Day 5 — God’s Glory and Our Response
How can God be glorified when his people are weeping and dying? What is the purpose of all of this?
In John 11, Jesus tells us the purpose of what is happening:
John 11:4
“This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”
John 11:14–15
“Then Jesus told them plainly, ‘Lazarus has died, and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.’”
John 11:41–46
“So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, ‘Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me.’ When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come out.’ The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, ‘Unbind him, and let him go.’
“Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what he did, believed in him, but some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.”
Why did this happen? So that people could come to believe that Jesus was sent from God. Through the suffering of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus and the miracle Jesus performed, many came to faith in him.
We often question why we experience what we experience. We may not know the particular purpose of our suffering, but this passage reminds us that God can work through our pain in the lives of others, too.
That day in Bethany, a few miles from Jerusalem, many who witnessed Jesus’ power came to believe. Yet that is not the full story. Some went to the Pharisees and reported what Jesus had done.
John does not tell us the motives of everyone who went, but the verses that follow make the leaders’ response clear. Rather than surrendering to Jesus, they made plans to put him to death.
The same miracle that led many to faith became the occasion for further opposition.
It is easy for us to be discouraged when we try to show the goodness of God and people do not respond, but this passage is a good reminder: We cannot save people. A powerful testimony does not guarantee that everyone who hears it will believe.
Jesus showed God’s glory and power. Many believed, and others continued to oppose him.
Our calling is to point people to Jesus faithfully and trust God to work in their hearts.
