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

 

 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."  

So when Jesus came, He found that he had already been in the tomb four days.  Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles away.  And many of the Jews had joined the women around Martha and Mary, to comfort them concerning their brother.  Then Martha, as soon as she heard that Jesus was coming, went and met Him, but Mary was sitting in the house.  

 

Now Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.  But even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give You."  Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again."  Martha said to Him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day."  Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life.  He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.  And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die.  Do you believe this?"  She said to Him, "Yes, Lord, I believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God, who is to come into the world."

 

- John 11:1-27 

 

Yesterday we read that, at the close of the Feast of Tabernacles, there was a dispute among the religious leaders because of Jesus' sayings.  And many of them said, "He has a demon and is mad.  Why do you listen to Him?"  Others said, "These are not the words of the one who has a demon.  Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?"   Now it was the Feast of Dedication in the Jerusalem, and it was winter.  And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon's porch.  Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, "How long do You keep us in doubt?  If You are the Christ, tell us plainly."  Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe.  The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me.  But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you.  My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.  And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.  My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand.  I and My Father are one."  Then the Jews 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."   In today's reading, we begin chapter 11, which reveals the seventh and final sign given in John's Gospel, the raising of Lazarus of Bethany.  Here, my study Bible comments that the message Christ sends back to the sisters Mary and Martha is meant to strengthen them, so that when Lazarus dies, they may take confidence in His words.  The Son of God being glorified must not be understood to be the cause of the death of Lazarus.  Rather, the teaching indicates that Jesus will be glorified as a result of his dying (which occurred from a natural illness) and of Lazarus being raised from the dead.  

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.  Jesus delays going to Bethany (in Judea, near Jerusalem) in order for Lazarus to be dead long enough that the corruption of his body could set in.  In this way, my study Bible comments, no one could doubt the 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?"  See the events of John 10:29-39.

 

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."  Jesus has repeatedly referred to Himself as the light of the world (see John 8:12; 9:5).  In the following chapter, Jesus will tell the disciples, "Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going" (see John 12:35).

 

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."   Regarding one who sleeps, compare 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 says that Thomas's statement is an unwitting prophecy of his own future martyrdom.  It adds that this also illustrates the path that all believers must take -- that we die daily to the world for the sake of following Christ (Luke 9:23-24).  

So when Jesus came, He found that he had already been in the tomb four days.  My study Bible tells us that there existed a rabbinical opinion that the soul lingered about the body for three days, but after four days resuscitation would be impossible.  

 

Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles away.  And many of the Jews had joined the women around Martha and Mary, to comfort them concerning their brother. Mourning began on the day of a person's death, my study Bible explains here.  Weeping and wailing lasted three days; lamentation lasted one week; and general mourning lasted 30 days.  Evidently Martha, Mary, and Lazarus were of a family significant enough that prominent people from Jerusalem and among the leadership there ("the Jews" is used to designate such positions in John's Gospel) come to mourn with them.

Then Martha, as soon as she heard that Jesus was coming, went and met Him, but Mary was sitting in the house.  Similarly to the story of Martha and Mary in Luke 10:38-42, these two sisters respond differently to the arrival of Jesus.  Martha is inclined to active service, such as the duties of hospitality, and rushes out to meet Jesus.  Mary remains in mourning until she is called by Christ (see verses 28-29).  Mary is sitting in the traditional posture when mourning and receiving other mourners (Job 2:8, 13; Ezekiel 8:14).

Now Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.  But even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give You."  My study Bible comments that, while Martha possesses great faith, her statements here show a lack of understanding about Christ.  When she says, "if you had been here, my brother would not have died," Martha reveals that she doesn't fully see that Christ is God, as she believes He needed to be present to heal (contrast this with John 4:46-54).  When she tells Jesus, "whatever you ask of God, God will give You," she is showing her lack of comprehension that Christ possesses full divine authority to act as He wills. 

Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again."  Martha said to Him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day."  Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life.  He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.  And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die.  Do you believe this?"  She said to Him, "Yes, Lord, I believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God, who is to come into the world."  Jesus says, "I am the resurrection and the life."  My study Bible says that in order to correct Martha's misunderstanding (see immediate prior verses, above), Christ declares His divine authority to raise the dead at the last day, as well as here in this world.  It says that such is the power of these words that Martha is immediately led to her great confession of faith, here in the final verse of today's reading. "Do you believe this?" is a question which my study Bible says is directed not only to Martha, but to all of us.   

Once again, we read about the great emphasis on faith in John's Gospel.  Martha, Christ's good friend (verse 5 tells us that Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus), still does not completely understand His divine identity, and the extent of what that indicates.  But Jesus reveals Himself fully to her when He tells her, "I am the resurrection and the life."  And although these people are good friends and very close to one another, nonetheless it is His words of "spirit and life" we once again observe, and and their effect on Martha.  Jesus finally asks her, "Do you believe this?"   In the Greek text the word for "believe" indicates trust and confidence.  She is not just making an intellectual choice to believe some set of values or principles, but rather putting her trust in Christ, making a deep-seated choice to fully invest herself in His words.  So, we can observe that even between close friends, who have a loving and familial sort of friendship, faith takes us even further and deeper, as it takes Martha in her awareness of who Christ is.  And Jesus asks us to do the same, that our trust and confidence move more deeply within us, within heart and soul, as we grow in faith.  We have observed ostensibly those who were opposed to Christ respond this way to His words (the temple officers who were sent to arrest Him, in John 7:46); those among the leadership (in John 10:21); and even those who followed John when he was first baptizing (in John 10:41-42).  So this response to His words comes from all levels, from those with an intimate closeness and friendship to even those who were openly opposed to Him.  Let us also observe something else repeated in the Gospel, and made even more profound in the case of Lazarus.  In Christ's sixth sign, the healing of the blind man, the disciples asked, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.  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" (see this reading).  In today's passage, Lazarus' sisters send to Him, saying, "Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick."  But Christ responds the following way, "This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it."  In each case, a tragedy and affliction becomes the opening for God's work to be revealed among the people; in the first place for a man blind from birth, and now even in response to the death of Lazarus.  Once again, it becomes important for us to observe that in John's Gospel, sad occasions of loss and affliction become openings for God's grace, for God to work among us in some way.  Most particularly, we must see the light of Christ as that which is somehow transformative, transfiguring.  In our own lives, we might not experience a complete reversal of a bad act, or a terrible misfortune, or loss.  But when we "walk in the day" with "the light of the world" we find ways in which our circumstances are illuminated for us, something transfiguring, an opening that enlightens and gives hidden meaning and depth.  Perhaps our faith is deepened, perhaps new truths are revealed and given, perhaps we find something crucial about ourselves, even a fortitude or courage we didn't know we had, revealed to us in the light of Christ.  The light of Christ also works to illumine new pathways for forward movement, that we had not seen nor known before.  I believe that there are times when God allows us losses and hardships which may also serve as opportunities for the light of our faith.  When we, too, go through difficulties, we must remember that we need to walk with the light of Christ.  For in our times of struggle or stress it is most easy to stumble in the darkness, and it is then that we really and truly need the light. What does His light show you today?  How do you walk in the spirit and truth of the day, and not in the night?