04.10.09 John 11:17-27 (NASB)
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Going Deeper: Study Guide
I Am The Resurrection And The Life: Finding The Answer In The Midst Of Bad Circumstances
When we studied the first section of chapter 11 we found that Jesus’ dear friend Lazarus was sick. Jesus was notified by a messenger, sent by Martha and Mary, that their brother was sick. In a seemingly strange response, Jesus didn’t come to His friends rescue, but instead He stayed where He was for 2 days before heading out. He did however respond to the message from these sisters that Lazarus’ sickness was not unto death, but it was to bring glory to God through the Son of God (v.4). Through this statement and delay, Jesus was teaching and preparing His disciples for the miracle to come - that Jesus would raise Lazarus from the dead. As we left off last time we found out that at the appointed time Jesus gathers His disciples and begins to head back into Judea to the village of Bethany.
Today we continue in the account as we find that the Apostle John tells us that Jesus comes into the vicinity of Lazarus’ village and Martha goes out to meet Him. As we now walk through our passage we will unfold:
The Arrival Of The Savior (v.17-19)
The Faith Of A Sister (v.20-22)
The Answer In The Midst Of Bad Circumstances (v.23-27)
Here is our inspired account from the Gospel of John:
17 So when Jesus came, He found that he had already been in the tomb four days. 18 Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off; 19 and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary, to console them concerning [their] brother. 20 Martha therefore, when she heard that Jesus was coming, went to meet Him, but Mary stayed at the house. 21 Martha then said to Jesus, "Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died. 22 "Even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give You." 23 Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again." 24 Martha said to Him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day." 25 Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?" 27 She said to Him, "Yes, Lord; I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God, [even] He who comes into the world."
The Arrival Of The Savior (v.17-19)
v.17 - Jesus comes to the village of Bethany which is significant because he once again had entered into enemy territory. So it is with humility that Jesus entered this village, so that He could be with His friends, and carry out God’s sovereign will. Jesus the Christ, the Messiah, the Saviour, the Lord of Creation went to meet the needs of two women - can you imagine the depth of love that Jesus has - in that He as the Son of God humbles Himself and comes to us. When Jesus’ came to the village of Bethany, we are told by the Apostle John, that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. In Jesus’ time a body would be not be placed ‘six feet under’ - in the ground as we do. They would have placed the dead in a tomb which was a chamber cut into rock or it would be a small naturally present cave. Jerusalem is a very rock rich place. The opening of the tomb would be sealed by rolling a rock to cover the entrance so that robbers could not easily enter the tomb and loot it. Another reason, a large rock would seal the entrance, is to prohibit animals from being able to enter.
There is no indication as to the time frame of Lazarus’ time of death in relation to Jesus’ journey to Bethany, but we could assume that it was a very narrow window of time. Because of the climate and custom of the Jews it was normal that even on the day of death that the burial would take place (we find this same practice with Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5:1-10 - that when they died some men came - wrapped up his body, and carried him out and buried him). Such a speedy burial was needed because the Jews did not embalm bodies, but they prepared the body by washing, anointing with perfumes, and then wrapped it in white cloth.
Now I wanted to find out what happens to a human body after it dies as it relates to its decomposition and this what I found from the internet. I must warn you that it is an explicit description….Through modern science we know that once a person’s heart stops beating, the tissues and cells begin to die (though white skin cells can live for up to 24 hours after death and in that time still grow normally in a laboratory petri dish). The brain cells start to die within 3-7 minutes. ‘The intestines are packed with millions of micro-organisms that don’t die with the person. These organisms start to break down the dead cells of the intestines, while some, especially bacteria called clostridia and coliforms, start to invade other parts of the body. At the same time the body undergoes its own intrinsic breakdown…. The decomposing tissues release green substances and gas, which make the skin green/blue and blistered, starting on the abdomen. The front of the body swells, the tongue may protrude, and fluid from the lungs oozes out of the mouth and nostrils. This unpleasant sight is added to by a terrible smell as gases such as hydrogen sulphide (rotten egg smell), methane and traces of mercaptans are released. This stage is reached in temperate countries after about 4-6 days, much faster in the tropics… (from Yahoo! answers).
