Day 25 - March 25th 2022
READ John 11:1-27
1 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.”
Jesus Comforts the Sisters of Lazarus
17 On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. 18 Now Bethany was less than two miles from Jerusalem, 19 and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother. 20 When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed at home.
21 “Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22 But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.”
23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”
24 Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.”
25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; 26 and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
27 “Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.”
Think about John 11:27 “Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.”
Three days before her declaration that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, Martha had buried her beloved brother and was grieving deeply. She had sent an urgent message to the Lord to come quickly and heal him. But Jesus deliberately delayed His journey and His beloved friend died and was buried in a stone-cold tomb. Jesus could have healed Lazarus from a distance, just as he had healed the nobleman's servant, but He delayed His visit for a purpose - and that purpose was for the glory of God.
Martha knew that her brother would rise on the day of resurrection, for she believed the holy Scriptures. But Martha was not prepared for the shattering words that Christ proclaimed to her as she stood weeping before Him: “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
Jesus had made some astonishing declarations during His earthly ministry, but here He was claiming to have sovereign authority over life and death. Jesus was declaring that He had the supernatural power to resurrect the dead and give life to all who believe in Him: "Do you believe this?" He asked Martha. Do we believe this?
Martha answered immediately and made a great and thrilling confession of faith in Christ. Her profession of faith has shone down centuries of time and ignited hope in the hearts of many. Without hesitation, she declared, "Yes, Lord; I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God, even He who comes into the world."
Martha unhesitatingly confessed Christ in three distinct ways. First, she announced that Jesus was the Christ, the 'Messiah of Israel'. Secondly, she acknowledged Him as the 'Son of God' and third, she confessed that Jesus was the 'Coming One' Who had been prophesied to come into the world to save His people.
Martha's confession of faith was not made after Lazarus was raised from the dead. This grieving woman had no clue that her brother was shortly to be brought back to life. This grieving lady made her declaration of trust in the Lord Jesus while her brother's body lay cold and lifeless in the stony grave. Martha's confident reply demonstrated that her faith in Christ was firm, settled, steadfast, and unshakable.
Martha showed herself to be a woman of virtue who exemplified what it means to live by faith and not by sight.
Pray today for such confidence in His word that we are able to remain firmly settled in the faith, even when surrounded by life's greatest problems and pain.