Lysol Ain't Gonna Cut It This Time

Jesus gets down to business. He walks up to the cave where they have buried Lazarus, and tells them to take the stone away. So, here in chapter 11:38-44, the sisters have a choice to make. Jesus tells them to make some room for Him to work. Why didn't He just move the stone? He could have. But He tells the people to move the stone. It's up to the sisters, as Lazarus' family. What He is doing is wrong, according to their religious beliefs. Lazarus has been properly prepared, and buried. For them to touch the grave is equal to touching the dead body. Doing that would disqualify them from the Temple for a long time, with a detailed process to cleanse themselves spiritually. Martha reminds Jesus that Lazarus has been gone for four days. He's rotting. It's gonna stink. Are you sure about this, Jesus?

But then Martha or Mary one, we're not told, tells them to take away the stone. That's some really cool faith. These women get it. Once again, the Bible turns culture on it's head, showing that women were the ones of great faith in a time where women were considered objects to be owned. Jesus shows them as leaders, people who express incredible faith and are held up as examples.

Jesus' prayer is one for show. He admits it. He has already asked for God to raise Lazarus, and has His answer. The prayer here is merely for the benefit of the people standing there. Then He calls out loudly for Lazarus to come out. Again, why? He didn't need to. Lazarus wasn't far away. I think it's a show of power, of authority.

When he comes out, Jesus merely responds with "unwrap him and let him go." I'm sure the people there were screaming, terrified. He reminds them that it's Lazarus, and he needs help. He is always in control.

I wonder where I have a stone blocking Jesus' plans and dreams? I wonder what I have that Jesus is looking at me, telling me to move it? I know often I complain to Him that His plans are going to cause a stink if I do it. His reply is that if I want to see the glory of God, I'll have to be willing to stink a little.

Roll away the rock. I'm ready.

If I Could Just Sit With You Awhile....

Jesus shows up at Bethany, the home town for Lazarus, Mary, and Martha (John 11:17-37). Both Martha, and later Mary, come out and tell Jesus if he had been there, Lazarus wouldn't have died. I love this part of the story. As we've been going through the book of John, everyone wants Jesus to be a political king. That is the messiah they are looking for. But here, these women get it. They know Jesus is much more than that. Martha's statement that Jesus is the Christ, the son of God who was to come is more than a political hope. She, and her sister, see Him as one with power over everything, including death. Martha also shows a lot of intelligence in verse 24, because she speaks of the resurrection. This was a theological debate among the religious teachers of the day. It was one of the main issues that divided the Pharisees and the Sadducees. And Martha, being a woman who wasn't expected to be up on such issues in her day, had studied and made a decision. It's no wonder Jesus loved this family. Their faith is so strong, so vibrant, such a model for me.

Jesus' reaction has been taught on and discussed for hundreds and hundreds of years, but I am still completely changed by it every time I read it. Jesus weeps. Not little tears. He is moved to a deep hurt and tearful pain. But why? Everyone else is sad because Lazarus is gone, and they won't see him again. That isn't why Jesus is sad. He knows He is going to bring him back to life. He's known it for the past week or more. So why does Jesus cry?

I'm not sure. I think it has something to do with the fact that he loves Mary and Martha, and hates to see them in pain. Even though He is getting ready to get rid of all the pain they are feeling, He still hurts deeply for them. Sometimes we can fall into the trap of thinking that since God is perfect, since He knows how everything ends, then He is insulated from pain. I don't think that's true. Jesus knows it all turns out okay by the end of the day. He knows Lazarus is coming back. He knows their pain is getting ready to disappear. He's not hurting because of a worry of Lazarus dying later, and the sisters feeling the pain again. Heaven is waiting on Lazarus. No, Jesus is hurting because His little girls are hurting. It has nothing to do with fear, uncertainty, or worry for Jesus. He is hurting because He loves Mary and Martha and all of the others so much, that their pain penetrates His perfect heart and He weeps.

He still does today, I believe. I can't prove it. I could be wrong. But I believe that when we hurt, God hurts with us. Remember, He has proven that He isn't afraid of pain. I believe in His choosing to love us, He chooses to hurt with us.

If that's true, we really are never, ever alone. No matter what happens here, there is always someone to sit with us when we are down, when we are broken, when we are lost. And He completely gets it. He sits with us IN our pain, choosing to take it on Himself 100%.

God really, truly IS love at the deepest level.

I Don't Like This Jesus Very Much

Lazarus is sick; really, really sick. His sisters send someone to Jesus to let him know that His friend is not doing well at all. And John 11 covers this amazing story. In the first 16 verses here, Jesus handles this whole situation in a way that is so completely and utterly different than us, it seems bizarre.

Consider what happens. Jesus hears that Lazarus is sick, and declares that it won't end in death. Lazarus is sick for one reason: so that God can be glorified through it. Not that Lazarus would grow stronger in his faith, not that he might be a light. In Jesus' view, it wasn't about Lazarus. It was about God. We don't like to hear that. We are willing to suffer if we get to play a starring role, or if we gain from it. None of that is found here. Lazarus is sick, and God will get the reward from it.

Jesus responds by blowing off his friends. He doesn't go. He loves them. Very much. Him not coming is going to cause them doubt and pain. They will be hurt and disappointed. He stays. Their feelings are not the ultimate decision in this. God's glory and plan is what drives it all. So Jesus takes actions that put the ones He loves into pain and uncertainty.

Then He calls His disciples to go back to the place of danger. They don't want to. He intentionally invites them to follow Him back into a place where they will likely be arrested, beaten, or killed. For no good reason. Jesus simply tells them that now is the time. There is only a window of time, and they need to go then. After two days of sitting by, suddenly they need to go right then.

Next, Jesus tells them that Lazarus is sleeping, and is speaking of his death. They think he is actually sleeping, because death for them was a terrifying thing. Christ here begins to change the way they understand death. He pushes them to reconsider the very basics of the world they know.

We hit verses 14 and 15 and Jesus says the most insensitive thing possible. "Lazarus is dead, and I'm glad I wasn't there." Why? So that they would comprehend God's power. They would believe, and God would get the glory. Jesus was glad He wasn't there to stop Lazarus' death?

Thomas pitches in at the end, "Let's go and die with him and get it over with". The scene ends with this melodramatic statement by Thomas, leaving us hanging.

Do you see it? Jesus doesn't act like we think He should, like we sometimes tell people He will, like we want Him to. He doesn't run to the rescue, He doesn't save us from pain, Mary and Martha are hurting, and He allows them to sit in it. Not because they lack faith, not because they are praying, but because Lazarus dying and them hurting will bring God glory. That is enough of a reason.

This seems crazy to us. But only because we fear pain and death. What if we didn't? What if we knew what God knows, just how temporary and short the whole thing is? What if we knew what awaited us, how amazing it is, and how forever the beauty will be? The pain is inconsequential then. God isn't mean, or selfish, or careless. He knows what the reality of life is beyond death, and how it completely destroys any of the shadows that we call joy or peace here in this life. So, yeah, He's not afraid of us suffering or dying if it will point people to Him.

Tough, but true.