Episode 84 - The Whole World is Going After Him - John 12:12-26

John 12:12   The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. 13 So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” 14 And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written,

John 12:15   “Fear not, daughter of Zion;

behold, your king is coming,

sitting on a donkey’s colt!”

John 12:16   His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him. 17 The crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to bear witness. 18 The reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done this sign. 19 So the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.”

John 12:20   Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. 21 So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” 22 Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. 23 And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. 25 Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.

It would be easy to handle this Scripture in multiple sections. However, I have a purpose in treating this as a whole. That purpose is to help you see the consistency of prophecy given to prophecy fulfilled. When we see how often God reveals something that will happen and then later fulfills it, it should increase our confidence and trust in the God of the Bible. 

The historical context is the very first Palm Sunday. We celebrated that a few weeks ago. But, it is worth reviewing in order to see what unfolds from that event. Jesus has recently raised Lazarus from the dead and the report of this sign is spreading among people in and around Jerusalem as they arrive for the Passover celebration. It’s created excitement and faith in Jesus among many. But, it’s also fueling the hatred and rejection of his antagonists. 

John records that people are coming out to see Jesus as he enters the city because of this miracle. Furthermore, they are waving palm branches and shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” (v. 13) Why is this important? First, the palm branches were symbolic of the nation of Israel. As a people who are under the thumb of the Roman Empire, they are looking for hope of deliverance from that. The cry “Hosanna!” is a verbal expression meaning “Save us!” The cry is the crowd citing Psalm 118:25-26. Then, they add, “even the King of Israel!” This is not from the psalm. But, just like the crowd who had been miraculously fed and wanted to make Jesus the king, so this crowd wants Jesus to be their Messianic King. In this, we see how the people understand Jesus’ miracle as evidence that he is the One who God has sent to fulfill His prophetic promises from long ago. 

Jesus’ response also fulfills the prophecy from Zechariah 9:9 which says, “Zech. 9:9   Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!

Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!

Behold, your king is coming to you;

righteous and having salvation is he,

humble and mounted on a donkey,

on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”

What’s important is that Jesus is not coming into Jerusalem riding on a horse like a conquering king, but one who is humble, righteous, and bringing salvation. It’s not what they expect. Even John records that his disciples did not understand the significance of what he was doing until later. But, God is fulfilling His promises.

In response to the crowd that was going to see Jesus, the Pharisees (his antagonists) respond, “You see that you are gaining nothing. Look, the world has gone after him.” (v. 19) I love how John records people saying things out of their own evil motives, yet God superintends the words to reveal a significant truth. In this case, this statement reveals that all the efforts of mortal mankind against God’s purposes will “gain nothing.” Furthermore, in the greater context of this book, their hyperbole that “the world has gone after him” is proof that God is accomplishing his purpose. Earlier in John’s gospel we read, “For God so loved the world . . . “ (3:16) That was the point in sending His own Son into the world is for the world to come to him. So, is it true? Is that prophecy fulfilled? Look at the beginning of the next paragraph.

In verses 20-23 John records that there were some Greeks at the feast requesting to see Jesus. The Greeks represent “the world.” They are not Jews. They are not among “his own” as suggested in John 1. However, they are representatives of the outsiders who God is making His own. John records this to help us see that everything is falling into place of God’s plan and promises. We know this because when Jesus is told that these Greeks are seeking him, he recognized the significance and says, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.” (v. 23) Jesus is telling us that the Father is fulfilling his word. He understands that the Father’s time for him to go to the cross is very near. 

In view of this, Jesus speaks his prophecy about his own death that will soon happen and the significance to those who follow him. To summarize Jesus’ point in this teaching, he is not calling his followers to be suicidal. When he says, “whoever hates his life in this world” is drawing a comparison of our attempts to seek fulfillment in this life/world compared to the eternal and perfect life he calls us to. In that respect, our priorities upon God’s plan and God’s eternal kingdom and the eternal life he offers us should negate our desire and obsession to only find pleasure in this short, mortal life. 

When we realize that the God of the Bible has revealed His plans and consistently does what He says, it should give us confidence and awe, and desire to serve Jesus and align our priorities with His eternal plans. 

Episode 83 - Stopping at nothing to stop Jesus - John 12:9-11

John 12:9   When the large crowd of the Jews learned that Jesus was there, they came, not only on account of him but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. 10 So the chief priests made plans to put Lazarus to death as well, 11 because on account of him many of the Jews were going away and believing in Jesus.

The scene is the dinner in Jesus’ honor for having raised Lazarus from the dead. Lazarus had been dead and buried for four days, and Jesus called him back to life. This is not according to one person’s story, but the testimony of many witnesses who knew that Lazarus had indeed died, was buried, and that Jesus had called him by name while he was in the tomb and that Lazarus came out alive. 

At this dinner, John records that Jesus is speaking of his own imminent death because he tells Judas Iscariot (his disciple who would soon betray him) not to bother Mary regarding the expensive ointment she used to anoint Jesus’ feet because she would also use it for his burial. 

We’ve already learned that when the Jewish leaders, including the high priest, learned of this miracle, they conspired to have Jesus killed. Many who had witnessed this miracle believed in Jesus, which made the leaders uncomfortable.

In this section, John adds some more detail. Obviously, the news about this miracle is spreading, and people are going out to the location of this dinner to see Jesus (the miracle worker) and Lazarus (the miracle). You can imagine how this must have looked like a circus sideshow. People wanted to see a man who had died and come back to life and the one who made it possible. John mentions again that many people were going away and believing in Jesus “on account of” Lazarus. 

This fact led the high priest and leaders to expand their plan to also kill Lazarus. In earlier attempts to arrest or stone Jesus to death, the leaders had justification for their actions based upon their own reasoning that Jesus had violated the Sabbath or had made himself equal with God. But, how could they justify this murder when Lazarus had not done either. They couldn’t. But, they are so consumed with their jealousy they don’t recognize or care about the problem with this plan. They will stop at nothing to hinder the work and mission of Christ.

My question to you in light of this fact is, “Why should we expect people to act any differently today than they did then?” We should expect people to stop at nothing to impede or stop anything we are doing for the purpose of the Lord.

Episode 82 - Mary anoints Jesus' feet - John 12:1-8

John 12:1   Six days before the Passover, Jesus, therefore, came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 So they gave a dinner for him there. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those reclining with him at table. 3 Mary therefore took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. 4 But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was about to betray him), said, 5 “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” 6 He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it. 7 Jesus said, “Leave her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of my burial. 8 For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me.”

Once again, we find Jesus back in Bethany, a rural suburb of Jerusalem. His friends Martha, Mary, and their resurrected-from-the-dead brother Lazarus are among the participants at a dinner. Martha is cooking. Lazarus is at the table with other guests, and Mary is doing something that is in sharp contrast with one of Jesus’ twelve disciples named Judas Iscariot. 

John mentions that this Judas Iscariot was the one who was about to betray Jesus. John did not know this at the time of the dinner. However, he adds this to clarify who this person is and to show his character.

What Mary is doing is anointing Jesus’ feet with a very expensive and aromatic ointment or perfume. John records Judas’ words which may have even reflected what some others were thinking in response to this act. In verse 5, he says, “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” In these words, we learn two things: first, the value of the ointment (300 denarii) appears to be understood by everyone, and second, that Judas is voicing a belief that something more righteous and good could have been accomplished with the value of this ointment.

