A PORTRAIT OF JESUS –
Doing What’s Best
"But some of them said, 'Could not
He who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?'" John 11:37
Our story opens with Lazarus being deathly ill in Bethany.
Mary and Martha send word to Jesus, but He does not rush to the side of His
sick friend…He waits…He waits until Lazarus dies and then proceeds to Bethany. Is it any wonder
that those who loved Lazarus, and were looking on, wondered at Jesus’ delay? They believe He could have kept him from
dying and do not understand why He does not rush to His sick friend’s side. There is no question that Jesus could have
spent His entire life healing the sick and keeping people
from dying, however, that was not His mission nor what was best.
When
Jesus arrives in Bethany,
He feels the pain of Mary and Martha. He
weeps; even those who observe see how much He loved Lazarus. Had Jesus come and healed Lazarus we would
have missed this intimate glimpse at a Savior who feels our pain and weeps with
us. Jesus proceeds to the tomb and does
the seemingly impossible, He resurrects Lazarus. As he commands Lazarus to come forth…imagine
what the people were thinking, “Is he
crazy?” Now imagine their excitement as they see Lazarus walking out of the
grave! Had Jesus come when summoned and
healed Lazarus, they would never have experienced Lazarus’ resurrection. Can you imagine what it must have been like
in that household that day, to go from intense mourning to intense rejoicing? Jesus did
do what was best! Had He not allowed
Lazarus to die, they would not have experienced the resurrection power of Jesus,
nor the joy that came as a result.
Jesus
does not want what is second best for us, only what is best. How often do we
question the circumstances in our lives?
We think we know what is best, but Jesus has shown us in this passage
that sometimes we do not know what is best; sometimes His plan is so much
bigger than ours. There is a day coming when we will understand His plans in
our lives, when we will be able to see the mercies that we once looked upon as
trials. Jesus has shown us He is trustworthy, He knows what is best and He will
do what is best, whether we see it now or not. Hallelujah
what a Savior!
D.
Mathewson