***Listen To Audio Version: Do You Believe Audio 529
Today’s Devotional Scripture: 21 Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died.
22 But I know, that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee.
23 Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise again.
24 Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day.
25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
26 And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?
- John 11:21-26 KJV
The Message For Today (April 24, 2026):
***Listen To Audio Version: Do You Believe Audio 529
When faced with the issues of life, we who trust and know our God turn to him in prayer. We release fear, we release tension, and we turn to Him in prayer, knowing that the Spirit of the Lord is with us in every season. In good seasons and in bad, in good times and in difficult times, God is there in the midst of us.
And when facing these issues, understanding that these are the things that we have tried to fix, these are the things that we believe are within our control, and we’ve learned differently. We’ve learned that each and every one of us has limits. We’ve learned that we can request it, but someone else has to say yes.
We’ve learned that in every single issue that we face, we are essentially walking by faith. If we don’t run, if we face the thing on, and we trust God in the midst of it, we are walking by faith. We’re trusting God to be our peace. We’re trusting Him to address those issues which concern us.
We’re trusting Him as we begin to rebuild. We’re trusting Him day in and day out. It is a faith walk to trust God through difficult situations in life. And here in the scripture, there is nothing more difficult than your brother dying, and you knowing, and you believing, and having enough faith that if Jesus were there, your brother would have been saved.
Enough faith to know that He can heal a sickness, and he can probably prevent the worst-case scenario, but once that happens, that’s it. That’s the end of the faith. What we see here is that the Lord is expanding the faith of everybody that is around Lazarus. Martha and Mary, those who weeped, the townspeople, those who had certain traditions, certain beliefs, and those who mourned with them, which is often the thing to have family or extended family mourn the loss of a dear family member.
But when Jesus came and said, Thy brother shall rise again, her faith had not yet gotten to a place where she could conceive that that was not even the end of the power of Jesus, that death was not the end of his power. That He could do it through it was not on her mind. The first thought was, Yes, I know that he’ll rise again in the resurrection. She operated by her level of understanding of what rising again even meant.
So here in this passage of scripture in John 11, Jesus is doing quite a few things. He’s expanding the faith of his disciples and those townspeople. He’s foreshadowing what is going to be his own death and resurrection. But He’s redefining something in the minds of those watching. He’s redefining what the “end” is.
He is redefining how we see death as sleeping. To redefine it, that Jesus doesn’t even see death the way that we do, is powerful. That he doesn’t see death as the end, that there is something that He’s doing even in the end of a thing. When we believe it’s too late, when we believe too much time has gone by, when we believe that it’s over. The Lord has a way of redefining the end as he did here in John 11.
As He did in Mark 5, when He went into the house of Jairus, the ruler of the synagogue, and he brought Jairus’ daughter back to life, 12 years old, dead, and said that the daughter was only sleeping, because he redefined death as sleep, and he redefined it by the demonstration of his faith in our Father.
39 And when he was come in, he saith unto them, Why make ye this ado, and weep? the damsel is not dead, but sleepeth. - Mark 5:39 KJV
When you go to John 11, it states that when He advised them to roll the stone away from the grave, he looked up. In verse 42, it states,
And I knew that thou hearest me always, but because of the people which stand by, I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me. - John 11:42 KJV
So the glory of God is here, the glorification of the Lord, the sanctification of the Lord our God is here, and Jesus is walking out that sanctification. That’s one. But what He was going to do had never been seen, and rather than him just doing it because he knew that his relationship with God was so, in terms of prayer, they were always hearing. He was always being heard by our God, so he decided to pray out loud so that others may believe.
So John 11:42 shows us that Jesus cares. He cares about our faith. He cares that we don’t see the end as a small thing. He cares that we are prepared for things to come, as he was foreshadowing his own death and resurrection for those that were watching, and for his disciples who were following. He redefined it all.
The scope of the glory of the Lord here in this scripture shows us that all we must do is believe, trust, and know that he is our God. Through it all, through every circumstance, through even death, we can turn to God and say, Lord, have your way. Now, we may not see bodies being risen today from the dead, but what we do see is that even through grief and pain and the loss of family members, we can rebuild.
We can continue to hold fast to the promises of God. We can continue to be hopeful and expectant, even in the midst of loss. We can know that He is God through the pain, through the circumstances. He is God. He knows what he has for us. He knows the plan that God has for us. And here, even though for Martha and Mary it was done, until Jesus came, until Jesus came onto the scene, until Jesus came and began to speak, it was a finished work. He was already dead for days.
They knew it was already over. They wished He had come sooner. But the Lord, in His wisdom, waited for the glory of God to be made manifest. In this hour, as you consider the things to build in your life, as you consider where you are and some of the things that feel like they were too far beyond your reach, things that you might have been praying for, things that you might have been hopeful for, expectant for, these things are still possible. But only possible by faith. By grace, not just hard work alone, but by faith in the Lord our God that he’s with you.
And that even though it looks like the end, it’s not the end. It’s the beginning of something different. It is both the end and the beginning, but our God is Alpha and Omega. He’s able to provide much peace. He’s able to provide much joy. He’s able to turn situations around, even the ones that feel like they’re done.
So the question isn’t whether or not Jesus is there. The question isn’t whether or not you are supported and loved. The question now is,
Do you believe it? Do you believe that the Lord God is able to turn your life around, to turn your situation around, to bring forth a breakthrough? Do you believe?
Closing Devotional Prayer
My Prayer for You:
Father, in the name of Jesus, I thank you, God, for rivers. I thank you, Lord God, for the oil of anointing. I thank you, God, for the favor of God. I thank you that the mighty woman of God is not alone as she reads this devotional.
I’m praying in the name of Jesus that the grace and glory of God be preeminent in her life, that she begins to bring forth a new pattern, fresh joy, and new revelation, because the glory of the Lord will shine upon her. So, Lord, I thank you right now for the glory of the Lord. I thank you right now for the favor. I thank you that the mighty woman of God is yielded, that she’s ready, O God, to be used by you.
That wherever she saw the end, O God, if it be your will, O God, I pray that she begins to believe again, for you are the resurrection and the life, O God. Not just a day and a time, but in you, God, not just deadlines and what ifs. In you, O God, is where we breathe and have our being. It is in you that we experience the joy of the Lord, which is our strength.
It is in Jesus, it is in King Jesus, that we begin to know who we are and trust in this process, growing as mighty men and women of God, knowing that he is good and that he is God alone. I thank you, O God, for the mighty woman of God. I thank you right now that this shift is happening all over her, God.
Let her have the courage to say yes, to let go of every old thing. I thank you, Lord God, for that grace, that glory, the peace of God. I thank you that it is coming forth and that it is remaining, that we’re no longer contending for peace, O God, but now we’re fighting the good fight of faith.
We’re trusting again, believing again, and receiving that you are the Lord our God. I thank you, Lord, and I pray in Jesus’ mighty name, Amen.
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How wonderfully encouraging, and such a well penned reminder to us all! Faith is a seed that, watered with the Living Word, and nourished with small acts of faith, will grow into a flourishing tree. Hallelujah! So let it be in our lives, Father God, that You may be glorified forever and ever! In the name of Jesus!!