Let’s break this down. What is the value of denarii in Jesus’ lifetime? In Matthew 20:2, we learn that one denarius was offered and accepted as a day’s wage. If a denarius was a daily wage of the average working person of Jesus’ time, then 300 denarii were equal to approximately a year’s wages. Wow! That is significant, and we can begin to understand perhaps the shock in the mind of Judas and possibly others as well. 

Looking at the context, however, we get a more accurate picture of what is happening. The first thing we need to come back to is that not only has Mary taken the precious ointment and began anointing Jesus’ feet with it, but she is also using her hair as the towel. This is a picture of great personal sacrifice and humility on behalf of Mary. Why would she do this? The answer must be in the fact that Jesus has restored the life to her brother’s dead body, and she is responding in extreme gratitude for this act and overwhelming awe of Jesus’ power and authority. This is worship.

Contrasted with this is Judas Iscariot, who John tells us was about to betray Jesus. Then, John informs his readers about Judas’ true motives in making this statement about selling the ointment and giving it to the poor. Would it have been a good thing to sell it and give it to the poor? Certainly! Throughout the Scriptures, we see God desiring His people to take care of the poor, the widows, and the orphans, those who could not reasonably take care of themselves and had no one immediately connected to them with the ability to care for their needs. 

However, that was not Judas’ true motives. John tells us that Judas kept the money bag for Jesus and his followers, and he was “a thief.” He would help himself to what he wanted. Judas, in all likelihood, had witnessed Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead. He was undoubtedly aware of it and now in Lazarus’ presence. Yet he was not thankful or in awe of Jesus’ power and authority. He was only interested in serving himself.

Jesus not only defends Mary but adds that she will use some of this for his burial. He also explains that throughout their lives, they will have ongoing opportunities to serve the poor. But, they will not be able to dine with him, listen to him teach, watch him perform miracles, or tangibly show him gratitude in his presence because he will not be there. He is prophesying about his imminent death and ascension to the Father’s side. 

It seems to me that the application to us couldn’t be more obvious. Are our motivations that drive our actions more like that of Mary or more like that of Judas? Do we have such overwhelming gratitude and awe of Jesus that we might sacrifice something valuable to the world to honor the Lord? Are we so humble before the Lord that we do not care what others might think? OR . . . Are we more like Judas, self-serving thieves who say and do things to make others believe we are selfless and righteous?

Our priority must first be to honor the Lord. When we do that, our motives to serve the needs of others will be right as well.

Episode 81 - The Passover and the Passover Lamb - John 11:54-57

John 11:54   Jesus therefore no longer walked openly among the Jews, but went from there to the region near the wilderness, to a town called Ephraim, and there he stayed with the disciples. John 11:55   Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and many went up from the country to Jerusalem before the Passover to purify themselves. 56 They were looking for Jesus and saying to one another as they stood in the temple, “What do you think? That he will not come to the feast at all?” 57 Now the chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that if anyone knew where he was, he should let them know, so that they might arrest him.

Once again, I think the context of these events helps us understand and appreciate what is going on. The proceeding verse reveals how the chief priest and other religious leaders were plotting to kill Jesus. There is an irony here that the people considered “most religious” were intentionally planning to violate the sixth of the ten commandments given by God at Mount Sinai to the Jewish nation; “Thou shalt not kill.” The chief priest had justified it, however, and this group bought into it. So, once again, Jesus leaves Jerusalem. 

Then, John records that the time of the Passover had come. This is not an unimportant matter in the events that are unfolding. Passover was instituted during the Exodus as the tenth and final plague upon Egypt. The Jews who had been enslaved were given instructions by God through Moses on how they could escape the effects of this plague. God would send an angel of death to pass over the land of Egypt and strike dead the firstborn of all families and animals. In order to not experience this, they had to take a lamb without blemish and sacrifice it and apply some blood of the lamb on the outer frame of the door to the home. Then they had to enter into their homes (through the blood) and roast and eat the lamb. It was on the basis of obedience and a perfect sacrifice that the life of the sacrifice represented the life of the firstborn, and they would be spared. 

Earlier in this Gospel of John, John the Baptist points to Jesus and says, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” It would appear that John is drawing a connection from the Passover lamb to Jesus as the true perfect lamb from God who would truly act as a perfect lamb to spare the lives of others through his blood. The benefit is appropriated in the same manner as during the first Passover; through faith (obedience) in God’s revelation about Jesus. 

This mob wanted to kill the true Passover lamb, but not out of faith and obedience. This reminds me of the Israelites journey into Egypt in the first place. Joseph’s brothers sold him as a slave. They wanted to get rid of him. Their motives were self-serving and evil. Yet, God super-intended their actions for good. God’s motives were to save them. What is happening here is no different. The mob means to do evil. But, God intended the sacrifice of Jesus for the good of the people. That includes us as well.

Episode 80 - "It is better for one man to perish . . ." John 11:45-53

John 11:45   Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what he did, believed in him, 46 but some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. 47 So the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered the council and said, “What are we to do? For this man performs many signs. 48 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.” 49 But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all. 50 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.” 51 He did not say this of his own accord, but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation, 52 and not for the nation only, but also to gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad. 53 So from that day on, they made plans to put him to death.

You may have noticed that I included a few verses from the end of our last episode. I thought this was appropriate to help frame the events that followed. What had just happened was that Jesus called a man who had been dead and buried for four days back to life. Talk about “seeing is believing.” That would be a fantastic thing to witness, and I would think it quite convincing that this person was particular. Many people did indeed believe in Jesus. However, “some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. (v.46)”  The implication is that while they had witnessed this miracle, it was not resulting in them having faith. It is essential to understand the distinction between understanding facts and faith. Faith is a conviction that this truth is to be valued. Faith moves beyond knowledge into our values and our actions as well.

Notice how the Jewish leaders respond to this news. They also believe the report they have received. They do not discredit the people who tell them that Jesus has raised a dead man back to life. They know what Jesus did, but they do not have faith to affect their values and actions. Instead of saying, “If he did that, he truly must be the Messiah” or “He must be the Son of God,” they say, “If we let him continue, everyone will believe (have faith) in him.” (My paraphrase) We might think to ourselves, “Is that a problem? Is it a problem that Jesus continues to heal people and even give people back their life?” Their answer is, “Yes. It is a problem because if he becomes that popular, the Romans will take notice and take away our place and our nation.” (v. 48) What are they saying? They are saying that they would rather keep the status quo. They had made a comfortable way of life with their control over the people and appeasing the Roman authorities over them. They were saying, “We do not trust God to let this man Jesus deliver us from these Roman oppressors and sin and death itself.” How tragic!

There is a sense of sad irony in the fact that God had promised a Messiah on an eternal throne. That would suggest that they would not be under any pagan oppression but under a righteous king forever. Jesus met the requirements of that king. But they didn’t want him. 

The irony builds when the high priest Caiaphus tells the leaders, “You know nothing at all. 50 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.” (Vv. 49b-50) He thinks that killing Jesus is the solution to their problem. Jesus’ death is the solution to their problem, but not the problem they believe they have. 

