PrintThe Day Jesus Showed Up Late!
They knew that this sickness was more than just a setback or inconvenience. This was life-threatening. Without some kind of powerful intervention their brother could possibly die. So Martha and Mary sent the message to Jesus that Lazarus was gravely ill. "Lord, the one you love is sick". Identifying Lazarus as "the one you love" sounds to me like an appeal for priority attention. Whatever, Jesus had often enjoyed the hospitality and friendship of this family there at Bethany so it's fair enough to think that they may have felt entitled to make such an appeal.
Then, in John 11/5, the Apostle records two seemingly contradictory statements. First, he says that Jesus loved Martha, Mary and Lazarus. Then we are told that, when Jesus received the news, He stayed where He was for two more days. My question is simply, "How can love delay and thus deny their heartfelt request?"
When Jesus eventually made the trip in response to their urgent message, He arrived to late to heal Lazarus. He even missed the funeral. Both sisters - independently – expressed to Jesus their faith and their disappointment; "If you had been here my brother would not have died". Jesus showed up but He showed up too late. Or did He? We must ask, "Too late for what?"
Well, He showed up too late to fulfill their agenda; their agenda being the healing of Lazarus so that he did not die. But was Jesus too late for His Father's agenda? I have to ask, "Which is the greater miracle – healing Lazarus from sickness or raising him from the dead?" The two sisters hoped that Jesus would come and heal their brother. Jesus had another agenda and that was to raise him back to life. Yes, Jesus showed up too late to fulfill their expectations. But He was right on time to accomplish His Father's will.
I don't know how many times I've read and recited the words of Isaiah where we are told that God's ways are not our ways. I think it's equally true to say that God's timing is not our timing. I don't know how many times I've felt that the time was past for God to intervene in some situation or another. How often I've said that it's too late. Then He shows up right on time to do what He wants to do as against what I wanted Him to do.
Will I ever learn that God's delays are not God's denials?
