There are two phrases in the story of the raising of Lazarus from the dead that stand out. Jesus tells an emotionally distraught Martha "I am the resurrection and the life." It was, to Martha, a way back to Jesus. He was the friend she knew as well as the God she loved. The words were about to be a triumphal cry to be followed by "Loose him and let him go." Paul would agree with our desire to know the power of God in our lives like that: "That I might know Him in the power of His resurrection..."
Paul's desire did not end there, though. I want to know Him, he said, in the power of His resurrection and in the fellowship of suffering. If we want to know Jesus better, we must see Him in both lights: The ultimately victorious Lord and Savior who delivers us from the fear of death and as the friend who weeps outside a tomb.
On one hand, Jesus is God of very God, whose victory is sure and whose deliverance is complete. On the other hand, Jesus is one who gives up His rights and privileges as God, to be wrapped in flesh, become obedient to the will of God, taking the role of a servant all the way to death on a cross.
The same incident in John 11 that tells us that Jesus is the resurrection and the life tells us that Jesus wept. Before he wipes away our tears, he sheds his own. He sits in the dust with us until he leads us in triumphal procession. The author of the Book of Hebrews tells us that "we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses."
I stood at mom's dying bedside as she begged, "Please son, let me go..." I have had friends die after long well-fought battles with cancer. I have stood at funerals where loved ones looked for some reason to hope for their unsaved sibling. I have wondered what God was doing. I have thought, "Surely, this is too much for me." Then, behind me, I heard my Savior plead, "Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from me." Whatever I have faced, or will face, is not worthy to be compared to what He faced. If my prayer is not answered, I rest in the knowledge that in Christ's unanswered prayer is all my hope and rescue.
The triumphal cry, "It is finished" will come soon for Him. It will come soon too, for us. So, I have found myself less and less seeking answers. Instead, I seek His presence. Even in the darkness of the valley of the shadow of death, The Shepherd is near.
Be near me, Lord Jesus,
I ask Thee to stay
Close by me forever and love me, I pray
Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care
And fit us for heaven to live with Thee there.
