John chapter 12 has a somewhat interesting and perversely funny story regarding Lazarus. It is a great follow-up to Jesus' miraculous raising of his once-dead friend from the grave. Just six days before the celebration of the Passover, when Jesus and His disciples would make their way to Jerusalem, He made a stop in Bethany, the town where He had brought Lazarus back to life. Obviously, Lazarus had become somewhat of a sensation, a first-century rock star. He had celebrity status. After all, it's not everyone who can claim to have been dead and then brought back to life. And when Jesus joined a dinner with Lazarus and his sisters, it caused quite a stir, attracting the attention of the religious leaders. They now had a second target for their hatred, because Lazarus was literal living proof that Jesus was something special. His claims to be the Son of God had been given credibility with the people because of the raising of Lazarus. So, the high priest and his cohorts decided the next course of action was to get rid of Jesus and the evidence. In other words, Lazarus. But what they didn't realize was that Jesus had no fear of death. In fact, death was why He came. For Him, death was not an end, but a means to God's preferred end of salvation through the sacrificial death of His Son.
