The Fullness of His Glory

Ever since studying the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead at our church's annual Spring Bible Conference, God has really placed this passage in my heart. I haven't written in a while so it feels a bit strange to be back at it again, but my hope is that you can leave this post having a deeper understanding of the passage and of the Father God's love.

But before I begin, let me share a bit about the first half of 2017.

This year - the "year of the unknown," as I like to call it, has been incredibly challenging, but also incredibly fun (sounds like a paradox, haha). After I graduated from the University of Maryland, little did I know that I would be caught in this "in-between" stage of my life. As uncomfortable as this season has been at times, I know I am exactly where God wants me to be. When I began college at the University of Maryland, I imagined myself to be going straight from college to medical school, but as we can see right now - God had other plans for me. Though my life has not really gone the way I imagined it to be, I have have found over and over again that there is so much joy and freedom in submitting to God's will for my life. God's plans are so much higher and better than my plans. Even when I don't know what I need, He knows what I need exactly when I need it.

Despite wrestling through the challenges of this season, I have had incredible amounts of fun, basking in the simple things in life - doing things I've always wanted to do but never really had the time to do in college (going strawberry picking, spending time with my best friend & youth group kids, enjoying spring, taking senior portraits, spending more time lettering, etc.)!

If you haven't seen it yet, here's my sister's very cute vlog of the time we went strawberry picking:

After attending the Grace Retreat this year, I realized that God has given me a voice. God has called me to speak - to use this voice to speak what's on His heart. But I realized that I have been believing the enemy's lies that it would better for me to stay quiet. I have not blogged (or spoken) in a while, but I hope to intentionally make time to write and share the revelations God has given me the past few years in the months to come.

And so, let's dive into the story of Lazarus (John 11:1-44). Who is Lazarus? Lazarus and his sisters, Mary and Martha, were very dear friends of Jesus. Knowing and believing that Jesus could do something, the sisters, out of faith, sent a word that Lazarus was sick. A word was sent to Jesus - "Lord, the one you love is sick." And seeing how this sickness lead to death later on in the story, Lazarus' sickness was a very urgent matter. What was Jesus' reaction? Let's look at verses 4-6.

When he heard this, Jesus said, "This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God's glory so that God's Son may be glorified through it." 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, and then he said to his disciples, "Let us go back to Judea."

As we can see in the passage, the premise of the story begins with love. However, Jesus did the contrary to what you would expect someone to do once they hear their loved one is sick. When Mary and Martha brought this news to Jesus, they expected Jesus to rush to their home so that Lazarus could be healed. Instead, Jesus stayed where He was two more days. Logically, it didn't make sense. How could Jesus so confidently say "This sickness will not end in death. No it is for God's glory so that God's Son may be glorified through it" yet they saw Lazarus pass away before their eyes? Was Jesus lying? Was He not powerful enough to heal Lazarus (is that why He didn't come)? Was He too busy for them? What was going on? Didn't Jesus know how much pain and suffering they were in? Did Jesus still love them? As Mary and Martha brought their request to Jesus, we bring our needs and requests before God because we know that He can do something. But how do we respond when Jesus does not respond the way we expect Him to? What is our reaction when He delays? Do we question his goodness? Do we question his love? As I mentioned earlier, the premise of the story is love. Though we will each walk through our own mountains and valleys (however shape or form they may be), we must remember that Jesus loves us. And He loves us deeply.

After a few days passed, Jesus told his disciples - "Lazarus is dead, and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him." Jesus knew that Lazarus was very ill. I wonder how difficult it was for Jesus to know all the pain Mary and Martha were in,  yet to wait. Whatever you are waiting on God for - a full-time job, marriage, a child, healing, etc. Jesus knows. He knows. Yet, at times, He chooses to wait. I think this is a difficult concept to grasp. And this is what we find Martha asking Jesus. "Jesus, why did you wait? I know that if you came sooner, you could have healed Lazarus."

"Lord," Martha said to Jesus, "if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask." Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again." Martha answered, "I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day." Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die" (John 11:21-26a).

Martha believed Jesus could and would resurrect Lazarus on the last day. When Jesus asked if she believed that He was the resurrection and the life, she said "Yes, Lord. I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world." But when Jesus visits Lazarus' tomb and asks to take away the stone from the tomb, what is Martha's response?

"But, Lord," said Martha, the sister of the dead man, "by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days." Then Jesus said ,"Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?"

Before rushing to the end of the story, I want to stop and ponder here for a moment. Just a few moments before, Jesus asks Martha if she believes that He is the resurrection and the life and she said "Yes, Lord." And I have no doubt that Martha really did believe Jesus could and would resurrect Lazarus on the last day. But Martha did not believe that He could raise Lazarus from the dead now. Though she had knowledge about the resurrection, she had yet to experience its power. And I believe that for this reasons, Jesus delayed his coming. Jesus wanted her to experience the fullness of his glory.

So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me." When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!" 

And so, Lazarus came out of his tomb. As we can see here, death had no power over Jesus. And through His own death and resurrection, Jesus would defeat Satan once and for all on the cross. I believe that Jesus delayed his coming because He wanted to help connect Mary and Martha's faith - from simply knowing who Jesus was to fully experiencing him. I don't know what stage you are in life or what you are waiting on from God, but know this. God loves you so much. And because He loves you so much, He will do whatever is best for you. If needed, He will delay his coming because He wants you to experience the fullness of his power, love, and glory. Through this season of being in an "in-between" stage,  I have come to know and understand that I am here because God wants me to experience the fullness of his power, love, and glory. And as I wait for the fullness of his glory to be revealed, I will continue to pray for all that God has promised to me because I know that He loves me deeply.