It is not so much the words we say to our dear Lord, but having the right attitude as we come to Him – a clean heart and mind. Psalm 139:23 “Search me oh God and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is an offensive way in me”.
“The means to have a clean heart and a correct attitude are right there as you allow Jesus to minister to you, calling to mind the things that cloud your relationship with Me and come between us. The means of clearing this are on the tip of your tongue as I bring these to mind you can confess them and repent – changing your attitude towards those things which you love more than Me. Yes this is a long process and requires daily attention. At no stage can you say you have done enough. Yet My warm open arms are there all the time welcoming you with forgiveness and compassion in My eyes, filling you again with My mercy and My love.”
The whole of Chapter 11 of John’s gospel is devoted to one incident which shows how important it is. We will take it one bite at a time to be sure we engage the riches of the message it contains. May I invite you to put aside all previous inputs you have had on it and try and come afresh to it. Today we will read vv 1-16.
To set the scene, John is at pains to paint a beautiful picture in the opening 3 vv, of the deep and loving relationship Jesus had with this family. We need to keep that in the back of our minds throughout the whole story.
Lazarus, the brother is sick is the message to Jesus. Looking at the outcome of the sickness it was clearly very serious, in fact mortal. Strangely, Jesus’s reply seems to indicate that He has an ulterior agenda as He doesn’t express any compassion. Vv 5, 6 seem to contradict each other. Firstly a further affirmation of Jesus love, yet instead of rushing to the family’s aid He deliberately stays two more days where He is.
Can you imagine the emotions of Mary and Martha as they wait for Jesus to show up, while they are watching Lazarus die, powerless to help him? Have you ever been in a dire situation and despite calling for help no one comes? Have you ever longed for Jesus to show up to help you when you are desperate and you don’t feel any response?
The whole of Jesus’s motive and an explanation of His delay is summarised in v 15. “I am glad, for your sake I was not there, so that you may believe.” The bigger picture, salvation and eternal life through faith in Jesus, outweighed the anxious feverish moments of fear and anguish, as bad as they may have felt. Not only was this a teaching moment for that family, but for billions of people who would read the story over the ages.
But for us, no one is going to read our story? Well we see here that Jesus’s agenda is always focused on the bigger picture, while doubtless His compassion is with us as we struggle with our immediate feelings and fears. He loves us sufficiently to allow us to feel that, waiting so that our faith is constantly being built. We are, all of us including the disciples very slow to learn. Despite seeing and experiencing all Jesus miracles and teaching they still fled at the crucifixion.
So the big lesson here is that Jesus’s timing is totally different to our expectations as used to having everything immediately as we are. Sometimes of course, He does respond immediately, but when He does not it is so important to remember that it is not because He does not love us. Just remember the opening vv to remind ourselves of how much He loved this family. And remember how serious the situation was.
I suppose it is one of the most difficult things for us to accept and get used to. The difference in Jesus’s timing and our hopes and expectations. We are not alone. Just take the many psalms where David called out, “ How long, oh Lord how long?” The important thing is to remember that the delay doesn’t mean Jesus doesn’t love us or that He is not going to respond. It is because of this very love that He takes us on the long route for His glory and our good. May you experience His love and nearness often this coming week.