Today's Reading: Old Testament: Exodus 29-30
New Testament: John 11
Focus Verses:
John 11:21-27; 39-40
21"Lord," Martha said to Jesus, "if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask." 23Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again." 24Martha answered, "I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day." 25Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; 26and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" 27"Yes, Lord," she told him, "I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world." 39"Take away the stone," he said. "But, Lord," said Martha, the sister of the dead man, "by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days." 40Then Jesus said, "Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?"
Insight:
Martha believed in Jesus (v.27), and believed in the resurrection that would take place "at the last day." But what did her faith mean for her present? When Jesus asks them to remove the stone from Lazarus' tomb, Martha says, "No, wait!" Her first thought was not the possibility of her brother rising to life that day, but rather the grim reality of his death and the odor of his corpse. Martha believed in Jesus. She believed in the resurrection. But did she believe that power and possibility were for her present or only for "the last day" -- a hope for the distant future? Would she have said what she said if the possibility of Jesus resurrecting Lazarus had been foremost in her mind?
Response and Action:
I believe in Jesus. I believe in God's power to save and restore. Yet, my faith is a lot like Martha's. I believe in the resurrection God has promised for the "last day," but do I believe in resurrection power for my here and now? Romans 8 tells me that the same Spirit that raised Christ Jesus from the dead now indwells my mortal body. That means there are stones to be rolled away in my life today, and God's power to restore is available for me today. Do I believe in God's resurrection power for my here and now? Yes, I do!
O God, make your glory visible by raising me to life through Jesus, who is the resurrection and the life. In you I have hope for my future and for eternity. May I also have hope and faith for today. May my first thought in every need and situation be a hopeful thought because I believe in your power to save, restore, and transform all things today. Amen.
Proverbs: 19:23
The fear of the LORD leads to life: Then one rests content, untouched by trouble.
Resources:
Living the Resurrection: The Risen Christ in an Everyday Life
by Eugene Peterson
