Lazarus
Read John 11:1–44. In what sense was Jesus “glorified” by the sick-
ness and death of Lazarus (John 11:4)?
Here, too, Jesus uses the metaphor for sleep in talking about death.
“ ‘Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake
him up’ ” (John 11:11, NIV). When some thought He was talking about
literal sleep (John 11:11–13), Jesus clearly stated what He meant:
“ ‘Lazarus is dead’ ” (John 11:12–14, NIV). Actually, when Jesus
arrived in Bethany, Lazarus had been dead four days; his corpse already
was rotting (John 11:17, 39). By the time a body starts decomposing
badly enough to smell, there’s no question: the person is dead.
In this context, when Jesus told Martha, “ ‘Your brother will rise
from the dead’ ” (John 11:23, NASB), she reaffirmed her belief in the
final resurrection. But Jesus declared, “ ‘I am the resurrection and the
life. The one who believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and every-
one who lives and believes in me will never die forever. Do you believe
this?’ ” (John 11:23–26, LEB). And Jesus added, “ ‘If you believe, you
will see the glory of God’ ” (John 11:40, NASB). Martha believed, and
she saw the glory of God in the resurrection of her brother.
The Bible says that by God’s word life was created (Gen, 1:20–30,
Ps. 33:6), and by His word life can be re-created, as in the case of
Lazarus. After a short prayer, Jesus ordered, “ ‘Lazarus, come forth!’ ”
(John 11:43, NKJV). Right then and there these people saw the life-giving
power of God, the same power that spoke our world into existence, and
the same power that at the end of the age will call the dead back to life
in the resurrection.
By raising Lazarus, Jesus proved that He had the power to defeat
death, which, for beings like us, who inevitably die—what greater
manifestation of God’s glory could there be?
Read John 11:25, 26. In one line Jesus talks about believers
dying, and in the next He talks about believers never dying.
What is Jesus teaching us here, and why is the understanding
that death is an unconscious sleep so crucial in understanding
Christ’s words? And why do His words offer us, as beings des-
tined to the grave, so much hope?
