If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world

 

 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 

 

Yesterday we read that, after Jesus answered to the religious leaders, "I and My Father are one," they 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."   This chapter contains the story of the resurrection of Lazarus, which is the seventh and final sign given in John's Gospel.  It will prove to be the sign that seals the religious authorities' decision to put Jesus to death.  Bethany is on the eastern slope of the Mount of Olives, approximately two miles from Jerusalem.  My study bible tells us that Lazarus is the same name as "Eleazar," which literally means "God helps."

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.   This message is sent back to Mary and Martha.  According to my study bible, it is given so that when Lazarus dies, they may take confidence in the words of Jesus.  The Son of God being glorified must not be understood to be the cause of Lazarus dying; rather, this is an indication that Christ will be glorified as a result of his death (occurring from a natural illness) and his being raised from the dead.

So, when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was.  Christ delays so that Lazarus will be dead long enough that the corruption of his body could set in.  Therefore, there could be no doubt of this miracle, and the might of the Lord would be clearly seen by all.  

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."   Christ is again referring to Himself as the light.  He does not give up His life through the machinations of others, but at the time when it is proper.  

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."   In Scripture, sleep is frequently used as a word for the passing of a person, especially among the faithful:  my study bible suggestions comparison to Acts 7:60; 1 Corinthians 11:30, 15:6. 

Then Thomas, who is called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also go, that we may die with Him."   My study bible calls Thomas's statement an unwitting prophecy of his own future martyrdom.  It is also an illustration of the path that all believers must take -- that we die daily to the world for the sake of following Christ (Luke 9:23-24).

What does it mean to fall asleep?  Frequently we will hear of someone who passed in the Church as one who has "fallen asleep in the Lord."  The word sleep, in the context of the Gospels, must be understood as a deliberate way of thinking about human death, and especially in the light of our faith and the promise of Christ.  In John's Gospel, Jesus has repeatedly made the promise that for His followers He offers life, and life abundantly.  In John 10:10, Jesus speaks of Himself as the Good Shepherd, contrasting Himself with those would-be shepherds who are thieves and robbers, and who do not love the sheep nor His Father.  He says, "The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly."  In chapter 17, Jesus will pray to the Father that those whom the Father has given to Him may be with Him always:  "Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world" (17:24).  In the promise of life, and life more abundantly, Jesus offers an eternal promise.  In the notion of sleep, then, we understand death to be not a permanent state for those who live in Christ.  In the Gospel references given above by my study bible, we see "sleep" used for the faithful who have passed.   In chapter 11, we are given the entire story of Christ's resurrection of Lazarus.  Through this chronicle, we are to observe the truth of the very power of life in Christ, and the glory of God that shines through this seventh and final sign we're given in the Gospel.  Lazarus will live to die again, a natural human death.  But all are fallen asleep in Christ, for in our faith we know that all live to Christ.   Central to our faith are concepts of death and rebirth.  The Cross itself is a symbol of such.  Our Baptism is a death as we are immersed in water, and reborn to faith and life in Christ.  St. Paul writes, "Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life" (Romans 6:3-4).  As Jesus uses the word "sleep" for the death of Lazarus, let us consider the powerful messages hidden behind this term, both for our faith and for our very lives.  How are we, in living our baptism, constantly dying and being reborn in our faith (1 Corinthians 15:31)?  How does the Cross bring this into our lives, as we each carry our own cross?  In what way are you letting go of the "old man" in order to walk in newness of life (Romans 6:5-6)?  All of these concepts are things we consider through the story of Lazarus, and the revelation of the power of God at work in our lives.   John 1:4 tells us, "In Him was life, and the life was the light of men."  Let us walk in His light that we may have the life He promises.