In The Word
Read: John 11:28-44
28 When she had said this, she left and called Mary her sister, saying secretly, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.” 29 And when she heard this, she *got up quickly and came to Him.
30 Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still at the place where Martha met Him. 31 Then the Jews who were with her in the house and were consoling her, when they saw that Mary had gotten up quickly and left, they followed her, thinking that she was going to the tomb to weep there. 32 So when Mary came to the place where Jesus was, she saw Him and fell at His feet, saying to Him, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.” 33 Therefore when Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, He was deeply moved in spirit and was troubled, 34 and He said, “Where have you laid him?” They *said to Him, “Lord, come and see.” 35 Jesus wept. 36 So the Jews were saying, “See how He loved him!” 37 But some of them said, “Could this man, who opened the eyes of the man who was blind, not have also kept this man from dying?”
38 So Jesus, again being deeply moved within, *came to the tomb. Now it was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. 39 Jesus *said, “Remove the stone.” Martha, the sister of the deceased, *said to Him, “Lord, by this time there will be a stench, for he has been dead four days.” 40 Jesus *said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” 41 So they removed the stone. And Jesus raised His eyes, and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me.42 But I knew that You always hear Me; nevertheless, because of the people standing around I said it, so that they may believe that You sent Me.” 43 And when He had said these things, He cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!”44 Out came the man who had died, bound hand and foot with wrappings, and his face was wrapped around with a cloth. Jesus *said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”
New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation
Walking In The Word
When Yeshua gets close to the home of Lazarus, Martha meets Him and is encouraged by Him. She goes back to a grieving sister and lets her know that Yeshua was there and is asking to see her. Our Lord sensed the pain and disappointment of a family that He deeply loved.
When Mary reached Yeshua, she was weeping. She was lovingly disappointed, knowing that if He could have been there, healing instead of death would have been the outcome. The crowd felt like He had let the family down. Her pain, the disappointment, and doubt caused Yeshua to break down and weep. He knew Lazarus would be resurrected, but He wept with those that wept because of His great love for them.
He waited four days because it was a Jewish custom that if a person died, the spirit would hang around three days seeking to enter back into the body. After three days it would be impossible for the spirit to return. Yeshua did this so that they might believe He was sent from the Father.
When we find ourselves going through a very sorrowful time, comfort can be found in our relationship with God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit. When someone is hurting around us, we need to be able to see their pain, disappointment, and even their struggle to believe. We are to weep with those that weep. We do this when we love people deeply. Another important thing to not forget is that anything is possible to us that believe. Do not give up too soon on your miracle!