Raising Lazarus and casting out demons seem close to me on the miracle scale. Lazarus could do nothing to help himself in the same way that a person with a demon can do nothing to rid himself of the demon. Jesus had to “bind the strong man” before he could secure the man for Himself. Lazarus could not refuse to be raised from the dead and though one might argue that a person might refuse the Christ after having a demon cast from himself; would you?
11:4 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.
I grew up in church & other than about 3 years after high school I have always had a church I "kinda" belonged to. But I've NEVER felt apart of something that God is ALL OVER until Rockway! I feel so blessed to have been led to a church family that wholeheartedly desires to GLORIFY GOD, above all else! Not that I'm degrading the other places, but it's a feeling I can't explain; to KNOW God is in the driver's seat here!
After hearing that Lazarus was sick Jesus didn't drop everything & sprint to Lazarus, in fact he sure did take his sweet time.
How easy is it for us to want INSTANT answers to prayer? And when we don't get it we grow impatient quickly, sometimes even get mad.
Lord, help me to rest peacefully in knowing it's not about my timetable, or my view of how it should go! And that I should cling to faith in YOUR WAY! And Mary and Martha got what they had wanted so badly anyways, so who knows!
11:35 Jesus wept.
Believe it or not I used to be kinda ashamed that I was/am a "crier." But knowing that even Jesus wept, to me that means sobbing & even snorting, helped me just accept it. And anymore I feel like its a blessing to be impacted to tears by overwhelming emotions & unfortunate circumstances. Wether in my life, or in the lives of others.
But do you think Jesus cried durring Armagedon when Bruce Willis said goodbye to Liv Tyler? What about when Mufasa died? Step Mom, Pay It Forward? Click? (hey that one caught me off guard) Okay how about this one, and this may be the worst of a list thats too long to go over, the last episode of Friends?
What about the final episode of The Cosby's? He knew it wasn't coming back on again. What a Girl Wants? The Notebook? Did he shed a tear when he heard the song "The Christmas Shoes" for the first time? Personally, I am not ashamed to admit it either. I love Amanda Bynes.
His friend Lazarus had died and even though he knew the outcome, that he would live again he wept. Was weeping because he missed his friend or was weeping because he was bringing his friend from Glory back to this world. Jesus is our ultimate example of a man and he wept. I think his prayer was in his tears and the words he spoke was for the benefit of those around him.
I wonder why Jesus wept. Was it because Jesus knew that after raising Lasarus He would suffer an even worse death than his first death at the hands of some murder? (John 12:10 So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus as well,)
In Luke 16 we have the story of the rich man and Lazarus after they died. I Guess this was after Lazarus died the first time. While Lazarus was dying at the gate:Luke 16:20 "But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, 21 desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table." Jesus was "tarrying" in the place where He was. Then Jesus tells us of the discourse between the two16:27“Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house, 28 for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’ 29Abraham said to him, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ 30And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31But he said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’” But then Jesus DID raize Lazarus after this exchange; I wonder if Lazarus went to the rich man's family to witness to them even though Abraham said it would be useless...
11:21 & 32 - "....Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." I think this shows us that without Jesus present in our lives, we die.
11:39 - Jesus told them to take the stone away. Mary reminded him that Lazarus had been there 4 days. This is a reflection of our lives. The stone represents the sin and when the sin is taken away we really stink behind it! Sin is the barrier between Jesus and us, as it was between him and Lazarus.
11:44 - Jesus told them, "Take off the grave clothes and let him go." LET HIM GO! How awesome is that? It makes me excited just to read those words spoken by my Savior! Image him saying that to Satan......Let her go! Isn't that cool??? We have to "take off" what binds us (sin) - take off what took us to the grave. Also, we sometimes have to allow our friends, family, community to help us through our mess. Sometimes we need each other to take off the grave clothes.
Father-thank you that when I ask you, you help me to take off the grave clothes. That I can be free from whatever binds me. You are an awesome God and I thank you for the lessons in your word!
Thank you for a church with leadership who listens when you speak and follows when you direct.
Thank you for my church family and for the thoughts you give to them to share with us.
