John 11: Accepting Life
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We have a big and very important chapter in the Gospel of John today, and so I’d like to jump in today without too much of an intro
This is the culmination of the Passover cycle, and the most dramatic miracle of Jesus’ ministry leading up to his crucifixion!
The event of this week establish Jesus’ power and point to his coming resurrection
And the application of this narrative to our life establishes the need to die to ourselves in order to attain eternal life! It also reveals some realities about how we stumble in following Christ and how we must respond in our stumbling
1 Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill.
We are introduced here to a man named Lazarus (Intro), who is the brother of Mary and Martha. Lazarus is likely an abbreviation of Eleazar, which means “God assists”
Mary is identified here for her extravagant anointing of Jesus’ feet with pure nard (an expensive perfume) Mark 14:3-9
It is pretty apparent that there is a close relationship between Jesus and the family of Lazarus, Mary, and Martha, and in verse 3 we actually see that Lazarus is referred to in similar language as John (“him who you love”)
This has occasionally led to speculation that Lazarus may have actually been the author of John’ Gospel, but this is very unlikely
Whatever the relationship, Jesus responds to the request from the sisters in his customary fashion. He uses the interaction as an opportunity to point to his universal goal (which is constantly misunderstood by those closest to him, according to John)
4 But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”
Up to this point, Jesus has been performing miracles which have provided resistance to death through various symbolic works: he makes bread (which staves off starvation), he heals blindness and paralysis, he walks on water (in a context where the sea is a symbol for Hell!)
But this coming act will be the most dramatic exercise of Jesus’ power over death and dissolution to date, and Jesus is clarifying his goal (glorifying God) in this first interaction (good shepherds vs. bad shepherds)
It is super important to remember this altruistic heart to Jesus’ ministry, because he sometimes behaves in a fashion which seems ironic in the moment. He often does what seems wrong through a worldly lens to give evidence to his sovereignty, and as we’ve discussed, this is probably a large part of John’s purpose in constructing his Gospel with this post-resurrection/hindsight 20-20/Bird’s-eye-view
5 Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6 So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was.
wait, what?!
These verses set up an odd, seemingly contradictory response coming from Jesus, in which John is intentional in telling the reader that Jesus loves Mary and Martha and Lazarus, and yet he intentionally delays in going to visit them.
We generally interpret any delay in rendering help as cruelty, but Jesus is both making a larger point about his power over life and death and his oneness with the Father as well as giving us a window into how short-sighted that instinct can be!
If you’re thinking “wow, Jesus is being kind of a jerk, isn’t he?”… you’re setting yourself up! Don’t bite!
11:7-8 In this first section of interactions, Jesus begins by dealing with his disciples, and their obvious concern with the Pharisees who are actively plotting to murder Jesus, and this area is also probably also more like home for the disciples.
Jesus’ friend is dying, and he delays… His own life is in danger, and yet he chooses to press in… Note the ironic way in which Jesus behaves compared to good common sense! Father Issues John 5
9 Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. 10 But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.”
Here we see Jesus extending his “Light of the World” metaphor
Jesus responds to his disciples’ misunderstanding with a sermonette, employing the themes of light and darkness (usually applied to good and evil) to the imagery of travelling by day or by night. Light of the World
Time designations of carry deeper meaning in John’s Gospel (“night” at John 3:2; 13:30/ “winter” at John 10:22)
Nicodemus comes by night to avoid being exposed in his interest in the Christ, and likewise the disciples, though literally walking alongside the light of the world, are still heavily influenced by worldly perceptions and understandings which makes it difficult for them to perceive Jesus’ point
Stumbling itself is also an important theological concept! In the Greek, proskoptein (being offended, falling) Romans 14:21
21 It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble.
Note the difference between stumbling in sin and stumbling on Jesus!
Jesus is also described as the rock of stumbling or offense (Romans 9:32; 1 Pet. 2:8)
And so we can see with our own eyes Jesus’ disciples and friends stumbling over Jesus’ identity, even though they believe him. They can’t fully understand, and so they often run contrary to his plans in spite of their love for him!
And this stumbling will have an impact on Jesus’ human nature!
