John 11 NLT
The Raising of Lazarus
17 When Jesus arrived at Bethany, He was told that Lazarus had already been in his grave for four days. 18 Bethany was only a few miles down the road from Jerusalem, 19 and many of the people had come to console Martha and Mary in their loss. 20 When Martha got word that Jesus was coming, she went to meet Him. But Mary stayed in the house. 21 Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22 But even now I know that God will give You whatever You ask.” 23 Jesus told her, “Your brother will rise again." 24 “Yes,” Martha said, “he will rise when everyone else rises, at the last day.” 25 Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in Me will live, even after dying. 26 Everyone who lives in Me and believes in Me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?” 27 “Yes, Lord,” she told him. “I have always believed You are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one who has come into the world from God.” 28 Then she returned to Mary. She called Mary aside from the mourners and told her, “The Teacher is here and wants to see you.” 29 So Mary immediately went to Him. 30 Jesus had stayed outside the village, at the place where Martha met Him. 31 When the people who were at the house consoling Mary saw her leave so hastily, they assumed she was going to Lazarus’s grave to weep. So they followed her there. 32 When Mary arrived and saw Jesus, she fell at His feet and said, “Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died.” 33 When Jesus saw her weeping and saw the other people wailing with Her, a deep anger welled up within Him, and he was deeply troubled. 34 “Where have you put him?” he asked them. They told him, “Lord, come and see.” 35 Then Jesus wept. 36 The people who were standing nearby said, “See how much He loved him!” 37 But some said, “This man healed a blind man. Couldn’t He have kept Lazarus from dying?” 38 Jesus was still angry as he arrived at the tomb, a cave with a stone rolled across its entrance. 39 “Roll the stone aside,” Jesus told them. But Martha, the dead man’s sister, protested, “Lord, he has been dead for four days. The smell will be terrible.” 40 Jesus responded, “Didn’t I tell you that you would see God’s glory if you believe?” 41 So they rolled the stone aside. Then Jesus looked up to heaven and said, “Father, thank You for hearing me. 42 You always hear Me, but I said it out loud for the sake of all these people standing here, so that they will believe You sent Me.” 43 Then Jesus shouted, “Lazarus, come out!” 44 And the dead man came out, his hands and feet bound in graveclothes, his face wrapped in a headcloth. Jesus told them, “Unwrap him and let him go!”
What binds you today? What is causing restraint in your life? Are you blinded by headcloth? Are there stones blocking your way? We have it pretty cushy here in the United States compared to other countries. We have clean water to drink and wash in. We have closets full of clothes. We have food in our refrigerators and cupboards. Yet we are still unhappy, still striving for more.
Mary and Martha wanted one thing, Jesus to come save their brother from dying. Jesus didn't come, their brother died. They experienced that deep grief and sorrow that comes when we loose someone we love.
But wait, that's not the end of the story.....Jesus arrived four days after Lazarus died. He was wrapped like a mummy and placed in a cave. A stone was placed at the opening. Why the stone? To keep the smell in? To keep wild animals out? Jesus tells them to remove the stone. "But Lord, he's been dead four days, he's going to stink greatly by now!". Nonetheless, they obey and move the stone away. Then, in a loud voice Jesus calls to Lazarus "Lazarus, come out!" and he does! That must have been a sight to see, Lazarus hobbling from side to side because of the wrappings around his body, moving slowly and awkwardly. What must have been going through his mind! All he remembers is being sick and now he's wrapped up, in total darkness following the sound of a familiar voice.
So I'll ask again, what binds you today? What is causing restraint in your life? Are you blinded by headcloth? Are there stones blocking your way? Jesus is calling to us in His loud voice "Come out!". He wants us to make our way to Him. He wants us to follow the sound of His familiar voice. He will remove the restraints, He will restore our sight. He will roll away the stones that block our way. All we need do is ask Jesus to come and revive our dead body's, take away our sickness and make us whole again.
Blessings, Cecilia
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