John explains that what Caiaphus said was a prophecy. Caiaphus said something from his evil and ignorance. But God superintended his words to speak God’s righteous message that it was better for one man (Jesus) to die than for the nation of Israel and others outside of the Jews to perish. (Vv. 51-52) Why is that? The reason is that none of us can undo our problem, our condition of being under oppression, not of a foreign and ungodly government, but the oppression of our rebellious “sinful” nature. We can do nothing to make it right with God. We deserve death, as the Scriptures make it clear. But, God doesn’t want us to experience that. He chose to send His perfect and righteous Son, who was God himself, into this world He made.  The purpose was for the perfect God-Man to die in our place. Just as he had raised Lazarus from the dead, he would overcome his own death. This demonstrates that we can trust his promise to raise us from the dead.

In this text, we see the approaching culmination of what John wrote in this book’s early chapters. He said, “He (the Word) came unto His own. But, His own did not receive Him. But, as many as have received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God. (John 1:11-12) In chapter 3, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son that whosoever believes in Him would not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16) 

The question before us is, “Do we believe Jesus is God’s Son who died for our sin and was raised from the dead and who will also return to raise us from the dead to eternal life?” The alternative, as stated in the text, is to perish. How tragic for anyone to suffer this fate when this hope is being offered to the world. Let us receive this truth in faith.

Episode 79 - Did I not tell you that if you believe you will see the glory of God? - John 11:38-46

John 11:38   Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. 39 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.” 40 Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” 41 So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. 42 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.” 43 When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” 44 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.” 45   Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what he did, believed in him, 46 but some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.

We now arrive at the pinnacle of this event. Jesus went to the tomb and there are many people there grieving with Mary and Martha. When Jesus gave the command to remove the large stone that sealed the cave’s entrance, Martha voiced the only response that everyone there was likely thinking based upon human reason and experience. Because Lazarus had been dead and buried for four days, normally the corpse would be rotting and stinking by now. It’s clear from this that no one would believe that Lazarus could possibly be alive and certainly would not come back to life after being dead. Jesus’ response to her complaint was, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God? (v.40) Do you think they were believing? Well, they removed the stone. This seems to me like an example of Jesus’ point in Matthew 17:20 where he suggests that people just need “faith as a grain of mustard seed.” God will use the smallest amount of faith to reveal His glory. I don’t those people rolling the stone away really expected anything but a bad odor to come from that cave. But, they were obedient to Jesus’ command and God demonstrated a great miracle in front of their eyes.

Jesus called Lazarus by name. I suspect John recorded this fact so that people wouldn’t argue that Jesus had staged the event by having a live person come out and then they could argue that Jesus hadn’t specified who should come forth. 

The result of Lazarus coming out of the tomb alive was manifested in two ways. The glory of God was revealed by many people believing in Jesus. But, it was also manifested by exposing the darkness in some who saw this miracle with their own eyes, but they returned to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. The implication is that they stood in contrast with those who believed.

Can you imagine that? Watching Jesus call a dead man by name and that person coming back to life and watching people walking away in rejection of the truth about who Jesus is? It is amazing. But, it’s amazingly sad. 

This is an important reminder that no one can make people believe in Jesus. No matter what they see or hear, some will still turn away from the good news of Jesus Christ. So, we cannot think of ourselves as failures if people reject the message we share or think of ourselves as so great or special if they believe it. It’s not about us. It’s about Jesus and the power of the good news about Jesus.

Episode 78 - Jesus wept - John 11:28-37

John 11:28   When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying in private, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.” 29 And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to him. 30 Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met him. 31 When the Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary rise quickly and go out, they followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there. 32 Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” 33 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. 34 And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” 35 Jesus wept. 36 So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” 37 But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?”

Just as Martha went out to meet Jesus on his way to Bethany, we see that Mary goes out to him as well. The reason is not given why Jesus remained outside and allowed Mary to come out instead of him going to her. But, at the very least, it probably afforded her the one-on-one interaction with Jesus. It’s obvious from verse 37 that the word has spread how Jesus gave sight to the man born blind because people reference this miracle in verse 37. 

When Mary comes to Jesus she falls down before him and says the same thing her sister had said to him. “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” Mary has the same kind of faith in Jesus as well as the same kind of doubt, ignorance, or whatever about Jesus. Like her sister Martha, Mary believes that Jesus could have prevented their brother from dying. But, does she believe that Jesus could restore the life to Lazarus’ dead body? Apparently, she does not.

John mentions Jesus seeing Mary and others with her weeping. It is in this context we find what people like to point out is the shortest verse in the Bible; “Jesus wept.” Often it is interpreted as showing Jesus empathizing with our grief and our own emotions. But, let’s take a closer look at this.

It seems unlikely that Jesus is weeping for Lazarus because he knows what is going to happen. John records that Jesus’ first response to the weeping of Mary and the Jews with her is that he was “deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled.” (v. 33) The Greek word that is translated “deeply moved” is often translated more like “indignant.” This emotional response of Jesus is not just of great sadness and empathy, but more like anger. From this emotional response, he moves to the place of burial and sees the tomb. At this point, John records that Jesus wept. 

What does this mean? It’s difficult to say with certainty. But, I don’t think that Jesus is upset with Mary and Martha or the people. I also don’t think he is weeping over the loss of Lazarus even though the people present, upon seeing him weep, take it as an indication of how much Jesus loved Lazarus. But, John often shows the people around Jesus expressing a truth, but often missing the full significance of what is happening.

I think that given the confessions by Martha, Mary, and even the crowd that they believed Jesus could have prevented Lazarus from dying, but they have no expectation that Jesus is the “resurrection and the life.” They don’t have any notion that Jesus is not only able but about to restore life back to Lazarus. Therefore, Jesus is weeping over the effects of sin and death and the “darkness” that comes from sin. As the truly righteous one, he is angry to the point of weeping at sin and death. 

Here is the take-away from this segment. Shouldn’t we also be angry and grieved at sin? When we lose a loved one, are we just sad for our own loss or are we deeply moved and troubled by the sin that brought it about? It should affect us so that we respond to the Lord as David did when he said, “Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.” (Psalm 51:10) 

Episode 77 - "I am the resurrection and the life . . . " John 11:17-27

John 11:17   Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. 18 Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off, 19 and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother. 20 So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. 21 Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22 But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” 23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” 24 Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” 25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” 27 She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.”

In this part of the story, John gives us some important information. First, when Jesus arrives at Bethany, Lazarus had already been dead and buried for four days. The obvious purpose in telling us this is to emphasize that Lazarus is truly dead. There is no chance that he has been barely hanging on. 

The second important point is that Bethany is a near suburb of Jerusalem where Jesus’ enemies recently wanted to stone him. With the news of the death of Lazarus and people coming and going to grieve his loss with his family, the news would likely have spread that Jesus was there. Perhaps they would not dare do something to him at Mary and Martha’s home due to the circumstances. However, they likely would go out to keep an eye on him. 

