God bless you and greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, the great physician
When Mary and Martha had a need, they sent a short, simple message to Jesus. “He whom thou lovest is sick.” I always thought it was interesting that they stated it that way. They did not say, “He who loves you, he who believes in you, he who serves you, he who has done so much for you is sick.” They said, “He whom you love is sick.” The sisters knew that it was Christ’s love for Lazarus that would activate him. Similarly, we should understand that it is God’s love for us which is in Christ Jesus our Lord that provides a basis of our trust in Him. Knowing the depth and the riches of God’s love for His own, we are assured He will act on our behalf so we can be more than conquerors.
This situation was not without difficulty.
John 11:1-3:
Now a certain man was sick, named Lazarus, of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 (It was that Mary which anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.) 3 Therefore, his sisters sent unto him, saying, Lord, behold he whom thou lovest [phileō] is sick.
Love in verse six is the Greek word phileō. Mary and Martha make no requests or demands of Jesus. They simply want to inform him that their brother is sick. They want him to know the situation, and the fact that he would know was enough to comfort to them. Because they knew the depth of his love, they expected him to act. What they did not expect was a delay.
John 11:4:
When Jesus heard that, he said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby.
The way this verse is punctuated in the KJV would lead one to believe that God instigated this sickness so that Jesus could heal it and bring glory to God. Although we know that God never makes anyone sick, Jesus returned this devilish attack on his friend to bring glory to God. Let me suggest a better way to translate and punctuate this verse.
John 11:4:
When Jesus heard that, he said, This sickness will not end in death. But in contrast his healing will bring glory of God, with the result that the Son of God might be glorified by it.
Then the unexpected happened and the Word of God explains:
John 11:5-6:
Now Jesus loved [agapē] Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. 6 When he had heard therefore that he was sick, he abode two days still in the same place where he was. that
Phileō, brotherly love, dictates that Jesus go immediately. That is what Mary and Martha were relying on when they said, “He whom thou lovest is sick.” That is phileō. Jesus would come because Lazarus was such a good friend. But verse 5 explains that agapē dictated that he not go. Verse 5 is not out of place. A lot of commentaries say it is out of place; it doesn’t fit. But it does fit; it is supposed to be there. It explains Jesus’ motivation. “Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus.” That is the word, “agapē,” the love of God.
Phileō would dictate that Jesus jumps, that he runs out of friendship. But, it is the love of God that we operate from, and that dictated that he not go. Phileō tugs on our hearts, but it cannot bring results. It is agapē, in contrast, that brings results. It energizes our believing and obedience to do the Word. We do not react to situations. We act on the Word. We are not run by emotions; we do not get all shook. Remember the father whose son wallowed foaming? It did not even seem to bother Jesus. He keeps asking the father questions while the kid is down there wallowing and foaming. We stay cool and maintain our peaceful seas.
Tomorrow, we will see the discussion that Jesus had with his apostles to comfort their hearts and to teach them about walking by the spirit.