The Resurrection and The Life

“Lord, he whom you love is ill.” That was the message sent to Jesus by Mary and Martha in John 11, regarding their brother Lazarus. Lazarus and his sisters, Mary and Martha, were good friends of Jesus. Due to His close bond with this family, one would expect that Jesus would not delay in going to Lazarus to heal him. I imagine that was Mary and Martha’s expectation too. With all the times that He stopped what He was doing to heal people, I’m sure they imagined He would rush to their side and ease their suffering. But we learn the opposite. It is due to His love for them that Jesus does not go to them. John 11:5-6 “Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days.” The word “so” in verse 6 links his actions to His love for them. Out of His love, He tarried and allowed this man to die. What? We learn many things about love in the Bible and what stands out is that love does not stand by and watch death overtake. Love acts. Love intercedes. Love moves. How can Jesus, in His love, do nothing? The answer is found in verse 4. John 11:4 “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.’”

Maybe it is because I can so easily envision myself as a useless puddle on the floor in the face of such grief, but I marvel at the amount of strength within Martha in this account. Not only did she run out to meet Jesus, but she went all the way back home to get her sister when Jesus asked for Mary, while Mary seems completely undone. These sisters, whose names mean “she was rebellious” and “their rebellion” have gone through history being compared to one another; Martha the doer and Mary the relationship seeker. Once again, we see these actions surface from them. Both women turned in their grief to what they know, to what is familiar to them; Martha moving, acting, and doing and laying claim to what she knows about Jesus, while Mary sat amongst people being comforted. So often their actions are so dissected that we miss the beauty of Jesus and His loving actions towards them. We make the sisters center stage and analyze them. We compare them to ourselves and label whether we are “a Mary” or “a Martha” and we miss Jesus at work in both their lives, and risk not seeing Jesus at work in our own lives. As I did, we tend to critique our own weaknesses and inability to muster the proper strength as we compare ourselves to their actions.

Beautifully, both sisters are on equal footing before Jesus. Both rebellious and in need of a Savior. Both experience grief that stems from the sin of our rebellion. Both sisters said the exact same thing upon seeing Jesus. “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” Both had faith in Him and His ability to heal. Both knew Him but had more to learn. Both understood that Jesus could heal and that he could prevent death. Neither understood that their Lord had the power within him to produce life. Jesus was about to teach them that comfort is experienced from who you know, and in whom you place your trust even when faced with the impossible, not from doing what is familiar. One easily drew near but appeared to be relying on her own strength, the very same strength that those of us who feel fragile and weak, marvel at and envy. The other was so undone it was as if she had no strength left. Oh, this spectrum of grief and how Jesus can meet us wherever we are at. Oh, Martha, Martha, remember that I am your strength. You do not need to carry this alone. Oh, Mary, Mary, let me be your strength when you are weary and grieving. You will be renewed and strengthened when you put your trust in me.

Lord, help me to focus on your goodness instead of comparing myself to my sister. Teach me to move boldly like Martha, to run straight to you in my grief. Let me hold onto what I know to be true, while not ruling anything impossible for you. Help me to listen to your voice so I learn more deeply who you are, that I fully trust that you are my Resurrection and Life. Open my ears to hear you calling to me when I am too weary to run to You. Be patient with me when I know it all already and I do not listen to what you are trying to reveal to me. Thank you for letting me come undone at your feet. Thank you for coming to me as I grieve. Thank you for entering into my grief with me. Thank you for bringing us from death to life, for calling us forth from the grave and stopping the rot of our flesh. Send me forth to unbind what you have brought from death to life.