Lazarus ” אלעזר” “God has helped”

Mathew, Mark, Luke, and John record many miracles that were performed by Jesus. These gospels have just a small fraction of what and who Jesus healed and touched before his earthly death.  Still today, we can hear, see, and feel Jesus’s hand in our miracles and the miracles of others.  Today, we get to read about life after death for Lazarus in John 11:1-45. One of his last earthly miracles that really sent the religious leaders into a panic demanding Jesus’s death.

But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” John 11:4 

Reading through this miracle of bringing someone back to life after four days is unbelievable.  It is only God possible. He had brought a couple of others back to life, but not after four days! This story also leaves me with some gut-check questions as I read through the scriptures.  Think about these questions with me.

  1. Who do you go to when you need extraordinary help? Do you rely on your personal strength or strength of man or? Do you rely upon  Jesus?              (Further Reading Psalm 3)
  2. How do we respond to adversity? Is it a grumble, complain, or blame? Or do we glorify His name in everything? ( But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

( 2 Corinthians  1:4 )  5 For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too

3. Are you walking in the dark or light? What do your choices look like? Are we trusting in His timing? 

This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

4. Lazarus was dead to the physical world. The first word Lazarus heard was Jesus telling him to, “come forth”. When we physically die,  will the first person we hear be Jesus? Will you “come forth?”

Dear Heavenly Father thank you for the stories of your love, grace, and truth.  Help us to walk in the light, trust you in the face of adversity,   This heart-breaking story was all part of your plan. We love you and just ask for you to keep us in your light.  In your name, we pray. Amen

 

 

Two Diseases

1200px-Biohazard.svgDeuteronomy 13–14; Psalms 99–101; Isaiah 41; Revelation 11

According to John Calvin, “every man labors under two diseases. In prosperity, he exalts himself extravagantly, and shakes off the restraint; of humility and moderation; but, in adversity, he either rages, or lies in a lifeless condition, and scarcely has the smallest  perception of the goodness of God.”[1]  I was thinking about this as I read Psalm 100 today.  Consider how each of these “diseases” cause us to interpret the Scripture differently.

Psalm 100 (ESV) In Prosperity In Adversity
1 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! Declare your gratification and happiness for everyone to see. Grumble to all the world, as loud as you can!
2 Serve the Lord with gladness!   Come into his presence with singing! Be happy with what you have done. Sing away, life is good! Do your work, even in agony. Come into God’s presence with despondency
3 Know that the Lord, is God! Know that you have everything under control. Where is God?
It is he who made us, and we are his; We have evolved so wonderfully If he didn’t want us to be this way, he shouldn’t have made us this way!
and the sheep of his pasture We live in the land of plenty.  Go get yours! God doesn’t care!
Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise! Look what you have done for yourself. Others should come to you for help! Go to God complaining and blaming him for all your problems.
Give thanks to him; bless his name! You should be thanked for all that you have done! Curse God for all of your troubles!
For the Lord is good; Man, you am good; The Lord is tired of us all!
His steadfast love endures forever for all the days of your life His wrath is upon us.
and his faithfulness to all generations Your kids and your kid’s kids will be set for life! we are on our own.

Father God, help us to see our attitudes as they really are and make us aware of the spiritual diseases in our hearts.  Heal our hearts, Lord, with your Word and your Truth.  Make them new.

[1]
Calvin, John (2011-11-15). Calvin’s Complete Bible Commentaries (With Active Table of Contents in Biblical Order) (Kindle Locations 173172-173175). . Kindle Edition.