With these matters established for the setting, Martha hears that Jesus is coming and she goes out to meet him. In my opinion, her words are so “human.” What I mean by that is she knows what Jesus has already done. She knows that he can heal the sick. We need to realize that Martha has great faith and trust in Jesus. But, her faith and understanding have room for growth. Her words to Jesus are, “If you had been here, my brother would not have died.” (v. 21) How many people, perhaps doctors or other medical personal, could you have said that to with regard to a loved one that died? I can’t think of anyone I could or would have said that to. This is an amazing conviction of Martha; that Jesus absolutely could and would have stopped the death of Lazarus. She follows up her veiled complaint with, “But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” 

What is that? Does she believe Jesus can and will call her brother back to life? I don’t think so. As we’ll soon see, she offers another complaint when Jesus commands for the stone that seals the tomb to be removed. I believe what is happening is that Martha is a grieving sister of the deceased and is disappointed that Jesus had not come in time to prevent Lazarus from dying. Yet, she is also expressing her faith that Jesus is from God and that God listens to him. She is confessing her commitment to Jesus. She just doesn’t understand or believe that what is about to happen, can and will happen. 

Jesus uses this to prepare her (and I would argue everyone else with her and us) by telling her that her brother will rise again. She agrees that she believes he will live again in the resurrection at the end of time. Jesus continues with, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.” (vv. 25-26) Martha recognized that God listened to Jesus and would give Jesus whatever he asked for. It would be an amazing claim to assert that you had access to authority or power to heal and to raise people from the dead. But, Jesus claims here to be the authority and power. Furthermore, he adds, that whoever believes in him will live even if he dies and that everyone who lives and believes in him will never die. This is a claim that challenges the “best of us” doesn’t it? How can he say that believers in him will never die? We know people who’ve been strong believers in Jesus and yet have died. How can Jesus make this claim? It seems to me that what he is saying is consistent with what he said at first concerning Lazarus when he said, “This illness does not lead to death.” (11:4) He knew that Lazarus would stop breathing and his heart would stop beating. But, he also knew the Father’s will for him to raise up Lazarus from the dead. Lazarus, like Martha and Mary, believed in Jesus and the eternal life that Jesus was promising was something they received when they believed. There is no suggestion that this eternal life was at risk to not happen. This is a bold promise by Jesus that when you believe in him, eternal life is guaranteed regardless of the inevitable event when our bodies stop breathing and our hearts stop beating. John has already recorded Jesus stating that the Son of Man would someday return and speak and the dead would rise. Those who had not believed would be condemned and those who believed would raise to eternal life. The point is that Jesus promise is guaranteed when one believes in him. 

Upon making this claim, Jesus asks Martha if she believes what he just said. She replies, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.” Notice that she is accepting what Jesus has told her. It doesn’t mean that she understands everything perfectly. She certainly doesn’t yet comprehend that Jesus is about to bring her brother back to life. But, this is the nature of true faith. We confess to be true and accept what God has revealed about Jesus, even if we don’t quite understand it all. I don’t know about you. But, I think that is exciting and liberating. 

Episode 76 - Lazarus dies and Jesus' promise to raise him up - John 11:5-16

John 11:5   Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6 So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was. 7 Then after this he said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.” 8 The disciples said to him, “Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone you, and are you going there again?” 9 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. 10 But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.” 11 After saying these things, he said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.” 12 The disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover.” 13 Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he meant taking rest in sleep. 14 Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus has died, 15 and for your sake, I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” 16 So Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”

If you recall from the last podcast, these sisters sent a message to Jesus concerning their brother Lazarus who was ill saying, “the one you love is ill.” Now, John tells us that Jesus loved Mary and Martha. In other words, Jesus was very close to this family. But, John’s statement here serves to impress this upon us prior to revealing the next detail of the story. John tells us that upon learning of Lazarus’ illness, he stayed where he was two more days. For someone who has demonstrated the ability to heal illnesses and give sight to a man born blind, this appears to be an odd and not-so-loving response.

After this delay, Jesus says to his disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.” This evokes a concerned response from the disciples. They are concerned that the Jews who were seeking to stone Jesus have not calmed down and may quickly attempt to fulfill their desire if they go back. This is Jesus’ opportunity to teach again and to prepare them for what they have yet to learn and believe. Jesus, the Light of the world, uses an analogy of light and how people accomplish things in the light because the light illumines what is around them and they don’t stumble. There is God’s work to be done while the Light is with them. 

Jesus then tells them that Lazarus is asleep and he is going back toward Jerusalem to awaken him. I can easily empathize with the disciples when they reply, “If he is asleep, he will recover (wake-up).” I suspect the attitude among these men was, “Are you kidding me? We’re going to risk our lives to go wake up Lazarus from sleep?”

Remember that in our last session, upon learning of Lazarus’ illness, he said, “his illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” (verse 4) Later he tells the disciples that Lazarus is sleeping. But, now after the disciples take Jesus very literally, Jesus tells them, “Lazarus has died.”(v. 14) In fact, when we read the whole story, we discover that Lazarus likely died very soon after the messengers went in search for Jesus. Jesus knew it all along. So, why did he say that the illness would not lead to death and then say that Lazarus was sleeping? I think the answer comes in what he says after he tells the disciples that Lazarus has died. He tells them,  “for your sake, I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe.” (v. 15) Believe what? If Jesus said that Lazarus was asleep and he was going to wake him, but he knew that Lazarus had died, what is Jesus really saying he’s going to do? He is going to raise him from the dead. This is why he waited; so that everyone would know that Lazarus wasn’t just unconscious and appear to be dead. People believed that Jesus could heal his sickness. But, they did not yet believe that Jesus had the ability to restore Lazarus’ life. 

This explains why Jesus said earlier that Lazarus’ illness would not lead to death, but for the glory of God. Even though Lazarus would die, it would only be temporary because God wanted people to believe more about Jesus. Who has the power to give life but God Himself? This sign is to further confirm the deity of Jesus. 

This section closes with a statement from Jesus’ disciple Thomas who concedes, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” While I suspect that this primarily reveals Thomas’s doubt or lack of faith, I wonder if John includes these words to suggest a divinely prophetic message in them that these disciples must die to themselves. When they witness Jesus call a dead man back to life and later Jesus taking back his own life, their faith is being perfected and they truly understand Jesus’ identity. Maybe all of this is recorded to affect the perfecting of our faith.

Episode 75 - "So that the Son of God may be glorified" John 11:1-4

John 11:1   Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill. 3 So the sisters sent to him, saying, “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” 4 But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

This is the beginning of the final “sign” of Jesus that John reports to his readers. Let’s review them.

1. Jesus turned the water into wine at the wedding in Cana.

2. Jesus healed the noble man’s son by speaking from a long distance.

3. Jesus healed the lame man by the pool.

4. Jesus miraculously fed at least 5,000 people by the Sea of Galilee.

5. Jesus walked on water.

6. Jesus gave sight to a man born blind.

7. Jesus calls a dead man by name (Lazarus), and he comes out of the tomb alive.

John begins this account by saying, “a certain man was ill.” Then, he tells us the man’s name, where he’s from, and his relationship to Jesus. It is difficult to determine with great confidence. But, I wonder why John felt it import to speak of him as a certain man. I guess that it may be because he knew him and maybe because this story is so astounding that John is giving us information to affirm that this is historically true. This really happened to a real person, and it’s not just a fictional, legendary story to teach a moral or make Jesus appear more amazing than he really was. John says this story is about “a certain man,” and here is his name and here is where he lives. Talk to him and his family and friends if you don’t believe me (John). 

