More Precious Than Gold by Kelly Fontana
Have you ever wondered why God has allowed the situation leading you to stand for marriage restoration to take place in your life? Has the thought ever crossed your mind “Why doesn’t God just fix this now?” You know that he can and you think “Why? What is the purpose?” I have thought that many times. But then that’s the way I am; always trying to figure things out; always asking questions of my Lord; relentless in my pursuit of the why’s and the how’s.
Then, I was recently studying John 11 about the death and resurrection of Lazarus. This particular passage of scripture is especially dear to me, because John 11:40 (NKJV) was the verse my husband stood on when he was standing and believing for our marriage when I was the prodigal – long before the Lord faithfully answered his prayers and changed my heart. God has since brought me back to this passage over and over again for many different reasons, because it says Jesus said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?”
So a few days ago, I read this passage of scripture again; searching for the deeper meaning in these words, hunting for clues and looking for answers to my endless string of “whys.” And I was overwhelmed with the things that our faithful Lord began to show me. There were so many things that he spoke to me; too many for me to share here, but there is one thing in particular that I would like to share with you all.
First, I have to say that I had never before read a verse of scripture that so perplexed and disturbed me, yet at the same time excited me, as much as John 11:5-6 did. And I am certain that I had read it many, many times before, so how could I miss the awesome truth that God has now revealed to me? And I must have read it sixteen times that night, going over and over it in my mind. It says Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when he heard that he was sick, He stayed to more days in the place where he was.
Did you catch that? He loved them, SO when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was for two more days. “Surely, Lord, I have read this wrong.” I said. I guess I always knew on some level that Jesus delayed purposely, but what I failed to see was the connection to the previous verse, which is the “WHY” of it all–BECAUSE HE LOVED THEM.
Obviously, Mary had her own string of whys. She didn’t get it either, because in verse 32, she said to Jesus “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” So, if I may paraphrase here, Mary was saying “Lord, why didn’t you stop this from happening?” Can we ever relate to that!
So what is the meaning of this and how does it apply to those of us who are standing for marriage restoration and believing God for the resurrection of our dead marriages? If we read through the whole story of Lazarus, we will see that Jesus did not seem to be at all concerned about the outcome of this apparent tragedy. Of course not; He knew the glorious end of the story. But as we read through it, we see that the one thing he WAS VERY concerned with was what they “believed.” In essence, He was concerned about their faith. He confirmed that in verse 15 when he said And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there that YOU MAY BELIEVE. … And finally in verse 40, which is so dear to me, He said Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?”
Dear ones, God loves us and He tests our faith, because that is what he cares about. Why? Because our faith is more precious than gold. 1 Peter 1:6-9 (NKJV) says it all very clearly:
In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.
How many times does Jesus ask “Who do you say that I am?” In other words: “What do you believe about me?” “What do you say about my character?” That is of ultimate importance to God.
Well, that kind of puts a new spin on things, doesn’t it? I bet you never thought “Wow, God loves me so much; that is why he is allowing this to happen to me.” But that is true. And when we come out on the other side of this, your faith and mine will have been tested and proven. Will we pass the test? Will the Lord be glorified?
Kelly, thank you so much for sharing the insight God gave you to better understand this powerful passage of scripture! God does and allows EVERYTHING for a purpose and we know what that purpose is based on what we learn in Ephesians 1:4-14, which is always to bring praise, honor and glory to His beloved Son, Jesus Christ. And since faith is such a vitally essential component of our walk with the Lord and through which His light is revealed in all of us as we walk before Him in humble obedience, your insight is confirmed through MANY verses throughout the Bible.
It’s only through our faith and obedience that the Lord creates the word of our testimonies, which can then be used in the lives of others to overcome the wicked works of the devil, as confirmed in Revelation 12:9-11.
God is obviously creating a powerful testimony in your life and as someone stated recently on the private site, God can use our faith and obedience even before our testimonies are made complete. And there’s no doubt that He will use your testimony in just such a way, because it prooves that we should NEVER give up and that we should ALWAYS expect and BE READY for God to answer our prayers and soften and change our spouses’ hardened hearts! And you can be sure that the Lord WILL complete the good work He has begun in you and in the restoration of your marriage and family and that your husband will in time see that God did indeed answer all of his prayers and that He has created in you the “new” wife of his heart’s desire and dreams! So you just keep standing in faith and obedience on the power and promise of God’s Word and YOU WILL PASS THE TEST, AND JESUS WILL BE GLORIFIED!!!
Thanks, Kelly, for your insight on this scripture. It really does make one look at it differently. I have said before that God has me standing for my marriage for a purpose and I know that it has shown our kids that marriage is forever and that God put us together. I have grown and will never be the same. I thank God for the changes HE has made and will continue to make in us and I know that it will be better than anyone could dream. We will pass the test and God will be glorified through me and our marriage. Thanks again for this message. Hang tight; God will complete this great work. He hasn’t brought you this far to stop now. BE READY and EXPECT; God is amazing.
We certainly must know that it is because He loves us that He has called us to stand for our marriage, because it is not easy; nor is it anything we could do on our own. There is a very good and divine reason we wait. In a world where divorce is common place and “moving on” is the norm, God definitely has plans for our marriages to be restored. Like Mary and Martha, it is as if God is telling us, “Yes, I know your marriage is dead; I will be there to heal and restore your relationship, but while you are waiting, how about trusting me and letting me take care of some other business. I do not lie and for your sake I am glad I am not there right now so you will believe when I restore your marriage.” Let’s give God the glory and honor He deserves while we wait in faithful obedience for His plan to manifest in our lives, families and marriages.
As I reread this scripture, another point jumped out at me. Even though we know that Lazarus was a believer, He didn’t have to believe in order for God to raise Him up; that was done for the ones who were alive, and needed more faith. God can bring our spouses home, and our faith will be stronger than ever! God’s will will be done even if the person He is raising from the dead doesn’t know they are being brought back to life; hence, believe in the unseen not the seen! Thank you for sharing your insight about this scripture; without it, I might have missed the other part totally. The word is alive, and it amazes me more every day how one verse can be deeper than we can imagine, and I suspect that when we read this again in the future, something else will manifest. God is so GOOD!