In John chapter 11 we read the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead.

I think I’ve read this chapter 100s of times. I often ask the Lord, ‘What chapter should I read?’ More often than not He says ‘John 11’.

That could get frustrating, to just keep reading the same chapter, often getting something, but today was different.

I saw the gestation of a miracle.

I saw from the time Jesus heard that Lazarus was sick until he spoke the words, ‘Lazarus, come forth!’ There was a time of gestation. Like being pregnant with a child, you are called upon to bring forth something into the earth. Jesus was bringing a miracle into the earth.

Jesus loved Lazarus, but He was confident in his revival. 

What did Jesus do as soon as He heard that Lazarus was sick?

NOTHING!!!!!!!

Can you imagine?

How could you do nothing if you heard your friend was sick?

Hearing this news was not his trigger for action.

Getting direction from God was His trigger for action.

If we live in our intellect then we will respond to what we hear with a thought pattern then make a decision about our actions based on what we come up with in our thinking.

Jesus was not living in his intellect. He was not controlled by his intellect. His guidance system was not his intellect. He was intent on only obeying God, only following the leading of the Holy Spirit.

If you feel an internal obligation to respond to every stimuli that comes your way, then you will easily be led by the circumstances not by God.

How do you make a decision about what to do?

Do you just reason it out?

God gave us an intellect, He wants us to use it! Right?

Thank God for our intellect; our ability to reason and to think things through with the knowledge we have in store and the wisdom we have been granted. But if we realize that our intellect is finite and our storehouse of knowledge might not have all the information required to make decisions. Then we realize we must ascend above our intellect. A higher level decision making process is required.

It is a humbling thing to think that we might not know it all. Intellect wants to reign. It wants to be in charge. It often thinks itself almighty. But if we humble ourselves and yield to the One above… If we acknowledge that we might not have all the answers and that the decision before us could be more than we are equipped to make…then we can have access to the Greater Mind, the Higher Intellect, yes, the wisdom of God!

Decisions are important. They set the course for the future, not just for us but all those around us as well.

So, why did Jesus not immediately respond when he heard the news about his friend?

He was waiting for instructions in his spirit not his intellect.

He was waiting for peace on the inside

Miracles aren’t always immediate.

Even this miracle wasn’t a microwave miracle.

We see Jesus going through a process to bring this about.

He was waiting for signals every step of the way.

Jesus was deeply moved in his spirit. Twice it mentions this. You can tell that he was more in tune with his spirit/the Spirit than he was with his intellect. His brain wasn’t running the show. It was yielded. It was looking. It was watching. Waiting for the signals, the guidance, the leading that comes from the Spirit of God dwelling within.

When you need a miracle, don’t get in a hurry. Being in a hurry is definitely where your intellect will want to take over and run the show.

If you’ll pull from the Spirit you’ll get heaven’s results not the intellect’s.