John 11:11-22

¹¹ After saying these things, he said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.” ¹² The disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover.” ¹³ Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he meant taking rest in sleep. ¹⁴ Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus has died, ¹⁵ and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” ¹⁶ So Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” ¹⁷ Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. ¹⁸ Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off, ¹⁹ and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother. ²⁰ So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. ²¹ Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. ²² But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.”

Jesus decided to go back to Jerusalem when he heard his friend Lazarus was dying. This was risky since the religious leaders of Israel wanted Jesus dead too. Because Jesus used the term “fallen asleep” as a euphemism for the death of Lazarus, his disciples assumed that Lazarus was simply getting a good rest and would awake recovered. Jesus let those with him know that Lazarus had died, and that he was going to bring him back from the grave. Even though it would be dangerous to travel south to Bethany, Thomas said, “Let’s do this.” He declared his readiness to be killed with Jesus if necessary. When they arrived, Lazarus had been dead for four days. Because of the warm climate in Israel, people were buried right after death, as their bodies would begin to decompose quickly. According to Jewish tradition, a human spirit hovered over the body for three days. By the fourth day after death, all hope of resuscitation was gone. Jesus knew exactly what he was doing in the timing of all events surrounding his friend’s death. God would be glorified. As soon as they arrived, Martha spoke with Jesus. She seemed to accuse, “If you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

But then Martha made an interesting declaration of her faith in Jesus. She announced, “But even now, God will do whatever you ask.” Even now? What did she mean by that? Martha told Jesus that even though things didn’t work out as she had hoped, even though her beloved brother was dead, and even though Jesus could have kept Lazarus alive had he come earlier, she still knew that he had a supernatural relationship to God the Father, and she had not lost her conviction about who he was. What a beautiful portrait of trust in the Lord Martha provides for us! What about you? When things don’t work out the way you hoped and planned, does your confidence in Jesus remain firm and steadfast? What about when Jesus clearly could fix things if he wanted to? Do you become angry, bitter, or discouraged with him? No matter what he is allowing in your life now, keep your trust in Jesus. Allow the watching world to see that your misfortunes don’t keep you from the joy that can only come from knowing and being known by our Lord.