11 After saying these things, he said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.” 12 The disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover.” 13 Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he meant taking rest in sleep. 14 Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus has died, 15 and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” 16 So Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”
After relating his message on light/dark/stumbling, Jesus refers to Lazarus’ death in a fashion which might seem odd, but is consistent across the Gospels with his description of death as “sleeping” (Mark 5:39) and this is also quite common throughout scripture! (Deut. 31:16; 2 Sam 7:12; 1 Kgs 2:10; 11:43; Job 7:21; Dan 12:2)
10 Then David slept with his fathers and was buried in the city of David.
Much as with other audiences, Jesus’ disciples apparently misunderstand his statement (or stumble over his words!), and so he makes things clear at John 11:14
Thomas, here called the twin (Didymus), gives a statement which indicates his true loyalty to Jesus, in spite of his later doubting. We see here a pragmatic lens leading to despair, and not necessarily “doubting”
11:17-20 Section 2 of John 11 begins by announcing that Jesus arrives after Lazarus has been dead four days. It is possible that there were traditions among the Jews in this time that a spirit hung about a body for three days, but that it would be locked out on the fourth day
Much as with the mud-medicine Jesus makes to heal the blind man (John 9), this might be an indicator that Jesus is utilizing contemporary traditions to help his audience understand the scope of his power and identity!
The reference to “many” people also probably is intended to indicate to the reader the public nature of this coming event
Side note: Lazarus would’ve likely been a major wage-earner in his family’s home, and so his death would potentially put his family in a predicament. We can’t fully perceive the depth of Martha and Mary’s loss
11:21-22 “If you had been here, my brother would not have died” - Instead of reading Martha’s statements as a jab at Jesus, it is far more likely that she is indicating a strong confidence in Jesus’ relationship with the Father, as well as her limited scope and understanding of Jesus’ identity and works.
11:23-24 Martha again conveys a genuine faith which can’t quite make sense of all the information, voicing her confidence in the resurrection (an important theological point for the Pharisees) while also missing the full context of Jesus’ points.
And it is into this misunderstanding of who he actually is that Jesus provides this reply, and the fifth of his great “I am” statements:
25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” 27 She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.”
Jesus here says another of the “I am” statements of John: “I am the resurrection and the life.” This statement establishes two dimensions of Jesus’ work and proclamation, as he is both claiming to be the eschatological reality which Martha and all religious Jews look forward to, while also being the origin of their life from the beginning! All things were created by him, including life itself!
Much like his gate/shepherd statement… This one conjures Trinitarian imagery heavily implying that Jesus is the “I am” of the Old Testament.
Martha’s confession and her attempt to restrain Jesus at John 11:39 show that Jesus and Martha are continually talking on two separate levels of thinking. Her confession is correct, but her understanding is incomplete!
This applies to modern Christian claims of unity with Christ: Correct confessions do not always connect to understanding/acceptance of the Gospel message! This also leads to much stumbling!
11:28-31 Section 3 of this passage begins with Martha summoning Mary to action. Mary hastily departs in response, and the mourners (witnesses!) follow her to support her in mourning according to custom
11:32-33a Instead of heading for the tomb, Mary instead heads straight to Jesus! She begins with a similar statement to Martha (11:21 - “If you had been here”), but then her words begin to contrast with Martha’s good theological responses
Mary openly weeps
She bows at Jesus’ feet (as in John 12:3)
This would have likely triggered the other mourners to respond in kind. Professional mourning was a thing in ancient Israel
And Jesus at the sight of this pronounced grieving, responds thus:
34 And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” 35 Jesus wept. 36 So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” 37 But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?”
Jesus asks to see the tomb, and then he weeps (John 11:35). This is everyone’s favorite memory verse, but it also beautifully depicts Jesus’ humanity in light of his divine nature! He is frustrated by the stumbling of those he loves (because he understands the relationship of stumbling to death!), and yet he feels for them in their misunderstanding.
In other places in the Gospels, Jesus “groans” over the failure of Jerusalem to come to him (Matt. 23:37-39; Luke 13:34-35), when he prays for his disciples safety and future (John 17:9-26), and when he wrestles with his impending death and his disciples’ weakness (Matt. 26:37-41; Mark 13:33-37; Luke 22:40-46; John 12:27-28)
The Jews of John 11:36 are, like everyone else in frame, showing a very limited understanding of Jesus’ mourning here. Some limit his emotion to his affection for Lazarus (11:36), and some wonder at the limitations of his power (11:37). Both of these responses miss the full picture of Christ!]
11:38 John again notes Jesus’ pronounced emotional state, and we also see a familiar image of the tomb (cave with a stone door)
And then we see this:
39 Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.” 40 Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” 41 So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. 42 I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me.” 43 When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” 44 The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”
This climactic miraculous act is the final public miracle John records until the cross, and the connection is pretty apparent, right?
