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Jesus said to her, "Thy brother shall rise again."
If He had said "live again", she would have still
had hope. She knew that he would rise on the
resurrection day, but that would be in a long time.

"Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and
the life: he that believeth in me, though he were
dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and
believeth in me shall never die. Believeth thou
this?" John 11:25-26

That statement challenged Martha faith.

But a long time had passed and Lazarus' body
had begun to decay. This seemed to be her
reason for not having his tomb opened.

"Jesus said, Take ye away the stone. Martha
sister of him that was dead, saith unto him,
Lord, by this time he stinketh for he hath been
dead four days.

It appears by Martha's comment to Jesus that
she hadn't given up hope. Secretly she may have
hoped that Jesus could do the impossible,
somehow..



"Jesus wept,"
John 11:35

Jesus and His disciples, finally arrived at Bethany.
Martha received the news and went to meet Him,
but Mary was still too sorrowful.

Martha couldn't understand what had happened.
"Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord, if thou
hadst been here, my brother had not died. But I
know, that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask
of God, God will give it thee" John 11:21-22

Thomas, who was always looking at the negative
side, said, "Let us also go, that we may die with
him."

We have heard of doubting Thomases, today, who
have a hard time looking beyond conditions and
circumstances to God's promises of deliverance.

Jesus then told the disciples that they were going
to Bethany, not Jerusalem. "Our friend Lazarus
sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of
sleep" (vs 11).

The disciples, still innocent of what had happened
replied, "Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well."

It had become necessary for Jesus to tell them
that Lazarus was dead. The news startled them
and their response was silence, even Peter.

On the third day after Jesus had received the
message, He said to His disciples, "Let us go into
Judea again." (vs 8)

They weren't really aware of what had happened
in Bethany and they were concerned for His safety.
They said, "Master, the Jews of late sought to
stone thee; and goest thou thither again?"

He reassured them that the Father's protection
would be upon Him until His time had been ful-
filled.

All this time, Lazarus was in Jesus' thoughts.
Yet He stayed beyond Jordan two more days.
We are not told what the purpose was for His
delay.

Jesus stayed two days and it took one or two
days to return to Bethany, making it close to 4
days. If He had returned at once, Lazarus would
have been dead already.

If He were to show that He was the resurrect-
ion and the life, it would be better that He wait
until decay had set in beyond doubt. So that
may be why He waited 4 days.

Not knowing what to do next, they started the
preparations for the burial.

Their purification rites were seen to.
The burial cloth was wrapped around him.
There was much weeping and wailing as the
funeral moved to the family grave.
Then his body was laid to rest.

When the funeral was completed, Mary and Martha
returned to their home. Imagine the confusion
and disappointment they must have felt.

How were Mary and Martha to understand
Jesus' message that the sickness wasn't unto
death? There must have been an awful time
of temptation to fear that somehow they must
have been deceived.

Thoughts like that must have entered their
minds as Lazarus grew worse. Now Lazarus
was dead and they didn't know how to accept
the words of Jesus to the fact that he did die.

At that time how little they realized the great joy
that would soon come to them.

The messenger received Jesus' message and
hurried to return with it to the sisters. But when
he got there the message he had brought no joy.
Lazarus was dead. The sister's faith was being
tested.

Jesus' message looked like it had been negated.
Surely they wanted to believe Him but realiy
was just the opposite.

The Bible says that "Jesus loved Martha, and
her sister, and Lazarus." But His actions showed
apparent neglect on His part.

The messenger that Mary and Martha sent for
Jesus had a long way to go. The message they
had for Jesus was touching. They didn't make a
request of any kind or ask Him to hurry to them.
They simply said, "Lord, behold, he whom thou
lovest is sick" John 11:3

Their words were calm and serene even though
the situation was dire.

When Jesus was found and He had received the
message, He said, "This sickness is not unto
death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of
God might be glorified thereby" (verse 4)

Jesus knew the end from the beginning and that
Lazarus more than likely had already died. He
also knew what He was going to do. The disciples
of course didn't understand any of it.

Not much has been told of Lazarus and his family.
Jesus had a closeness with them. Their home was
a quiet, rest for Him from the crowds. He enjoyed
their fellowship as well as friendship.

Bethany was a couple of miles from Jerusalem.
One day Lazarus the brother of Mary and Martha
was suddenly stricken with some sort of sickness.

They remembered Jesus and if He were there, He
would heal their brother. So a messenger was call-
ed to hurry to where Jesus was, beyond Jordan.
That was all that could be done.

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One of the greatest miracles in Jesus' life was
the raising of Lazarus from the dead.

There were many witnesses to this miracle and
many believed. But others were only angry about
it and wanted Lazarus put to death.

"Much people of the Jews therefore knew that
he was there: and they came not for Jesus' sake
only, but that they might see Lazarus also,
whom he had raised from the dead.
But the chief priests consulted that they might
put Lazarus also to death;
Because that by reason of him many of the
Jews went away, and believed on Jesus."
John 12:9-11

Jesus left Jerusalem grieved by the unbelief of
the Jews. They had rejected Him. Nevertheless,
He had won His own. They were the ones that
the Father had given unto Him.

