Anger and Perspective

 

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies.” — John 11:25

 

In this passage, Martha asked accusingly why Jesus had not come sooner when he had learned of Lazarus’ illness. She knew Jesus could heal him and blamed Jesus for his death. We can imagine she might have said, “I thought you loved Lazarus as your brother, Jesus. Why couldn’t you come heal him?” Martha blamed Jesus for Lazarus’ death. She did not deny his death but was angry Lazarus had died. “Why, Jesus, did you let him die?” she might have asked. 

 

God had another plan, one far greater. In John 10, Jewish religious leaders asked Jesus to tell them if he was the Christ. Jesus replied that his works in the Father’s name testify to who he is (John 10:25). Next, He stated to these leaders that his sheep hear his voice and follow him, and he gives them eternal life, so they will not perish (John 10:26-28). The religious leaders wanted to arrest Jesus for blasphemy. They wanted to stone him.

 

Jesus told the religious leaders about his disciples and what they do; they listen to his voice and follow him. He spoke about what he does for his disciples (believers)—give them eternal life. Mary, Martha, and Lazarus lived in Bethany. It was about two miles outside of Jerusalem. Jesus' teachings on eternal life would have been shared in Bethany prior to his arrival after Lazarus' death. This makes Martha and Jesus’ conversation poignant. She would have heard that Jesus gives life to his followers. Would Martha have pondered this and wondered why Jesus didn’t heal and give life to Lazarus, his follower and friend?

 

When Jesus received Martha’s message that Lazarus was sick, he stayed two more days in Bethany-beyond-the-Jordan, where John the Baptist first began his ministry. He said the sickness of Lazarus would not end in death, but would bring glory to God (John 11:4). The second day after Martha’s message, Jesus told the disciples it was time to return to the Jerusalem area—to Bethany, a two-day walk from where they were. The disciples worried about Jesus being stoned by the Jewish religious leaders (vs. 8). Jesus had no concern about his death. He knew he wouldn't die soon, and stoning was not how it would happen. 

 

The disciples appeared to have forgotten the introduction to the lesson Jesus was teaching them—Lazarus’ life would bring glory to God (vs. 4). Jesus told them Lazarus was asleep, and he was going to Bethany to awaken him. The disciples couldn't understand or remember Jesus' words because the human mind struggles with grasping spiritual concepts. Jesus said in John 10, he gives eternal life to his disciples. The disciples’ reply to Jesus’ statement of going to Bethany to awaken Lazarus showed their literal understanding. Jesus meant Lazarus was dead, not just sleeping (vs 12-14). For the disciples’ (all disciples of all time) sake, Jesus said he was glad he wasn’t in Bethany to heal Lazarus. 

 

After a two-day wait and a two-day walk to Bethany, Jesus arrived after Lazarus had been dead for four days. Jesus understood the number three symbolized completeness. The third day after a person’s death signified the person was certifiably dead. The fourth day after, a person was dead-dead. No doubt could exist that he or she was asleep, in a coma, or sick. The dead person would not awaken and walk out of the tomb. Jesus arrived in Bethany when the people had no doubt Lazarus truly was dead. 

 

The stage was set. Jesus walked on scene when mourning was obvious. Those aware of Jesus' close bond with Lazarus' family would have wondered why he had arrived so late. They might have whispered among themselves, wondering why Jesus didn’t use his power to heal Lazarus. These people may have heard about Jesus’ conversation with the religious leaders four days earlier about giving eternal life to his disciples and wondered why Jesus wouldn’t have spared Lazarus’ life and the heartache of the sisters. “Did Jesus not love them?” they may have conjectured. 

 

The curtain rose and Martha confronted Jesus about not arriving before Lazarus died. “You could have healed him,” we suppose Martha said. Jesus replied, as any Jew would say, “He will rise again.” (Jews believe in a bodily resurrection.) Martha’s reply, we conjecture, is our own, “I know that, but why weren’t you here? You could have healed him.” Do you recognize your own voice in this situation? Jesus’ reply to Martha is a reply to humanity, and the lesson Jesus began in John 11:4. He said, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me will live, even though he dies. And everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

 

These verses are the lesson. They bring glory to God and glorify the Son (vs. 4). In what way? Jesus did not just say he gives resurrection and eternal life to believers. He didn’t say he merely creates and resurrects people. Jesus said, “I AM the Resurrection. I AM the Life.” Jesus doesn’t just give from what he creates. He gives from himself, from his essence. Just as perfect love (agape) comes from God’s being, since it’s part of his essence, life comes from his being. God—the Trinity—is the origin of life, the Author. He is, has been, and will always be. God is not created, but is. Jesus assured Martha and the listeners that he is life, both in the present and for all eternity. The life Jesus lives is from his eternal being and that’s the life he gives—eternal life. Jesus is the resurrection, and that is an undeniable truth. Jesus offers everlasting life that surpasses death's boundaries. Jesus gives resurrection life from his life to people who believe in him when he saves them. These people become his disciples when he Jesus saves them.

