EXAMPLES OF JESUS' FAITH
John 11:39-42 NKJV
39 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." 40 Jesus said to her, "Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?" 41 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. 42 And I know that You always hear Me, but because of the people who are standing by I said this, that they may believe that You sent Me."
This is the account of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. And from the beginning of the chapter, we can see the faith of Jesus in action. I will summarize some of the statements that Jesus made that were great examples of believing before seeing.
He starts by declaring in verse four that Lazarus' sickness was not unto death but for the glory of God. We can read that Lazarus did die, but Jesus raised him from the dead. Right from the start, Jesus is declaring the end result. And ultimately, He was correct, Lazarus lived.
When Martha met Jesus and basically chastised Him for not being there for her brother, Jesus made another statement of faith that her brother would rise again. Martha was thinking in the last days, but Jesus was talking about right then and there.
Coming to the tomb, Jesus commanded that the stone over the cave where Lazarus was buried be removed. Here is a classic example of faith. Jesus did not wait until Lazarus was making sounds from the inside of the cave. Before anything happened, Jesus was preparing for Lazarus to be raised. Remember that Noah built the ark before it ever rained. Jesus knew what was going to take place so He was getting ready.
Martha was concerned about the smell. Her brother had been dead for four days. Martha was the concerned sister. Martha did not believe her brother was coming out of that grave. So Jesus filled her in and gave us a classic verse on how faith in God works. "If you would believe, you would see the glory of God." We live in a culture that has said seeing is believing. To be followed up with, don't count your chickens before they hatch. But faith in God looks different. Faith in God says we believe, and then we see. Faith in God is moving the stones away and counting those chickens.
What Jesus says next is a great example of His faith in God. He was thanking God that God had heard Him. This does give us some insight into the faith relationship Jesus had with His Heavenly Father. When Jesus said this sickness is not unto death, God heard Him. When Jesus said your brother will rise again, God heard Him. Jesus was conscious of God hearing Him all the time. And at the tomb, we don't even see Jesus pray; we see Him simply speak to Lazarus, and up and out he came.
APPLICATION
We always have to keep in mind that Jesus is not just our Lord and Saviour; He is our example. According to Hebrews 12:2, He is the author and finisher of our faith. His examples give us the principles of faith that we are to live by.
We are the people that believe before seeing. That's how we started our relationship with the Lord. By believing in our heart and confessing Him with our mouth, we were saved. We believe God hears us when we pray, before we see answers.
I remember the Lord strongly impressing on my heart that Joy was going to be my wife. This was way before I asked her, and she agreed. But for months, I was preparing to marry Joy. There was no manipulation involved. I simply believed what God had communicated to me, and I was getting ready. I believed before she ever came around.
In 2 Corinthians 5:7, the Scripture says that we walk or live by faith, not by sight. This is how Jesus lived on the earth. This is the faith we want to grow in. We want to move stones away and see God's glory in our own lives.
PRAYER
Lord, thank You for Your example of faith. I want to grow in this area of my walk with You. Thank You for hearing my prayer.