Chapter BY Chapter

Jesus the Lord of Death and Life

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John 11

 

"Now a man named Lazarus was sick. He was from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha.  (This Mary, whose brother Lazarus now lay sick, was the same one who poured perfume on the Lord and wiped his feet with her hair.)  So the sisters sent word to Jesus, “Lord, the one you love is sick.”

 

When he heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.”  Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.  So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days, and then he said to his disciples, “Let us go back to Judea.”

 

“But Rabbi,” they said, “a short while ago the Jews there tried to stone you, and yet you are going back?”

 

Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Anyone who walks in the daytime will not stumble, for they see by this world’s light.  It is when a person walks at night that they stumble, for they have no light.”

 

After he had said this, he went on to tell them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.”

 

His disciples replied, “Lord, if he sleeps, he will get better.”  Jesus had been speaking of his death, but his disciples thought he meant natural sleep.

 

So then he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead, and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.”

 

Then Thomas (also known as Didymus) said to the rest of the disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”

 

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 Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother.  When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed at home.

 

“Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died.  But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.”

 

Jesus said to her, “Your brother will 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 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.”

 

After she had 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 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 going to the tomb to mourn there.

 

When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if 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 Jews 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?”

 

Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance.  “Take away the stone,” he said.

 

“But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.”

 

Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”

 

So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me.  I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.”

 

When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!”  The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.

 

Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.”

 

Therefore many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, believed in him.  But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.  Then the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin.

 

“What are we accomplishing?” they asked. “Here is this man performing many signs.  If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our temple and our nation.”

 

Then one of them, named Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, spoke up, “You know nothing at all!  You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.”

 

He did not say this on his own, but as high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the Jewish nation, and not only for that nation but also for the scattered children of God, to bring them together and make them one.  So from that day on they plotted to take his life.

 

Therefore Jesus no longer moved about publicly among the people of Judea. Instead he withdrew to a region near the wilderness, to a village called Ephraim, where he stayed with his disciples.

 

When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, many went up from the country to Jerusalem for their ceremonial cleansing before the Passover.  They kept looking for Jesus, and as they stood in the temple courts they asked one another, “What do you think? Isn’t he coming to the festival at all?”  But the chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that anyone who found out where Jesus was should report it so that they might arrest him.”

 

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• Jesus goes to raise Lazarus from the dead, despite the risk of stoning.Why? So that they may have the light of day.Remember, Jesus is the light of the world.

  • Key verse: “for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe.”

  • Notice the detail that John remembers here.

    • The sister of Lazarus is Mary, the one that Poured perfume on Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair.We will learn more about this later in the gospel of John.

    • Jesus knows from the time he is told about Lazarus’ illness that he is going to die and that death will be used to give God glory.John records his exact words where Jesus gives the clues, and then explains things plainly.

    • John remembers Thomas’ response which shows that Thomas still didn’t get it.Thomas repeats a popular phrase for sympathizing with someone that died.

• Jesus comforts the mourners.Why?So they may believe.

  • Key verse: “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.”

  • On several occasions, Jesus had promised eternal life and that he would raise up his disciples on the last day.What good is that promise without proof that he can accomplish that promise?

  • Notice the detail that John remembers in this passage.He remembers where people were when Jesus arrived and how they move from one place to another.

  • Martha expresses both belief and doubt in this passage.

    • Belief: “Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.”

    • Doubt: “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

  • Then we have the shortest verse in the Bible. “Jesus wept.”

    • Why did Jesus weep?

      1. He knew that Lazarus was going to be risen from the dead.

      2. What do you think?

      3.  

• Jesus Raises Lazarus from the Dead.Why?So they may believe.

  • Key verse: “I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.”

  • The resurrection of Lazarus is one of the proofs of Jesus’ divinity that we still have with us today.

    • People may ask why the story about Lazarus is not in the gospels.The answer is that when the other gospels were written, Lazarus was still alive.The Pharisees were also trying to kill Lazarus because he was a convincing proof that Jesus is God.John 12:10, “So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus as well.”The early gospels protected Lazarus by being silent about him.This way, Pharisees would not come to them and ask what they knew about Lazarus.