This leads us back to our text which we find that Lazarus - had already been in the tomb four days. It is interesting to note that the Jews had kind-of-a superstitious belief - that a dead person’s soul would hover around the deceased body for 3 days, with the hopes of going back into the body. So now after four days, Lazarus’ body was already decomposing (cf. v.39), it was time for the soul to depart since death would now be considered as irreversible. So that is the Jewish thinking - which is not Biblically based. So the Apostle John’s note here in v.17 may serve to emphasize to the Jewish leaders, that Jesus’ 7th and final sign of this gospel - that of raising to life a dead man, as we later find in this chapter, was undeniably a genuine act of miraculous power - and not that Lazarus was somehow resuscitated. Nothing else could account for it - that Jesus the Son of God without a shadow of a doubt had the power over death. So Jesus’ arrival at Bethany was to deal with the physical death of Lazarus, but of a greater magnitude it pointed to the reality that Jesus has - come that they may have life, and have it to the full (Jn. 10:10).
v.18 - Once again the village of Bethany is mentioned and geographically identified as being near Jerusalem, about two miles off (In roman measurement it would be the equivalent of about 15 stadia, which is near 1.72 miles).
v.19 - Because of the close proximity of the village to the large population of the city of Jerusalem, this allowed for many - that is a large number of Jews to go to console Lazarus’ sisters Martha and Mary in their loss of [their] brother. Because there were many of the Jews going to comfort the family - it could also be an indicator that Lazarus was a well known and respected person. All of these visitations would have taken place before Jesus’ arrival. It also once again underscores the danger that Jesus was exposed to in light of the Jews desire to kill Him. In addition, and looking ahead in this account, because of the many that were present, this would provide a body of witnesses which would be able to testify to the miracle that would take place. Therefore the Jews would have no way to discount this miracle.
In these Biblical times, the official grieving process for the Jews lasted 30 days. And within this time period there was to be no work done for the first 3 days. And in addition, that during the first week of death, it was set aside for weeping, mourning, and lamenting. So it was common that the many mourners would stay with the family for a week, coming along side the family to comfort and share the burden of grief. That is why the mourners are still with the family after four days.
Imagine what would happen to our church - the transformation that would take place in us if we would do this same thing in increasing measure, for those we know who go through the experience of loss. So often in our day and age we are so wrapped up in ourselves that once the funeral service is over so is the care and compassion. With Jesus’ arrival it leads us to discover…
The Faith Of A Sister (v.20-22)
v.20 - When the word got to Martha that Jesus was nearby, she went out to meet him. Now her sister Mary did not go with her to greet Jesus but instead she stayed at the house, which could be due to her grief (cf. v.31-33). In this we are able to see the way that God created different character and personality in these 2 sisters. It was not unlike the time that Jesus had visited them as recorded in Luke 10:38-42 which states: 38 Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord's feet, listening to His word. 40 But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up [to Him] and said, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me." 41 But the Lord answered and said to her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; 42 but [only] one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her."
So we find that Martha was the active type - she was all busy with the worries related to hospitality. And Mary who was the quieter contemplative type - had the proper focus for the circumstances - that she was more laid back having sat with Jesus, listening to Him.
Jewish custom had it that in times of mourning the loss of a loved one - the family would remain seated and the others present who were there as comforters, would be the ones who would stand or move about. The same thing takes place here in John 11 as Luke 10 which I just read. That Martha should be sitting, but true to her stronger personality goes to show hospitality in welcoming Jesus, as Mary sat at home as custom dictated. Yet in this incident it was Martha that is to be commended above her sister.
v.21 - When Martha met Jesus she said - Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. This was most likely the continuous thought that was on these two sister’s minds for at least a couple of days - from the time that she had sent word to Jesus that their brother was sick (cf. v.3) to the point of the arrival of the Savior. It was probably like when we are waiting and waiting for something to take place we keep looking at our watches. For them they perhaps kept looking out their window to see if Jesus were coming.
Imagine if you were in this situation - you know that your brother is dying, you send a message to Jesus. You know that Jesus can take care of the problem so you wait. But after a reasonable amount of time Jesus is still not there, and Lazarus is getting worse. You pray and there seems to be no answer…things continue to deteriorate. You find yourself looking out the window more and more.…. What’s going on here? It seems that you can’t concentrate on anything else except replay those what ifs and where is’s…if Jesus had been here, my brother would be OK… where is Jesus …is Jesus coming or not? …what if my brother dies. So you can’t sleep and it consumes you since your thoughts are fixated on the imminent situation. Martha’s thoughts extend beyond what the Word of God states… when Jesus got the message - this is what Jesus’ response was in verse 4 - When he heard this, Jesus said, "This sickness will not end in death.
