Monday, September 16, 2024
Grief
Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” John 11:21
Please read John 11:1-44 today. This will give you context for the section we are looking at this week. This chapter records for us the death and the raising of Lazarus from the dead. We will look at the sign of the raising Lazarus from the dead a little later this year. For now, we are focusing on the “I AM” statement of Jesus. In the first few verses of this chapter, we see a significant statement. Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus (11:5). The depth of that love can be seen in the moment that Martha meets Jesus privately. There is an intimacy in her words to him. She is overcome with grief. Her words to Jesus should not be seen as a rebuke, rather as an expression of grief to one who loved her. She knew Jesus and Jesus knew her—she was one of his sheep. She knew that he had power over death and sickness. There is every reason to believe she had seen it or heard of it several if not many times. Her grief is overwhelming. Death is real. While we each know that every person dies, we still grieve when it happens. Martha puts to words what we all know to be true. We live in a world where death is unavoidable and yet we know as well that Jesus has power over death. This is a private and intimate moment that has been recorded for us. Is there something in your life that you feel could have gone different if Jesus had stepped in? Have you designed the way in which he should have stepped in and what he should have done? Are you grieving? I pray that you have welcomed Jesus into your life in a way that allows for the intimacy needed for you to express your grief to him. He is ready to meet you in your place of sorrow.
Tuesday, September 17, 2024
Welcomed
Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. Luke 10:38
Please read Luke 10:38-42. Here we are introduced to two sisters, Mary and Martha. They are the sisters of Lazarus who dies. As Jesus comes to visit them after Lazarus dies, he will declare that he is the resurrection and the life. It is important for us to gain some context of who Mary and Martha are. The introduction to Martha reveals that she welcomed Jesus into her house. Many things have been written about these few verses and the difference between how Martha and Mary responded to the presence of Jesus—we will leave that conversation for another time. What I would ask us to consider today is this one line. Martha welcomed him into her house. It is true that once he was there, she struggled to know how best to be with him, but she welcomed him into her house. That speaks of relationship. We do not know if they had met before this, but we know (and will see in John 11), that there was a very special relationship that Jesus will have with this family. Perhaps it all began because Martha welcomed Jesus into her house. It will be the relationship with Jesus that will allow this family to process grief and loss. It started by welcoming Jesus in. How about you? Have you welcomed Jesus into your house? Perhaps it is best to consider this as your heart. Have you welcomed Jesus into the very center of all that you are? Have you surrendered your life to him fully? Is he welcome?
Wednesday, September 18, 2024
Resurrection
Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” John 11:23-24
Please read John 5:19-29 today as well as the verses above. Martha hears the words of comfort that Jesus speaks over her. He makes her a promise. I know of people who have lost loved ones to death who would absolutely love to hear Jesus speak these words to them. They long for the assurance that their loved ones were saved. Sidebar: if you have been saved find the time to write a note that clearly expresses that and leave it for your loved ones to have assurance when you pass. Martha states what she knows to be true. The religious leaders of the day were divided on this. The Sadducees did not believe in the resurrection, the Pharisees did. Additionally, Jesus had taught on this. It is very possible that Martha was aware of his teaching and knew that there is a future resurrection. Indeed, this will become even more clear when Jesus rises again. Martha expresses the hope that we each have—that of a future resurrection. Then we will be more alive than ever. Those who have done good to resurrection of life (John 5:29). This is not a works statement. Rather the good that needs to be done is to believe in the name of Jesus. Each person who has been saved will be resurrected to life on the last day. Those who have not will go to the resurrection of judgment. Jesus is coming again. There will be a future resurrection of every person. Will you go to life or judgment? Your response to Jesus will determine the outcome of your eternity.
Thursday, September 19, 2024
Hope
“But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” John 11:22
Please read John 11:17-27 and allow yourself to enter into the account. Imagine what it would be like to be Martha and to be overwhelmed with the grief of the passing of one she loved. Then see where she receives her hope. Martha knew that God heard Jesus. Yet within her statement we see that her understanding is not quite full. Hendriksen makes the point that the word that Martha uses for prayer in the original language is not a word that Jesus ever used when he spoke of his requests. Her word was one that is used of an inferior asking a favor of a superior. The word Jesus used was one that implied equality.
Even so, she knew there was hope to be found in Jesus. She knew God listened to him. What she didn’t fully realize is that God was right there, in the Person of Jesus, listening to her! Much later, Paul will encourage the church in Thessalonica with the truth that we, who believe, do not grieve as those who have no hope (1 Thessalonians 4:13). Martha shows how these two go together for the follower of Jesus. Greif is real, so is hope. Jesus is there so that we can have the conversation. Just as Martha had the opportunity to talk to God, so do we. For the most part, I direct my prayers to the Father in the name of the Son, through the power of the Holy Spirit. Yet there are times I sit at the feet of Jesus and talk with him. There is a comfort that I find waiting for me there. Where is your hope? Find some time today to have a talk with Jesus. Express to him the hope you find in him.
Friday, September 20, 2024
I Am
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” John 11:25-26
Please read John 11:21-27. Not only is there a future resurrection, but there is also a current resurrection available. This is so exciting! In effect, Jesus says that yes, Lazarus will live even though he had died. The future resurrection is real. But also, those who live and believe in Jesus will never die—are brought back to life and begin to live now. Right now. Those who believe in Jesus have been brought back from spiritual death in the here and now. This is the already aspect of our salvation, even as we look forward to the not yet! Ephesians 2:1-10 help us understand this truth. Read John 5:24. The follower of Jesus has already passed from death to life. Imagine the intimacy of this moment as Jesus speaks this truth to Martha. Yes, there is a future hope for Lazarus but there is the certainty of realized hope right now. The raising of Lazarus will illustrate this truth. O, dear friend, are you alive? Is your spirit alive because of Jesus? Have you released yourself to him? Do you truly believe in all that he is and all that he says and all that he stands for? It is not about believing about him. It is about your belief in him changing everything about you. Have you become a new creation? Do you believe this? If you do, celebrate the life you have! When you think of the life you have in Jesus, let your face light up.
Saturday, September 21, 2024
Himself
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” John 11:25-26
As we close out the week we will focus on these two verses and consider carefully what it means to long for the resurrection. It means to long for Jesus himself. The “I AM” declarations of Jesus that John records for us draw us to a much deeper place than most of us fully understand. As his created ones, we long for what he can do for us. We long for direction, wisdom, grace, love, forgiveness and healing. That desire is put there by God himself so that we will seek him. If we are not careful, we can long more for what Jesus can do for us than we long for him. As he speaks to Martha, he says he is the resurrection and the life. It is not just that he gives it, it is that he is it! For so much of my life, I longed for peace that only comes from Christ. But in many ways, like Martha, I looked for what he could do in my life. He could help me in all the areas that I was lacking. But it came from an empty place. Then, in a moment of his divine presence, he revealed himself to me in such an amazing way and I no longer wanted what he could be or do for me as much as I wanted him. As John White has said, “Deep in your heart, it is not guidance you want so much as a guide”. As A. B. Simpson stated in the opening of his poem, Himself:
Once it was the blessing, Now it is the Lord; Once it was the feeling, Now it is His Word.
Once His gifts I wanted, Now the Giver own; Once I sought for healing, Now Himself alone.
Spend some special time today considering this powerful truth. Have you discovered what it means to have Jesus himself? Christ in you-the hope of glory.
For additional reading from A. B. Simpson, click here: https://www.hopefaithprayer.com/online-books/himself/