that God had given Him. Their appeal to the Lord was one of love and friendship: “Lord behold, he whom you love is sick (John 11:3).”
The issue here transcends healing – it is more of needs and how God will work out His purposes for our benefit. God has the power to heal every disease. The issue that confronts us in a situation like this one is God’s will versus our will. We are taught to pray and ask God to meet our needs. But there is something deep within this process that the Father wants us to learn. We begin to accept just how committed He is to meeting our needs when we learn to accept His will as being perfect. We also must acknowledge that His timing is right, just as his strength is sufficient and His love is eternal. Sometimes when we have to wait for God’s provision or answer, it seems as if He is completely uninterested in our situation.
As their brother lay dying, Mary and Martha did not understand how deeply involved God was in their lives. More than likely, we have at times failed to understand this reality as well. However, Jesus was determined to demonstrate His intimate care for these women and for His friend Lazarus. But first, Mary and Martha would have to wait. Their prayers, though in harmony with God’s will, would appear to go unanswered.
Many times we lose patience with God and attempt to meet our own unmet needs. In so doing, we often make matters worse by resorting to the following:
Denial
We tell ourselves that there is not a problem. While denial is an initial defence we use to protect ourselves from the reality of deep tragedy, a prolonged period of denial is not healthy. We need to face reality with God, knowing that He has a solution for the problems we encounter.
Avoidance
We distance ourselves from the problem in an attempt to protect ourselves from further pain. Avoidance works for a short time. However, just like denial, avoidance prevents us from dealing with the problem. The solution is to seek God for wisdom and a precise way to handle our circumstances, even if this includes waiting for Him to lead us beyond this moment in time. By willing to wait for God’s best. Jumping ahead of Him only leads to more confusion.
Waiting
This is exactly what Christ is willing to do in our lives. The deepest faith responses come from the deepest pit of despair. We have to be spiritually exhausted before the Lord can refresh us with new life. Otherwise, it is our nature to say; “Well, I wasn’t that bad off. I could have dabbled a little bit more in my sins. See, I wasn’t as sick (spiritually) as I thought.” The Jewish people believed that after death, the spirit lingered in the tomb for two days before departing. Therefore, people were not officially dead until the third day. This is the same reasoning behind the three days that Jesus spent in the tomb. If Jesus had not waited until after Lazarus had been dead three days; people would have said he wasn’t really dead. The deep and miraculous joy of our Lord would have been incomplete. The miracle of Lazarus would not be properly seen as Jesus’ power over death!
Undoubtedly, it was difficult for the Lord to tarry. However, our Lord is willing to bypass emotional urges for the deeper spiritual joy. Are we willing to wait for His complete work in our lives? Or do we insist on His responding according to our plans; however incomplete they are? This is crucial. Mary and Martha had to wait. Their hope had faded – their brother was dead.