So That You May Believe

On Day 2 of "Sky" VBS, the Bible story is the account of Jesus bringing Lazarus back to life.

Lazarus and his two sisters, Mary and Martha, were beloved friends of Jesus even since childhood. But one day, Jesus' dear friend Lazarus became seriously ill and died. The sisters sent word to Jesus about their brother's dire condition, but Jesus chose not to come to Lazarus' aid right away, even though Lazarus' life depended on it. How difficult it must have been for Jesus to wait! I know there must have been many tears that fell down the face of Jesus as he held back from going to his friends. While Jesus waited, He surely felt simultaneously the physical pain of Lazarus and the emotional pain of Mary and Martha. And just think: Jesus did this for our sake that we may see just how powerful He really is and believe the impossible.

"So then He told them plainly,

'Lazarus is dead,

 and for your sake I am glad I was not there,

so that you may believe.

But let us go to him,'"

John 11:14 (NIV)

Martha was the one whom Jesus reprimanded once for being too busy and working too hard to take time to spend at Jesus' feet like her sister Mary.

But this time, Martha was the one who ran to greet Jesus first, immediately acknowledging Jesus' power and authority. Amazingly, she even believed that Jesus had the power to still bring her brother back to life even though he had been dead for several days. Obviously, Martha had changed from that time Jesus had reprimanded her because Martha must have spent a considerable amount time at Jesus' feet to know Him that well and to have that much faith in Him.

"'Lord,' Martha said to Jesus,

'If You had been here,

my brother would not have died.

But I know that even now

God will give You whatever You ask.'"

John 11:21-22 (NIV)

You see, the secret to having great faith in God like Martha is spending time at Jesus' feet and getting to know Him through His Word. The more we know Jesus, the more we believe the impossible. This is the reason why Jesus waited until his dear friend Lazarus was dead for several days. God wants us to have extraordinary faith and to believe in His almighty power to do the impossible.

In Jesus, we can think the unthinkable, imagine the unimaginable, and believe the unbelievable. Everyone else around us might think you are crazy, but Christ won't. Jesus will always honour your faith!