The final stages of sickness set in and death comes upon the household. What happened? ….Then Jesus arrives and find the faith of a sister. And this is Martha’s response - Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died. In Martha’s words - we don’t find a rebuke against Jesus, but these are words of deep regret. Her words were also a sign of her faith, so we must give her some due credit. We see Martha’s faith because she had the trust that Jesus could have prevented her brother from dying by healing him. However, we can also see in the background, that all her emotions and worry could not change the sovereign purposes of God. So in her faith there was still room for it to grow.
In the times when things get turned upside down in our lives - that is when we find out the measure and depth of our faith. We can easily become like Martha who’s doubts rise to the surface when things are not the way that she had imagined.
v.22 - Yet despite the doubts and the possible anxiety, we see Martha’s faith because she did cling on to the facts. She acknowledges that she does know that God will give to Jesus whatever He ask of the Father. Her understanding of God was greater than her emotions. Jesus had made this known through out His ministry that He was sent by the Father - and sent to do His will.
It is not made clear in the NIV but God is referred to twice in verse 22, as in the NASB, emphasizing Martha’s trust in God’s power through Jesus ("Even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give You."). But it should be noted that while Martha knew that Jesus could have healed her brother - she did not yet know that Jesus could raise Him from the dead in light of what she says in the following verses (cf. v. 39).
Martha knew of the power of prayer between Jesus and God. It is not clear how much Martha relied upon her own prayers to God, but she did have confidence that whatever Jesus asked from the Father - God the Father would answer according to His will. With The Arrival Of The Savior (v.17-19), and growing Faith Of A Sister (v.20-22), Jesus provides…
The Answer In The Midst Of Bad Circumstances (v.23-27)
v.23 - Jesus responds and focuses Martha’s attention on the topic of resurrection - that is that her brother will rise again - will come back to life. At this point Jesus is not going to reveal to Martha that He has the power to raise Lazarus from the dead.
v.24 - Now that Martha is thinking about the resurrection she affirms her own beliefs. She says - I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day. In regard to her brother, Martha’s faith lay only in the future. She may have even taken Jesus’ words as words of comfort in a time of grief, but did not think of them as something that she would witness in just a matter of moments. Martha had a firm belief in the future reality of those who trust in God - that God would raise them back to life.
The resurrection is a doctrine which is taught through out the OT as something that would take place - on the last day - the period of time before the eternal state. Martha’s words set the stage for what Jesus is about to reveal. In terms of Martha’s thoughts they were now fixed on something which was true. Yet it was in the future and it served her no good right now, but it should have. She needed to deal with the present and make the connection with what she believed in the present. Martha didn’t worry about the future in regards to Lazarus’ resurrection, but she did become pessimistic about what Jesus could do in the present.
If we put ourselves in her shoes - some of the questions we might ask, in the context of our passage, are these….
Do we really believe that in the future God will resurrect His people? Do we really believe that one day we will be in heaven with Christ forever? If you answered yes, then you believe in God’s power for taking care of us in the future. But do you also believe that God can take care of us right now? Doesn’t that make sense? It DOES make sense because what happens on a day to day basis is what really points to and underwrites the reality of our future.
Isn’t it like us - we claim to be Christians, but then we live our lives as if God were powerless and aloof. In our minds we can come to the mental ascent that God can raise the dead - He sovereignly and providentially takes care of us, but our life on a day to day basis, and even a moment to moment basis is full of the lack of trust. Have you found yourself saying I have a great God who is worthy to be praised on Sunday… then as you leave the church building, you find your selves full of the worries and distractions of life?
As we get closer to another time of fellowship, a Bible study, Sunday worship we might find ourselves saying - There is no way that I can make it to church this week because if I do go I might wind up, behind in my work or _____________; or I need to work and make a living or _____________; or I will not be able to … (you fill in the blank with the life distraction which is oh so familiar to you). Our church has been around for 3 years now and I would ask you to ask yourself this question - in these past three years - have I become more committed to Christ, His ways, His Church?
If you do get yourself to church, then you may find yourself saying - OK, I’ll make it to church this week, but I have to skip fellowship, or I’ll cut out prayer meetings…. The distractions of life will take your mind off of the things that please God and cause you to compromise your spiritual privileges and responsibilities.