 

The manifestation of God's glory, as Jesus foretold, would show through Lazarus' death. After Jesus spoke with Martha and Mary, other Jews questioned Jesus about not arriving sooner to keep Lazarus from dying (vs 37). These Jews refocused all eyes on Jesus’ purpose, as he stated in verse four. 

 

The curtain arose on the next scene. Jesus commanded the people to roll stone from the tomb. Martha stated the obvious after four days of his death. “His body will stink,” she said. Jesus reminded the watchers, if they believe, they will see the glory of God (vs 40). Jesus prayed to the Father, thanking Him for hearing and understanding the people's experiences, teaching them about God's attentiveness. Finally, Jesus commanded, “Lazarus, come out!” Lazarus walked from the tomb still bound in the death cloths and Jesus ordered him to be unbound. Notice, no one doubted Jesus’ authority or power. They did not rebel at doing what he commanded. People moved the stone. Lazarus walked out of the tomb. People removed the death cloths from Lazarus. 

 

Returning to verse four, the lessons Jesus taught are several. God is Lord over life. Jesus is life, the author/originator of it. As life, Jesus is the resurrection. He has power to bind and/or cast away death. God hears us and knows what we are facing. He cries with/for us because of his great love for us. Most of all, Jesus is to be glorified. That’s why Jesus waited two days before beginning his journey to Bethany. 

 

What does giving God glory mean? It means displaying acts of kindness and love, regardless of whether anyone witnesses them. Giving God glory means obeying God by doing what he says when he says it. often, God’s timing is a very important part of his plan. Rushing in to help too soon may prevent people from seeing God, only you. You would, then, be stealing God’s glory. How God intervenes is important. Failing to help someone according to God's plan means we don't do what's best for them and God isn't glorified. If we rush in to rescue someone without praying and seeking God’s will, we take God’s glory and could create a worse problem for the person needing help. Often, part of God’s plan is for the person in need to be a part of praying for God’s guidance and help. That enables the person who needs help to know God hears and loves. That brings God glory.

 

Jesus, filled with love for his stressed and grieving friends, waited two days before being with them. Yes, he could have healed Lazarus by being there or by just saying, “Be healed,” while he stood at Bethany-beyond-the-Jordan. Yet, Jesus knew God’s plan for Lazarus’ life, since Jesus is part of the Trinity. Lazarus' life would bring glory to God and reveal Jesus as the Messiah, the Resurrection, and the Life. 

 

Today, do you need to remember Lazarus’ story because you need new life from Jesus? Do you need a reminder to trust God's plan and avoid hastily rescuing someone from a situation? Jesus is the only real Savior. Do you need to remember that God’s plan is best and not to rely on your own plan? Finally, do you need to remember to glorify God with your life? He can use all of you, in life and death, for his glory if you will totally surrender it to him. 

 

Martha was angry. She and Mary blamed Jesus. Lazarus, we may surmise, was thankful for God’s plan. He was alive, and God had used him for God’s own glory and purpose. Are you angry at God? For what do you blame God? Will you spend time with him now in prayer to get his perspective and understand better? See God and his purposes in your circumstances. “Seek God with all your heart and you will find him” (Jeremiah 29:13). God said when you seek him, he will be found by you (Jeremiah 29:14a).

Hope and Victory

For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world-our faith. (1 John 5:4 [ESV])

We, as Christians, have comfort after the death of a Christian friend and relative. This comfort comes only by Jesus’ death and resurrection and by His teaching about what will be after we die. For people who are not Christians, they will have no hope or comfort during their illness or on their deathbed because they have never believed Jesus is the Son of God. They have no hope or victory over death. Death for non-Christians is eternal separation from God. What hope is there to give to the loved ones left behind after a non-Christians death? There is only one hope for these loved ones; they can have hope for themselves of life beyond death with God in His kingdom if they believe Jesus is the Son of God. As much as we grieve the loss of a person who didn’t believe in Jesus, we still have hope to offer the ones left alive. Jesus is the only comfort and consolation for grieving people, just as He is the Comfort and Hope-giver for His disciples.

