“Lord, If You Had Been Here”
Categories: Church of Christ Bulletin ArticlesIn the summer of 1989, my grandmother passed from this life to be with the Lord. She was my mentor and inspiration in becoming a Christian as well as encouraging me to study my Bible on a daily basis (2 Timothy 2:15; Acts 17:11).
At the gravesite, I vividly recall memories shared by friends and family who had known her. In recalling this event (which seems like happened only yesterday), I couldn’t help but recall the occasion recorded in John 11, when Jesus came to the grave of His recently deceased friend Lazarus. As He approached the tomb, Jesus encountered both of Lazarus’ sisters — first, the industrious Martha (John 11:21-28), and then faithful Mary (John 11:32). Both sisters must have had the same thought on their minds and lips as Christ came near:
“Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died” (John 11:21)
How often have we mourned the loss of a loved one and thought the same thing? When tragedy strikes in our lives, we sometimes wonder why the Lord allows such terrible things to happen. If we examine Jesus’ interactions with the sisters of Lazarus in John 11, we can learn some vital truths about the way He works on our behalf.
Jesus said to Martha:
“I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die” (John 11:25-26).
Christ is more concerned about our spiritual lives than with the narrow parameters of our physical lives (Colossians 3:1-3). He knows that we will all die physically (Hebrews 9:27). Even Jesus Himself died physically (John 19:30).
No, Jesus did not come to earth to spare us from physical death, but rather to give us the promise of what lies beyond death (1 John 2:25 ; cf. John 17:1-3). If He preserved our physical bodies even until the day of judgment, of what real advantage would that be to us? We would still have to put off this “earthly house” (2 Corinthians 5:1; cf. Job 4:19) in order to inherit everlasting life (1 Corinthians 15:50-53 — thus, physical death is inevitable.
As Mary confronted Jesus in her grief, the inspired apostle records two of the most profound words ever written: “Jesus wept” (John 11:35). Jesus understands that even the promise of life after death does not completely remove our sense of pain and loss over the deaths of those we love. Even as He prescribes the remedy for death (John 10:28; cf. Romans 8:35-39), He is moved by our suffering — the suffering that He will one day end forever (Revelation 7:13-17; Revelation 21:4).
What a loving and merciful Savior we have!
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