Rise up!

S: John 11

O: “Lord, if you would have been here, my brother wouldn’t have died.”

“Lazarus, come out!”

“Free him, and let him go.”

Yet the chief priests and Pharisees failed to see the miracle but instead sought to kill Jesus!

A: Jesus brings us to life! And calls us to come out! Will we heed his call or will we reject it?

We are faced with many challenges and sometimes we don't understand the reasons. Just like Martha said, “Lord, if you would have been here, my brother wouldn’t have died.” It didn’t make sense to her that Jesus would wait till after it was “too late” to show up. Yet, God had a good reason: “I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, so that you may believe.”

So let us believe, and rise up!

P: Father, I believe. Help me in my unbelief. May I never be like the religious leaders who miss the whole thing and tried to kill Jesus instead. In Jesus’ name, amen.