Today, tens of thousands of people around the world die from COVID-19. Thousands of them died without knowing Jesus as the Son of God. We remain behind to offer comfort to their friends and loved ones. The comfort we can give them comes because of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection.

When Jesus saw her (Mary) weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, He was deeply moved in spirit and greatly troubled. And He said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to Him, “Lord, come and see.” Jesus wept. So, the Jews said, “See how He loved him!” (John 11:33-36 [ESV])

Remember, Jesus cried at Lazarus’ grave. He didn’t cry because He had no hope. He cried because of His empathy with His friends’, Mary and Martha’s, grief. Jesus waited until Lazarus was dead to show He has power over death. He waited until Lazarus was dead to give glory to the Father. Jesus knew Mary, Martha, and Lazarus believed He is the Son of God, but other people around them did not believe. He provided comfort to them by showing He is the Son of God who has power over death when He brought Lazarus back to life. Jesus provided comfort to the believers and the unbelievers. He gave hope, showed love, grew the faith of the people who saw or heard about this happening, and gave God the glory. Did more people believe Jesus is the Son of God because of Lazarus’ resurrection? We don’t know for sure, but we can know they probably thought about it. I believe some could no longer doubt Jesus being the Son of God and came to believe in Him for salvation. Did the believers who watched Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead gain a deeper faith in Him because of this resurrection miracle? Most definitely.

Think of two people you know who have lost a loved one recently. Consider their relationship with God. Consider the dead person’s relationship with Jesus. What comfort can you offer the person left behind? Find out about their relationship with Jesus. Do they believe in Him? Offer the lasting hope and peace found only through Jesus. Tell them about Him so He will comfort them. Tell them about Him so they will believe in Him and receive salvation and eternal life with God. Their belief in Jesus will give them hope, peace, and comfort. Jesus’ Spirit will live in them to remind them of these and to grow them to be like Jesus.

Do you love people enough to tell them about Jesus?

Or do you hate people so much you won’t tell them about Jesus and

withhold from them comfort, peace, hope, and victory?

Tell people about Jesus. Allow them to receive salvation from their sins and have perfect peace and victory over death.

Then Jesus told them (His disciples) plainly, “Lazarus has died, and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” (John 11:14-15 [ESV])

Jesus said to her (Martha), “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me, though he dies, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26 [ESV])

Lord, God, I have become blind to other people and their problems or grief during this time of social distancing and lockdown. It’s easy not to see the grief of other people when the government leaders will not allow us to be together. I cannot use that excuse. Forgive me for using that excuse. Forgive me for getting wrapped up in myself and protecting my family. I should focus more on You and Your will than on my safety and health. Please Lord, tell me how to stay socially connected. Show me to whom You want me to talk, offer comfort, and tell about You. Put Your mind and heart into me so I know to whom to talk and what to say to comfort them. Help me listen as they grieve or fear for their lives. Help me stay focused on You and speak Your words of consolation and comfort. Help me not fear testifying about You, our Savior and Victor. Lord, I am just a small cog in the universe, but You can use me for Your purposes. I give my life to You. Make me hear Your voice and talk to people as You direct. Amen.

Are You Listening?

On April 16^th this year, I wrote an article called “FIRE: It’s a Relationship.” Since then, people have asked me more about FIRE and the basis for it. This article is an expansion on that article.

            John, in his gospel, writes many things. His whole book is written with the sole purpose being “that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name” (John 20:31 [NASB]). John showed throughout his book ways that we as hearers and readers could know Jesus as the Son of God. He told us his personal testimony. He told of the testimony through Jesus’ signs and miracles, through the Spirit, and through the Word (God’s inspired Word). Yet, there is something we must do. Paul in Romans 10:14-15a states it this way, “How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? How will they preach unless they are sent” [NASB]? Unless we who know God personally tell others about Jesus, the salvation of the world, most will not know Jesus.

