Rejecting Resurrection Life

John 11:38-53 (ESV)

Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. 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.” Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. 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.” When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” 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.”
 
Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what he did, believed in him, but some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. So the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered the council and said, “What are we to do? For this man performs many signs. 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.” But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “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.” He did not say this of his own accord, but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but also to gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad. So from that day on they made plans to put him to death.
 
 
Reflection
 
The account of Jesus calling Lazarus out of the grave may be my favorite miracle of Jesus. Whenever I read this passage, I get a 1980’s flashback of my mom’s cassette tape of the Christian artist, Carman, who sang a particularly colorful account of this miracle, “Lazarus, Come Forth”.
This scripture, (and Carman’s musical account,) paints a descriptive portrait of Jesus’ personal love for his friends, but it also records an incredible demonstration of His power and authority. Do you know anyone in history who has commanded a person who has been dead for four days to walk out of their casket and stop being dead!? I love the King James’ version account of Martha’s objection: “Lord, by this time he stinketh”! (v. 39, KJV) I should think so – way to marshal the facts there, Martha!

Can you imagine being an eyewitness to a corpse walking out of a tomb? What’s even more incredible is that once the religious leaders of the day learned of Lazarus’ resurrection, they began plotting to kill Jesus. The scriptures indicate that the Pharisees were concerned that they would lose their power and influence among the Jews. At that time, Rome controlled Palestine and was actively occupying Jerusalem during the time of Jesus’ ministry. Even with this dichotomy of political power in flux, the Pharisees still held some power to enforce Jewish law among their people._[1] So, if there was another Jew preaching captivating sermons and performing resurrection miracles, they were in danger of losing sway and position with both their own people and the Roman government.

  How sad that the Pharisees traded the miraculous for their own selfish ambition! Nonetheless, Christians today have experienced God in profound ways and still reject His most basic principles of holiness, like keeping the Sabbath day holy and set apart, for example. As followers of Christ, we must closely examine our hearts daily to see whether we are honoring Him with our lives or whether we are putting Him to death all over again with our sinful choices.

 Action Steps
 

1. Considering the “Holy” series, is there an area of your life that you know God has called you to set apart? What is one way that you can actively practice a holy lifestyle in that area?
2. Who keeps you honest? Do you have a close friend, mentor, or small group friend who you feel comfortable checking in with regularly? Accountability is paramount for the Christian walk! (See Prov. 27:17).

 
Prayer
   
 My awesome, resurrecting Father, I have seen Your power in my life and in the lives of others. However, I sometimes find myself ignoring or discounting what I know to be one of Your holy truths for my own advantage or convenience. Please help me to focus on Your standards of holiness so that my life honors You and sets a godly example for others. It’s in Your perfect name I pray, amen.
 
   _{[1] Michael R. Trotter, Judea as a Roman Province, in New Testament History, Culture, and Society: A Background to the Texts of the New Testament, (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2019), 147-148.}