KJB Daily Devotion – Following Jesus Through Every Chapter
Date: Sunday, October 29, 2017
Chapters: John 11
Message: When Jesus Delays
Hello My Friend,
I use to think that I was a pretty patient person, that was until I started walking with Jesus, in fact, the closer I get to Him the more I realize, I am a pretty impatient person. I have always been the type of person that when I want something right now, I will do whatever it takes to get it (legally and morally), and while that kind of drive is not necessarily a bad thing, it can cause problems when our deadline is fast approaching and we do not have what we want or in many cases need. That is where Jesus comes in, He knows what we need, and He gives it to us, when the time is right, sometimes we think He is not hearing us or that He simply is not going to give us what we need and therefore, we need to seek other means, but the truth is, He may just be delaying us. So, why would Jesus delay? That God may be glorified through our waiting. “If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.” – I Peter 4:11.
Did you ever notice that when you ask God for patience, He puts you in positions that test your patience, or strength, He puts you in positions that test you ability to handle tough situations. You see, God loves to test us, not necessarily our faith in Him, but that we might trust Him completely for all things. Sure, He wants us to be strong, but He wants our strength to come through Him, likewise, He wants us to be patient, but He wants our patience to come through Him also. Jesus was about to do something to test the Jews trust, Lazarus (Mary and Martha’s brother), was severely sick, his sisters sent a message to Jesus that they needed Him to come right away, but He delayed in coming, in fact, it was two days later that He headed into town.
“Now a certain man was sick, named Lazarus, of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. (It was that Mary which anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.) Therefore his sisters sent unto him, saying, Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick. When Jesus heard that, he said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby. Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. When he had heard therefore that he was sick, he abode two days still in the same place where he was.” – John 11:1-6.
“but for the glory of God,” There are times when Jesus delays in coming to us, it is not that He does not know what is going on or that He is not with us, everything is in His perfect timing, that God may be the one who gets the glory in making it happen. This is not about faith, we all have faith that God can do anything, it is about our trusting Him alone, if it were something that we could do on our own we would not depend on God to give it to us, and since He wants us to be dependent on Him alone, He is going to make sure we see it can only be obtained by Him. It was time for Jesus to head toward Jerusalem, the disciples feared for His life and did not want Him to go there, but He insisted that it was time to go.
“These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep. Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well. Howbeit Jesus spake of his death: but they thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep. Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead. And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe; nevertheless let us go unto him. Then said Thomas, which is called Didymus, unto his fellowdisciples, Let us also go, that we may die with him.” – John 11:11-16.
“that we may die with him.” Thomas, already picturing that Jesus would die in the hands of the Jews, willingly offered to go with Jesus, even if that meant it would be the end of his own life. We must not fear the unknown, this delay was to prove, not only that God can bring a life back from the dead, but that Jesus is the resurrection. Martha got word that Jesus was close by and met with Him, asking Him why He did not come sooner. Of, course she knew the Scriptures, that Jesus was the Messiah, and that there was life after death. Then “Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?” – John 11:25-26.
Mary stayed behind praying and mourning the death or Lazarus, but when Martha told her that Jesus arrived she got up quickly, running to meet Him. “Then when Mary was come where Jesus was, and saw him, she fell down at his feet, saying unto him, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died. When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping which came with her, he groaned in the spirit, and was troubled, And said, Where have ye laid him? They said unto him, Lord, come and see. Jesus wept. Then said the Jews, Behold how he loved him! And some of them said, Could not this man, which opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even this man should not have died?” – John 11:32-37.
“Could not this man,” Do you see who the world reacts to Jesus? Always skeptical, the first thing people do when something tragic happens is blame God, wondering if He is so great why did He allow it to happen in the first place. There is not one size fits all journey for Christians or anyone for that matter, we all have different paths, and God deals with each one of us different, He never changes, but He does put us in situations that He might change us to remove the worldly thinking and trust Him completely. “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever. Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines. For it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace; not with meats, which have not profited them that have been occupied therein.” – Hebrews 13:8-9.
Jesus, fully God, lowers Himself to be a mere mortal man, He could have come here as an angel, as we know He had done that several times throughout the Old Testament, He could have come here as a storm, as we know He as done that too, but He chose to come here in the likeness of the very image He created, the only creation of His to have a soul. Jesus brought Lazarus from the dead, proving that He does have the power to give life to every living soul, no one else has that power. Jesus was glorified that day, many believed, but many were, in fact, threatened by the miracle they saw, so threatened that they gathered together and formed a plan to have Him killed.
“Then gathered the chief priests and the Pharisees a council, and said, What do we? for this man doeth many miracles. If we let him thus alone, all men will believe on him: and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and nation. And one of them, named Caiaphas, being the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know nothing at all, Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not. And this spake he not of himself: but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation; And not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad. Then from that day forth they took counsel together for to put him to death.” – John 11:47-53.
“Nor consider that it is expedient for us,” These people were well aware of the Scriptures, they knew who Jesus was, and yet they wanted to destroy Him. Why? Fear. Fear from losing control, not of Jesus controlling their own lives, but that they lose control of their status, their deception, the people they were controlling. You see, that is what false religion does, it puts them in power of a persons soul. There is only one person in charge of a soul and that is God, He saves every soul that believes in and receives His Son as their Saviour, but also casts out every soul that does not, and unfortunately that means hell. Jesus will return some day, every grave will open, and every soul will be judged, those saved will receive new glorified bodies while the unsaved will get cast into the lake of fire, along with the greatest deceiver of all, Satan. Do not think that Jesus is delaying in returning, He is just waiting for the right time, for that the very last soul to be saved. “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.” – II Peter 3:9-10.
Jesus Christ Magnified: “Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:” – John 11:25.
Today’s Prayer: Jesus, No matter how I feel on the outside I know You are with me, not because of any good that I do, but because I believe in and trust in what You have done for me. I know that I have nothing to fear because You know what I need and exactly when I need it. Lord, it is hard to have patience when I have so many people and things trying to discourage and distract me, and I do admit that I am often too proud to say I need You. Lead me and guide me, give me Your power, wisdom, and grace to withstand every obstacle and to trust You with all of my life, knowing that everything is in your perfect timing. In Your name Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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