            In John 13:15, Jesus used the word “example” only once to His disciples. After being with the disciples for almost 3 years teaching them by word and action, before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus washed the feet of His disciples. He took His tunic off and wrapped a towel around Himself as a servant would. This is the example Jesus gave His disciples; they are to be servants to each other. Jesus reinforced this "example" He showed and spoke. Later in chapter 13, Jesus told the disciples in verse 34-35, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another" (John 13:34-35, [NASB]). Previously, Jesus said He was the fulfillment of the Law but stated that they must follow the Shema. The Shema is a Jewish Law combining Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18, “YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND; AND YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF” (Luke 10:27 [NASB]). This Jesus called the greatest commandment. At the end of His time with His disciples, He added another, John 13:34-35, they were to love each other so that all people will know they are His disciples. These two commands cover love of God, love of others (outside the faith), and love among disciples.

            How are people to know Jesus? They are to come to know Jesus by us coming to know them. In the gospel of John, John states many times that Jesus knew what people were thinking, what their past was, that they were grumbling or complaining, and that certain persons needed a miracle or sign so they could believe. Jesus knew and knows all people. Jesus spoke into their lives at the point of their need. Consider Mary and Martha. Jesus could have gone to their home in Bethany before Lazarus died, but He knew them and He wanted God to receive glory. Mary and Martha believed Jesus is God’s Son and believed there would be a resurrection on the last day. They did not know that Jesus had power over life and death. By waiting until Lazarus was truly dead (4 days after his death), Jesus’ power over life and death would not be doubted, God would be given the glory, and Mary and Martha’s faith will have grown. You can look at other miracles in John and see this same thing occur – Jesus’ power over that part of life would be revealed, God would receive glory, and the faith of people would increase or occur for the first time. Jesus knows people and what they need. He meets people at the point of their need, when they are at the end of their understanding and knowledge, so that any good/miracle that occurs can only be explained as being from God. The question remains: how are people to know Jesus?

            More often than not, people come to know Jesus through His disciples speaking truth into their lives. Let me say it again; people come to meet and know Jesus through us getting to know them. By getting to know them, we hear them tell us about themselves, their families, their interests, and their religious experiences. We listen intently and we hear where they are hurting. We hear they are human, too. We hear with our ears and with the heart that Jesus regenerated in us through His love. We hear their physical and spiritual needs. In the process of listening, we earn that person’s trust. In the process of listening to them, we remember where Jesus met our need, physically and spiritually. We remember where Jesus came to us, met us, healed us, and forgave us, and where we gave our lives to Him. Remember what Jesus said in Matthew 6:26 that the birds of the air wear beautiful plumage, have their food requirements met, and are sheltered in God’s beautiful trees and bushes. The birds did nothing; God provided for their needs. God will provide more so for the needs of His created people. Jesus stated that in Matthew 6. God provides for spiritual needs as well as temporal needs. Jesus built relationships or strengthened them at the point of a person’s need. He wants to be the provider of everything humankind needs. We must also build relationships and through building these new relationships and listening, we are given the opportunity by the other person to speak about Jesus and show how He has changed our lives, how He has met our needs, temporal and spiritual, and how He can be the fulfillment of all their own needs now and for eternity.

            Consider the I AM statements in John’s gospel. Jesus said seven things that John recorded. Jesus said, I AM the Bread of Life; I AM the Light of the world; I AM the gate for the sheep; I AM the good Shepherd; I AM the resurrection and the Life; and I AM the True Vine. Each of these has a temporal and spiritual element to it. Jesus came to be everything a human being ever needs –bread, light, shelter, guidance, life and hope, and eternal sustenance/salvation. Jesus is the fulfillment of all our needs before we ever know we have the need for them. God provided manna in the wilderness for the Israelites to feed them for a day. Jesus became the Bread that would feed our spiritual need forever. God gave a light of fire before the troops of Israelites as they found their way to the Promised Land. Jesus is the Light to lead us to eternal life in God’s Kingdom. God provided a gate by which to keep out the wolves. Jesus is the gate that keeps the devil and his demons out when we have given our lives to Him. God provides shepherds for the sheep who protect them, such as David was for the actual sheep of his father and for God’s people Israel. Jesus is the Shepherd who will not run away but will fight the wolves to keep us protected in His hands. He protects those who are His own. No one before Jesus had ever beaten death and come back to life. Jesus died to be victorious over death so His children would be resurrected from the grave at the end of the time. Death does not have any hold on those who call themselves His disciples. Jesus gives eternal life to His disciples. God provides sustenance and guidance now to His children. He also provides eternal life forever. God provides the eternal guidance and remembrance of all He has taught us through our lives and the ones who have gone before us through His indwelling Holy Spirit. He gives us hope and guidance as the True Vine. We are His, adopted by Him, and grafted into His vine so that nothing can separate us from Him. This is what Jesus gives us for now and eternity and what He stated in the seven I AM statements.

