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Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. It was that Mary who anointed the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick. Therefore the sisters sent to Him, saying, "Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick." When Jesus heard that, He said, "This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it."
Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was. Then after this He said to the disciples, "Let us go to Judea again." The disciples said to Him, "Rabbi, lately the Jews sought to stone You, and are You going there again?" Jesus answered, "Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if one walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him." These things He said, and after that He said to them, "Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up." Then His disciples said, "Lord, if he sleeps he will get well." However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus said to them plainly, "Lazarus is dead. And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, that you may believe. Nevertheless let us go to him." Then Thomas, who is called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also go, that we may die with Him."
- John 11:1-16
The events of yesterday's reading took place at yet another Festival, this time the Feast of Dedication (or Hanukkah), for which Jesus was again at the temple in Jerusalem (see Thursday's reading and commentary, My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me). After Jesus told them, "I and My Father are one," the religious leadership took up stones again to stone Him. Jesus answered them, "Many good works I have shown you from My Father. For which of those works do you stone Me?" The Jews answered Him, saying, "For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy, and because You, being a Man, make Yourself God." Jesus answered them, "Is it not written in your law, 'I said, "You are gods"? If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, 'You are blaspheming,' because I said, 'I am the Son of God'? If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him." Therefore they sought again to seize Him, but He escaped out of their hand. And He went away again beyond the Jordan to the place where John was baptizing at first, and there He stayed. Then many came to Him and said, "John performed no sign, but all the things that John spoke about this man were true." And many believed in Him there.
Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. It was that Mary who anointed the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped His feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick. Therefore the sisters sent to Him, saying, "Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick." When Jesus heard that, He said, "This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it." Here begins the account of Jesus' seventh and last sign in John's Gospel. My study bible says that the account of the raising of Lazarus (beginning in today's and over the course of the next few lectionary readings) "exemplifies the truth that Christ is the resurrection and the life (v. 25). This miracle . . . [is] the sign which sealed the decision of the Jewish authorities to put Jesus to death. Bethany is on the eastern slope of the Mount of Olives, about 2 miles from Jerusalem. Lazarus is the same name as Eleazar (lit. 'God helps')." It also notes that the Evangelist assumes that the reader already knows about Mary's anointing of Jesus which is actually told in the following chapter. As with the man blind from birth, this sad state will be an occasion for the glory of God, Father and Son.
Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was. Then after this He said to the disciples, "Let us go to Judea again." The disciples said to Him, "Rabbi, lately the Jews sought to stone You, and are You going there again?" Jesus' waits two more days before beginning the journey toward Bethany. This will assure that there can be no doubt of Lazarus' death, which, as my study bible puts it, "will underscore the magnitude of the miracle." His disciples remind Jesus that His death is sought by the leadership in the temple, as we read in yesterday's reading regarding events at the Feast of Dedication. Bethany, where Lazarus and his sisters are, is in Judea, near to Jerusalem.
Jesus answered, "Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if one walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him." These words take us back (once again) to Jesus' teaching before He healed the man blind from birth: "I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."
These things He said, and after that He said to them, "Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up." Then His disciples said, "Lord, if he sleeps he will get well." However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep. My study bible notes that sleep is often used to signify death (Acts 7:60: 1 Cor. 15:6).
However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus said to them plainly, "Lazarus is dead. And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, that you may believe. Nevertheless let us go to him." Then Thomas, who is called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also go, that we may die with Him." A note here reads, "Thomas, if not with full understanding, speaks the truth: dying with Christ, in baptism and sometimes in martyrdom, will become the seal of Christian discipleship."
Today's reading speaks about the glorification of God. If we look up this Greek word for glory here (δοξα/doksa) we find several meanings that reflect upon one another to add to our understanding. Among other things, this word means something that "evokes good opinion," or honor, or renown. It can also mean "splendor." In the Old Testament, the word used for glory is "kabo" - to be "heavy," suggesting a substance added to something, a depth of intrinsic worth that doesn't necessarily meet the eye, a value (as in the weighing of a precious metal). In the Greek, we also have an understanding of this word for glory which reflects light, as in splendor: brightness, such as that of the stars and planets in the night sky. So we get a depth of meaning when Jesus suggests that the death of Lazarus, which is not to be permanent, is for the "glory of God" (of both the Father and the Son). The events that follow will add depth: glory, meaning, understanding, illumination. Tied in with this illumination is testimony, witnessing. And there, we have to go back to the previous sign, and look once again at the healing of the man blind from birth, about whom Jesus said that his blindness was not the result of sin, but "so that the works of God may be revealed in him." When Jesus also states there that "I am the light of the world," He gives connotation between glory and witnessing. To witness truly is to add light to something, to reflect light, to illumine -- and to add depth, meaning, and good opinion. If we think about the oath administered to the formerly blind man by the Pharisees when they ask him about Jesus, we'll see a full circle: "Give God the glory!" John's Gospel ties in the themes of glory, light, illumination, and witnessing. That is, true witnessing. The works He does, the works of God, are the true witnesses to who Jesus is, as He has repeatedly insisted to the authorities. When we choose to do our best to "walk in the day" and to "walk in the light" we must accept that we, too, are seeking to witness, to give God the glory. When we seek to reflect His light, to "let our light so shine before men," we also are giving testimony, weight, reflection, renown, and good opinion to God. Thereby, all of our lives, every moment, can become an occasion for witnessing, for glory, for the illumination of light and the "adding to" of meaning and value of God's kingdom, of God. As disciples, this is how and why we seek to live in that light, as reflection of that light. Let us remember something incredibly important: the final two signs in John's Gospel occur on occasions of deep sadness and loss -- that of a man's blindness from birth, and the death of Jesus' very dear friend Lazarus. In an earlier reading, we cited St. Augustine writing about the betrayal of Judas: "Yet our Lord made a good use of [Judas'] wickedness, allowing himself to be betrayed so that he might redeem us.… If God employs the evil works of the devil himself for good, whatever the evil person does by making bad use of God’s good gifts only hurts himself. It in no way contradicts the goodness of God" (Tractates on the Gospel of John 27.10.44). Here, we can once again cite Augustine's thoughts and note how the glory of God in this Gospel comes especially on the occasion of tragic events. Let us remember that every occasion of our lives can be one for witnessing in the way we respond and move through and turn to Christ. In this way truly our lives become a testimony adding glory to God, reflecting light and value (or to put it another way, light and salt). We remember the testimony of St. Paul: And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me (2 Corinthians 12:9 NKJV). Let us remember this through everything we think is "less than" or "imperfect." It is the hope in every loss. It's the blessing of the Beatitudes. It is the great paradox of the fullness of the Gospel. It is our message from the Cross, His Way. This is the true way of Resurrection.
