CSSA 1-4-17 - THE RAISING OF LAZARUS

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92. THE RAISING OF LAZARUS

"I am the resurrection and the life"

Aim

To show that God gave Jesus the power to raise the dead.

Not far from Jerusalem was the little town of Bethany, where Martha and Mary lived with their brother Lazarus. They were close friends of Jesus, who often called at their home to rest . While Jesus was preaching on the other side of Jordan, tragedy struck this loving family. The Lord used the opportunity to show the great power God had given him and to convince many that he was indeed the Son of God.

John 11:1-46

A MESSAGE TO JESUS

The happy household in Bethany grew suddenly quiet. Lazarus was very ill. Day after day he grew worse. Only a miracle, it seemed, would save him. Mary and Martha knew that Jesus would help. So they sent a messenger to find him and tell him, "Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick". When Jesus heard this he said, "This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby" (v4).

Jesus did not return immediately with the messenger but stayed two days longer where he was. In the meantime Lazarus died. He knew that Lazarus would die, and though he could picture the terrible sadness of his dear friends at Bethany, he knew that this would provide him with an opportunity to show God's glory in a greater way than if he had gone at once and healed him. Of course, Jesus did not need to return to Bethany to cure Lazarus, for with God's power he could have "spoken the word" and healed him, as he had done with the nobleman's son (Lesson 6), but he chose not to do so this time.

LAZARUS IS DEAD

Jesus went on with his preaching on the other side of Jordan and Lazarus died. By the power of the spirit of God, Jesus had known what would happen. He knew how distressed Mary and Martha would be that he had not come in time to save him. Yet they must suffer for a little while so that God might in the end be glorified.

After two days Jesus said to his disciples, "Let us go into Judea again". The disciples were very worried when they heard him say this for they knew that his life would be in danger there from the angry leaders of the Jews. When they saw that he was determined to go, Thomas said, "Let us also go, that we may die with him" (v16). How they loved him.

Jesus told his disciples, "Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go that I may awake him out of sleep" (v11). The disciples were puzzled. If Lazarus was sleeping, surely that was a good sign; surely it would help him get well again. Then Jesus told them plainly what he meant. "Lazarus is dead" (v14).

MARTHA'S GREAT FAITH

By the time Jesus and his disciples came to Bethany Lazarus had been dead for four days and they had buried him. When Jesus drew near to the village, Martha ran out to meet him. She had heard that he was on his way. As soon as she saw him she said, "Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died. But I know, that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee" (vv21-22). Jesus comforted her and said, "Thy brother shall rise again" (v23). Martha believed that. "I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day" (v24). Then Jesus said: "I am the resurrection and the life; he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live" (v25). All men die, but those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and live according to his teaching, will be raised again when Christ returns. Those people shall never die again. They shall live forever. This was Martha's hope too. Without hesitation she confidently replied, "I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world" (v27).

Now that she had found the Lord Jesus and been strengthened by her conversation with him, she went off to find Mary and tell her privately, "The Master is come, and calleth for thee" (v28). Quickly Mary left the house and went to meet the Lord.

"LAZARUS, COME FORTH"

When Mary met Jesus, her first words were just like Martha's: "Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died" (v32). She was very upset and when Jesus saw her weeping and the other Jews who had followed her weeping too, he also wept. He asked them to show him Lazarus' grave. Some of the Jews, who saw Jesus weeping, said, "Behold, how he loved him", and some said, "Could not this man, which opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even this man should not have died!" (vv36-37).

They all gathered at the tomb where Lazarus' body, bound in linen grave clothes, had been laid. The tomb was probably a cave cut into the hillside. It had a large stone sealing the entrance. Jesus said, "Take ye away the stone" (v38). Lazarus had been dead four days. His body would have begun to decay and Martha was horrified that Jesus should suggest such a thing. Patiently he told her, "Said I not unto thee, that if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God?" (v40). So the stone was rolled away and Jesus prayed to his Father, thanking God for hearing him and giving him this opportunity to show His power to the people.

Then, with a loud voice, he cried out, "Lazarus, come forth" (v43). Tb the utter amazement and joy of those standing by, Lazarus walked out of the tomb, still bound up in the grave clothes. "Loose him, and let him go," said Jesus (v44).

MANY BELIEVE _f

Many of the Jews believed after seeing this amazing miracle, in which a dead man came to life. Once again Jesus had displayed God's great power, given to him, so that people might believe that he was the Son of God.

Some were there that day, however, whose hearts were so hardened, that they refused to believe what their own eyes told them to be true. Instead, they went to the Pharisees and told them what had happened. The chief priests and Pharisees quickly called a meeting of the council (the Sanhedrin) and decided that Jesus must die. They could see that more and more people were beginning to follow him. It must be stopped or the Romans might interfere. If that happened these leaders were afraid that they might lose their authority over the people. How evil they were. From this time on they plotted in earnest to put him to death (v53).

LESSON FOR US

Mary and Martha were greatly disappointed that Jesus did not come in time to help their sick brother before he died. Later they realised that his delay was necessary that they might see the great lesson of the resurrection of their brother, by which God was glorified.

At times it seems to us, that God does not answer our prayers. He does, but sometimes His answer is not as we expect. Our earthly fathers do not always give us what we ask for, because they know it would not be good for us. So it is with our heavenly Father. One thing we do know as He told us through the apostle Paul, "All things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose" (Rom. 8:28).

Let us then be like Mary and Martha, who believed in Jesus even though their brother had died. As Martha said, we know that Jesus will return to the earth to raise all his sleeping friends and reward them for their faith with eternal life, for he said, "I am the resurrection and the life".

ADDITIONAL NOTES

We know that Lazarus continued to live with Mary and Martha until eventually the three of them died. Lazarus was not at that time raised to eternal life, but the three of them shared that glorious hope that, when Christ returned, he would raise the dead and give his faithful followers eternal life.

Some of the leaders of the Jews, called the Sadducees, did not believe in the resurrection. Yet we know that Abraham believed that God would raise the dead (see Heb. 11:17-19) and so did David (see Acts 2:29-31). Abraham must rise from the dead to receive the land of Israel, for God promised it to him and to his seed for ever (Gen. 13:14-15). David must rise from the dead because God promised that his seed, the Lord Jesus Christ, would sit on his throne in Jerusalem for ever and that David would see him with his own eyes (2 Sam. 7:16). This became one of the most important teachings of the apostles, after Jesus himself had risen from the dead. More than once, when the apostle Paul had to answer for himself before the rulers, he declared: "touching the resurrection of the dead I am called in question" (Acts 24:21. See also 24:14-15; 26:6-7; 23:6). When he wrote to the Corinthians he said that if there was no resurrection of the dead, we would be of all men most miserable, for all the promises that God has made depend on the resurrection.

Jesus Christ himself was the first to rise from the dead to live forever (1 Cor. 15:20). All of those who believe in him and are baptised will have that same reward when he comes (1 Cor. 15:23).

QUESTIONS

Short Answers

Who were the friends of Jesus that lived in Bethany?
What message did Mary and Martha send to Jesus?
Why did Jesus not go to Bethany straight away?
Why were the disciples worried when Jesus said they would go to Judea?
Lazarus was dead, but what did Jesus tell his disciples about Lazarus?
What did Jesus tell Martha about himself?
What did Mary and Martha each say to Jesus when they met him?
When they came to Lazarus € tomb, what did Jesus tell them to do?
How many days had Lazarus been dead?
After Jesus had prayed to God, what did he cry out?
What happened after Jesus had cried out with a loud voice?
When the chief priests and Pharisees heard of this amazing miracle, what did they decide to do?