Greater than Death

It is a subject that no one wants to talk about, yet it is the one thing that is inevitable for all of us. It is the one constant that unifies every human on earth.

We all will die.

Every culture has its customs and rituals for dealing with death. All of these rituals are ways to show respect for the departed and to comfort the loved ones.

In the ancient Jewish culture, the funeral would last for seven days, with the peak on the fourth day, or “high day” [1] . Friends and neighbors would come to gather around the grieving family and comfort them with loud wailing. The most dedicated friends would help prepare the body for burial by wrapping the body in linen strips and covering it with spices and perfumes. There was no embalming so the body was buried immediately.

The tomb was usually a cave which was built to hold several bodies. After the flesh had fully decomposed, a family member would come in and remove the bones. The entrance to the tomb was covered with a stone in order to keep out thieves and predators, and to protect people from the smell of the decaying body.

At some time during his ministry in Judea (October-December), Jesus had visited Mary and Martha in the small village of Bethany (Luke 10:38-42). He had become very close to the sisters and their brother, Lazarus. After the Feast of Dedication in December, Jesus had crossed the Jordan into Perea, but the sisters were still able to stay in touch with him.

It was now later in the Spring, probably early March, when Mary and Martha send word to Jesus. Lazarus was gravely ill, and they hurriedly dispatch a messenger with the news, “your friend is sick”.

Jesus received the news and announced that this would not end in death. Rather, this event was for the glory of God. Now that he received the news about a close friend who needed him, Jesus waits in Perea for two more days. 

Lazarus had already died by the time the messenger reached Jesus. The point is re-emphasized — He loved Mary and Martha and Lazarus, yet he waits for two more days. There is something greater than restoring Lazarus; there is something greater than comforting the sisters. It is God’s glory.

The religious leaders in Jerusalem had already announced that they wanted to kill Jesus, and Bethany was only two miles from Jerusalem. When Jesus announced his return to Judea, his disciples were concerned for his safety (and their own). Yet Jesus was clear on his intentions: Lazarus was dead and he was going to go raise him.

Jesus arrived in Bethany on the fourth day, the “High Day” of mourning. Lazarus had been buried for four days and a large crowd from Jerusalem had come to console Mary and Martha. Martha met Jesus outside the town and tells him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” Yet even still, Martha trusts in Jesus. She is prepared that whatever He asks of God, God will give to Him.

“Your brother will rise again”, Jesus tells her. Martha knew about the resurrection of believers, but she still did not understand. Jesus tells her, “I AM the resurrection and the life. Whoever who believes in me, though he is dying, yet he will live.”

Jesus is not just able to restore life. He IS life. Jesus uses the name of God (“I AM”) and declares that he is God and that he is life.

Do you believe this, Martha? Her hope was not on how she felt, it was that she believed in the giver of life.

The next meeting, with Mary, brings Jesus to tears. He will soon bear the weight of the entire world on the cross, yet for now he must bear the grief and heartache of this small town as they stand at the tomb of Lazarus.

Martha objected to Jesus’ command to roll away the stone covering of Lazarus tomb. It had been four days, and the stench would be unbearable. Yet she obeys when Jesus mildly rebukes her and reminds her of the glory of God.

With the stone rolled away, Jesus thanks the Father. The Father has heard his prayer, as he always does, and there will be no doubt that this is from God. Jesus then shouted in his top voice, “LAZARUS, COME OUT!”

I cannot even picture the astonished crowd as Lazarus staggers out of the tomb, still in his linen wrappings. Jesus commands the people to unbind him.

“It is a peculiar thing, you cannot get any instruction in the Bible as to how to conduct a funeral, for Jesus broke up every funeral He ever attended by raising the dead.” – D.L. Moody

It is not surprising that many believed in Jesus that day. Nothing had ever happened like this [8].

But back in Jerusalem, the religious leaders hastily convened a meeting of the Great Sanhedrin. In their minds, this miracle had sparked a national crisis. If more people believe in him, they might get in trouble with Rome.

Therefore, they concluded that they need to contain this belief in Jesus at all costs.