            We must get to know people as Jesus knows people. We must hear them express themselves, their life, and their beliefs. Only be listening will we gain their trust to speak into their lives. Only by listening will we be able to contextualize the message of Jesus’ salvation for that particular person at that specific moment in their lives. This is relationship and our telling the gospel to them after hearing is contextualizing the Gospel for them. That is how FIRE helps us. FIRE is Family, Interests, Religious experiences, and Evangelism. FIRE makes us intentional in getting to know Jesus better each day, to have a growing relationship with Him. We must have a daily relationship with Jesus where we are learning more through His Word and through prayer with Him. Without this daily relationship, we may not know a passage of Scripture a person needs to hear as they are speaking to us. FIRE lets us know a person’s thoughts on their needs so we can show them how Jesus can fill their needs here and eternally. FIRE is how Jesus met us through others and it is how He will meet other people more often than not.

            The questions now to consider include the following. How is your relationship with God? Are you close or has it been a while since you read His Word or prayed to Him? How are your listening skills? Are you a keen listener and often hear a word from God? Are you a listener of other people or do you hear some of what they say and then begin thinking about what you will say also? We must be in an active vertical relationship with God. We must also know how to have a horizontal relationship with other people. This is what Jesus did well. He was very relational and showed us by example how to be in a relationship with God ( vertical relationship) and with one another (horizontal relationship). (These two relationship beams make a cross.) Jesus died on the cross because of these relationships, obedience to the Father and love for us created human beings.

Each of us has to make a decision: are we willing to get to know people like Jesus knows each of us so we can tell them the great news of Jesus Christ?

Death, that You may Believe

Death, that You may Believe

John 11

          Three people in this chapter of John’s book strike me. These people come from different parts of Judea, but they each see Jesus. Thomas, called Didymus, Martha, and Caiaphas each meet Jesus. Often what we perceive when we read this chapter is the story about Jesus bringing Lazarus back to life. They are what this passage is about, right? Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead. In this study today, I read about three other people. 

Jesus had been in Judea, but the Jews threatened Him. The priests incited the people to stone Him, so He and His disciples left Judea. Interesting how Jesus’ own people, the Jews, chased Him away, but the study is not about this. At the beginning of this chapter, we read of Martha, one of His close friends, sending a messenger to Jesus to say her brother, Lazarus, is deathly ill. Jesus did not act to prevent His death but understood how to make this a teaching moment for the glory of God. He waited and continued to teach His disciples. A little while later, He told the disciples Lazarus had gone to sleep; he had died. The disciples at first did not understand Jesus meant Lazarus died; they assumed he had literally fallen asleep. They did not understand why Jesus needed to put Himself in danger’s way again to wake a man, even if he was a friend. After Jesus explained to them that He meant Lazarus had died, Jesus told the disciples He was glad that He did not heal Lazarus, so they could believe more about Him. What did Thomas’ say? "Let us also go, that we may die with him," says Thomas (vs. 16 NASB). Does this sound like Peter in Chapter 13:37? Thomas, who doubted, declared he was ready to die with Christ if it meant he could walk with, learn from, and be counted with Jesus. Jesus had just explained He is the Light and that with Him the disciples do not stumble. Thomas was ready to follow Jesus even if he would die. Thomas accepted Jesus is the Christ, the promised Messiah. 

Look further in the story. When Martha learned Jesus was coming, she ran to meet Him and confronted Him saying Lazarus was dead. In essence, we understand her allegation that Jesus let her brother die. She said, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died” (vs. 21 NASB). Martha did not stop there, though; her friendship and faith proved greater than that. Martha said she realized that whatever Jesus asked of God, He would give to Jesus. She accepted Lazarus would rise again in the resurrection on the last day (vs. 24). Martha showed her knowledge of prophecy and her belief that Jesus is the Christ by this statement. Jesus told her Lazarus would rise again. He explained to her more clearly that He is the resurrection and the Life and anyone who trusted in Him would not die (vs.25-26). Martha believed Jesus is the Christ, the promised Messiah. Jesus confronted her about her beliefs.