Lazarus, a nickname for Eleazer, means “God has helped.” He is the brother of Martha and Mary. These are the same sisters who welcomed Jesus into their home, and while Martha focused on hospitality, her sister Mary sat down to listen to Jesus’ teaching. (Luke 10:38-42) Jesus knew this family well. Bethany is within a few miles east of Jerusalem on the road to Jericho. This place became a base for Jesus during his ministry. In verse 2, John tells us more about Mary, that she was the one who anointed his feet before the event actually occurs. We’ll read about that in the next chapter. 

Then, John tells us these ladies sent Jesus a message, “he whom you love is ill.” They don’t say, “Lazarus is ill.” Why this choice of words? Again, it’s only my conjecture. But, I suspect that they are aware that there are people nearby (due to their proximity to Jerusalem) who are on the lookout for Jesus to do him harm, and they are framing their request in such a way to heighten the need for him to come back toward Jerusalem. Perhaps it’s even a bit from their own selfish desires for Jesus to come and heal their brother. Therefore, they don’t say, “Lazarus, our brother, is ill.” They say, “he whom you love” is ill. The point is not to cast them in an evil, manipulating light. It simply shows their humanness and their love for their brother. They believe Jesus can heal their brother, and they are appealing to him in the strongest way they know-how. 

Jesus response to this message has three parts:

1. This illness does not lead to death.

2. It is for the glory of God.

3. So that the Son of God may be glorified through it

Let’s look at each part on its own. 

What does Jesus mean by “This illness does not lead to death?” Of course, it leads to death. Is Jesus lying? Did John misunderstand Jesus? One does not have to read much farther to learn that Lazarus dies. The point here is that death is not the end or purpose of this illness, and this is verified by the fact that at the end of the story, Lazarus is alive and well. So, what is the purpose? That is explained in the second part of Jesus’ answer.

“It is for the glory of God.” Does that sound familiar? It should. This was Jesus’ explanation for the condition of the man born blind; so that God would be glorified not only in him receiving his sight but also hope for eternal life through the faith he gained in Jesus. Does it seem to you that perhaps the signs that Jesus performs and even the order in which they occur are working together to bring glory to God and His Son, Jesus? I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Jesus healing the man born blind so that the glory of God might be revealed happens prior to Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. His disciples would have (and did) remembered this saying because they had just heard it right before Jesus healed the man born blind. These things are all in God’s plan for Jesus’ disciples and ultimately for us to understand and believe in Jesus.

That is the final part of Jesus’ response; “So that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” We will see how this sign leads to his glorification as we continue through this book. But, for now, it’s important to understand that God is glorified when His Son Jesus is glorified. 

Episode 74 - "Everything John said about this man was true" - John 10:40-42

John 10:40   He went away again across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing at first, and there he remained. 41 And many came to him. And they said, “John did no sign, but everything that John said about this man was true.” 42 And many believed in him there.

We have seen how the animosity towards Jesus by people in Jerusalem has grown. People have sought to stone him to death or to arrest him. Yet, they have failed because it has not been Jesus’ hour. 

In this brief section that follows the most recent attempt to stop and silence Jesus, Jesus leaves Jerusalem and travels across the Jordan River to where John the Baptist had been baptizing people. This location is where Jesus’ ministry began when he went to be baptized by John. Doesn’t this feel like the author is bringing his story to a close by drawing attention to Jesus returning to where his ministry started? If you look at the whole Gospel of John, you will notice that we are only half-way through the book. The first half of the book has covered a span of a few years of Jesus’ earthly ministry. Yet, the last half of the book covers only the last few weeks of his life and then the short time on earth following his resurrection. So, I believe this is here to indicate a coming completion to Jesus’ ministry. 

Do not overlook the mention that this was where John had been baptizing. The author reminds us of John and his ministry.  It should evoke in our mind the purpose for John baptizing, calling people to repent of their sin, and preparing the way for the Lord. Did he accomplish that? Absolutely! This fact is evident by what happens when Jesus goes there and remains there. 

Many people go to him. But, they did not go there to stone Jesus or to arrest him. They were drawn to him, and they recall John the Baptist’s message. They realize that many people recognized that John the Baptist was a prophet. They believed him even though he did not perform a single sign. They realized that Jesus did perform signs, and they understood that everything John said about Jesus was true. It would seem evident that they should, therefore, believe in Jesus. 

These people were like the sheep Jesus spoke of, aren’t they? While some people heard Jesus’ teaching, saw his miracles, but still rejected him, these people became convinced that Jesus was the Messiah. 

How about you? After reading or hearing about Jesus’ healing people and giving sight to a man born blind, and considering his claims about his identity, do you believe that he is the Messiah (Christ)? Do you believe he is the unique Son of God who could and would lay down his own life as he said he could and that by believing in him, you can be forgiven of your sins and have hope of being raised from death to eternal life with God?

Episode 73 - "I am the Son of God" John 10:31-37

John 10:31   The Jews picked up stones again to stone him. 32 Jesus answered them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you going to stone me?” 33 The Jews answered him, “It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you but for blasphemy, because you, being a man, make yourself God.” 34 Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I said, you are gods’? 35 If he called them gods to whom the word of God came—and Scripture cannot be broken— 36 do you say of him whom the Father consecrated and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? 37 If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me; 38 but if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.” 39 Again they sought to arrest him, but he escaped from their hands.

Why are the Jews wanting to stone Jesus? Because he had just said, “I and the Father are one.”(John 10:30) As had occurred when Jesus had said earlier, “Before Abraham was, I am,” (John 8:58-59) the Jews understand Jesus to be claiming equality with God. That is blasphemous if not true and would deserve the death penalty by stoning according to the Law. 

In immediate response to their picking up stones, Jesus calls to their attention the “many good works from the Father” and asks them for which of them are they stoning him. They make it clear that it’s not for a good work they are going to stone him, but for blasphemy. In an indirect way, it appears that Jesus has elicited an acknowledgment that he has done good works from the Father but they are ignoring that fact and accuse him of blasphemy. 

Before returning to the evidence of the works he has done, Jesus quotes part of Psalm 82:6, “I said, you are gods.” What is this all about? Why is Jesus using this verse and what is the point? Here is the immediate context:

“Psa. 82:5   They have neither knowledge nor understanding,

they walk about in darkness;

all the foundations of the earth are shaken.

Psa. 82:6   I said, “You are gods,

sons of the Most High, all of you;

7 nevertheless, like men you shall die,

and fall like any prince.” (ESV)

Essentially, the writer of this psalm is speaking for God and indicting leaders of Israel for their injustice to the people under them. He says they “walk about in darkness.” (82:5) That is followed by a reminder of who God intended them to be. They were to be leaders with the authority to judge and guide the people. Therefore, they are acting as “gods” so to speak. But, their end is certain and they would die like men. 

