Why God? Why?

 Read John 11.

When a need is great, people will often wonder, "Why doesn't God do something?"  When a human tragedy strikes, people will often wonder, "Why did God allow that to happen?"  Either way, God's motives are questioned and His actions get second guessed. 

After the feast days in Jerusalem, Jesus returned to minister in the north.  Then word came that His friend Lazarus was ill.  He had healed so many others, surely He would help His friend in Bethany.  Jesus announced that He would go, then waited two days to move.  In the interim, Lazarus died, his sisters and friends were broken hearted, and the funeral had taken place.  In fact, Martha said in verse 21, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died."   Why would Jesus not come and spare His friends this time of suffering?  Jesus knew exactly what He was doing and what He would do.  But human reasoning could not make sense of it all until later.

1. His Motive (v.4)
Interestingly, Jesus answered the ultimate "why" question first.  This earthly life is a temporal existence at best.  The real issue has to do with where a person will spend eternity.  Frequently, when Jesus used the word life He was speaking of spiritual life.  However, notice His motive statement because it is the umbrella over all that God does.  "It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it."  In other words, our God-given opportunities and experiences are not primarily for our comfort or suffering, prosperity or loss.  The question is, "How can God receive the most glory from our lives and fulfill His purposes in us?"

The raising of Lazarus from the dead and the joy that followed were temporal.  It alone did not take away suffering.  One day, the man had to face physical death a second time and, presumably, his sisters endured a second funeral. 

His motive statement is consistent throughout the Scriptures and this is at least the third time it appears in John's Gospel account. 
-In 2:11, the purpose behind the embarrassment of the wedding host, "This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee and manifested his glory.  And his disciples believed in him."
-In 9:3, when questioned as to why the man was born blind, "Jesus answered, 'It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.'"

2. His Timing (v.6)
Waiting until Lazarus died, seems cruel.  Again, Jesus knew what He was going to do.  "But I go to awaken him." (v.11)  His statement, "I am glad I was not there" (v.15) sounds strange.  His explanation of purpose was "so that you may believe."

Seeing these events from Jesus' perspective shows that He was right on time to accomplish His will and His purposes, not their plans.  This was true both in the lives of those suffering in Bethany and in the hearts of His disciples.  Our frustrations come when we want God to respond in our perceived manner and on our timetable.  We learn throughout the Bible that God is sovereign and is never late.  His timing is always perfect.

His Claim. (vv.25-26)
When responding to Martha, Jesus said, "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."  It is one thing to make such a claim, it is another matter to prove it.  Then, He raised Lazarus from the dead.  The miracles validated the message.  "Did not I tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?" (v.40).