    • People may ask why there is no archeological proofs of Jesus.The tombs of Lazarus is an archeological proof of Jesus.

    • There are two burial tombs for Lazarus.There is a tomb of Saint Lazarus in Bethany, Israel.There is also a Tomb of Lazarus in Larnaca, Cyprus.The tomb in Cyprus has this inscription, “Lazarus, Four Days Dead and a friend of Christ.”

    • Lazarus had escaped Judea and went to Cyprus where he became bishop of Kition, Cyprus.

    • So, they roll away the stone covering the tomb & Jesus commands Lazarus to come out.The methods of burial for the Jews at this time were much like the methods of the Egyptians.They not only wrapped them tightly with cloth, they also clogged every orifice with cloths filled with salts to absorb any moisture.It might be a bit hard to breathe this way.So, if you weren’t dead, the grave clothes would kill you.So, it becomes urgent for the people to take off Lazarus’ grave clothes.

• The meeting of the Sanhedrin.Why?Because people were believing in Jesus.“Therefore many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, believed in him.”

  • Key verse: “as high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the Jewish nation, and not only for that nation but also for the scattered children of God, to bring them together and make them one.”

  • Caiaphas, the high priest, and the prophecy.

    • Caiaphas was the Jewish high priest who served in Jerusalem from about 18 to 36 AD. History tells us that he was the son-in-law of Annas, and likely from the tribe of Levi. As a member of the Jewish priestly class, Caiaphas was part of the sect of the Sadducees, who served in priestly as well as political and judicial roles. The other main religious group was the Pharisees – who focused more on religious laws and teaching in the local synagogues. The Sadducees tended to be corrupted by money and more interested in the political power and benefits that came from close ties with the Romans.

    • Caiaphas the high priest is an important historical anchor for three of the Gospels – Matthew, Luke and John. He is also attested in the writings of Roman historian Flavius Josephus, where Josephus attests to his name, position, and time of service as high priest. Interestingly, Josephus specifies that he was “Joseph son of Caiaphas,” but that he was also known as “Joseph who was called Caiaphas.” This explains why the Gospels merely use the name “Caiaphas.”

    • The name “Joseph son of Caiaphas” is also found on an ossuary – or, bone box — found just outside the walls of first-century Jerusalem. In 1990, a tomb was accidently discovered during a construction project, and subsequently excavated. Twelve ossuaries were found inside the rock-cut tomb, two of which contained the family name “Caiaphas.” The ossuary inscribed with “Joseph son of Caiaphas” was particularly ornate. Inside, remains of six individuals were discovered, including a man about 60-years-old.

    • The tomb where the ossuary was found also contained a coin of Herod Agrippa I dated 42/43 AD, which places this ossuary in the right place at the right time. Based on the evidence, most scholars now accept that this artifact is the very ossuary that held the bones of Joseph Caiaphas, the Jewish high priest and the man who became such an important part of the Gospel story.

    • According to the Gospel of John, “Caiaphas was the one who advised the Jewish leaders that it would be good if one man died for the people” (John 18:14). The chief priests gave orders that anyone knowing the whereabouts of Jesus should notify them immediately so he could be arrested. Passover was approaching, and the Temple officials figured that Jesus wouldn’t pass on the opportunity to show up in Jerusalem.

    • The statement of Caiaphas: “You know nothing at all!You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.”

    • The statement of Caiaphas according to John: “He did not say this on his own, but as high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the Jewish nation, and not only for that nation but also for the scattered children of God, to bring them together and make them one.”

      1. John makes the claim that God made these very words of Caiaphas come true, but in a different way that Caiaphas meant.

      2. Instead of the nation being preserved as Caiaphas had wished, after the resurrection of Jesus, more people were united as followers of Jesus, not as followers of the Pharisees.

    • According to Josephus Caiaphas was high priest from 18 AD to 36 AD.

