Seven Signs in John's Gospel

John Ch11 - Why do prayers sometimes seem to go unanswered?

Theme: Why do our prayers sometimes seem to go unanswered?

Why do our prayers sometimes seem to go unanswered?

This isn't just an academic question, I'm sure that all of us have had the experience of praying desperately about something - an issue, an illness, something which we are deeply upset about - and nothing happens. I guess that some of us are in that position right now.

We pray, and heaven seems silent. What is going on at these times? Does Jesus hear our prayers? I think today's passage goes a long way towards answering that question and, I hope, give us some comfort in it.

We are looking today at the last of the seven signs in Johns' gospel, the last of seven miracles that are specifically identified as being for the purpose of helping people to believe in Jesus; they follow on from the grand overall theme of Johns gospel which the author writes in John 20v30-31 "Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name" .

Here in chapter 11 we see Lazarus, Martha and Mary. They live in Bethany, only a couple of miles from Jerusalem . It was a household that we know Jesus loved, and he loved to spend time with his friends there as we can see in Luke 10. Then disaster struck. Lazarus falls ill, seriously ill. They know that Jesus is the only one that can heal him, and they know that Jesus has healed many people who were ill, so they send messengers out to find him. "Lord, the one you love is sick" (v3)

At that time Jesus was up in Judea away from Jerusalem , having escaped from the Jewish leaders who had attempted to seize him. What happens next is a surprise to Martha and Mary, a surprise to his disciples and possibly a surprise to us too.

Nonetheless, I think this passage has really encouraging things to teach us about Jesus, and there are three things that I'd like us to focus on: Jesus has plans that are bigger than us, Jesus is filled with compassion for us , and Jesus has power to save us.

Jesus has plans that are bigger than us

Everyone knew that Jesus can heal people (like the blind man we saw last week), they even knew that Jesus could heal people at a distance, just with a word (like the synagogue rulers daughter). Yet Jesus doesn't say anything to heal Lazarus.

In v4 Jesus says that that this sickness will not end in death, but it is specifically for Gods glory, so that the Son of God might be glorified through it. It is reminiscent of the blind man we learnt of last week who was blind, not because of sin, but "so that the work of God might be displayed in his life" (9v3). Yet having said that it would not end in death, Jesus hangs around for a couple of days. Why is that? Look at vs11-14

Jesus tells his disciples that their friend Lazarus has "fallen asleep". They don't understand that Jesus is talking metaphorically and think that he must be getting better, so Jesus tells them plainly "Lazarus is dead". He goes on to make the revealing statement to his disciples in v15 - for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe.

This is the crux of the matter - Martha and Mary desperately wanted their brother, who Jesus loves, to get better. They send a message to Jesus asking for help and then wait. not knowing whether he has heard or not. Their brother dies. What went wrong? Didn't Jesus hear? Was he unwilling to help? Didn't he have the power to help? What went wrong?

Jesus' plans are bigger than they knew. He needed to teach a vital lesson to his disciples and all who would eventually read this account by the apostle John. Jesus is painting on a bigger canvas than just the world of this family in Bethany .

Application

Sometimes believers today find themselves wrestling with the same questions that must have faced Martha and Mary. We are praying for someone dear to us - a child, a parent, a spouse, a sibling; we know Jesus loves them, we pray to Jesus and then wait. not knowing whether he has heard or not. Our prayer goes unanswered, the sickness continues, the trouble is not abated. Like Martha and Mary we may wonder "What went wrong?" Didn't Jesus hear? Was he unwilling to help? Didn't he have the power to help (or was our faith too weak?) What went wrong?

The fact is that Jesus sometimes has plans which are bigger than us, there are things that Jesus wants to do which go beyond our immediate needs and our immediate view of what is going on. I know that he is especially concerned with the eternal destiny of people - He wants to rescue as many as possible from the prospect of hell, to be their saviour and give them access to heaven.

Does this seem too callous? Too calculating? If the story ended there it might seem so, but that isn't the case because.

Jesus is filled with compassion for us

I'd like us to particularly look down at vv32-36. it includes the shortest verse in the entire Bible, but possibly the most profound. When Mary arrived and fell at his feet weeping, sobbing her heart out, Jesus was moved to tears. Jesus wept.

