“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 God, God will give You.” John 11:21-22

There is a divine reason when the answer to our prayer is delayed.

In a town called Bethany, there was a family very dear to Jesus. Jesus and His disciples frequently visited this family and members of the family Lazarus, his sisters Martha and Mary were very intimate friends to Jesus.

Jesus was teaching in Jordan, and Lazarus got sick. Martha and Mary sent words to Jesus and said, the one you love is sick. Martha and Mary knew that Jesus loved Lazarus. However, when Jesus heard this He said, “ This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” Verse #5 says Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. Then it says in verse 6, “So 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.”

Humanly it was not impossible to understand why Jesus stayed there two more days after it says He loved them. However, the reason was also stated in the passage. Jesus said this sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.

Beloved, sometimes when we go through heartaches, pain, and losses, even after praying to the Lord, we do not get an immediate favorable answer. However, the passage says Jesus loved them. That is all it matters in the end. One truth is sure- If He loves you and I and still does not get an answer to our prayers, He has another plan in His mind. His plan is for the glory of God that the Son of God may be glorified through it. We do not know for sure how all are going to work out or what is the final product. However, Jesus knows exactly how God is going to get glory out of it.

Then after two more days, Jesus came to Jerusalem along with His disciples. Now Martha, as soon as she heard Jesus was coming went out to meet Him and said our today’s insight. It says, “Lord if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But, even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you.”

You see, even though her brother died and things were so bad for them for the last few days; still Martha expressed her full faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. She was assured of the fact that if Jesus were there, her brother would not have died. However, even though He is dead now, she knew Jesus could do something about it. She understood and believed in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and therefore she knew whatever Jesus ask of God, God would give Him. What an incredible faith and trust in the midst of loss and darkness!

Now listen carefully to the conversation between Jesus and Martha. Jesus said to her, “your brother will rise again.” Martha said to Him; she knew that he would rise again in the resurrection at the last day. Then Jesus said and revealed the most wonderful truth about Himself. Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?”

Jesus in effect said to her He is the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Him, shall live again, if he dies. Then He said, whoever lives and believes in Him shall never die. This is why Jesus said before when he heard the news of the sickness of Lazarus that his sickness is not unto death in the sense of eternally lost condition and away from the presence of the loving and gracious Lord.

Two truths emerge from Jesus’s statement. One, Jesus is the resurrection and life. In other words, He is the author of resurrection and life. No one ever claimed such a claim. Those who have Jesus Christ have resurrection and life already in them. Second, A person who believes in Christ, though he may die here on earth, he shall live. In other words, when people call it death, it is not an end of our existence. Those who believe in Jesus Christ and then die, they are going to live again in heaven forever, because Christ will raise them again.

Then Jesus asked Martha, Martha, do you believe this? To this question Martha answered, Yes, Lord, I believe you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is to come into the world. Jesus asked where you have laid Him? They showed the gravesite to Him. It was in a cave. Jesus said to them, “take away the stone.” They took the stone away. Jesus lifted up His eyes and talked to His Father in heaven and said in a loud voice, “Lazarus, Come forth!” Lazarus came out bound hand and foot with graveclothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said, “lose him, and let him go.”

Beloved, our today’s insight teach us at least three points. Number one, when you and I puzzle in our mind why the Lord is not answering the prayer, the right option is to trust the heart of God altogether. He knows what He is doing. It is for the glory of God, and the Son of God gets glory somehow. In this incident, ultimately Jesus got the glory over the situation, by raising Lazarus from the dead and proving His supernatural power over death. God perfectly knows how He is going to get glory out of our sad and fearful and terrible circumstances. Always trust the hand and heart of the loving Lord, because He loves us.

Secondly, like Martha, let us keep our full faith and trust in the love of the Lord. The Lord is still able to deliver us from our bad circumstances and problems. He can always do something beyond our wildest imaginations. This truth will be tested again and again in our lives. Even if no deliverance comes, let us be firm in our faith like Daniel. Daniel said God is able to deliver us. Even if He will not deliver, we are perfectly ok, and we will not bow in front of the idol the king built.

Thirdly, there is a crucial question everyone should answer on this side of eternity. Listen! Do you believe Jesus Christ, the only savior of the world, is the resurrection and life? Do you believe he who believes in Christ though he may die, he shall live again? Saying yes to this question as Martha did when Jesus asked, hang your future destiny.

Got a moment for today’s prayer? “Father in heaven, I know I do not understand why you allowed this painful circumstance in my life. I pray Lord to deliver me with your supernatural and mighty hand. However, I know you have a plan behind though I do not fully understand now. If it brings glory to you, Lord I submit my will to your plan and will. I believe Jesus Christ died and rose again for all of my sins. I accept Christ as my savior. Please save me. In Christ’s name, I pray.”