They need to kill him.

It is only a few short weeks before the final Passover, where Jesus will come to Jerusalem and die for the world. Now, everyone is talking about Jesus and his fame is going across the entire country. This miracle has also steeled the resolve of the Jewish leaders. They now are actively looking to kill him.

Jesus heads north to the small town of Ephraim, where he will await the time for one final trip to Jerusalem.

 

Remember!

• Jesus breaks everyone’s preconceived notions on how he should behave. He delays when they expect him to hurry, he cries with those grieving, and then he raises the dead! Never underestimate the Lord Jesus Christ!

• If you have not believed in Him, do not let any more time go by. He is the resurrection. He is the life. If you believe in him, you will live again!

• Don’t be hardened by avoiding the truth. The Jewish leaders never doubted the miracle, but they loved their sin more than they loved what they knew was the truth!

• Lean on the truth when you are hurting. Jesus reminded Martha of what she believed.

 

Previous post: My Sheep Hear my Voice

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 John 11:1-54

Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent to him, saying, “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was. Then after this he said to the disciples, “Let us go o Judea again.” The disciples said to him, “Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone you, and are you going there again?” Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.” After saying these things, he said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.” The disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover.” Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he meant taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus has died, and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” So Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”

Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother. So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.”

When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying in private, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.” And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met him. When the Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary rise quickly and go out, they followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there. Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” Jesus wept. So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?”

Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.” Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me.” When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what he did, believed in him, but some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. So the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered the council and said, “What are we to do? For this man performs many signs. If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.” But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all. Nor do you understand that it is better for you that one man should die for the people, not that the whole nation should perish.” He did not say this of his own accord, but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but also to gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad. So from that day on they made plans to put him to death.

Jesus therefore no longer walked openly among the Jews, but went from there to the region near the wilderness, to a town called Ephraim, and there he stayed with the disciples. 

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Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill.

 The scene opens with a severe illness. This is the first time that Mary, Martha, and Lazarus have been mentioned in John’s Gospel account. Jesus had visited this family in Bethany the previous year and had apparently become close friends with them (Luke 10:38-42; John 11:3-5).

Matthew and Mark record the scene where Mary anointed Jesus with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair (Matthew 26:6-13, Mark 14:3-9). John will also record this same scene later, in John 12:1-8. Note that the reference here shows that John expects the readers to be already familiar with this scene from the other Gospel accounts.

 

So the sisters sent to him, saying, “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was.

 Lazarus was a close friend to Jesus (phileō, φιλέω). Jesus also loved Mary, Martha, and Lazarus with a divine love (agapaō, ἀγαπάω). Jesus had been staying in Perea, across the Jordan (John 10:40) when Martha sent the word about Lazarus’ illness.

Jesus’ reaction to the news does not follow what we would expect. He loves the family and Lazarus is a close friend. Yet he does not come to help them but stays away for two more days.

Jesus was probably about one days’ journey from Bethany. Therefore, Lazarus would have already been dead by the time that the messenger reached Jesus.

Why did Jesus delay? The answer is in His response to the news. There is something greater at stake than healing Lazarus, and greater than comforting Mary and Martha. God’s glory was most important.

Jesus put Mary and Martha through two additional days of torture in order to show the Glory of God. It is that important!

 

Then after this he said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.” The disciples said to him, “Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone you, and are you going there again?” Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.”

The Jewish leadership was actively looking for Jesus and wanted to kill him (see John 10:31-39). Jesus had found safety in the region of Perea but he would need to return to Judea in order to visit the town of Bethany. Naturally, the disciples were concerned for his (and their own) safety.

Jesus used the illustration of day and night to show that his time was fixed by God. You cannot shorten the daylight, and no man can shorten Jesus’ appointed time on earth.

 

After saying these things, he said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.” The disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover.” Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he meant taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus has died, and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” So Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”

The common Jewish belief was that sleep was one of the indicators that sick person was recovering [3]. Therefore, in their minds, there was no need for Jesus to risk danger by going back to Bethany since Lazarus must be recovering. 

