Read John 11
This morning we continue our series entitled, “The Year of Supernatural Manifestation”, with our mini-series on “The Miracles of Jesus.” Let’s continue with the story of Lazarus.
Before closing out this story there are a few more points I want to bring out. Let’s go back to the point that Jesus waited until Lazarus had been dead for four days to show up. It was a Jewish custom to wait until the fourth day to legally pronounce death, as if to ensure that the person was truly dead. Some Jews believed that a person’s spirit hovered over the body during the first three days of death. Those who believed this superstition could use it as a counterargument to the two previous miracles where Jesus had raised people from the dead. One was the son of the widow of Nain (see Luke 7:11-15). This lady’s son died, she did not have a husband or any other sons, and she was left very vulnerable in a man-dominated society. Jesus came up to the funeral procession, basically stopped it in it’s tracks, and raised her son back to life on the spot. This obviously had a tremendous impact on the widow and all who were present.
The other time was Jairus’ daughter (see Luke 8:41, 42, 49-55). Jairus, a ruler of the synagogue, swallowed his pride and took the risk to come to Jesus when his little 12 year old daughter was dying. Jesus agreed to go to his house to heal the little girl, but Jesus was stopped along the way by a woman who had been hemorrhaging for 12 years. Jesus healed the woman from the blood condition and took the time to listen to her testimony. While the woman was telling Jesus her story, the little girl died. Jesus was not phased by the fact that the little girl had stopped breathing. When He finally made it to the house He raised her back to life.
Neither one of those accounts, however, was like this one. The widow’s son and Jairus’ daughter had not been dead for four days. As you know from this series, Jesus arrived after the professional mourners had come and gone. He arrived after the body had been prepared for burial (wrapped in burial clothes). He arrived after the body was placed in the tomb and the tomb was sealed with a large stone. He arrived after the Jews had already legally pronounced Lazarus’ death. Jesus arrived after Mary and Martha had cried all the tears they bodies could produce. He arrived after rigor mortis was setting in and the body had begun to stink. He arrived after everyone on the scene (Mary and Martha included), had given up hope. No one was prepared to ask Jesus for a miracle at this point. Life for Lazarus, after four days, was beyond their capacity to believe. It was a terrible situation, but remember, nothing is impossible for God! Jesus was on the scene and the introduction of God changes every equation. Jesus came after all human hope was gone! But remember, You + God = Victory!
So what’s the message in the mess for this morning? The message is what I call “Maximum glory.” I will explain as I tell you what this means to you today.
1. God wants all the glory.
a) The very first commandment in the 10 Commandments is, “You shall have no other gods before Me” (Ex 20:3). Our God reserves the place of “God” all for Himself.
b) Our God is a jealous God (Ex 34:14), and He does not want us giving any of the glory that belongs to Him to any other god or to any other person.
c) God is okay with you enjoying the benefits of walking with Him, but He still wants all the glory! All the glory belongs to Him. Don’t ever make the mistake of taking His glory or of attributing the glory for something He did to someone else.
d) If you want to walk in God’s favor and blessing continually, just remember this: He gets the glory, you get the benefits. That arrangement is just fine with me.
e) Whenever God blesses you richly, the accolades come, and the spotlight is on you, just remember to give Him the glory. You can accept the promotion, but give Him the glory. You can accept the pay increase, but give Him the glory. You can accept the award, but give Him the glory. Because our God is still a jealous God where glory is concerned.
2. God sometimes does not step in until He will get maximum glory.
a) Sometimes God waits until our situation gets so bad, so ridiculous, so humanly impossible, that He knows that if He shows up at that point that He will get maximum glory out of it. At that point you won’t be able to give His glory to any human, because it was beyond humanity.
b) When God manifests His power after all human possibility has been factored out, then you cannot confuse God with anything or anyone else. At that point you can’t give God’s glory to a doctor, a lawyer, a friend, or anyone else.
c) No matter how dead your situation may seem, when God shows up, He can make the world’s impossibilities a reality in your life. He does this so He can be glorified in and through your life.
d) Are you willing to trust God, even when it looks like you should give up all hope? God can revitalize your dead dreams! Will you believe Him to do it? Will you take a chance on believing God, even when it makes no sense whatsoever?
Closing Confession: Father, this is a year of Great Victory for me. You have reminded me this morning that there is nothing too hard for You. Nothing is impossible for You. Lots of things are impossible for me and with man, but when You get involved in my situation, human limits can no longer dictate the outcome. So no matter how bad situations get, I will keep on believing, keeping on trusting, keep on operating in faith, and keep on expecting You to do what only You CAN DO! I will never say a situation is dead, until You tell me to move on. One Word from You can turn any dead situation around in a moment and when You do it, You will get the MAXIMUM GLORY from it! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper.
