“When Jesus arrived in Bethany he was told that Lazarus had already been in his grave for four days… Martha said to Jesus, ‘Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died. but even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask.’” John 11:17, 21 (NLT)
If there ever was a hopeless situation, this was it! Lazarus was in the grave 4 days before Jesus even arrived on the scene. How many times have we had situations in our lives where it seemed the Lord was too late (way too late) and it seemed as if all hope was gone? Today we are going to expose 4 lies of the enemy that attempt to destroy our hope to be rescued.
Remember: The enemy always tries to kill in infancy what he fears in maturity!
The enemy is like the wolf who is constantly trying to isolate the sheep in order to get them alone and away from the safety of the Great Shepherd.
It is written: “So although Jesus loved Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, he stayed where he was for the next two days.” John 11:5-6 (NLT)
Martha felt like she was saying and feeling the right thing by seeing Heaven as the end result of this sorrow. Although Heaven is the ultimate hope of every believer, there is a NOW FAITH that has the power to “bring the dead back to life and create new things out of nothing!” (See Romans 4:17.)
It is written: “Jesus told her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die.’” John 11:25-26 (NLT)
In essence, Mary was saying, “If You had felt the way we did as he actually passed away, You would have done something to stop it.” This lie of the enemy comes to put distance between us and the throne of grace. It comes to cause us the feeling of separation from the Lord and forget the finished work of the Cross. LIE! The blood is on the mercy seat and Jesus, our great High Priest, is interceding for us day and night!
It is written:“When Jesus saw her weeping and saw the other people wailing with her, a deep anger welled up within him, and he was deeply troubled.” John 11:33 (NLT)
“This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin.” Hebrews 4:15 (NLT)
How many times have we heard the statement, “It is what it is”? The enemy would lie to us and tell us that, because things have gone wrong already or didn’t happen the way we had hoped, even the Lord can’t reverse the reality of our present situation. Martha was displaying her doubt by stating the obvious fact of Lazarus stinking, but Lazarus was already starting to stir in that grave!
It is written: “Jesus responded, ‘Didn’t I tell you that you would see God’s glory if you believe?’” John 11:40 (NLT)
The greater the impossibility, the greater the glory Jesus receives!