What Jesus is doing is arguing that if the psalmist, who under the leading of the Holy Spirit, can write this about human leaders, how do Jesus’ accusers defend their decision to stone him “who the Father consecrated and sent into the world . . . because I said, ‘I am the Son of God?”(v. 36)

Remember the setting for this event is the Feast of Dedication or Hanukkah. This was when the temple was rededicated or consecrated after the Maccabean Revolt. It’s interesting and not coincidental that Jesus states the Father consecrated him and sent him into the world. Jesus had already said, “Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up.” (John 2:19) He was speaking of the temple of his body. Jesus is affirming that he is God’s true dwelling place among people. This fact is reinforced by Jesus explaining, “the Father is in me and I am in the Father.” (v. 38b)

This section concludes with this mob seeking to arrest Jesus but once again, he escapes. It is not his hour.

I hope the obvious “take away” from this section is yet another reminder that Jesus clearly asserts his divine identity. If we struggle with that claim, we should take the challenge offered to his accusers. We should consider the works he did. What would we say about a person who could give sight to a person who has never had sight in their life? What would we say about someone who foretold that he would lay down his own life, then take it back up again and then prove it?

Episode 72 - "No one will snatch them from my hand" John 10:19-30

John 10:19   There was again a division among the Jews because of these words. 20 Many of them said, “He has a demon and is insane; why listen to him?” 21 Others said, “These are not the words of one who is oppressed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?” John 10:22   At that time, the Feast of Dedication took place at Jerusalem. It was winter, 23 and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the colonnade of Solomon. 24 So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” 25 Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me, 26 but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep. 27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. 30 I and the Father are one.”

We have a little more text this week than I often have, but, I want to focus on one key aspect of Jesus’ words in this section after I mention the context.

Jesus has just claimed to be able to raise himself from the dead after laying down his own life. Understandably, people would have a problem with such a claim. People predictably argued that he was insane or possessed by a demon. But, others rightly questioned whether a demon had the power to open the eyes of a blind person.

So again, they collar him at the temple and insist that he plainly make his claim that he is the Christ. He reiterates what John has recorded him saying earlier, and they need to look at the evidence he’s given them. In other words, don’t just ask me (Jesus) to tell you with words. What does the evidence of my works reveal?

But, Jesus doesn’t stop with this. He tells them outright that they don’t believe because they don’t belong to his flock of sheep. He says that he gives his “sheep” eternal life, and “they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.” 

Here is the point I want to make. I realize that some wonderful Christians have different views on the idea of “eternal security.” Eternal security is that if you’ve been saved, you cannot lose your salvation.” I have good Christian friends who don’t believe that. However, you have to deal with this text if you don’t. If Jesus gives you eternal life when you place your trust in Him and you are figuratively “in his hand,” he’s suggesting that he has each believer securely protected in his care and no one (not even you) can take them away from Jesus’ possession. 

If that promise were not enough, he adds that the Father, who gave these sheep to Jesus,  is “greater than all,” and no one can take them from Him. 

What kind of picture does that paint about our security in Jesus? I cannot think of a passage that is more comforting than this promise by Jesus.

I hope that you will not let guilt, shame, failure, or anything else distract you from your joy and peace, knowing that you are safely and firmly in God’s protection if you’ve placed your trust in Jesus.

Episode 71 - "I am the good shepherd" John 10:11-17

11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12 He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13 He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. 14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father, and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. 17 For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”

In this same setting as our previous two episodes, Jesus is using an illustration of shepherding sheep, something his audience could identify with, to make specific claims about his identity. In our last episode, Jesus stated that just as there is only one door to the sheep pen, that is to say only one valid way to the place where sheep would be safe, so there is only one way to God where people are safe. Jesus is claiming to be that door to God. Now, beginning in verse 11, we have the fourth “I am . . . “ statement by Jesus. He says, “I am the good shepherd.” 

In the Old Testament, the picture of God being a shepherd is common. Look at Isaiah 40:10-11 for example:

40:10 Behold, the Lord GOD comes with might,

and his arm rules for him;

behold, his reward is with him,

and his recompense before him.

11 He will tend his flock like a shepherd;

he will gather the lambs in his arms;

he will carry them in his bosom,

and gently lead those that are with young.

What strikes me about Jesus’ claim is not so much that Jesus claims to be the good shepherd, but his description of what defines a good shepherd. He immediately states that a good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep. Then, he points out that someone who is a hired hand will not take such risks. The hired hand is simply there for the job. But, the good shepherd has a relationship with his sheep and he will even sacrifice his own life for the good of his sheep. This is the difference between responsibility or obligation and love. This is love in its highest form. We cannot rightly read this claim of Jesus and feel belittled by being compared to sheep. The correct, and hopefully obvious, response is to feel overwhelmed by the love and a sense of security in our faith which this is intended to engender within us. 

I have spoken of the literary purpose of repetition since we started this study. Its primary purpose is to emphasize what is important. There is plenty of repetition in this section. In verse 14 Jesus repeats “I am the good shepherd.” In verse 11 Jesus says, “the good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep.” Then, in verses 15, 17, and 18 he says, “I lay down my life” ( for my sheep.) Talk about emphasis. He is emphasizing that he is going to lay down his own life for his sheep. Who are his sheep? Those who believe in him. Those that listen to his voice and follow him. Some of them are Israelites, Jews who will believe him and follow him. But, he also adds that he has other sheep “not from this fold.” (v. 16) Who are they? They are those of us who are not Jews who also hear his voice and follow him. Remember John 3:16? (“For God so loved the world . . .”) Jesus came for the world and not just the children of Israel. Isn’t it awesome how he adds that there will be one flock and one shepherd? In the same way that Jesus is the only true shepherd, he does not have multiple flocks. There will be no labels separating one flock from the other and there will be no border walls or different rules from one flock to the other. 

Finally, we might ask ourselves how we can have this one shepherd if that shepherd lays down his life; if he is dead. The answer is in the text and repeated for emphasis. The answer is that he has the authority to and will “take up” his own life again. It seems to me there are only two reasonable responses to that claim. The first is fall-on-the-ground laughter at such a ridiculous claim by someone who says they can take back their own life after they’ve laid it down. The second is to be in awe if we believe he has that authority to actually pull that off.  Soon, we will get a better glimpse of the evidence demonstrating he truly has that kind of power.

Episode 69 - I am the Good Shepherd - John 10:1-6

John 10:1 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. 2 But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. 3 To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. 5 A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” 6 This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.

This is a teaching of Jesus concerning himself, his mission, and those who follow him. I believe it may be significant to understand the historical context in which he is sharing this. This happens leading up to or at the time of the “Feast of Dedication. (verse 22)” You’ll see this on calendars today as “Hanukkah.” During the period we know as the intertestamental period (the time between when the last prophet Malachi spoke) and the time of Christ, Alexander the Great conquered the known world and effectively influenced the cultures throughout the lands he conquered with the Greek culture. The land of Israel was essentially at the center of the various political upheavals during those four hundred years and when a Seleucid king Antiochus Epiphanies desecrated the Jewish temple, there was a successful revolt led by a Judas Maccabeus which led to the rededication of the temple. Hanukkah remembers and celebrates that event. 

The point is that such events can lead people to ask, “What caused this mess in the first place?” The common theme in the Hebrew Scriptures that Christians call the Old Testament is a cycle of good leaders followed by bad leaders. God’s discipline upon Israel always came in the wake of bad leaders who led the people astray from God’s ways. So, coming into this celebration, Jesus is teaching about good leaders and bad leaders. 

