Recently as I was reading through the gospel of John, the Lord arrested my attention when I came to the story of Lazarus. If you aren’t familiar with the story, Lazarus’s sisters, Martha and Mary, sent for Jesus when Lazarus became very sick. Jesus came to pray for Lazarus, but unfortunately Lazarus died before Jesus arrived. This caused Jesus to do something He had never done before; He raised Lazarus from the dead!
As crazy as this sounds, raising Lazarus from the dead isn’t the part that arrested my attention. What struck me and almost left be dumbfounded was the aftermath. Look at John 12:
1 Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom He had raised from the dead. 2 There they made Him a supper; and Martha served, but Lazarus was one of those who sat at the table with Him. 3 Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil.
Following his resurrection, Lazarus sat in the presence of Jesus. He communed with Jesus around the supper table. This is a picture of what happens at the new birth. When we are saved, we are resurrected spiritually, just like Lazarus was resurrected physically. We are given a new life in Christ and we are seated in Heavenly Places in Christ Jesus – see Ephesians 2:6.
As Lazarus and Jesus ate together, Martha served both of them. Lazarus enjoyed the benefits of new life in Christ from his seated position next to Jesus. Lazarus didn’t have to earn his seat or the blessings of being served; these were all free gifts given by God.
I believe this story is a picture of how God wants us to live each day. He wants us to live seated in the presence of Jesus so we enjoy the benefits of our relationship. When we live out of our position in Christ, we are able to receive clear direction from Him about His plans and purposes for our life. When we hear Jesus’s voice and then declare what He says angels begin to move on our behalf and bring Gods’ will to pass. Look at Hebrews 1:14:
14 Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?
Angels are called to serve those who are seated with Jesus at the right hand of the Father. Throughout the Bible the right hand is the place of authority. This means when we are seated with Christ we live with His authority and our angels minister to Him by serving us. They are to serve us the same way Mary served Lazarus and Jesus as he sat next to Jesus in our story. This is what New Life In Christ is supposed to be like!
I want to challenge and encourage us to see our lives differently now that we are in Christ. We need to see ourselves communing with Jesus at supper just like Lazarus did. When we have this attitude we will live from a place of blessing and authority anything becomes possible!
Have a blessed week! If you’d like to learn more about living in the presence of Jesus, check out this message I taught at Grace Life Church.