Finally, look farther in the chapter. After what Jesus did, the Pharisees received reports and feared He would gain even more followers (vs. 46-47). The Pharisees and the chief priests sought a way to get rid of Jesus so they could return to the religion they understood, following the Law. These men did not want Jesus to usurp their role as the leaders of the Jews. They couched their fears in political talk; the Romans would come if they could not make this “uprising” by Jesus among the Jews disappear (vs. 48). How often do we try to find an excuse not to let Jesus teach and lead us? The Pharisees and priests were unhappy with what Jesus was saying and doing. They thought of ways to stop Him. Caiaphas, the High Priest, interjected into their conversation, “You know nothing at all. 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" (vs. 49b-50, NASB). The priests probably thought Caiaphas meant it would be better to kill Jesus than let the unrest He was causing bring the wrath of the Romans upon them. The Romans slaughtered Jews in the past for such “unrest.” Caiaphas “did not say this of his own accord”; he spoke under the influence of the Spirit of God (vs. 51 NASB). He prophesied of Jesus’ death for the nation and for the scattered children of God (vs. 51b-52). Caiaphas said Jesus was the one sacrifice needed for everyone. Caiaphas’ prophecy stated Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah who has come to bring the world back to God. His statement was not what the Pharisees and Chief Priests wanted to receive. From that day on, they looked for a way to kill Jesus (vs. 53). The Pharisees and Chief Priests wondered if Jesus was the Christ, but feared trusting and believing in Him. They assumed the prophecies spoke of a warrior king to be the Messiah.  

For each of these persons, Martha, Thomas, and Caiaphas, Jesus was known as the Christ, the Messiah sent by God, or they had good reason to discern for themselves by His works and His teachings that He was the Messiah. Thomas learned while walking with Jesus that he could trust Jesus and became willing to die for Him. Thomas wanted to accept and trust Jesus fully. Later, Thomas said he would believe if he could touch the scars in Jesus’ hands and side. Martha understood Jesus could heal her brother, but when Jesus waited until Lazarus died, Martha feared she would not see Lazarus alive again until resurrection day. Martha grieved her loss. She grasped that Christ brought life after death in the resurrection. She did not understand Jesus brought Life now to whoever walked with Him. God glorified Jesus for Martha and the others to see when Jesus brought Lazarus back to life at that time. People understood that Jesus is not only the Son of God, the Messiah, who takes away the sins of the world, but that He has power over life and death now. The Pharisees and priests came to understand gradually, but chose not to accept and receive the Messiah. These men decided to dispose of Him because of their fear of change, of losing power, and of the Romans. The Pharisees and chief priests feared these things more than eternal separation from God. They heard several times Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, but hardened their hearts even after hearing directly from God through Caiaphas. Now, more than in the past, they determined to kill Jesus because of their fears and because they wanted to walk in their own ways. These men did not want a God who told them what to do and who usurped their authority on earth. They just wanted a God to forgive them like the Jewish sacrificial system provided, which did not require true repentance but only a sacrifice. They wanted a simple task-oriented way to get into heaven. 

What are the issues here? Thomas was a determined believer. He wanted to accept and trust Jesus is the Son of God and was willing to die to be able to believe. Even in his unbelief, Thomas wanted to believe. Martha was a faithful and learning believer. She trusted what she heard and experienced about Jesus. Martha was not afraid to learn more. Jesus taught her something new. He taught her that He has power over life and death now not just on resurrection day. The Pharisees and priests were learned unbelievers. They understood God would send a Messiah and that He would be victorious in their world. These Jewish leaders did not want to consider that Jesus is the Messiah because He came from a humble home. Their pride and fear got in the way of them accepting Jesus as the Messiah. The Pharisees and chief priests did not want to believe Jesus would rule over them. Death is the issue. Thomas believed to death but not to life after death. Martha believed to resurrection but not resurrection now. The Pharisees and priests believed in a future Messiah but not for now. God gave a prophecy through Caiaphas explaining the Person of Jesus to the Jewish leaders. The Pharisees and priests could not say they had not heard of this prophecy. The delivery of this prophecy to the nations showed everyone that Jesus is the Messiah promised of God. 

What is our part? We have to decide whether to accept the prophecies of Caiaphas and others. We have to decide whether we will trust now based on what we have been informed of and learned. We have to decide for ourselves whether this Jesus is the Messiah prophesied and spoken of from the beginning of the world. Do you accept and trust Jesus is the Son of God, the Messiah who brings healing and forgiveness to everyone and brings eternal life with Him in His kingdom? You get to choose who you will be, believer or Pharisee. Jesus died and rose from the grave as the sacrifice for our sin. He died…and arose from the grave as the Risen Lord. Do you believe?