  • Sanhedrin: The Sanhedrin (Hebrew: סַנְהֶדְרִין sanhedrîn, Greek: Συνέδριον,[1] synedrion, "sitting together," hence "assembly" or "council") was an assembly of twenty-three to seventy-one men appointed in every city in the Land of Israel. In the Hebrew Bible,[2] Moses and the Israelites were commanded by God to establish courts of judges who were given full authority over the people of Israel, who were commanded by God to obey every word the judges instructed and every law they established. Judges in ancient Israel were the religious leaders and teachers of the nation of Israel.

  • The Great Sanhedrin was made up of a Nasi (President), who functioned as head or representing president, and was a member of the court, an Av Beit Din, the chief of the court who was second to the nasi, and sixty-nine general members (Mufla).[7] In the Second Temple period, the Great Sanhedrin met in the Hall of Hewn Stones in the Temple in Jerusalem. The court convened every day except festivals and Shabbat. The Hall of Hewn Stones (in Hebrew, לשכת הגזית Lishkat ha-Gazit) was the meeting place of the Sanhedrin during the Second Temple period. The Talmud deduces that it was built into the north wall of the Temple, half inside the sanctuary and half outside, with doors providing access both to the temple and to the outside. The name presumably arises to distinguish it from the buildings in the temple complex used for ritual purposes, which had to be constructed of unhewn stones.

• The fear of the Pharisees: “Here is this man performing many signs.If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our temple and our nation.”

  • Was it a well-founded fear?Did Jesus ever make a public claim to be King of the Jews or to have a kingdom up to this point?

  • It was a made-up fear, later they would say: “From then on, Pilate tried to set Jesus free, but the Jewish leaders kept shouting, “If you let this man go, you are no friend of Caesar. Anyone who claims to be a king opposes Caesar.”The Jews still had a King Herod.

  • Also, notice that they did not deny any of the miracles.Jesus just rose Lazarus from the dead.The Pharisees acknowledge that as a sign, but they don’t follow the sign, they ignore it.

    • The Pharisees cannot see that Jesus is God even though that is hitting them in the face.

    • The only thing the Pharisees can see is their own position and their profiteering operation.

    • What would have happened if the Pharisees believed in Jesus:

      1. What do you think?

      2.  

    • Perhaps, the Pharisees needed someone to say to them “Here’s your sign!”And it would be one of those kinds of signs that you secretly tape on their back and it says something like “ID – 10 – T”

  • What would have happened if the Pharisees had left Jesus alone?

    • The Romans did not see him as a threat.

    • The people would have thrown out the corrupt Pharisees and Sadducees.

  • So, what are the Pharisees really afraid of?

    •  

• Up to this time, Jesus only made statements about the Kingdom of God.Jesus did not lead an insurrection.He did not try to depose Herod.He did not try to evict the Romans from Israel.

  • Mark 1:15 “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near (Engiken – near hand - is at hand). Repent and believe the good news!”

  • Matthew 4: 17, “From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near (The Greek word here is Engiken – which means near hand, or is at hand).”

    • Engiken is two words put together. Eggus, which means Near, and Cheir, which means hand.The pronunciation of Ken instead of Cheir is due to Greek pronunciation rules.It means the closest possible nearness.It means that something is so near that you can just grab it.“At hand” is perhaps an idiom that has been used by nearly every language.One can imagine ancient warriors preparing for battle, and someone asks, “Where are the weapons?”Another answers, “At Hand.”

  • Luke 17:20-21, “Once, having been asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, Jesus replied, “The kingdom of God does not come with your careful observation, nor will people say, ‘Here it is,’ or ‘There it is,’ because the kingdom of God is within you.

  • John 18:36 “Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.”

  • Mark 9:1, “And he said to them, “Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see that the kingdom of God has come with power.”

    • Some people use this verse to criticize the Bible, saying that there is a contradiction because Jesus’ Kingdom never came.

    • Jesus said that his kingdom is not of this world.

    • Jesus said that this kingdom is within you.

    • Jesus said that this kingdom is at hand.All you have to do is reach out and grab it.

    • Jesus said that those who believe in him and follow his teachings would have eternal life.That is where his kingdom is at.That is something you can reach out and grab on to.

• Have you seen that the Kingdom of God has come with power?