We Live By Faith And Not By Sight
John 11 opens with Jesus being informed that his dear friend, Lazarus, is sick. Jesus sends word to Mary and Martha, the sisters of Lazarus, that “this sickness will not end in death.” (v.4) While the messenger is traveling back and forth, however, Lazarus dies. After two days, Jesus tells His disciples they will now travel to Bethany to the home of Mary, Martha and Lazarus. The disciples are concerned and remind Jesus that the Jews there wanted to kill Him. Jesus tells them that “Lazarus has fallen asleep” (v. 11) and He is going there to wake him up. The disciples mistakenly think that Lazarus is only sleeping and will get better. Then Jesus informs them that Lazarus has, in fact, died; but that his death will be an opportunity for the disciples to believe in who Jesus was. Thomas, who is known for his doubting, showed great courage and faith by saying that they should “also go” and die with Jesus.
So our first thought might be why didn’t Jesus keep Lazarus from becoming sick in the first place? And then, why did Jesus let Lazarus die? Jesus could have healed Lazarus from where He was, why didn’t He? And if this was His plan, then why did He tell the sisters that Lazarus’ sickness would not end in death? The answer is found in verse 15 - “that (we) may believe”.
In his New Testament commentary, Warren Wiersbe writes, “God’s love for His own is not a pampering love; it is a perfecting love. The fact that He loves us and we love Him is no guarantee that we will be sheltered from the problems and pains of life. After all, the Father loves His Son; and yet the Father permitted His beloved Son to drink the cup of sorrow and experience the shame and pain of the cross. We must never think that love and suffering are incompatible. Certainly they unite in Jesus Christ.”
Jesus’ message to Mary and Martha said only that the ultimate result of Lazarus’ illness would not result in death. The ultimate result would be to bring glory to God. Jesus wanted them to trust in His promise. Isaiah 55:8 tells us that God’s thoughts are not our thoughts and our ways are not His ways. God works things out on His own timetable.
Wiersbe adds, “When we find ourselves confronted by disease, disappointment, delay, and even death, our only encouragement is the Word of God. We must live by faith and not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7). Mary and Martha may have felt hopeless, but ultimately they trusted Jesus. Psalm 50:15 reminds us that if we call on the Lord when we face trouble, He will deliver us and we will glorify Him.
How timely this lesson was for me. God chose not to shelter us from the problems and pain of cancer. Cancer is a thief. It has robbed Dennis of his health, strength and energy. It has robbed our finances with medical bills and debt. Our family time has been robbed as Dennis is often taken away from us. And although it was removed from Dennis’ body, its after affects have stayed with us, often leaving us weary and sometimes even in despair that our situation will not improve. But as Warren Wiersbe pointed out, we find our hope in the Word of God.
As I have been reading in Genesis, I was reminded of two of God’s names - El Roi: “the God who sees me” and Yahweh Yireh: “the Lord will provide”.
Hagar, who was fleeing from her mistress, Sarai, was alone in the desert. An angel appeared and told her to go back to Sarai; that the Lord had heard her misery and had given her a son she was to name Ishmael (Genesis 16:1-14). This is a reminder that God sees our story from beginning to end; He knows the outcome, even if we don’t. We can trust that He has our best interests in mind; that His watchful eyes are always on us.
Abraham was told to sacrifice His son, Isaac, the promised one given to him by God in his old age. As they neared the top of the mountain, Isaac asked Abraham where the lamb for the burnt offering was. Abraham’s response was that God himself would provide the lamb. Just before Abraham killed his son, the Lord called out to him and said not to harm his son. In a thicket, he found a ram caught by its horns. Upon sacrificing the ram, Abraham called the place, “the Lord Will Provide” (Genesis 22:1-14).
These were both reminders to me that we are not walking this journey alone. God sees everything we are going through. He knows the end of our story even though we can only see what is right in front of us. He has been faithful to provide for our needs. We may live paycheck to paycheck, but we have a husband/father in our midst, a home, food in our fridge and pantry, clothes to wear, and the hope of better things to come.
