John 11:38-46

While others were busy deciding whether Jesus genuinely cared about Lazarus and his sisters or not, Jesus was busy caring. He went to Lazarus’ tomb – a cave with a stone lying against it – and told the people to open it up. Martha protested this on the basis of the stench, but Jesus was focused on the glory of God. When He reminded the others that He had promised that they would see God’s glory if they believed, they were willing to remove the stone.

 

Jesus took great pains to publicly rely on the Father. He prayed, first thanking God for hearing Him; then continuing to say out loud that He knew that God always heard Him and had therefore prayed out loud for the benefit of those listening. Jesus was concerned that the people there would understand one thing: that the Father sent Jesus. Whatever He was about to do, Jesus would do in dependence on the Father’s power. In other words, if the Father did not approve of Jesus, Jesus’ ministry would be a failure; if the Father approved of Jesus, then something only God could do would happen in front of the people’s eyes. Jesus wants men and women to see the next event as God’s testimony that Jesus is good and that Jesus honors God.

 

And then Jesus spoke again. To the dead man, Lazarus. He didn’t say anything like what we often say when we visit the tombs of our loved ones. Jesus didn’t say, “Lazarus, you were a good friend. I miss you so much. I’m sure that you’re in a better place. Maybe one day we’ll see each other again. I wish we could have done more together.” With Jesus, there was no regret. Instead, Jesus said, “Lazarus, come out.” That’s not something most people would say at a gravesite.

 

Listen! What happened is this: Lazarus came out. He was still wrapped up, and apparently people weren’t sure what to do. Jesus had to tell them to unwrap him so that Lazarus could go away (maybe to wash up and get some nicer clothes on). But the point was that Lazarus came out.

 

If it means anything, it means that Jesus’ ministry was from God. The Father sent Jesus into the world. How else could Jesus raise a man from the dead? Only the power of God could do this.

 

Some people got it. Many of the Jews who had come to Mary and saw what Jesus did believed in Him. They believed that this miracle was evidence from God Himself that Jesus was the one they should follow. Jesus’ teachings were trustworthy. Jesus really had a relationship with God, and He could definitely tell others how to have a right relationship with God.

 

But other people went and told the Pharisees. The text doesn’t say why. Maybe they wanted to get Jesus in trouble. Maybe they wanted to believe in Him, but they weren’t confident enough to say that this was a sign from God without having their religious leaders verify it. I’m sure that they were a bit scared, and more than a bit confused. They had just witnessed a miracle greater than almost anything in the history of the world! They knew that they had seen great power, but was that power good for them? Either they weren’t sure, or they had decided that Jesus’ power was bad. Not from God. So they went to their leaders for guidance.

 

Now I’m the first to believe that God gives us leaders for a good reason. Leaders are there to point people to God. We people doubt ourselves a lot. We disagree a lot. Leaders are supposed to help us get past our doubts and disagreements to see the truth and live by it. But there are some times when we don’t need human leaders. And one of those times is when God has personally shown us His power. We might still need the leaders to guide us in what to expect next. We might still need the leaders to remind us to be discerning. But ultimately, we have to make up our own minds. Have we seen God’s hand in our lives, or not? Did we hear God’s testimony about Jesus, or not?

 

If we believe that God has spoken, we must live like it. If we believe that God has powerfully changed our world, we must say so – whether the leaders agree or not. God must always be our ultimate leader, and if we can verify that we have His word and His power, we must follow Him. If our leaders are walking with God, then we will not face a division. If they reject God, whose side should we be on? I hope the answer is obvious.