John 11:1-4

John 11:1-4 
English Standard Version (ESV)

  Honestly, the story of Lazarus contains so much wisdom to help us understand the mission and ministry of Jesus Christ.  In it, a friend of Jesus' is sick and Jesus knows about it before he dies.  The Gospels establish that Jesus doesn't have to be physically near someone to heal him, so it's realistic to think that Jesus could say a word and heal Lazarus.  But he doesn't -- and he says that Lazarus' illness will not end in death, even though Jesus surely knows that Lazarus is about to die.
  This passage teaches us that Jesus is often operating and teaching us at a different level than what we comprehend.  It should remind us that our life is not just what we can see and touch -- there is more happening than what is in front of our eyes.  We get so caught up in the physical world, and rightfully so sometimes, as this is where we live and move and have our being, but Jesus exists on an eternal plane, and he's inviting us to that same place.  Life, true life, is eternal, and death cannot hold us -- in Christ, we no longer end in death, but rather live forever in the Kingdom of God. 
  So may we pray for the wisdom to lift our eyes.  We should not ignore this world and the things that trouble it, and the problems and illnesses of this world matter -- but let us remember eternity, and realize that God is at work, always, even when we cannot see and grasp it.