I have been soaking in Chris Tomlin’s CD “And If Our God Is For us”. His song “I Lift My Hands” and “Faithful” have been ringing true for me. God has been our fortress, refuge, and strength; He is our shelter and our anchor. I may not understand God’s thoughts or plans for us; but I trust Him for the outcome and offer all the glory to Him as we rise above our struggles.
God sees. God provides. God is faithful. He will work all things out for our good and His glory.
So our first thought might be why didn’t Jesus keep Lazarus from becoming sick in the first place? And then, why did Jesus let Lazarus die? Jesus could have healed Lazarus from where He was, why didn’t He? And if this was His plan, then why did He tell the sisters that Lazarus’ sickness would not end in death? The answer is found in verse 15 - “that (we) may believe”.
In his New Testament commentary, Warren Wiersbe writes, “God’s love for His own is not a pampering love; it is a perfecting love. The fact that He loves us and we love Him is no guarantee that we will be sheltered from the problems and pains of life. After all, the Father loves His Son; and yet the Father permitted His beloved Son to drink the cup of sorrow and experience the shame and pain of the cross. We must never think that love and suffering are incompatible. Certainly they unite in Jesus Christ.”
Jesus’ message to Mary and Martha said only that the ultimate result of Lazarus’ illness would not result in death. The ultimate result would be to bring glory to God. Jesus wanted them to trust in His promise. Isaiah 55:8 tells us that God’s thoughts are not our thoughts and our ways are not His ways. God works things out on His own timetable.
Wiersbe adds, “When we find ourselves confronted by disease, disappointment, delay, and even death, our only encouragement is the Word of God. We must live by faith and not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7). Mary and Martha may have felt hopeless, but ultimately they trusted Jesus. Psalm 50:15 reminds us that if we call on the Lord when we face trouble, He will deliver us and we will glorify Him.
How timely this lesson was for me. God chose not to shelter us from the problems and pain of cancer. Cancer is a thief. It has robbed Dennis of his health, strength and energy. It has robbed our finances with medical bills and debt. Our family time has been robbed as Dennis is often taken away from us. And although it was removed from Dennis’ body, its after affects have stayed with us, often leaving us weary and sometimes even in despair that our situation will not improve. But as Warren Wiersbe pointed out, we find our hope in the Word of God.
As I have been reading in Genesis, I was reminded of two of God’s names - El Roi: “the God who sees me” and Yahweh Yireh: “the Lord will provide”.
Hagar, who was fleeing from her mistress, Sarai, was alone in the desert. An angel appeared and told her to go back to Sarai; that the Lord had heard her misery and had given her a son she was to name Ishmael (Genesis 16:1-14). This is a reminder that God sees our story from beginning to end; He knows the outcome, even if we don’t. We can trust that He has our best interests in mind; that His watchful eyes are always on us.
Abraham was told to sacrifice His son, Isaac, the promised one given to him by God in his old age. As they neared the top of the mountain, Isaac asked Abraham where the lamb for the burnt offering was. Abraham’s response was that God himself would provide the lamb. Just before Abraham killed his son, the Lord called out to him and said not to harm his son. In a thicket, he found a ram caught by its horns. Upon sacrificing the ram, Abraham called the place, “the Lord Will Provide” (Genesis 22:1-14).
These were both reminders to me that we are not walking this journey alone. God sees everything we are going through. He knows the end of our story even though we can only see what is right in front of us. He has been faithful to provide for our needs. We may live paycheck to paycheck, but we have a husband/father in our midst, a home, food in our fridge and pantry, clothes to wear, and the hope of better things to come.
I have been soaking in Chris Tomlin’s CD “And If Our God Is For us”. His song “I Lift My Hands” and “Faithful” have been ringing true for me. God has been our fortress, refuge, and strength; He is our shelter and our anchor. I may not understand God’s thoughts or plans for us; but I trust Him for the outcome and offer all the glory to Him as we rise above our struggles.
God sees. God provides. God is faithful. He will work all things out for our good and His glory.
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