When Jesus was ministering near the Jordan River, a messenger came with the news that his friend Lazarus was sick unto death in the town of Bethany. But Jesus was not in a rush to get there. He waited two more days, saying, in essence, “Lazarus is just asleep. Don’t worry about it.”
When Jesus finally arrived in Bethany, Lazarus’s sister Martha said, “Jesus, if you had been here, my brother would not have died!”
Martha believed that Jesus had the power to heal, but she still thought Jesus was limited to her concepts of time and space. “If only you had come earlier!” she says to Jesus, “If only you had been physically closer, you could have prevented this horrible thing.”
But our Lord’s healing power is not constrained by time and space. He is the Resurrection and the Life. He is never too late, too weak, or too distant to bring the physically or spiritually dead back to life.
That’s the message I and Prison Fellowship partners were privileged to bring to prisoners in Texas this Easter. We told those men, “Listen! Your flesh is still trying to keep you wrapped up in the grave, but Jesus is your Resurrection and your Life working inside you.”
Twenty men came forward and signed their names to a piece of paper, declaring that Jesus has brought them back from spiritual death, and requesting that the chaplain follow up to help them grow in their faith. God will use the prayers, giving, and service of friends like you to make sure that they continue to grow each day, becoming the men, husbands, fathers, sons, and leaders God created them to be. Learn how you can join us at www.prisonfellowship.org.