Jesus had used “sleep” as the figurative description for death. But when his disciples misunderstood, he made it clear. Lazarus is dead.

Jesus also made his purpose very clear. He will raise Lazarus from the dead and His absence will cause the disciples to believe. Note that the “believe” is in the future tense. They still doubt.

Thomas’ response shows both their dedication and their doubt. They are committed to Jesus, and are willing follow him into (as they believe) certain death. But his response does not show any trust in Jesus — either in his ability to be safe before the appointed time or in his ability to raise the dead.

 

Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother.

 After four days, even the most superstitious Jews would be convinced that Lazarus  was dead [4]. This was also the “high day” of mourning, where the largest crowds would be the home of Mary and Martha in order to console them over the loss of their brother [1].

Mary and Martha must have been a prominent and wealthy family in Bethany in order to attract a large crowd of supporting friends from Jerusalem. The narrative also suggests that Lazarus had a private tomb, which would only be available to the wealthy. They also had enough political prestige that they could be friends of Jesus without fearing the wrath of the Jewish leadership (John 9:22).

The large crowd of friends would have also helped to prepare the body for burial. Therefore, there could be no doubt that Lazarus was dead.

 

So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.”

Martha met Jesus outside of Bethany. You can hear the pain her voice, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died”. But she does not stop there. Here is a woman who has been suffering through grief and anguish for the last four days, yet even now she fully trusted Jesus, “But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you”.

Martha had excellent theology. She knew all about the resurrection and fully believed (correctly) that her brother would rise again on the last day. She knew that there would be a resurrection, but her understanding was not complete.

Jesus said, “I AM the resurrection and the life”. He is not only capable of bringing life, he IS life! He is the author of life (Acts 3:15) and death cannot exist in his presence.

Jesus was also moving Martha from an abstract belief in a future resurrection to a very personal and real trust in Jesus himself.

This is the fifth time in John’s Gospel account that Jesus used the name of God to describe himself (see here). Jesus is God, and he is the resurrection, and he is life.

“Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live”. Lazarus’ body was dead and had been buried for four days. All our bodies are dying. Yet there is something much more severe. The Bible tells of a second death where we will be permanently, eternally separated from God (Revelation 20:11-15; Revelation 21:8). Though our bodies are dying, we can free from the second death when we believe in Jesus Christ.

“If you have been born twice, you will only die once. If you had been born only once, you will die twice.” – Stephen Davey [4]

 

When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying in private, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.” And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met him. When the Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary rise quickly and go out, they followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there. Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

 Both Mary and Martha trusted fully in Jesus. Mary was in the house, attended by the guests, yet she dropped everything to quickly come to Jesus as soon as she knew that he was nearby. 

Like Martha, Mary says that “if you had been here, my brother would not have died”. This is not a statement of criticism but complete (but limited) trust.

 

When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” Jesus wept. So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?”

 The presence of Mary weeping, and of her companions weeping, caused one of the most emotional reactions that we ever see in the life of Jesus Christ:

• He was deeply moved in his spirit. Literally, this word depicts a horse that is shuddering under a heavy load.
• He was greatly troubled.
• He wept. Literally, he burst into tears.

Many commentators point out that the word for “deeply moved” also can be translated as “angry”. It would be akin to when we witness a horrible tragedy in the news. Our minds are a mixture of horror, anger, pity, and grief.

Why did Jesus weep? As God come into the flesh, Jesus could suffer our pain and our hurt to an infinite degree. [4]

As Isaiah 53:4 says, “Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows”. 

“It is not just the pain that he feels for the loss of his friend, and for the sympathy for the loved ones, this is a cosmic agony for the sins of the world. He understands what sin has done to the world and what unbelief is doing to the people.” – John MacArthur [6]

 

Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.” Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me.” When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

John 5:25
Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.

 Jesus, still deeply moved, came to the tomb and commanded them to roll away the the stone. Martha objected — he had been dead for four days and there would be a horrible stench! Jesus reminded her that she would see the glory of God if she believed.

After rolling away the stone, Jesus prays to the Father. He does not bring any request, but says a prayer of thanks before raising the dead. There could be no doubt that the source of this miracle was from God the Father.

