John 11:5 Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus.
Believing Prayer
We hear much these days about “believing prayer” or having faith as we pray. Faith is not only important when we are praying, but also after we have received either a “yes” or a “no” from the Lord.
In John 11, we read about the death of Lazarus, whose sickness and death were “for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.” Jesus even says, “I am glad for your sakes that I was not there [to heal Lazarus], to the intent ye may believe.”
The rest of the story is all about those who believed on Jesus because of the testimony of Lazarus when Jesus had raised Lazarus from the dead. Those who were concerned about Lazarus told Jesus over and again that if He had been there, Lazarus would not have died. Others wondered, “Could not this man, which opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even this man [Lazarus] should not have died?” Well, the answer is clearly “yes,” Jesus could have healed Lazarus had He chosen to do so. So Jesus intentionally delayed His coming because what He did do was far more amazing than what they wanted Him to do. Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead.
One of the primary points of this story is in verse 5 which says, “Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus.” It requires faith not just to believe that God can do something, but that His heart for me is nothing but good even if He chooses not to do something. What Jesus did for Lazarus is different than what they would have asked. It was better than what they would have wished, and it was in response to what they were wishing.
Whatever the answer to our prayer might be, may God help our faith to grow in the daily dealings of life. Sometimes it takes as much faith to accept a “no” as to receive a “yes.”