In this figure of speech, Jesus speaks of a sheepfold. That was typically a waist-high stone enclosure where sheep could be led for the night and be safe from wild animals. There was only one door to that enclosure guarded by someone. There would be no good reason for a shepherd of a flock of sheep to not enter by the only legitimate entry. Someone climbing over the wall was a thief and did not have good motives. The legitimate shepherd is known first by the one guarding the gate and also by his own sheep. Shepherds spend a lot of time with their sheep and may talk to the sheep, sing and the sheep would learn to identify the sound of their own shepherd’s voice. They would know that this recognizable voice was safe.

What I really love about this section of this story is how the shepherd calls each one of his sheep by name and then he leads them wherever they need to be led. He doesn’t open the gate and send them wandering aimlessly wherever they might go. 

For me, this provokes the question in my mind, “How well do I know the voice of Jesus?” If he knows my name and calls, do I recognize his voice and would I follow him?

Of course, that leads us to ask, “How do we learn to recognize his voice if he is not physically present with us to speak into our ears?” I think the answer to that is by reading the Scriptures and listening in a spiritual sense to how he spoke and what he said to others. I don’t think his message to us would be any different than it was to people around him 2000 years ago. I hope this study facilitates familiarity with Jesus’ voice to you and others.

Episode 67 - If this man were not from God, he could do nothing - John 9:24-34

John 9:24-34

24   So for the second time, they called the man who had been blind and said to him, “Give glory to God. We know that this man is a sinner.” 25 He answered, “Whether he is a sinner, I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.” 26 They said to him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?” 27 He answered them, “I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?” 28 And they reviled him, saying, “You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. 29 We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where he comes from.” 30 The man answered, “Why, this is an amazing thing! You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. 31 We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him. 32 Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. 33 If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” 34 They answered him, “You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?” And they cast him out.

This story is one of my favorites in the Bible, and it’s this section that gets me. In this section, we see this man move from sharing only the events that have transpired to a deduction of greater truth based upon those facts. Let’s examine what happens.

The Jewish leaders summon the man again and tell him, “Give glory to God.” That seems both right and good. God should be given the glory for such a miracle. However, their directive to the man is qualified by how they think he should give glory to God. They add, “We know that this man is a sinner.” What are they saying? They are saying that this man (Jesus) had no part in giving him his sight. Therefore, in their mind, for him to tell people that Jesus gave him his sight, he would NOT be giving glory to God. 

The man responds with a “just the facts” kind of answer to that statement. He argues that he is not an adequate judge of whether the man Jesus is a sinner or not. But, he does know that he had been blind, and now he sees. When they respond by once again asking him what Jesus had done to him, we see a change in this man. His response almost sounds like it’s coming from Jesus himself. Paraphrasing his response, “I’ve already told you, but you have refused to believe what I’ve told you. (Sarcastically) Why should I tell you again? Do you want to be his disciples?” He knows they don’t want to be his disciples. They’re trying to convince the man to change his basic story about Jesus because they don’t like more people becoming Jesus’ disciples. So, they threaten people and try to change the story. 

This response has brought out their real character and motives. They defend themselves by arguing that they are followers of Moses, but they don’t know where this man came from. That is interesting since one of their own, Nicodemus, had earlier confessed, “We know that you’ve come from God.” Now they claim not to know that. 

The man is incredulous at this claim, and he points out that never in history had they heard of anyone (Moses included) giving sight to someone who had been born blind, until now. His argument is, “How could Jesus be a sinner, rebelling against God, and still work a miracle that none of God’s prophets had ever done?” Then in verse 33, we see a clear statement of what he now “sees” with his understanding: “If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” 

Their pride has been confronted in full force by this man’s conviction and explicit assertion of what is an obvious truth to him. So, they accuse him of being utterly sinful and cast him out.

We need to understand that, in this regard, the world and people are no different today than they were then. If Jesus were physically here today and working these same miracles, there would be people who would deny that Jesus could even possibly be from God. Why? Because it confronts their pride, and they can’t handle it. They refuse to be humbled to think they need a Savior from their sinful condition. They will accuse you, threaten you, or possibly even do something to jeopardize your means of living. Yet, we must clearly state the exact truth about who Jesus is. People need to hear it. God will work miracles in some people’s lives by giving them sight to their spiritual blindness that they’ve had from birth.

Episode 65 - His "vision" is improving - John 9:13-17

John 9:13   They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind. 14 Now it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. 15 So the Pharisees again asked him how he had received his sight. And he said to them, “He put mud on my eyes, and I washed, and I see.” 16 Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath.” But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” And there was a division among them. 17 So they said again to the blind man, “What do you say about him, since he has opened your eyes?” He said, “He is a prophet.”

What has become apparent is that Jesus has, as we say, created a stir. People who recognized him are amazed that this man who has been blind and begged all his life is now walking around on his own able to see. 

When asked what happened that caused him to see, he has responded very factually with no additional commentary on the miracle or the miracle worker Jesus. So, people take him to the Pharisees. Uh oh. This can’t be good, right? Then, John mentions that it was the Sabbath (again) that Jesus healed this man. You can sense the conflict coming again can’t you. They’ve sought to kill him for healing the lame man on the Sabbath. Will this healing change their minds about Jesus? Let’s “see” what happens as they investigate this amazing event. They ask the man how he received his sight. The man gave them the same factual information that he’d given the crowd at the temple.

Initially, this creates a division among the Pharisees. Some dig their heals into the sand and insist that Jesus is “not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath.” But, others ask “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” That’s a good question. What is your answer to that question? Have you thought about that?

With this conflict among the Pharisees, some of them finally have the sense to ask the man who had been healed his opinion about Jesus’ identity. I love the irony here. The religious expert are divided and cannot come to a conclusion, so they ask the man who had been healed. 

Remember how this story started? Jesus and his disciples see the blind man begging and his disciples make an assumption about the man and his condition. They assume that this blind is God’s judgment upon him for sin of his parents or even himself as an unborn child. These disciples are expressing what obviously would have been a cultural and common expectation. Certainly the Pharisees had no higher view of him. “He’s a sinner!” But, here they are asking his opinion on something they cannot agree. 

There is no evidence that the man had been asked this question before. Furthermore, we don’t know how much time this man might have had to consider his answer. But, it appears that his answer is quick and confident: “He is a prophet.” 

What we have here is that after the man’s physical eyes begin to see, now his spiritual vision is gaining clarity. No longer is Jesus just a man who put mud on his eyes and told him where to go wash. Things are coming together for him and he realizes that there is something spiritually special about Jesus and he recognizes that Jesus is a prophet. That is correct. The people who ate the loaves and fish in the wilderness area recognized Jesus and the Prophet like Moses who was to come, but soon abandoned him. How will this man respond? We’ll find out in future episodes.

Episode 64 - "How were your eyes opened?" - John 9:8-12

John 9:8   The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar were saying, “Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?” 9 Some said, “It is he.” Others said, “No, but he is like him.” He kept saying, “I am the man.” 10 So they said to him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” 11 He answered, “The man called Jesus made mud and anointed my eyes and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So I went and washed and received my sight.” 12 They said to him, “Where is he?” He said, “I do not know.”

