I love mysteries. I like to figure out the details that are usually only divulged at the end. Today we will look at a twist in the last week of Jesus’ life before the crucifixion. I’m sure I have read this many times, but today John 12:11 seemed to jump to the front of the page. We find the twist in the plot in John 12:9-11. The twist was that they did not just want to kill Jesus they wanted to kill Lazarus also!
John 12:9-11 “Then a great crowd of the Jews learned that He was there. And they did not come for Jesus’ sake only, but also that they might see Lazarus, whom He had raised from the dead. But the chief priests consulted that they might put Lazarus to death also because many of the Jews went away and believed on Jesus because of him.”
Lazarus and his sisters were great friends of Jesus. He had stayed with them, enjoyed their company, and they genuinely had a family love for one another. This gave Mary and Martha confidence in Jesus’ power to save the life of their brother. They had called for Jesus to come when Lazarus was near death. Jesus waited, and when He arrived, John 11:17 tells us Lazarus had been in the tomb for four days. In John 11:32 Mary fell at Jesus’ feet and showed her confidence in Him. Her words were, “If You had been here, my brother would not have died.” Seeing the pain of Mary and Martha, John 11:43-44 tells us Jesus goes to the tomb and calls out to Lazarus to come out of the tomb. This man who is a miracle worker had called out His friend to new life.
John 11:17 “Then when Jesus came, He found him already being held in the tomb four days.”
John 11:43-44 “And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Lose him, and let him go.”
Now, when all the male Jews were to come to Jerusalem for the Passover feast we find Lazarus there to fulfill his obligation. In John 12:9-11 the chief priests wanted to kill him because after Jesus resurrected Lazarus many believed in Jesus. I can only imagine all those present for the raising of Lazarus were anxious to tell everyone about what Jesus had done. This miracle worker was the Messiah and the things He did proved that to many.
While Jesus knew what the Jewish leaders were thinking, it still must have caused Him anguish to know that they wanted to kill Lazarus. This added a new element to what He endured the week of His crucifixion. The priest thought if they killed Lazarus first, that Jesus’ followers would scatter. This would make it easier to convince the Roman government to crucify Jesus. Lazarus was guilty of nothing but being a believer and friend to Jesus.
Men who are determined to get their way will stop at nothing. The overflowing prisons in America are proof of this truth. If Jesus were walking the earth today there is no doubt that people would hate Him just as they did then. Man’s deeds are evil and the holiness of God exposes them. In John 3:19-20 Jesus said, “And this is the condemnation, that light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. For everyone that doeth evil hated the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.” These two verses explain why they hated Jesus. He is the light. His presence reproves their evil hearts. They hated Him so much they would kill and destroy anything that was evidence that He was God in the flesh. There is nothing else mentioned about the killing of Lazarus and we are not sure how he escaped. However, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, John allowed us to have another look at the evil hearts of the Jewish leaders. We find one more evidence of how much they hated Jesus, enough to kill those who were evidence He is the Messiah.
Now it is time to think about our own lives. Do we represent Jesus well enough that we bear reproach simply for being His disciple? Are there those who do not like us or shy away from us, because we are a Christ follower? If not, maybe we are not going to those who don’t know Him, or shining His light bright enough to make a difference.
