Yet when he (Jesus) heard that Lazarus was sick,
he stayed where He was two more days.
John 11:6
Two more days. Doesn’t sound terribly difficult to endure. It’s the equivalent of how long it might take to drive across several state lines to reach a destination or complete a training course for a particular certification. Maybe await the arrival of one’s birthday or wedding day.
Or the time it takes to recover from another (choose your adjective here) political debate. But, I digress…
Reading the passage in John 11, it’s puzzling to know Jesus was fully aware that Lazarus was sick – even knowing before the Mary~Martha sister posse informed Him. Yet He chose to stay put a while longer, feet firmly planted (Or more credibly, walking here and there, saving lost souls).
Yes, Jesus waited two more days.
Basically, He waited for Lazarus to die.
And when the pre-determined two day period passed, He simply told His disciples, “Let us go back to Judea.” (vs. 7).
When He arrived, Lazarus had, indeed, breathed his last.
But hey, at that point, Jesus could really show off His stuff. Because breathing life back into a dead man had to convince the nonbelieving hearts of His day way more than just making a sick guy well again.
Were Jesus a political candidate on the campaign trail, I would picture Him shouting from a podium, gesturing with His hands, “You want to see power, well, then I’ll show you real power!” (And I’d be able to cast my vote with complete confidence on election day. Uh, digressing again…)
Waiting comes pre-packaged with me being human and living on planet earth. God has rightly engineered multiple waiting periods in my life. Some of these ‘two more days’ have stretched beyond forty-eight hours, on into weeks or months. Even years. And for some circumstances, I still wait for His ultimate fulfillment.
One of the greatest strains in life is the strain of waiting for God. O. Chambers
For me, the experience of waiting has been anything from annoying to downright agonizing.
Why? Because, if at the end of a particular ‘two more day’s wait there is JOY to behold, then I want it now, not in two more days. And if there’s a known difficulty that awaits me in two more days, well, that just increases the strain in the wait, makes my pulse race.
Waiting has been particularly difficult when I had no earthly idea how long my two more days will be. I’ve felt helpless, trapped, my head swirling with concern for how I would endure the strain.
During these providential two-day waiting periods, God
just asks that I not stare at the pot…or the clock…or the calendar… but to be busy about fulfilling His purposes while I wait.
Through the duration, He gives me just cause to trust His goodness and timing, offers a peek at what He’s up to. Because He’s always at work and even delights in the results that I can’t yet see.
So, yes, Jesus stayed two more days. And because of that, a dead man was resurrected to new life. It gave Lazarus a far richer story to share with others about the power of God and His word.
With that, I shall cast these anxious eyes away from the still-not-boiling pot and be about the business of my Father, Who has established His throne in heaven and His kingdom rules over all (Ps 103:19)…including, ahem, political candidates.
Can I get an amen?
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