In an old detective television show called “Dragnet,” the main character, Sgt. Joe Friday would often question various people regarding a crime he was investigating and people would give all sorts of information related or not to what they had witnessed. Sgt. Friday would interrupt them and say, “Just the facts.”

This section reminds me of that because there are people who recognize this man who has been given his sight for the first time in his life. But, to see him walking around on his own is something that is very different and it makes some people think this person is one who looks like the blind beggar man they knew. But, he affirms that he is the one. 

When they ask how his eyes were opened, he gives them just the facts. In John’s account of this man’s amazing experience of healing, the man doesn’t give us any thoughts beyond the facts of what happened. He does not offer any opinion as to who Jesus is or how he could possibly have given this man sight. Furthermore, when they asked, “Where is he” he told them he didn’t know. 

I cannot imagine what that guy thought when he first opened his eyes after washing the mud away. But, I have to admit that I wonder why this guy let Jesus out of his sight. Perhaps he got caught up in this new experience of seeing for the first time. But, what is apparent is that all this man has considered about Jesus is that he knows how to make mud and put it on his eyes and tell him where he should wash it off. Soon, he will be forced to think more deeply about what has happened and Jesus’ identity.

This is so relevant for today because many people may identify as Christians. They may talk about Jesus. They may believe he gave sight to blind people. But, do they know who he is? For those of us who’ve had the privilege of learning and believing the full revelation of Jesus’ identity we should take this to heart so that we can invite others into seeing Jesus’ identity and placing their trust in him.

Episode 63 - "That the works of God might be displayed" - John 9:1-7

John 9:1   As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him. 4 We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. 5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” 6 Having said these things, he spit on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then he anointed the man’s eyes with the mud 7 and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.

The entire chapter nine of John’s gospel gives us a detailed story of Jesus healing a man who had been blind from birth and the events that unfold related to it. We are not told how Jesus’ disciples knew the man had been born blind. Perhaps one or more of them knew him. They’d heard about him whenever they would come to Jerusalem and perhaps see him in a familiar location. Regardless of how they knew this detail, they had a question for Jesus. They wanted to know who fault it was that he was born blind; a sin of the man’s parents or sin that somehow the man had committed prior to birth. Perhaps they are thinking that God gave the man blindness for a sin God knew he would commit later in his life. However, one takes their question, their assumption is that his condition is a judgment from God for sin. From our perspective, these disciples might seem to have a view of God that is very harsh. We would not like to think of God punishing an unborn child with blindness for something his parents did or something the child could not consciously do in the womb. 

Jesus tells them that neither of their assumptions is correct. But, our English translations of Jesus’ response may actually engender a similar theology of God if we’re not careful. Jesus’ response “may” be interpreted as though God caused the man to be born blind for the purpose of receiving glory. This is tough because I understand that God is good in everything He does and God is just in everything. Furthermore, God is in control. At the very least, if we affirm those things, we must believe that God could have prevented the man from being born blind, but didn’t. This age-old question of how could a loving God allow bad things to happen to “good people” faces us all at one time or another.

In this particular situation, the phrase translated to read “but that the works of God might be displayed in him” appears to be causal for his blindness. But, that phrase in the Greek can actually introduce what follows instead of serving as the cause for the man’s blindness. In other words, it could read, “But so that the works of God might be displayed in him, we must work the works of him who sent me while it is still day.” 

Do you see the difference here? Jesus is saying “It’s not what you think.” But, then instead of answering their question directly by still “blaming God,” his response is to communicate that God is more concerned with revealing His glory, His power, His goodness, and mercy than He is about revealing His wrath. I would suggest that when tempted to question or blame God’s goodness, that we remember the many times in Scripture that reveal God’s goodness and resolve to trust that He knows what He is doing and we cannot possibly understand why everything happens the way it does. 

Then, without even asking this man, he makes the mud, applies it to the man’s eyes, and instructs him to go wash in a specific pool named Siloam which means “sent.” In this gospel, the word “sent’ occurs numerous times, often speaking of Jesus being “sent” by the Father. Jesus obeys the Father by going and doing the works he was sent to do including to heal this man who had been born blind. This man obeys Jesus’ command and receives his sight when he obeys Jesus’ words. Do you see the connection? Jesus obeys the Father’s words. We must obey Jesus’ words. That is “abiding” in Jesus’ words, isn’t it? God is glorified when we obey Jesus’ words. 

When the man obeyed Jesus, he came back seeing. But, his healing was only beginning. We’ll read the rest of the story in the coming episodes. 

Episode 62 - "Before Abraham was, I am" - John 8:48-59

48 The Jews answered him, “Are we not right in saying that you are a Samaritan and have a demon?” 49 Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon, but I honor my Father, and you dishonor me. 50 Yet I do not seek my own glory; there is One who seeks it, and he is the judge. 51 Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.” 52 The Jews said to him, “Now we know that you have a demon! Abraham died, as did the prophets, yet you say, ‘If anyone keeps my word, he will never taste death.’ 53 Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died! Who do you make yourself out to be?” 54 Jesus answered, “If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my Father who glorifies me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God.’ 55 But you have not known him. I know him. If I were to say that I do not know him, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and I keep his word. 56 Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad.” 57 So the Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” 58 Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” 59 So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.

Have you noticed the change in the tone of the reaction from these people? It has moved from questioning to vicious attack against Jesus leading to them trying to kill him (just as Jesus had said). 

We have already learned about the animosity between the Jews and the Samaritans. The Samaritans were descendants of people whom the Assyrians had brought into the northern kingdom of Israel with the expectation there would be intermarrying and breaking down of the Jewish identity. This led to a view by some purely Jewish people to look down upon the Samaritans as “polluted” or “mixed-breed.” In these people calling Jesus a Samaritan who is demon-possessed, they are accusing him of not being a true Jew and of not being a true worshipper of God. 

The central issue here and the climax to which this conversation has been leading and is found in their question in verse 53, “Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died! Who do you make yourself out to be?” They are incredulous that this man Jesus standing in their midst is professing to be greater than Abraham and the Prophets. So, they ask, “Who do you make yourself out to be?”

Jesus answers their questions in no uncertain terms. In verse 58 he replies, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” A young 30-year-old man standing among them is claiming to have existed prior to a man who lived 2000 years earlier and claims the divine name “I am” for himself. 

If you’ve ever heard someone say, “Jesus never claimed to be God,” you need to show them this verse and explain it’s meaning. Jesus is making a clear claim to the divine name that God had revealed to Moses. If you think that interpretation of Jesus’ words is just my interpretation, you only need to look at their response. They picked up rocks to stone him to death. They believed he was blaspheming the divine name. There are only two possible reactions to his claim. Either he was blaspheming and, according to the Law, deserved the death penalty or he was telling the truth. 

The question then is which one do you believe it is? There are people today who want to think of Jesus as somewhere in between these two extremes. They are like the people among this crowd. They like some of the things Jesus taught and did. But, they refuse to believe he is God. Jesus’ claim here should force us to either reject him as a crazy liar or to accept his claim as truth and to recognize like Peter, that Jesus alone has the words of eternal life and we need to trust in him.