“A JOURNEY THROUGH THE GOSPEL OF JOHN”

St. JOHN 11:1-10
The Occasion of the sickness of Lazarus

As we approach this most sublime and excellent section of John’s gospel, let us not forget that John’s principle design is to present the excellent glories of the Lord Jesus Christ.  John’s design is to prove unmistakably that Jesus Christ is Deity – fully God.  Up to this section, Jesus has received enormous rejection from the Jewish leaders – a rejection that will culminate in Him being placed on a cross of shame and degradation for my sins and yours.  But, in this superb chapter, our blessed Lord will demonstrate and prove that He is the “Resurrection and Life” by raising Lazarus from the dead – a Christian man who had been dead for four days (v. 17).

As the scene unfolds in verses 1 and 2, we are introduced to the personnel of these verses:  Lazarus, Martha and Mary; in addition, we are given the village in which they resided:  Bethany – a village some two miles from Jerusalem.  Also, we are introduced to the fact that Lazarus was sick; but at the outset of this story, he had not died.  Jesus Christ, the matchless Son of God, will use this occasion as an object lesson to prove His great love for people, a love that is climatically proven on Calvary’s Cross.  What awesome love!  Also, this miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead will serve as a public demonstration of the fact that Christ is God, and as God, He has the power to raise the dead (St. John 5:25, 27-29).

In verse 3, both Martha and Mary sent a message to Jesus, which was not a complaint or a rebuke, but simply to acknowledge the desperate condition of their brother whom Jesus loved.  It is indeed comforting to know that our Lord still loves us in despite of our sickness. It also wonderful to know that sickness is not a token of God’s displeasure with us!  These sisters appealed to the only One who can do anything for human suffering.

Suffering is the result of sin; Jesus Christ is the Saviour of mankind; therefore, Jesus is the only answer to human sickness.  In a time of desperate need, we can learn a lot from the decision of these two sisters: “take the source of your trouble to the only One who can handle it – Jesus Christ.”  Our Lord answers the appeal of the sisters by acknowledging the fact that Lazarus’ sickness and even the problem that his sickness will eventuate into was perfectly known by Him and both will serve to bring glory to God.  As children of God, we must come to understand that God has a purpose with regard to every detail of our lives, for even sickness is designed to bring glory to Him!  Every detail of our lives is divinely ordered by the Lord – “the One who knows the beginning and ending of our existence.”

In verses 5 and 6, the Lord’s love for this family is mentioned, but it is explicitly manifested in His delay in coming as soon as He received the message.  Again, Christ’s delay in this situation was not a sign of His displeasure; but His delay was in perfect accord with His love for the Father’s will and for Lazarus’ family.  The delay of Christ brought out the perfection of His absolute Person – He was in total submission to the Father’s will.  Certainly, Christ’s delay was also designed to strengthen the faith of these sisters; for after incurring the experience of being bereaved, God was preparing them to receive the marvel of surpassing joy.  After the child of God has gone through the rigor of suffering, the height of sublime joy will come, for the latter end of Psalm 30:5 says: “weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”

In verses 7 and 8, we are introduced to the fact that our God makes an appeal for His disciples to go into Judea – a place of opposition and peril.  In verse 8 we are introduced to the fact that Jesus’ request caused the disciples to be perplexed, for they reminded Jesus of His crisis in Judea.  In the Lord’s perfect leading, He often leads us into perplexing and puzzling places in an effort to strengthen our resolve to trust Him.

Finally, in verses 9 and 10, the Lord assures His disciples that as long as one walks in God’s will, no harm will be allowed until God’s appointed time.  As we minister for God, we need to be assured that: “no harm can come our way unless it is divinely ordered, and if it is divinely ordered, it is for our good (Romans 8:28).  May God bless!