Four days in hell will toughen you up. Lazarus (the name meaning ‘whom God helps’) was Jesus' dear friend. He was the brother of Mary and Martha and lived just three kilometers or so from Jerusalem. Church historical writings from the fourth century tell us that in 33 AD (the same year Jesus was crucified) Lazarus was scattered to the Island of Cyprus (where Paul later appointed him an elder). We are told that while he died the first time at 30 years old he lived another 30 years after Jesus raised him from the dead. Amazing. Miraculous.
When you’ve gone through hell and when Jesus helps you through it you have a special resolve. It's a toughness that comes only from the character building that God puts us through, nay, helps and grows us through.
I can see this type of growth throughout my life, but my 40s were where stuff got real. My 30s were somewhat easy in hindsight (maybe because Kari did most of the work!). Raising five kids. Leading and serving in our small church in SW Calgary. Growing in Christ. Growing in leadership in the practice of law and Western Canadian corporate finance.
Then the 40s hit. We had made enough money that I thought we could rely on it to kind of retire or at least move to the USA and be self-sufficient (I had worked for my own Canadian investment company for about seven years at that time). The US move didn't take so I took a job as General Counsel with a Toronto Stock Exchange-listed company headquartered in Victoria, British Columbia. It was led by Scheisters (it went bankrupt 18 months after I left).
Soon after arriving in Victoria (March 2012), for the first time really, we saw the wicked underbelly in the church where we saw a pastor viciously attacked by the congregation. We had only been at this church in Victoria, BC for a month. Man talk about division and dysfunction. I have seen some horrendous things, but this was pretty bad stuff. I’ll save you all the gory details, but it is a good true story (Good because God redeemed a number of the relationships and brought growth where people sought to bring destruction).
When we identified the wrongdoing and financial irregularities at the company I reported up the ladder and then resigned. The company went broke 18 months later. That whole scenario cost our family a lot. For one thing, it cost us our revenue stream (Kari took a job working at a local school). At that time all our physical assets were in Florida and my stocks and investments in the Canadian natural gas industry were in a tremendous slide. We had assets but we had very little cash (and we had a significant cash burn as we were paying for our daughter’s college at a private university in the US). I started volunteering at a food bank. I drove the boys to a million hockey practices, games, and tournaments. And I’d go to the courthouse library every week and read books on the law and occasionally pop my head into a courtroom (oh what a mucky scene - it was good for me to see). I also went to mediation meetings between the church that fired their pastor and various prayer meetings to try and rectify and diffuse the combatants. It was a long year of ministry and unemployment. A really weird time of life. Yet it was good.
My sense is that God brought us to Victoria, BC so that we could minister to the pastor (and his wife) who was so viciously treated and so that we could serve Him and learn to rely on God. And we did. In many ways it was hell - the kids can tell you stories - Victoria was just an odd fit for us all. Of course, we had fun and I'm thankful we went through it together. We made good lifelong friends. Genuine friends. We prayed earnestly for direction as to where to live and work and what to do. After just over 15 months in Victoria, we made the decision to send Kari and the kids to Florida and I went to Calgary to work for another real estate client (another long story). No matter the path we take, Jesus is always right there with us. But it is indeed important to follow His lead and be on His path.
The Bible tells us that Jesus is the one who restores our souls. He guides us in the paths of righteousness. Though we may walk through the valley of the shadow of death, we will fear no evil. For Jesus Christ is with us - we may go through Hades but our Lord God will bring us through it - His rod and staff comfort us (Psalm 23:1-6). I know many have gone through much more than we have - and we don’t know what tomorrow holds. But I’m more confident than ever in Jesus; it is His goodness and mercy that keeps us, now and for eternity.
What I’m getting at is that there is believing, and then there is really believing (11:15). And the character-building we go through grows our faith. Faith even like a mustard seed is good, but great faith is where God wants us and that comes through character building - trials and tribulations - and triumphs in Jesus.
I am praying that this is a breakthrough year of growth in faith for all of us. And for amazing revival in the church. I’m praying for my kids and for my friends. I’m praying for opportunities to lead and serve well. I see God’s hand at work. I see that He is orchestrating and answering prayers in His way. You know, His timing is His alone - but He answers our prayers in a way that is much better than we hope or ask.