Jesus then went to the place beyond Jordan
where John had begun baptizing. As usual a
crowd gathered to hear Him, "and many believed
on Him there."

He wasn't there long when He received a message
from a family who was close and dear to Him.

They would have stoned Him, but He walked
away from them. Jesus left Jerusalem not to
return until it was to fulfill His mission as the
"Lamb slain from the foundation of the world."

Jesus sadly left Jerusalem, Luke 13:34-35
"O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the
prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto
thee; how often would I have gathered thy
children together, as a hen doth gather her
brood under her wings, and ye would not!
Behold, your house is left unto you desolate:
and verily I say unto you, Ye shall not see me,
until the time come when ye shall say, Blessed
is he that cometh in the name of the Lord."

Jesus' claim of His deity excited the opposition
of the Jews. They even took up stones but His
fearlessness stopped them from stoning Him.

Jesus resorted to Psalms 82:6 "Ye are gods;
and all of you are children of the most High."
that man is the offspring of God and made in
the image of God.

If God had sanctified His Son whom He had sent
into the world, it was not blasphemy for Him to
declare Himself as the Son of God.

Then He makes a comment about His diety and
unity of the Godhead.

"I amd my Father are one" John 10:30

Before, He had spoken of a distinction between
the Father and the Son and compared them to
two men (John 8:17-18)

He spoke of the importance of the Godhead.
Man has difficulty in putting the two concepts
together. But both are true. The 3 are distinct
from the other, but none could exist without the
other.

Then Jesus made some remarks that they the
Jewish rulers didn't understand.

"no man is able to pluck them out of my
Father's hand." John 10:29

This is a promise for the believer that no man
or devil has the power to take us out of the
Father's hand.

But it doesn't mean that we ourselves can't
walk away from Him if we choose to. He gave
us a free will to abide with Him or go our own
way.

During the

Feast of

Dedication

Jesus came

into the

temple

at a place

called Solomon's

Porch.

The Jews came to Him determined that they
would settle the matter of His Messiahship once
and for all.

" Then came the Jews round about him, and
said unto him, How long dost thou make us to
doubt? If thou be the Christ, tell us plainly."
John 10:24

Jesus answered saying, that the works that He
did showed evidence of who He was. There was
nothing more that He could do or say to prove
it to them. He said, " But ye believe not,
because ye are not of my sheep, as I said
unto you." John 10:25-26

As the Good Shepherd, Jesus also showed that

He had other sheep not of this fold. These were

the Gentiles. He was the Shepherd not of Israel

alone, but the lost sheep of all mankind. He was

ready to lay down His life for them too.

(John 10:16-17)

This parable caused a division among the Jews.

"And many of them said, He hath a devil, and

is mad; why hear ye him?
Others said, These are not the words of him

that hath a devil. Can a devil open the eyes of

the blind?" John 10:20-21

The purpose of the parable was to encourage
the healed blind man. He saw that it didn't
matter that the Jews had cast him out of the
synagogue.

Jesus was the door of the sheep. "By me if
any man enter in, shall be saved, and shall
go in and out, and find pasture." John 10:9

It also showed that the rulers of the Jews were
hirelings who were in it for what they could get
by fleecing the sheep.

In the mornings the

shepherd would call

his sheep out and

lead them to

pasture.

They will not follow

a stranger because

they do not know their voice.

There are times when a shepherd may endan-

ger himself to protect his flock. Thieves come

to kill and destroy, but the Good Shepherd

came that "they might have life, and that they

might have it more abundantly." He would lay

down His life for the sheep.

But a hireling flees when the wolf comes, "and

the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep."

Affected by the Pharisees and the rulers of the
Jews who had put a man out of the synagogue
because he testified of his healing, Jesus spoke
of the Good Shepherd.

He described the sheepfold and shepherd of
that day. A shepherd knows every one in his
flock by name. Because the shepherd is alone
out in the wilderness, the relationship with his
sheep is very close.

Jesus then made a peculiar statement:
" And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into
this world, that they which see not might see;
and that they which see might be made blind.

And some of the Pharisees which were with
him heard these words, and said unto him,
Are we blind also?

Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye
should have no sin: but now ye say, We see;
therefore your sin remaineth."
John 9:39-41

The Pharisees were getting upset with the man.
"Thou wast altogether born in sins, and dost
thou teach us?" They cast him out of the syna-
gogue, one of their old traditions, that a man
born blind was in that condition because of his
sins. The very thing that Jesus said was not true.

When Jesus heard about him being cast out of
the synagogue, He found him and said, "Doest
thou believe on the Son of God?" The man said,
"Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him?"
Then Jesus revealed Himself, "Thou hast both
seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee."
The man answered, "Lord, I believe," and he
worshiped Him.

The man (who had been born blind) by now was
really starting to speak up. "The man answered
and said unto them, Why herein is a marvellous
thing," (a great miracle had been performed)
John 9:30

"Since the world began was it not heard that
any man opened the eyes of one that was born
blind. (from the beginning of the world no one had
ever done this before)
If this man were not of God, he could do nothing."
John 32-33

The Pharisee couln't believe that now they were
the ones being questioned.