Do You Have Blind Faith?

Jesus had a special friendship with the siblings Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. The Gospels highlight this in a few places, especially Jesus’ interactions with Mary. My favorite story about Jesus and these siblings is in John 11. It’s the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead.

John 11 begins by stating that Lazarus was sick. We pick up in verse 3, where Mary and Martha do the only thing they know to do: “So the sisters sent word to Jesus, ‘Lord, the one you love is sick’” (NIV).

When Jesus receives the message in verse John 11:4, his response gives us insight that things are about to get interesting: “When he heard this, Jesus said, ‘This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.’”

Jesus delays going to see Lazarus by two days, and when he is finally ready to go, he tells his disciples,

“Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.”

His disciples replied, “Lord, if he sleeps, he will get better.” Jesus had been speaking of his death, but his disciples thought he meant natural sleep.

So then he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead, and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” (John 11:11-14 NIV)

As Jesus and the disciples arrive, they encounter Mary and Martha mourning Lazarus, who was placed in a tomb four days earlier. Traditional Jewish mourning begins with seven days of intentional mourning known as sitting shiva.

What I find interesting about the conversations Jesus has with the disciples and then with both Mary and Martha is that everyone believes Jesus has the power to heal Lazarus. No one seems to have any doubt that if Jesus had arrived in time, Lazarus would not have died–in this, at least, they demonstrate blind faith. In fact, John 11:32 recounts, ^“When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.’” (NIV).

Understandably, Mary and Martha might not have expected Jesus’ to raise their brother from the dead. However, the disciples shouldn’t have been surprised. They were also with Jesus when he raised Jairus’ daughter from the dead  (see Luke 8). Jesus used the same language in that situation, saying Jairus’ daughter was “asleep,” and then bringing her back to life.

At this point in the conversation, Jesus has had enough. John writes, “When Jesus saw her (Mary) weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. ‘Where have you laid him?’ he asked” (John 11:33-34 NIV).

As Jesus moves toward Lazarus’ tomb, he is ready to reveal what he told the disciples days earlier: Lazarus’ death has a purpose. God is going to be glorified.

Jesus is ready to put his words into action, but Mary steps in and voices a logical concern:

“Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. ‘Take away the stone,’ he said. ‘But, Lord,’ said Martha, the sister of the dead man, ‘by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.’ Then Jesus said, ‘Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?’” (John 11:38-40 NIV).

Can I ask you something? Have you ever felt a nudge from God to do something just a little crazy? Have you ever felt deep down in your bones that taking that illogical step of blind faith would glorify God? Have you ever pulled a Martha and argued that the plan was a bad one?

Side note: Can we please say thank you to the KJV translators for John 11:39? Because I like to imagine this is exactly how this conversation about Lazarus went: “Jesus said, Take ye away the stone. Martha, the sister of him that was dead, saith unto him, ‘Lord, by this time he stinketh: for he hath been dead four days.’”

I know you might be giggling. Honestly, I’m trying to break the tension a bit because I know my questions may have your stomach churning. There may be something God is calling you to do right now that seems ridiculous. Are you stepping in with logic where God is asking you to have blind faith? Are you asking God to know the end of the story before you take the next step?

We don’t know what happened while Jesus and Martha were discussing Lazarus’ odor, but Jesus’ reminder of their conversation moments earlier was enough for Martha to take the next step of faith and allow Jesus, the man she called Lord, to have the tombstone rolled away from her brother’s grave.

In John 11:41-45, the disciples finally see what Jesus said would happen four days earlier:

“So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, ‘Father, I thank you that you have heard me.  I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.’ When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come out!’ The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, ‘Take off the grave clothes and let him go.’ Therefore many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, believed in him” (NIV).

Lazarus was alive after four days in a tomb. His death was undeniable to anyone, and because of this, Jesus’ power is also undeniable, and God is glorified. But what if Lazarus had the same response as Martha? What if Lazarus had responded, But Lord, I stink! I can’t come out of this tomb in these rags!”

Lazarus could not walk out of that tomb any way other than by God’s power. When everyone became complacent with the expectation that Jesus could heal the sick, he seized an opportunity to show them that God’s power was far greater still than they understood.

If there is one thing God continues to teach me, it’s that he intentionally calls the unqualified. Everything he asks me to do is for his glory. When I take that step of blind faith, his power is on display through me, and the same is true for you.

Philippians 2:12-13 says, “Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed—not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence—continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose” (NIV).

Beth Walker is a football coach’s wife and mom of two energetic boys. She strives to encourage those around her to pursue their best lives in Jesus whether she is near the game field, in church, or at the local coffee shop. As a writer, Beth has been striving to find her voice through seeing Jesus in the ordinary and extraordinary of daily life. She blogs at Lessons from the Sidelines.

Photograph © Jehyun Sung, used with permission