What Is Going On

A couple of times in the ministry of Jesus, it looks as if God caused, allowed or arranged for bad things to happen, to allow Jesus to come along and fix the problem.

Consider the event in John 9:1-3 ... "And as Jesus passed by, He saw a man which was blind from birth."  I don't know if this blind man was someone they personally knew, or whether John is just supplying us with some vital information ... the fact that he was born blind.

Either way, the disciples ask Jesus a question as to the reason he was born this way.  "Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents that he was born blind?"  What a strange question.  If he was born blind ... he was blind before he even had the opportunity to commit sin.

But look at the answer Jesus gives to this question asked in all sincerity.  He says ... "Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him."

What is going on here?  If sin didn't bring this blindness, what did?  Is Jesus saying that this man's maker and creator, God Himself ... either caused, allowed or arranged for this to happen at birth ... so Jesus could come along and fix the problem?

Absolutely.  Isn't this man, with or without sight ... still God's?  As the Palmist David said, "The earth is the Lord's ... and they that dwell therein." (Psalms 24:1)
  
Jesus said, "but that ..." (the word "but" means: nay, nevertheless, or contrariwise to your thinking) ... "the works ..." (acts, deeds) ... "of God should be made manifest ..." (the word "manifest" means ... to render apparent, to show forth) ... "in him ... (the blind man)."

Even someone as simple minded as I am can understand that Jesus is saying that God ... caused, allowed or arranged that this man would be blind from birth to show that the works of God, (in this case healing) could be displayed in him through Jesus.

Next, I want to look at the story of Lazarus, a friend of Jesus, and the brother of Mary and Martha who lived in the town of Bethany.  There were perhaps no family whom Jesus felt as close to as these three.  On several occasions Jesus had spent time with them in their home and would do so again.  But Lazarus falls sick.  The sisters send Jesus a message that their brother is sick, and by doing so expected Him to come and heal him.  But when Jesus heard about Lazarus, He said in John 11:4 ...

"This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby."

So what does Jesus do?  He stays two more days where He is and doesn't come.

Jesus let's Lazarus die.  So, what is going on?

We see in John11:15, that Jesus intends to use the death of Lazarus and his physical resurrection as a teaching tool when He says to His disciples ...

"I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe; nevertheless let us go unto him."

Had Jesus been there, He would have been called on to heal him before he died; but ... "to the intent ye may believe" ... meaning how much greater the miracle would be to raise a dead man, than heal a sick man.  Through this, there would be no question in the hearts of the disciples that Jesus was indeed the messiah that Israel waited for. 

Oh, He could have just sent His word and healed him when He first heard, but He did not; that was not His object here.  The object here was 1st ... that God would receive glory for what He was about to do ... raise a dead man.  And 2nd ... to teach that death has come into the world; and here with Lazarus it must take effect.  Mankind is really in a state of death before God; but in Jesus, grace and mercy comes in ... and death is no more.  Man must wait for the appointed time by God to raise them up again.

So, Lazarus is raised up again in his natural body just as God had arranged and appointed the timing of each event to proceed.

John 11: 53-54 ... "Then from that day forth the chief priests took counsel to put Him to death.  Jesus therefore walked no more openly among the Jews ... "

What is the main thing trials and times of testing do?  They make us prove our faith.  How do we know it is real if it is never tested?  So, when our faith is thrown into the fire, in reality ... it's a good thing.

Consider a slightly different event that Jesus didn't fix ... the sifting of Peter.  What is going on in this situation?

At the last supper, (Luke 22:31) Jesus tells Peter that ... "Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat ..."

This word "desired" is only used here in the New Testament.  It sometimes means to obtain by asking.  Later, the end result proves that Satan had obtained Peter for a time.  Satan desired, and asked God to allow Peter to be under his power and in his hand ... to sift him.

Satan can do nothing without permission ... not even tempt man.  Satan desires to do all the evil he can; but is only permitted to do some.  One thing Satan is permitted to do is to "try the faith" of believers, and to place temptations and trials in their way that they may be tested.
 
And so upon asking ... Satan was given the opportunity to sift Peter's faith as he watched Jesus die on the cross and his faith crumble in front of his eyes. 

Jesus was dead.

So what is going on here?  Is there a lesson we can learn from this?  If God didn't spare the disciples from being sifted, is it possible that we are ... also subject ... to this kind of sifting?

The Apostle Paul tells us in 2nd Corinthians 13:5 ... "Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves" ... meaning, prove your faith in Jesus; test it and ascertain if it is real.

When Paul says, "examine yourselves" ... he is saying, test and prove yourself through self examination.  But even better ... to try yourself is better than examine yourself.  Examination does not necessarily imply a practical test.  Trial implies a definite intent to ascertain your spiritual condition.

From my personal experience in life, you don't need to worry about making time for self examination; you will get many opportunities to prove whether your faith in Jesus is really real or something else.

Times of testing are for your own information ... God already knows.