MARTHA, AN UNSHAKABLE FAITH (JOHN 11:1-7,17-27)

MARTHA, AN UNSHAKABLE FAITH (JOHN 11:1-7, 17-27) REFLECTION The theme for our reflection is “Martha, An Unshakable Faith”. Unshakable means firm, resolute, and impossible to weaken. Faith, according to Hebrews 11:1, “…is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” An unshakable faith is a faith that remains steadfast and cannot…

Jean-Paul Agidi

Dec 20, 2025

4–6 minutes

MARTHA, AN UNSHAKABLE FAITH (JOHN 11:1-7, 17-27)

REFLECTION

The theme for our reflection is “Martha, An Unshakable Faith”. Unshakable means firm, resolute, and impossible to weaken. Faith, according to Hebrews 11:1, “…is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” An unshakable faith is a faith that remains steadfast and cannot be weakened, disputed, or questioned. Martha demonstrated an unshakable faith in Jesus Christ as the one possessing the power to resurrect her brother, Lazarus. Today, we shall deliberate on the nature of such a faith.

Beloved in the Lord, the nature of an unshakable faith is approaching Jesus with total confidence and a lack of doubt, believing He has the power to overcome all obstacles or hindrances in our lives. Before Lazarus died, his sisters sent word to Jesus, saying, “Lord, the one you love is sick.” (John 11:3). Truly, they believed that Jesus could heal their brother. However, upon His arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days (John 11:17). Who would have dared to even imagine that a person buried for four days would have the chance of resurrecting and joining the living again? Yet, Martha’s confidence and doubt-free faith led her to confess to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.” (John 11:21-22). In other words, Martha was trusting the words of Jesus in Matthew 19:26 when He said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:26). My dear friend in Christ, how unshakable is your faith?

Again, we see Martha’s demonstration of unshakable faith through her confident reply when 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 in me will never die. Do you believe this?” “Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.” (John 11:25-27). We require confidence and a doubt-free conviction to prove our unshakable faith in Christ. When Peter asked Jesus to enable him to come to Him by walking on the water, Jesus said, ‘Come.’ So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink, he cried out, ‘Lord, save me.’ Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, ‘O you of little faith, why did you doubt?’” (Matthew 14:29-31). Peter possessed a shaky faith because of doubt caused by fear of the turbulent wind. He had forgotten that Jesus, the Master of the wind, was there to rescue him.

Dear friend, doubt is the primary obstacle to an unshakable faith. It is for this reason that Hebrews 11:6 assures us that “without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” It is no wonder that the woman with the issue of blood for twelve years said to herself, “If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.” (Mark 5:28). And immediately the flow of blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. (Mark 5:29). Jesus later told her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.” (Mark 5:34). Abraham and Sarah, who were expecting a child, were asked by the Angel of the Lord, “Is anything too hard for the LORD?” (Genesis 18:14).

My dear friend, I do not know what frustrations or obstacles you are currently facing, but what I know and continue to experience in my own life is that doubt weakens faith. Therefore, to develop an unshakable faith, we must have confidence and cast doubt out of our minds and hearts by completely surrendering all our troubles and challenges to Jesus, for He cares, and He is in control. Like a car, let Him take the steering wheel while you take the back seat. Allow Him to steer your life and its issues, for He knows the road of life and the future better than we do. Beloved in the Lord, we cannot put our faith in human beings because they are fallible, fickle, and unpredictable; but “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8)

In summary, we have deliberated on the theme “Martha, An Unshakable Faith”. We have explored the nature of unshakable faith and established that it involves approaching Jesus with total confidence, certain that He has the power to overcome all obstacles or hindrances in our lives. Shalom.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father,

We come before You today seeking the strength of Spirit that Martha displayed. We ask that the Holy Spirit grant us unwavering confidence and help us to overcome every shadow of doubt as we place our total faith in Jesus Christ.

Lord, we pray that by the power of the Holy Spirit, our unshakable faith may make us productive and fruitful in every good work. We lay before You the obstacles and challenges that currently cause us distress; we surrender them to Your sovereign hand, trusting that through faith, we are more than conquerors.

Dear Lord Jesus, in You we put our unshakable faith; continue to abide with us always. Amen.