As the saying goes, “Only God can see around the corner.” and just because I don’t understand what Jesus is doing doesn’t mean I have any right to determine He must be mistaken. For here in Isaiah, the Lord spells it out very clearly…My plan & purpose for your life is perfect, and My actions on your behalf will always be flawless & complete. Ours isn’t to judge God’s ways or the manner in which He is accomplishing them…ours is to obey and commit our way to His.
Betrothal is the final step in the courtship process as the bride & bridegroom are promised to one another in marriage. And here, we see the Lord claiming His bride, the Church, forever. But in II Corinthians 11:2 we see Paul warning the Church about turning their hearts from the Bridegroom to the best man…”I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to Him.” Paul longed for the Church in Corinth to remain loyal to Christ as false teachers infiltrated & drew them away from the bridegroom. But even today we must be careful to remain the best man & not take on the role of bridegroom. How? When our traits of goodness, purity, and holiness are drawing more attention than the Lord Who enabled them…when we only speak about ourselves & not present Jesus Christ as the reason for our hope…we are taking on the role of Bridegroom & not best man. So sadly, what the person will be left with is the thought, “Wow! What a fine Believer that person is!”…but entirely miss the Bridegroom, Jesus Christ, who betrothed them.
The Old Testament imagery of the Lord as the husband & Israel as His bride is shown in Isaiah 62:5 when it says, “As a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you.” And here in this verse, the role of the best man or close friend of the groom is to wait, listening for the groom to make his entrance…rejoicing not resenting his role. But it’s when we take on the work of savior not servant in someone else’s life we will find ourself outside of God’s Will. For if we become the necessity in their life, and not Jesus, we have become their redeemer and thus block the way for the true Savior of their soul to work. Our job as best man is to point the way to Christ…not get in His way.
Martha’s theology had its fulfillment in the future…”I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” (John 11:24) But Jesus wanted Martha to have a deep, close, & personal intimacy with Him at that moment. So He asked the probing question, “Do you believe this?” Thus forcing Martha’s faith & trust to emerge into her own personal decision & inheritance…”Yes, Lord, I believe that You are the Christ…” (John 11:27) There will be times in your own life when doubt will cloud your mind…when personal problems bring personal awareness of profound personal needs. Jesus will then drive home the same question about your own personal convictions – “Do you believe this?”
We could easily read Martha’s words and assume her tone of voice directed at Jesus was one of anger and acute grief…blaming Him for her brother’s death. But if we look closely at her choice of words it shows something quite different. Martha acknowledges that Lazarus’s condition wouldn’t of worsened if Jesus had arrived sooner, but she looks beyond the temporal in her next bold & confident statement…”But I know that even now God will give You whatever You ask.” Martha has absolute trust that even though Lazarus has been in the tomb for four days, his body beyond recovery with no reasonable way of it happening…she still expects a miracle!
This reassuring Scripture tells us that God will not only respond to our appeals, but will reveal & explain those hidden & secret things of His…bringing them to light. But the important part of this is that we must call on Him, and as a whole, mankind isn’t real good at doing that. Earlier in Jeremiah, God told the people, “Hear this, you foolish and senseless people, who have eyes but do not see, who have ears but do not hear.” Man’s selfishness, pride, and self-centeredness have made us blind & deaf to God’s Message…as we hear but do not understand, see but do not perceive, our hearts growing dull & slow to His Word. But Isaiah foretold of the era of Salvation & Kingdom Righteousness when he wrote, “From now on I will tell you of new things, of hidden things unknown to you.” (Isaiah 48:6) And with the advent of Jesus Christ and the Gospel Message, all hidden things were brought to light & the way to God through Him was made clear…giving us direct access to God the Father.
Just as Nicodemus misunderstood the metaphor Jesus used when He told him, “You must be born again.” (John 3:4) The disciples misconstrued Jesus’ reference to death as sleep. Though when Jesus used the Greek word, Koimao, for “fallen asleep” it can be used for both sleep & dying. So Jesus then told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead.” using the Greek word, Apothnesko, which definitively means natural death. Why? So that there would be no trace of doubt that Jesus could deliver Lazarus from the grave.
The allure & aesthetics of beauty and charm will only get you so far in the world…for soon people will discover how shallow & counterfeit your true identity is. But if your life is God-centered…and filled with whole-hearted obedience, people will immediately see you as you are valued by God. And then it will be the works of your hands that will honor you, not the words from yourself or others.
Earlier in John 9:4, Jesus had told His disciples, “As long as it is day, we must do the work of Him who sent Me.” In this verse, and for the first time, Jesus wasn’t just speaking about Himself & His mission here on earth but now included His disciples as partners in His Gospel work. You must work in the light for, “God is light; and in Him there is no darkness at all.” (I John 1:5) Which here in this verse emphasizes God’s attributes of moral purity & omniscience. Thus, even though you’re in the world, you will not stumble because the truth of God’s light will illuminate & clear your path of confusion & deception. But if you walk in the darkness of self-reliance & independence from God… you will stumble. That’s because all your beliefs, ethics, and attitudes are the opposite of God’s.
Tomorrow our Rural Church Plant will be holding its first Women’s Conference. The Community response has been very encouraging & we look forward to welcoming many ladies that may or may not have ever darkened the door of a Church. Please pray that it will be a welcoming environment where all will be comfortable & feel the love of Jesus. But in the end, I know that God is sovereignly putting everything into place…as we do our best for His glory!
Safetypinlove 