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).

Prejudice & Sight

Nathanael said to him, “Can any good come out of Nazareth?” (John 1:46 [NASB])

Consider a child who walks to school. The parents of that child tell him which route to take. Most times that route prescribed by the parents is for the safety of the child. The route instructed by the parents tells the child which streets to walk past and which to walk through as he goes. Often, the path the parents dictate makes the him walk longer. What causes parents or society to tell a child he can walk down one street but not another? The parents want the child to avoid these streets because he could be unsafe. Consider now, the reasons the parents want their child to bypass certain streets are not because of physical safety, but because of prejudice. Possibly one set of streets has people of another race or religion living or working on it. Why would anyone want to raise prejudiced children? Let’s examine what we learn from Jesus’ discernment of the heart of Nathanael.

In John 1, John testified he was not the Christ. (vs. 20) As He continued to speak to the priests and Levites from Jerusalem, he identified himself as the “voice crying in the wilderness” of which Isaiah prophesied. John believed in the Christ and proclaimed Him. He identified Him as greater than himself, and at Jesus’ baptism in the Jordan River, he proclaimed Jesus as the “Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (vs. 29) John’s heart was true to the Messiah before he met Him.

What makes a person able to believe and testify to Jesus being the Christ, the Messiah? What makes that person unprejudiced against Jesus? What keeps people from believing? John believed without seeing Jesus that the Messiah had arrived. Then when he saw Jesus, he proclaimed this Man is the one of whom he preached. He said, “This is the Son of God.” (vs. 34) Jesus, after His baptism, walked around the Sea of Galilee calling men to follow Him. First, two of John’s disciples followed Him, one of whom was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. Next, Jesus found Philip and told him, “Follow Me.” (vs. 43) Philip found Nathanael and told him he had found the One about whom Moses and the Prophets wrote. He identified this One as Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. (vs. 45)

Nathanael’s reaction is often the reaction of people who express prejudice. In verse forty-six, he said, “Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?” Nathanael had not seen or met Jesus yet and already held Him in contempt because of where His parents raised Him. He did not want to believe a man from Nazareth could be the Messiah and so already had bias against Jesus. Why did Nathanael hold Nazareth in contempt? What was the basis for his prejudice? Is there ever any right reason to be prejudiced?

Nazareth was in the lower region of Galilee on the southwest side of the Sea of Galilee. It was not on a major trade route and had few inhabitants. Bible scholars consider it may have had 500 people living in it during the first century. Nazareth was not a sophisticated or glamourous place. It wasn’t from where the Jews expected the Messiah to come. In answer to the questions posited, Nathanael held Nazareth in contempt because of its size and location. It wasn’t near Jerusalem or in Judah. He based his prejudice on place and what he’d learned from people in his own social sphere. Nathanael did not have a just reason for prejudice against Jesus. He had never met Him. No person can give a good reason for prejudice. God did not make one people with a particular skin color who lived in a preferred place and tell them to rule over the others. He did not make one race, nation, tribe, or tongue and call them very, very good, while all the others He called very good. God created man and woman in His image and declared them very good, then told them to have dominion over the animals and plants, not over other people.

Consider Nathanael’s response to Jesus when he meets Him. When Jesus saw Nathanael coming to meet Him, He said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!” (vs 47) Before Nathanael met Jesus, Jesus knew his heart. Jesus showed lack of prejudice against Nathanael and told him the truth of his heart. Nathanael had no deceit, in Greek, dolos. This means Nathanael did not try to trap Jesus or others with his own ideas but sought the truth for himself. He did not stand back and spout contempt but went to meet Jesus for himself. Jesus confronted Nathanael with the truth of his heart, that he wanted to know the truth about Him. He answered Nathanael’s question about how He knew him in verse forty-eight. Jesus said, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” He said, “I saw you.” He discerned clearly who Nathanael truly was in his heart and spirit. Nathanael’s response to Jesus’ understanding of himself caused him to proclaim his newly understood certainty of who Jesus is. With the blinds of societal prejudice removed from his mind’s eyes, he declared, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God; You are the King of Israel.” (vs 49)

What made Nathanael able to trust Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of God? Jesus’ revealed truth. What caused him not to view Jesus with prejudice? Jesus’ revealed truth. What keeps people from believing in Jesus? Prejudice, lack of truth. Jesus disclosed the true heart of Nathanael, the heart God created. The heart God created for each person is to love Him above everything else we hold dear and to love other people just as we love ourselves. (Matthew 22:36-40) Nathanael’s society caused him to learn prejudice against other people, particularly the people of Nazareth. Such prejudice is not part of God’s original creation but comes from sin. When Jesus disclosed the truth of Nathanael’s heart as He discerned it, the blinds that shuttered truth and love from his heart, mind, and spirit, fell away. This revelation allowed Nathanael to recognize the truth of Jesus, that He is the Messiah, the Son of God.

Jesus’ gift to Nathanael was sight, truth, and salvation. That’s His gift to every person. Jesus wants each person to receive true sight so he or she can recognize the prejudice-sin-into which Satan tricks them into believing. He wants us to know the truth. Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”

Consider again the parents giving instructions to their child about which way to walk to and from school. Ponder what could happen if a parent allowed a child to walk another way home so he or she walked through neighborhoods unlike his or her own and in which his or her physical safety was not a concern. That child would learn about people different from them socially and culturally. He or she would recognize the sameness of each person as God created them. That child would learn every person wants to be loved, to have a home, to live with family, and to have food, clothes, and drink. Each person wants to feel safe and truly to be heard and seen. If that child could walk the streets of people from different cultures and histories, he or she would learn to love more, understand better, see clearly, and care globally about all people, nations, tribes, and tongues. He or she would learn how to love as God wants him or her to love, without prejudice. Your child and you could hear and meet a man from Nazareth who came to be the Way and give each person salvation.

What roads do you avoid?

What paths in your heart have you closed?

What are you allowing to keep you from knowing Jesus, the Truth, the Light, and the Way?

Jesus sees and knows each of us before we even meet Him. He is ready to tell us the truth and remake us into His own image through God’s grace-offered salvation.

Will you declare Jesus the Son of God just as Nathanael did?

Will you choose sight and salvation,

or prejudice and perdition?

Lord, You’ve done it again; You’ve shown me truth and I don’t want to face what I am and have done. Yes, Lord, I have been prejudiced against people. I have chosen to side against them rather than stand for them. It’s easier that way. But Lord, now I am in the corner facing my sins regarding this. I recognize I am a sinner and truly sorry for the way I have thought about and interacted with and against people. Lord, You’ve shown me truth and I can hardly bare it. Yet, You tell me You will forgive me this. Lord, I am unworthy of Your forgiveness. I deserve punishment, yet You offer me grace; You offer me salvation from these, my sins. Lord, thank you. Thank you for loving me so much that You kept calling to me and showing me You already provided for the condemnation I deserve. Thank you for forgiving and saving me, Lord. I accept Your gift of salvation, forgiveness, and eternal life with You. I am unworthy, but You are almighty, faithful, and loving. Oh Lord, here’s my life, make it Yours completely. Thank you for giving me sight into the truth of myself and providing the Way. Amen.