It has been my habit to read the Scriptures every morning and to use a program that lets me read through the whole bible every year. It often sets you up for the day. This particular morning part of the daily reading was John chapter 11. It is the story of Lazarus of Bethany whom Jesus loved. But Lazarus is taken ill and dies and is placed in his tomb. By the time Jesus arrives Lazarus has been dead for four days!
The account goes like this:
1. Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. It was that Mary that had sat at Jesus’s feet to hear His words while Martha busied herself with serving. Later she anointed the Lord Jesus with expensive fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair. Therefore the sisters sent to Him, saying, “Lord, behold, he whom You love 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 may be Glorified through it.”
Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. But when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was.
Then after this He said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again. Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up.”
Then His disciples said, “Lord, if he sleeps, he will get well.”
Then Jesus said to them more plainly, “Lazarus is Dead. Nevertheless, let us go to him.”
So when Jesus came, He found that he had already been in the tomb Four Days!
Now Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.
But even now I know that whatever You ask of The Father, The Father will give You.”
Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”
Martha said to Him, “I know that he will rise again in The Resurrection at The Last Day.”
Jesus said to her, “I AM The Resurrection and The Life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. DO YOU BELIEVE THIS?”
Then, when Mary came where Jesus was, and saw Him, she fell down at His feet, saying to Him, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.”
And He said, “Where have you laid him?”
They said to Him, “Lord, come and see.”
Jesus wept.
Then the Jews said, “See how He loved him!” And some of them said, “Could not this Man, who opened the eyes of the blind, also have kept this man from dying?”
Then Jesus, again groaning in Himself, came to the tomb.
It was a cave, and a stone lay against it.
Jesus said, “Take away the stone.”
Martha, the sister of him who was dead, said to Him,
“Lord, by this time there is a stench, for he has been dead Four Days.”
Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead man was lying.
And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me.
And I know that You always hear Me, but because of the people who are standing by I Am saying this, that they may believe that You Sent Me.”
Now when He had said these things, He cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, Come Forth!”
And he who had died came forthbound hand and foot with graveclothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Loose him, and let him go.”
Then many of the Jews who had seen the things Jesus did, believed in Him.
It was the morning shift, and I was on my usual rounds. I was one of the few mobile workers and over the years I had made a point of getting to know as many of the workers by name if possible. It helps with communication and caring. Most operators are stuck on their machines all shift with only short breaks to do Quality Control. It was a factory that made high quality titanium fasteners for aircraft, so quality was paramount. This particular morning I got talking with one of the grinders. Somehow, we got on to the subject of Lazarus and how that he had been dead for four days in a hot climate. And I said, “You can’t get much more diseased than four days dead!” and the guy said, “I know where you are coming from.” And began to tell me about his brother. He was a truck driver and had fallen off the back on one of his stops. When the doctors looked at the damage they found bone cancer.
I knew that was serious and probably terminal. So, I said, “Buddy, that’s serious. I can’t just flippantly pray for your brother. I will go and ask the Lord, “What can we do for your brother?” it wasn’t far to the yard door, but before I got there, I distinctly heard Him say, “Roy, whatever you ask in My Name, I will do it.”
I immediately felt the weight of responsibility resting on my shoulders and quickly went outside, wrestling with the question, “What can I ask?”
The answer came quite quickly. “The cancer dies not your brother.”
I checked with the Lord, “Is that okay? It’s more of a statement than a prayer.”
“That’s okay,” and He nodded.
So, I returned to Buddy on his grinder and gave him the good news.
“The cancer dies not your brother.”
Buddy was the kind of guy that worked seasonally, so I didn’t see him again for about 6 months. But when I did catch him alone, I asked if there was any news of his brother. He was surprised that I remembered, but reported that, “He is in full remission.”
What a faithful God we serve.
Such faith come by hearing. And hearing comes by the Word of God.
Hebrews chapter 11.
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony.
By faith we understand that the worlds and ages were framed by the Word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.
By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts. And through it he being dead still speaks!
By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, and was not found, because God had taken him. For before he was taken, he had this testimony, that he pleased God.
But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is God and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
Note the word diligent.
Shortly I will post another testimony where the Lord used diligence to avert an impending disaster at work.