In order to resist the stumbling blocks of life - we are to what? We are to think or fix our minds on things which please God. Make plans about specific things you can do to enable yourself to fix your mind and life actions upon what pleases God. Set your spiritual priorities first and then fit in the rest into that schedule.
v.25 - In response to Martha, Jesus through His grace therefore says to her - I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies. This statement is the 5th I AM statement (out of 7) which Jesus makes in the gospel. The 5th time that Jesus makes a definitive declaration of Deity. Jesus doesn’t say in His statement that He is able to perform a resurrection and able to grant life, but He says that He IS the resurrection and the life. Jesus doesn’t reveal to Martha that the resurrection is in the future but it is right now - right in front of you. There were no limitations of time, for Jesus is the resurrection and the life - the resurrection and life is within His person of Deity, it is not something which exists apart from Him. Only in Jesus Christ is the fullness of this blessing possible. Outside of Jesus Chris whether it be Mohammed, Buddha, Allah, Dahli Lama (and I could go on with this list of religious and spiritual leaders) there is no resurrection and no life in them, because they are spiritual frauds. Only in the person of Christ is there the resurrection and the life - in the past, present, and future. In this verse Jesus deals with the resurrection - that is the physical aspect of life after an earthly death.
v.26 - But now Jesus balances this off with the spiritual aspects of life - which is the spiritual rebirth or regeneration of our souls leading us into eternal life in Christ. Jesus Christ is the life. It is both simple and profound that everyone who lives and believes in Christ shall be born again. If we are truly to live a meaningful life, a life of faith, then it must be rooted in Christ. Jesus is the only One who can by His power sustain us and complete us in our original purpose of bringing glory to God.
Though each day we are decaying or wasting away because of our increasing frailty, those in Christ are drawing closer to eternal life - and will never die. If we are born again - we do not lose heart - as the Apostle Paul writes... Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day (2 Cor. 4:16). A physical death for the person who believes in Christ is our deliverance from the slavery of sin. Death opens the door for us to the completion of our sanctification. And with the completion of our sanctification we will be glorified and will never die. This is the life.
After Jesus reveals this powerful declaration, He seeks a response from Martha. Do you believe this? And this is the entry key to dealing with the circumstances. It comes before anything I have asked you to consider so far - and that is Jesus’ question - Do you believe this? Do you have eternal life in Christ?
If you don’t know Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior then you need to get to know Him. Without Him you have no one to turn to, to help you overcome your circumstances. In fact you have the greatest crisis in life - which is your eternal destination after you die - and if you think about that long and hard - you are not going to have peace - that is why so many people don’t want to think about it.
Eph. 2:13-14a says this - But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. 14 For he himself is our peace….
He is going to guard our hearts and minds. And the key is that it is based upon trusting in Christ.
v.27 - Martha’s declaration is strong - Yes, Lord. She continues and firmly expresses her personal conviction of faith - I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God, [even] He who comes into the world. Martha makes known her understanding that Jesus is the Christ, her Saviour, her King. Jesus is the Son of God - a confession of His Deity - the One that she and her people have been looking for. He is the One spoken of who comes into the world - foretold of by the godly prophets of old - the great Messianic expectation now fulfilled.
Martha’s faith grew that day…. and her uncertainties shrank. It was now her firm belief in Christ that would help her understand the glory of power that Jesus was going to display in raising Lazarus from the dead. It was her firm belief in the person of Jesus that would help and guide her in living her life right. She rediscovered and met again The Peace in the midst of turmoil - Jesus Christ - He would help settle all her past, present, and future circumstances. God is going to be with you… did you catch that? God is going to be with you…awesome isn’t it? He is already present - indwelling you through His Spirit, but God promises that He is going to be with you through the living of a consistent life of righteous living. Jesus wants you to walk with Him. He wants you to follow in the footsteps of those who have mastered the ropes of Christian living - those who love the Lord and follow Him.
Take a look at your life again. Make a note of the areas of your life that do not match up to the responsibilities that God has given to you. That is identify them and then bring it to Him in prayer - confess to Him your sins and commit these areas to Him. Turn to the Word of God and fix your mind upon the things that please God - His goodness - His character - His promises - His principles for life and godliness. Place your complete trust in Christ to be Lord and Savior of your life. And continue to walk close to Christ by consistent Bible reading and study - putting off unrighteous living and putting on righteous living.
Jesus said - I am the resurrection and the life. He is the Christ, the Son of God, [even] He who comes into the world. In Him is the victory.
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