Despite what the Jews said in v36 Jesus wasn't crying because Lazarus was dead - he knew all about that. He had delayed his journey to allow time for Lazarus to die and he knew that he was shortly going to raise him from the dead.

No, Jesus' heart went out to his friends who were in such an agony of sorrow. He couldn't stand by aloof and untouched by their troubles; instead he felt them at least as keenly himself.

Application

Jesus knows when we are hurting, he knows when we are distressed - and it hurts him too, it distresses him too. The compassion that Jesus has for us, for all of us, is beyond our measuring, probably beyond our understanding except in as much as we can recognise that he cares for us . When we weep, he weeps with us. When we sorrow he sorrows with us.

There are some among us today who are worried, who are praying and not seeing an answer yet, who don't know why Jesus is taking so long in sending an answer to their prayers. I don't know why Jesus hasn't answered your prayers yet. But I do know that Jesus is filled with grief over the very same matters that grieve you

So while we wait for an answer to our prayers, while we pour out our hearts to God, we should be comforted that Jesus is standing alongside us in spirit, weeping while we weep.

I'm reminded of the children's game "do you love me this much? Do you love me this much? Do you love me THIS much? <gradually increasing distance between hands>. Jesus replied "I love you THIS much" as he stretched out his arms upon the cross, and died for us.

Jesus has power to save us

Jesus arrives at the tomb , and he performs an amazing miracle. This wasn't just restoring life to someone who had recently died. It isn't like the kind of thing we might watch on ER or Casualty where the medics shout out "we're losing him!", get out the rubber pads and shout "Clear!" before shocking the patients heart back into life again. Lazarus had been dead for four days. His body would have already started rotting. Never before in the history of the world had anyone been restored who had been dead so long. Despite the miracles of modern medicine today no doctor would consider going into the undertakers and attempting to "revive" someone who had been dead four days. It would be completely impossible.

But that is exactly what Jesus did! Other prophets in the history of Israel had brought the recently dead back to life, but none of them had ever done what Jesus did this day.

Jesus prays (for the benefit of his listeners, that they might believe that Jesus was indeed sent by God) and then commands Lazarus to come forth, and in a miracle of recreated tissue and life, Lazarus comes hopping out of the tomb, his hands and feet bound with strips of linen!

Jesus has all the power and authority to do whatever he wants. He has the power to answer our prayers, more importantly he has the power to save us, and in a future day all of his disciples, all those who believe in Christ will hear his voice and will rise from the dead, transformed into new and glorious bodies! The same Jesus who had the power to recreate Lazarus' decomposing flesh in that day is able to recreate our bodies anew on the day when he comes again. He has the power to do this, he has the will to do this!

How great is Jesus, eh?

Before I finish though, I'd just like to glance at Martha, who I've overlooked until this point. I think Martha is such an astonishingly close representation of what we tend to be like. certainly of what I'm like. Look back at v21-27. She has her theology sorted out. She knows that God will do anything for Jesus (v22). She knows that all will rise again in the resurrection at the last day (v24). She believes that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God (v27).

Yet when standing outside Lazarus' tomb, and Jesus says "Take away the stone" that seals the tomb, what does Martha say? (v39) "But Lord, by this time there will be a bad odour, for he has been there four days".

Martha finds it easy to put her faith in Jesus for what he will eventually do on the final day, when he comes again in glory. She finds it much harder to put her faith in Jesus for here and now. She finds it much harder to believe that Jesus will do anything miraculous here and now.

Perhaps we sometimes find that too?

Sometimes I've prayed for a miracle and seen it happen, but paradoxically I find it makes me more wary about praying next time. How stupid is that? I dearly want to trust our miraculous God for miraculous answers to prayer more and more.

I hope and pray that nobody will go away from today's passage thinking "there is no point in praying, God might not answer". Although Jesus' plans may be bigger than us, he is filled with compassion for us and he has power to save us . not just at the day of judgement but right now too.

Jesus can and will make a difference in our lives if we ask him; he can and will make a difference in the lives of the people around us if we ask him. So lets take our faith in Jesus for our heavenly salvation and put it into practise now in our earthly walk.

 

Alex White