John 11:5-6 "Now Jesus loved 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."
As I look at these two verses, I must admit my mind and heart are going in two
different directions. My mind asks, "Why did Jesus wait two days before
leaving for Bethany?" Jesus knew Lazarus was sick. He knew the
concern of Mary and Martha. They very rarely, if ever, sent for Jesus to
come under such conditions. Even though Jesus spent much time at their house.
Surely He knew they truly were seeking and needing Him at the moment; yet, He
"abode two days still in the same place where He was." That is
the place where my mind wanders. Thank God, He has given my heart peace in knowing
what Jesus was going to do. My mind says, "Why wait?" My heart knows
whatever Jesus does is based upon two things. First, Jesus loves our Heavenly
Father and is going to glorify Him. Second, Jesus loves Martha, and her sister,
and Lazarus and is going to bless them beyond measure.
I also wonder why the Scripture mentions Martha by name, but only refers to
Mary as "her sister." We know specifically of one other time
Jesus was in their home. Martha was cumbered about much work to do in
preparing the meal for Jesus. Mary was very content to sit at the feet of Jesus
and listen to Him talk. Jesus told us Mary had chosen the most important
part. What I am about to say is merely conjecture on my part, but I
wonder if Martha was showing more anxiety at this point than Mary. Jesus
was going to accomplish many things through one wonderful miracle; but it was
not time for Him to go.
His delay in going to Bethany was not a show of indifference. Remember
the disciples asking the question when the storm was tossing them about, "Master,
carest thou not that we perish?" It seems they thought Jesus should
have already been up and doing something about the storm according to their
timing. Many, including Martha, thought Jesus should have gone
immediately to Bethany to heal Lazarus. Once again, we see God's timing
and our timing is not always the same. But that does not change the main
motivation in His dealings with us. You see, even though Jesus waited two
days before starting toward Bethany, He "loved Martha, and her sister, and
Lazarus."
When God does not work in our lives at the time we feel He should do something,
it does not show a lack of love toward us. Our Lord does all things well and He
does all things according to His time schedule. We know He hears our
prayers. We know He answers our prayers. We also know He does it according to
His purpose for our lives. Let us trust Him always.