11/06/2023
How deep is our faith in Jesus Christ? Have we believed all our lives that Jesus is the Son of God, and yet never been intimate with Him? Have we walked down the aisle weeping and confessing that He is the Lord of our lives, and then continued along with the reins of our lives held tight in our hands? Maybe we spend a lot of time trying to make ourselves righteous by doing those things Jesus taught, but do them without ever having met our living Savior. In faith, true faith, we are meant to allow Him to transform us by making us righteous, and holy.
“Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?"”
John 11:25-26 ESV
Jesus asked this of Martha, the sister of Lazarus, after Lazarus had died, and was entombed. She had sent for him when her brother was sick, but Jesus didn’t come. Now He was here, but it was too late... her brother had been dead for 4 days. She believed that he would be resurrected in the final day, but that there was nothing Jesus could do now... except weep with her. Is this our faith? We say we know who Jesus is because we can read accounts like this one in the Bible, but do we really know what it means to believe?
A marriage is the wonderful joining of two people into one flesh isn’t it? A man and a woman falling in love and after committing themselves to one another before the church, and God, they become one flesh. Many of us believe that don’t we? In reality, marriage is a covenant before God, and becoming one flesh is the physical joining of two bodies that should occur to consummate the union. However, we can become one flesh without marriage, but that isn’t God’s plan, and that type of joining, when it stands alone, is sexually immoral. True marriage is a commitment, a Covenant, and it is sealed when the two become one flesh.
“Or do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute becomes one body with her? For, as it is written, "The two will become one flesh." But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him. Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body.”
1 Corinthians 6:16-18 ESV
Our faith is a lot like marriage. We can go to the altar and say that we believe in Jesus Christ the Son, and that His Father is the One True God, but then there must be a sealing of that covenant. Physically we must enter into the waters of baptism, and spiritually we must receive the Holy Spirit. Any of these acts alone will not complete the transaction, but together they marry us... right? I am going to rattle your cage a little by saying “wrong”… we must yield our will.
As humans our will and desire for self-determination is strong. We know what must be done to lawfully become married, and we can go through the steps in all sincerity, but even when they have been followed to the letter, they may be worthless. 50% of all marriages (and that number may be higher) end in failure... divorce. They do so because one, or both, of those entering into it can’t relinquish control of themselves to the other. This takes great trust, faith, and an amazing love. This takes placing the needs of our spouse before our own. It takes a personal commitment that says your will, not mine, be done... sound familiar?
We can marry ourselves to Jesus. We can go through all of the steps laid out in scripture and still miss the boat. Sometimes it takes a Lazarus experience to point this out to us. We must be faced with a physical impossibility and watch as God makes it possible before we can truly believe. Thomas needed this when he put his hand into the side of Jesus... do we need that kind of experience too? Or, do we believe without the necessity of further proof?
“Jesus said to him, "Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."”
John 20:29 ESV
I had cancer, and for my generation (I am now in my 70s) that was always considered to be synonymous with death. Ann and I had been married for 39 years at the time, but suddenly our marriage was faced with a Lazarus moment. I always knew she loved me, but it wasn’t until this moment that it would be proven beyond words, and beyond what the everyday challenges of life dictated. My illness, and the possibility of death allowed me to put my hand into the side of our marriage... of Ann. Reaching this moment wasn’t something that simply saying we were married instilled in her, and it wasn’t something I could make happen... it was all Ann. It was her putting me before herself, and loving me, even unto death. We were at a place where saying “I love you” seemed insignificant, and actually loving one another took on flesh.
This is our faith... it is more than just saying “I believe”, it is becoming the total embodiment of God, and Jesus Christ. It is more than trusting in the things that can happen; it is totally trusting God in those that we are absolutely convinced can’t occur. Lazarus can’t possible come out of the tomb, Jesus can’t possibly be here with a hole in his side, and a dying person who the doctors tell us will succumb to death can’t possibly live.
Where is our faith today? Are we waiting for a Lazarus event, or are we blessed as one who believes without the need to see? Can we let go of our reins, and give control of our lives to God? Can we walk with Jesus in times that we know are impossible by worldly? Can we trust in God when every human instinct within us tells us it is over?
Just as only Ann could give herself completely to me, and only I could give myself completely to her, we alone must give ourselves in our entirety to Jesus Christ and God the Father. No ceremony, no bible story, and no emotional outpouring, can make this happen... it requires our unselfish love and for us to relinquish our self-determination. This is the foundation of covenant, and without it... all we have are promises.
Prayer:
Father, I thank you for the covenant we have entered into. I thank you for your Son Jesus Christ, and the sacrifice He made for my redemption. Holy Father, I believe in you and Jesus with all my heart. I believe in you during the easy times of life, during the difficult situations when a solution is physically possible, and I believe in you completely in those times when the laws of nature must be bent or broken for me... I believe in you during the times of miracles. You have delivered me Father when there was no explanation, and I had become Lazarus himself. You delivered me so that your will could be done and your glory realized. Lord God Almighty, you love me, and give to me of yourself each day. Help me Father to give myself totally to you; give me resolve, humility, and unbridled love for you. Let nothing you ask of me be distasteful to me. Let your will be paramount in my life, and my will pass away before it. You are good, and true; all you ask I can do with your hand upon me. Holy Father, I yield the creation of righteousness and holiness in my life to you. There is nothing I can do that will allow for these things except to trust in your grace and mercy. In one spirit with you, and Jesus, I find my peace and holiness complete. Praised be your name Father! You are the realization of miracles and the fountain of all life, and love. You are my God.
Rich Forbes