Believing is Seeing

Believing is Seeing

John 11:1;4-7;21-26

and John 11:38-44

“‘Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?’” (11:40)

The words spoken by Jesus to Martha at the grave of Lazarus are a promise to us, as believers.

Lazarus had been dead four days. A stone covered the entrance of his tomb. The grief of his sisters, Martha and Mary, was crushing.

When Jesus commanded the stone to be removed, Martha hesitated: “Lord, by this time it won’t be pleasant.”

The point: From our temporal - human - perspective, the situation was beyond hope. Death had set in... and done its work.

But Jesus responded with that remarkable promise:

“Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?”

We seldom begin our prayers by asking God to reveal His glory, do we? But that’s the true and eventual result of all prayer... and life (and everything it brings our way)... it’s all about seeing the glory of God.

Jesus responded to Martha by reminding her of something He’d already said. And that’s important, because it means for us (you and me) that Faith begins NOT with our feelings, NOT with our emotions, NOT even with our deepest desires... Faith begins with the Word of God.

Earlier in the chapter Jesus said: “I am the resurrection and the life.” (Vs 25)

Faith is not unfounded optimism, it’s not superficial hope. Faith a Spirit-given trust and belief in the promises of God revealed in His Word. That they’re true! That those promises are real... and they’re for you and me!

Our faith and hope rests not on what we can see or perceive with our senses... but on the reliability of Christ Himself. This is why we’re told in 2 Cor. 5:7 that, “We walk by faith and not by sight!” Faith, specifically faith in Christ, is what carries us beyond what we can see... beyond our circumstances.

Martha believed. She had faith in a future resurrection, but she struggled to trust the power of that resurrection - when He was literally standing before her at that very moment.

How often we do the same? We believe God can act, we profess that God can act... yet we hesitate to believe He will act according to His purposes for us. Maybe that’s because, in all honesty, we’re not really sure that we want to surrender to God’s purposes for us. Maybe we’d rather he just go ahead and honor our purposes for us! I mean... after all we know what’s best, right?

One of the grandest, and most difficult lesson of all... is that everything in this life exist for the Glory of God... and that means the Glory of God must be the ultimate Goal of every Christian’s life. Jesus says that believing leads to seeing the glory of God.

Throughout the entirety of the Gospel of John, the miracles of Jesus are called signs. They reveal something deeper than the miracle itself—they all reveal the glory of God in Christ. The raising of Lazarus was more than just an act of compassion, though it certainly was that. It was even more so a revelation of God’s divine glory.

The glory of God is the display of His:

Power... Holiness... Sovereignty... Grace

And nowhere is that glory more evident than in the person and work of Jesus Christ. Every miracle in John points forward to the greatest revelation of glory—the cross and the resurrection.

Of course, hope, most would say... has limits.

The fact is Lazarus had been dead four days. This detail is important. In Jewish thought, there was a belief that the soul lingered about the body for three days, but after four days, death was undeniable. There was no possibility of recovery.

Think about that: Jesus had deliberately allowed the situation to reach its most desperate point, on purpose... so that the glory of God would be unmistakable. God often works this way.

And all throughout Scripture, we see it time and again:

The Hebrews... being chased by Pharaoh’s army, found themselves at the end of the road... while facing an obstacle that seemed to be impassable (the Red Sea). A hopeless situation... until God parted the waters. Exodus 14

The same Hebrew people, wandering in the desert wilderness in route to the Promised Land. No food, starving. Hopeless... until God provided bread from heaven (manna). Exodus 16.

Lazarus... dead four long days. Good and dead. Beyond any hope of life... until Jesus spoke... and the Word of God transforming a hopeless situation into an unmistakable display of God’s Power... God’s Glory!

When Christ was crucified, it appeared that all hope had died. But, on the third day, the resurrection revealed the greatest display of God’s glory in history.

Don’t ever tell God the situation is hopeless. God does not do hopeless. God does what brings Him glory!

Of course, it takes faith, grounded faith, to hope in what we cannot see. That’s why our faith emphasizes that faith itself is a gift from God. We can’t even believe, apart from God’s grace.

The same power that called Lazarus from the grave is the very same power that awakens faith in us. We could no more believe apart from God’s grace, than Lazarus could walk out of the tomb on his own.

When the Word made flesh, Jesus, called out: “Lazarus, come out!” the command itself carried the power that created Adam. And that same Word carries the power that awakens hopeless souls, even today.

The Spirit brings life where there was only death. And, in Christ, death never gets the last word.

“Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” Jesus words were intended, not only for Martha, but for us.

Faith does not mean we always understand God’s timing. Faith does not mean circumstances immediately improve. Faith means trusting Christ enough to know that He will reveal His glory “in-and-through” our life, and every situation that we lay at His feet.

Because of Christ, the tomb is not the end.

The question for us is NOT whether Christ has the power. The question is whether we will trust the Power of His Word.

If we do... we WILL see the Glory of God. Amen.