In yesterday’s study, we noted that Jesus returned to Bethany after a delay of two days. Upon arriving, He was told that Lazarus had been dead four days. This meant that Lazarus must have died before Jesus had even received the message that Lazarus was sick. And this means that Jesus knew of Lazarus’ death from the beginning and delayed His return for a specific purpose.
Let us number the days, one through four, and place the events within them. On the first day early in the morning the messenger sets out for the Jordan with news of Lazarus’ sickness. He would arrive sometime in the afternoon. Jesus delays for two more days which would have been days two and three. On the fourth day Jesus sets out with His disciples for Bethany, arriving in the afternoon, and is told that Lazarus had already been dead four days. Consequently, Lazarus died sometime in the middle of the first day and had been dead slightly over three days, into the fourth, by the time Jesus arrived.
If this is the case, we must ask again: Why then did Jesus delay a quick return to Bethany? The only possible answer is that Jesus delayed His return in order that there might be no doubt that Lazarus was really dead and that there might be no cause for doubting the miracle. Jesus permitted a continuation of the sorrow of Mary and Martha in order also to permit a greater revelation of God’s glory. Jesus permitted the sorrow. But He knew that in His own proper time He would end it and bring great rejoicing.
This truth leads to the second application of the story. For the principle involved is also true for us. No Christian who has lived any time at all with the Lord will say that life, even for a Christian, does not have sorrows. Christians lose loved ones. They endure sickness. They suffer rebuffs and persecutions. They are disappointed in the love of friends and family. But the new thing for the Christian is not that he does not have such sorrow, but that God knows about it, that He transforms it, and that He never permits it to come without a purpose.
Do you believe that? It is true for you, if you are a Christian. God is not capricious. He is not weak or inefficient. God is the sovereign God, and He always acts in wisdom. He does not let things happen for no reason at all. Therefore, if some of these things have happened to you, you may know that God has a purpose in them and that He will end them one day in a way that will honor Him.
I believe that every Christian has a right to ask what God’s purpose is in his suffering. You have a right to ask it. You can come to God in prayer and ask to see why some things have happened. You may not see the answer immediately. You may not see the answer in its entirety. In order to do that we would have to be like God. You may not even see it in its entirety in this life. But if you ask, God will certainly show you a glimpse of His purposes, partially in this life and more perfectly in the life to come. And you will be increasingly aware of His love. By this means God will strengthen your faith and make you a source of strength for others.