Jesus gives three commands at the tomb, telling the mourners to take away the stone (11:39), commanding Lazarus to come out of the tomb (11:43), and commanding that Lazarus be set free (11:44). Martha responds to this first command with resistance, but Jesus reminds her of her responsibility to believe (as in 11:25) and her confession (at 11:26), and so Jesus is here saying the time has come for her to witness! After this, the stone is removed.
11:41b-42 This is another of the three prayers of Jesus to to Father recounted by John’s Gospel (12:27-28; 17:1-26). In each of these prayers Jesus prioritizes the mission given to him by the Father and that mission’s success!
11:43-44 After concluding his prayer, Jesus yells for Lazarus to come out, and Lazarus actually responds. This moment is indicative of Jesus’ power over death, where we can actually see that Jesus’ voice reaches into the pit of Sheol and Lazarus responds!
11:45-46 Yet again we see a divided reaction to Jesus’ work, and those who do not become believers report to the Pharisees so that the plot against Jesus develops further:
47 So the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered the council and said, “What are we to do? For this man performs many signs. 48 If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.” 49 But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all. 50 Nor do you understand that it is better for you that one man should die for the people, not that the whole nation should perish.”
11:47-49 We see now that the problem is brought to the Sanhedrin, a Council of 70 leading priests (mostly Sadducees!) and rabbinic scribes (mostly Pharisees), with the high priest serving as a tie-breaker. The Greek here suggests that the Council was most concerned with the destruction of their power and positions, not with the destruction of their temple and their nation (laying down the sheep for their lives!)
We are here introduced to Caiaphas, a very successful high priest from the Annas clan, who regards the rest of the Council as ignorant and need of direction. He is quite happy to lay down Jesus’ life for the preservation of their power!
11:50-52 In spite of the fact that he’s clearly an antagonist to Jesus, John declares Caiaphas’ proclamation concerning Jesus a prophetic word from God. We see here that the bad shepherds are still playing perfectly into the plans of God, and their flawed view of Jesus will not upset the mission!
11:53 At this climactic point in the Passover/Festival Cycle, we can see both the greatest miraculous work performed by Jesus to date and the concrete formation of the plot to murder him during Passover
11:54 Jesus avoids public ministry for a time because he understands the nature of the plot against him.
55 Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and many went up from the country to Jerusalem before the Passover to purify themselves. 56 They were looking for Jesus and saying to one another as they stood in the temple, “What do you think? That he will not come to the feast at all?” 57 Now the chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that if anyone knew where he was, he should let them know, so that they might arrest him.
This passage notes the coming of Passover, and it marks the close of John’s Passover cycle, and it clues us into the atmosphere in Jerusalem leading up to Jesus’ arrest and crucifixion. As John the Baptist declares at John 1:29, Jesus is the unblemished Passover lamb who will be sacrificed to defeat death!
This all applies nicely to our study of John’s narrative so far, and it connects to the theme of this story… but how does it connect to your walk today as a Christian?
The truth is that we still often struggle with a desire to put Jesus into a comfortable box.
While we often confess Jesus as Lord (as Martha did), and while we might even resign ourselves to death in service of the mission (as Thomas did), we cannot fully understand!
Jesus feeds our spirit like spiritual bread, he lights our path like a lamp, he laid down his life for us like the good shepherd, and he has now established that he is the beginning and the end of life! He is the resurrection and the life!
But following him forces us to accept things about ourselves which are often personally offensive!
I assure you your lines will be crossed if you are walking alongside the Jesus of the Bible! You will have to get uncomfortable! Look at his friends and those who loved him personally! Look at what Christ himself suffered!
You are going to disagree about who deserves grace and who deserves wrath
You are going to think you have Jesus’ opinions on subjects nailed down, only to find yourself thwarted/stumbling just like every other person who interacts with Jesus in the stories of the Gospel… and you will respond in one of two ways:
You will ultimately accept for who he is in your struggles, like we see with the disciples, Mary, and Martha
Or you will try to put Jesus in a box which seems more polite or appropriate or convenient for you… which is the response of Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin!
You will either accept Jesus (sometimes in spite of your limited understanding or your feelings on the matter!), or you will assassinate his character and create a false messiah to suit your purposes
Accepting Jesus looks like attending to the sick and the poor, like feeding the hungry, like telling hard truths in love even if you’re gonna get bit, like laying your life down for a sheep! In Accepting Eternal Life, you will have to do a ton of dying to your own desires, your own convenience, your own profit! Rejoice, you’re living into your eternal inheritance!
Our box must be broken for us to experience resurrection and abundant life!
