Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study - What If God Says No? | The Gospels | John 11:17–37

Episode Date: July 23, 2026

What do you do when God doesn't answer your prayers the way you hoped? Where is Jesus in the middle of grief? And what hope remains when death seems to have won? In today's episode, Patrick explores John 11:17–37 and reminds us that because Jesus is the resurrection and the life, death never has the final word. Read the Bible with us! This year, we’re exploring the Gospels—Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John—and it's never too late to join! Download your reading plan now. Your support makes TMBT possible. Ten Minute Bible Talks is a crowd-funded project. Join the TMBTeam to reach more people with the Bible. Give now. Like this content? Make sure to leave us a rating and share it so that others can find it, too. Use #asktmbt to connect with us, ask questions, and suggest topics. We'd love to hear from you! To learn more, visit our website and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter @TenMinuteBibleTalks. Don't forget to subscribe to the TMBT Newsletter here. Passage: John 11:17–37

Welcome to 10-minute Bible Talks, where we connect the Bible to your life. In the time it takes to get to work. I'm Patrick Miller. John Thomas was a brilliant medical student from Edinburgh. He could have used his talents virtually anywhere, but he felt a calling from God to go overseas and serve as a medical missionary in India. But a few days before his departure, he took a tragic turn, rapid onset pulmonary tuberculosis. And so instead of boarding the ship to India, he was confined to a convalescent. home and because of his medical training he knew what was happening to his body and so he prayed fervently for a miracle he dedicated his life to god and while he knew that didn't mean that god owed him a miracle

he hoped that god would heal him so he could pursue that mission but despite his prayers and the prayers of his family his condition only worsened god wasn't answering his prayers yes instead his condition became so dire that there was no hope of recovery john thomas died at the age of 25 of tuberculosis. His story is relived time and again by Christians around the world. The young and the old, the rich and the poor, all of us face pain, disease, cancer, failing bodies. And when it hits us, we all pray for a miracle. We all pray for healing, slow or fast. Sometimes God answers those prayers, yes. Sometimes he answers them no. But it's always devastating when he says no to bright souls like John Thomas, young people with so much good in their hearts and life ahead of them.

So it's no surprise that when things like this happen, well, they leave people's friends and family members wondering, where is God? Why has he done nothing? In John 11, Jesus visits Bethany, where three of us closest friends, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus lived. In yesterday's reading, we learned that Jesus heard about Lazarus's declining health before Lazarus's death. But rather than rushing to heal him, he stayed where he was. And as a result, Lazarus died. So can you imagine how Mary and Martha felt? They knew that Jesus loved them. They knew that Jesus could heal Lazarus. So when Lazarus got sick, they were scared, but perhaps hopeful. Surely Jesus would come and rescue them after all their years of friendship. But Jesus doesn't do it. Let's pick up in John 1117. We'll read the whole story.

on his arrival jesus found that lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days now bethany was less than two miles from jerusalem and many jews had come to mary and martha to comfort them and the loss of their brother when martha heard that jesus was coming she went out to meet him but mary stayed behind lord martha said to jesus if you had been here my brother would not have died but i know that even now god will answer whatever you ask jesus said to her your brother will wear rise again. Martha answered, I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day. Jesus said to her, I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live even though they die, and whoever lives by believing me will never die. Do you believe this? Yes, Lord, she replied, I believe that you are the Messiah, the son of God, who has come to the world. after she said this she went back and called her sister mary aside the teacher is here she said and is asking for you when mary heard this she got up quickly and went out to him now jesus had not yet entered the village but was still at the place where martha had met him when the jews who had been with mary in the house comforting her noticed how quickly she got up and went out they followed her supposing she was to mourn there when mary reached the place where jesus was and saw him she fell at his feet and said lord if he you had been here my brother would not have died when jesus saw her weeping and the jews who had come along with her also weeping he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled where have you laid him he asked come and see lord they replied

jesus wept then the jew said see how he loved him but some of them said could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying few stories in the gospel ring with the absolute humanity of this story. You can feel the suffering, the frustration, the disappointment, the confusion, and the tragedy without much explanation. And while you may know the end of the story that Jesus does resurrect Lazarus, it's important to stop here and struggle with this moment. Because for most of us, there is no immediate resurrection after the death of a loved one. There's only weeping, there's only waiting, there's only asking questions. We receive the same comfort that Martha does. Jesus promises her that a future resurrection is coming and that Jesus himself is the resurrection

and the life. And the question is not just whether we believe that to be true. The question is whether we allow it to bring us true and deep comfort. I want to go back to John Thomas. When he saw that his health was failing and that there would be no miracle, his prayers changed. Suddenly he realized that God was preparing him not for this life, but for the resurrection life and the age to come. He set his hope on new creation and he found comfort in that promise. Pause on that. He found comfort in that promise. He found hope. And not just that, he found purpose. He began to meet with other medical students and speak to them of the new creation in the future, of the resurrection and their chance to bring some part of it into the present. He wasn't self-absorbed or self-pitying, but full of life

and hope even though he was dying. And that was shocking to his classmates. They saw that he didn't just believe in the resurrection, he was deeply comforted by it. His peaceful death in Jesus' arms brought them to tears. They wept, just as Jesus wept over Lazarus' tomb. And when they saw that this dying young man had more wealth in Christ than they could ever imagine in their whole lives, their own lives were turned upside down. If he could die for heaven, then they could live for it. Five of his fellow students agreed to take his place and all became medical missionaries to India. He was the seed that fell into the ground and died and produced much fruit. As you face sickness and death, whether it's your own or someone else's,

remember the comfort that Martha found. Remember the comfort that John Thomas found. We may not receive the resurrection in this life, but we are promised a resurrection in the future. Let the hope of a resurrection give you hope. The hope of a resurrection where all illness is healed. Let that bring you comfort. Let that bring you unusual peace. Yes, you should still grieve. Yes, you can still weep. Death is a monster, but death doesn't have the final word. And the world will see your love for a world beyond it. You'll not only find spiritual riches for yourself, but also for others, and you'll point them towards that same treasure.