7 comments:
Raising Lazarus and casting out demons seem close to me on the miracle scale. Lazarus could do nothing to help himself in the same way that a person with a demon can do nothing to rid himself of the demon. Jesus had to “bind the strong man” before he could secure the man for Himself. Lazarus could not refuse to be raised from the dead and though one might argue that a person might refuse the Christ after having a demon cast from himself; would you?
11:4 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.
I grew up in church & other than about 3 years after high school I have always had a church I "kinda" belonged to. But I've NEVER felt apart of something that God is ALL OVER until Rockway! I feel so blessed to have been led to a church family that wholeheartedly desires to GLORIFY GOD, above all else! Not that I'm degrading the other places, but it's a feeling I can't explain; to KNOW God is in the driver's seat here!
After hearing that Lazarus was sick Jesus didn't drop everything & sprint to Lazarus, in fact he sure did take his sweet time.
How easy is it for us to want INSTANT answers to prayer? And when we don't get it we grow impatient quickly, sometimes even get mad.
Lord, help me to rest peacefully in knowing it's not about my timetable, or my view of how it should go! And that I should cling to faith in YOUR WAY! And Mary and Martha got what they had wanted so badly anyways, so who knows!
11:35 Jesus wept.
Believe it or not I used to be kinda ashamed that I was/am a "crier." But knowing that even Jesus wept, to me that means sobbing & even snorting, helped me just accept it. And anymore I feel like its a blessing to be impacted to tears by overwhelming emotions & unfortunate circumstances. Wether in my life, or in the lives of others.
But do you think Jesus cried durring Armagedon when Bruce Willis said goodbye to Liv Tyler? What about when Mufasa died? Step Mom, Pay It Forward? Click? (hey that one caught me off guard) Okay how about this one, and this may be the worst of a list thats too long to go over, the last episode of Friends?
Oh no, I'm wellin'up, :)
Jeremy
What about the final episode of The Cosby's? He knew it wasn't coming back on again. What a Girl Wants? The Notebook? Did he shed a tear when he heard the song "The Christmas Shoes" for the first time?
Personally, I am not ashamed to admit it either. I love Amanda Bynes.
35 Jesus wept
His friend Lazarus had died and even though he knew the outcome, that he would live again he wept. Was weeping because he missed his friend or was weeping because he was bringing his friend from Glory back to this world. Jesus is our ultimate example of a man and he wept. I think his prayer was in his tears and the words he spoke was for the benefit of those around him.
I wonder why Jesus wept. Was it because Jesus knew that after raising Lasarus He would suffer an even worse death than his first death at the hands of some murder? (John 12:10 So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus as well,)
In Luke 16 we have the story of the rich man and Lazarus after they died. I Guess this was after Lazarus died the first time. While Lazarus was dying at the gate:Luke 16:20 "But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, 21 desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table."
Jesus was "tarrying" in the place where He was. Then Jesus tells us of the discourse between the two16:27“Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house, 28 for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’ 29Abraham said to him, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ 30And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31But he said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’” But then Jesus DID raize Lazarus after this exchange; I wonder if Lazarus went to the rich man's family to witness to them even though Abraham said it would be useless...
11:21 & 32 - "....Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." I think this shows us that without Jesus present in our lives, we die.
11:39 - Jesus told them to take the stone away. Mary reminded him that Lazarus had been there 4 days. This is a reflection of our lives. The stone represents the sin and when the sin is taken away we really stink behind it! Sin is the barrier between Jesus and us, as it was between him and Lazarus.
11:44 - Jesus told them, "Take off the grave clothes and let him go." LET HIM GO! How awesome is that? It makes me excited just to read those words spoken by my Savior! Image him saying that to Satan......Let her go! Isn't that cool??? We have to "take off" what binds us (sin) - take off what took us to the grave. Also, we sometimes have to allow our friends, family, community to help us through our mess. Sometimes we need each other to take off the grave clothes.
Father-thank you that when I ask you, you help me to take off the grave clothes. That I can be free from whatever binds me. You are an awesome God and I thank you for the lessons in your word!
Thank you for a church with leadership who listens when you speak and follows when you direct.
Thank you for my church family and for the thoughts you give to them to share with us.
Blessings!
Danna
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