Jesus then shouted at the top of his voice, “LAZARUS, COME OUT!”

On command, Lazarus came out of the tomb, still wrapped up in the linen strips. The dead man is now alive!

This is the final miracle (before the resurrection) recorded in John’s gospel account. [2] 

Augustine was the first to mention that if Jesus had not mentioned Lazarus by name, he may have raised up ALL the dead.

 

Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what he did, believed in him, but some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.

 Many believed in Jesus after witnessing this miracle. Yet there were still some who went and reported these events to the Pharisees.

So the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered the council and said, “What are we to do? For this man performs many signs. If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.” But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all. Nor do you understand that it is better for you that one man should die for the people, not that the whole nation should perish.” He did not say this of his own accord, but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but also to gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad. So from that day on they made plans to put him to death.

 This was one of the most spectacular displays of Jesus’ power [8]. He had left a thoroughly undeniable demonstration that he was the Messiah, and many believed on him.

After one of the greatest acts by the Lord Jesus comes one of the most chilling reactions. The Priests and the Pharisees hastily assemble the Sanhedrin. They do not deny the miracles, but fear a possible uprising if more people believe in Him. Their greatest concern is that they would lose their position of power.

Caiaphas, the High Priest, devised a plan. They must kill Jesus in order to save their position. God uses the words of the wicked High Priest to predict that Jesus would die for the people. Jesus will not just for die the Jews, but will gather his children from all nations (John 10:16; John 4:42).

They would rather have their spot of leadership and comfort than to acknowledge the truth.

After this, the conspiracy is set. The Jewish leaders are now focused on how to kill Jesus.

“…if men’s consciences are not awakened, if men are determined to resist the truth, miracles will not win them to Christ.” – H.A. Ironside [7]

“Man’s problem is not that he does not know the truth. Man’s problem is that he loves his sin more than he loves the truth.” – Doug Bookman [1]

 

Jesus therefore no longer walked openly among the Jews, but went from there to the region near the wilderness, to a town called Ephraim, and there he stayed with the disciples.

 Jesus left the Jerusalem area and headed to the small town of Ephraim, on the border of Samaria. It is there that Jesus waits with his disciples until the Passover time draws near.

 

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[1] Doug Bookman, Life of Christ, Audio Series, Lecture 11. http://www.bookmanministries.com/

 

[2] John records seven miracles in Jesus’ public ministry:

1. Turning water into wine (John 2:1-11)
2. Healing an official’s son (John 4:46-54)
3. Healing the lame man at at the pool (John 5:1-15)
4. Multiplying the loaves and fishes (John 6:1-14)
5. Walking on water (John 6:16-21)
6. Healing the man born blind (John 9:1-7)
7. Raising Lazarus from the dead (John 11:1-44)

(Source: John MacArthur, MacArthur Study Bible Notes, John 11)

 

[3] Alfred Edersheim, The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah, Book IV, CHAPTER XXI, THE DEATH AND THE RAISING OF LAZARUS – THE QUESTION OF MIRACLES AND OF THIS MIRACLE OF MIRACLES – VIEWS OF NEGATIVE CRITICISM ON THIS HISTORY – JEWISH BURYING-RITES AND SEPULCHRES.

 

[4] Stephen Davey, Living Proof, John 11

 

[5] The Jewish beliefs about death required a person to identify a body within the first three days. After three days the body was too badly decomposed to identify. The other common belief was that the spirit hovered around the body for three days before it finally left. [4]

 

[6] John MacArthur, I Am the Resurrection and the Life, Part 1, John 11:17-36

 

[7] H.A. Ironside, Address 36, ONE MAN TO DIE FOR THE NATION, John 11:47-57

 

[8] Matthew, Mark, and Luke record two other occurrences where Jesus raised a person from the dead: The widow’s son (Luke 7:11-16) and Jairus’ daughter (Matthew 9:18-26; Mark 5:21-43; Luke 8:40-56). Both of these cases involved strangers who had recently died. Lazarus was a close friend who had been dead for four days.