Back to the story of the one that Jesus helped, Lazarus. It would be hard to love Jesus more than Mary, Martha, and Lazarus loved Jesus. They were his dear friends (11:3). The sisters knew Jesus so well that when their brother got sick what did they do? They sent a message to Jesus to come help. They put faith into action. Do that! Mary, precious Mary, who we look forward to meeting in heaven, could not love Jesus more. She owed everything to Him. She hung on every word He said and she poured expensive perfume on His feet (later in Chapter 12) - the feet of the Son of God - and wiped and rubbed it in with her hair. I doubt she could have known exactly what would happen but as it turned out she was anointing Jesus' body for burial - while He was still alive (Luke 7:36-50 and Mark 14:1-9).
True love. Love through thick or thin. Love is based on relationships. There is no love without freedom - that's the way our Creator made us. I know love from my wife, kids, and grandkids. But we really know love from our God. Love is resilient. It celebrates God’s goodness, excellence, and truth and it hates death and sickness and wrongdoing (1 Corinthians 13:4-8). We see love in action with how Jesus teaches His men in this story and how He gently treats Mary, Martha, and His dear friend, Lazarus.
Jesus had friends in low places. Friends from Bethany. The Bible tells us Jesus loved these dear friends (11:5). What an incredible honor for these siblings. May it be said of us and our kids and my grandkids - that we are friends of Jesus. Not only shall we love our Maker with all our hearts, we shall not hold back our love for our friends. Yes of course we all have imperfections and annoyances. I have many. Don’t hold back your love; let it overflow. Pray for your friends to succeed in the rich and satisfying life Jesus has for them. May they not wander, drift, or submit to the powers of this world. No matter what hell they are going through.
God says He gives us freedom in Christ from the sinful principles of this world. As a believer in Jesus Christ, you are not bound to sin. But God also says you can of your own volition choose to submit to worldly regulations (Colossians 2:20). God warns for a reason. If you are on the wrong path, turn around. Instead, live in God’s freedom in obedience to Jesus' teachings.
My wife cheekily calls me Mary (she implicitly is Martha) as she’s cleaning while I read the Bible. In the story Kari’s referring to (Luke 10:38-42) it is not just Mary who shows a deep relationship with Jesus. Martha does too! She invites Him into her home (Luke 10:38). Martha prepared a ‘big dinner’ for Him (10:40). And Martha knew Him well enough that she could appeal to Him to dictate the sibling duties - like a child appealing to a dad (10:40). Never forget Jesus answer to his dear friend Martha when she complained about her sister shirking the food duties: “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her” (Luke 10:42).
It was dangerous to be a friend of the Son of God in Judea. The siblings knew that and they followed Jesus Christ despite the risk. Real friends are willing to put faith into action. In Jesus' case, He loved us so much that He laid His life down for us. Jesus wants us to “get it”. He wants us to know how deep His love for us is. He wants us to grow in faith and love Him beyond measure. No matter the circumstance or the season of life we are in. Life or death. Good times, or bad. Even if we walk through the valley of death, we will fear no evil.
That’s it for today as I’ve got to do Martha work. But I’ll leave you with this. Jesus loves you as much as he loves Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. Despite all odds, He wants to be your friend. He is the one who helps us. He shows us in this incredible story His power. His authority. His anger at death. And His love. His deep compassion for His friends. Jesus says, “Didn’t I tell you you will see God’s glory if you believe!” (11:40).
Believe in Jesus today. Lazarus was raised from the dead. And those who lived to see that miracle would have seen the similarities between Lazarus’s story and Jesus’ resurrection. They believed I'm sure, but later they "really believed!" Lazarus, a young 30 year old died an untimely and seemingly preventable death. Buried in a tomb. Mourning. Sadness. Yet God showed up. The stone was rolled away and God called Lazarus to come out. All a foreshadow of what would happen to the Messiah. Jesus laid His life down voluntarily and took it back up again by the power of the Spirit of Christ.
Dear Jesus, help us to pray earnestly today and to desire to know You and to be sincere and blameless. Help us to do good. Amen.
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