The first person Jesus was confronted with was Martha. Hearing that Jesus was on the way, Martha ran ahead to meet Him. This is very characteristic of her; she was a woman of action. Mary, on the other hand, in line with her more shy, more retiring nature, waits at home.

As Martha meets Jesus, the first thing out of her mouth was a statement no doubt repeated often those days of Jesus' absence. Verse 21. "Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord, if Thou hadst been here, my brother had not died." The underlying tone of this statement is that of regret. It's not uncommon to face the death of a loved one with regrets. "If I had only sent for Jesus earlier. If Jesus could have come sooner. If Jesus had been here, Lazarus would still be alive!" Martha is not viewing Jesus as Lord, she is viewing Him as limited by being late.

Martha went on to say in verse 22, "But I know, that even now, whatsoever Thou wilt ask of God, God will give it Thee." Martha believes there is still something Jesus can do though late, but that does not include a personal resurrection. Martha must be thinking of the Savior's help in support and comfort as a friend. She has the faith to believe in a future resurrection, but no faith to believe that Jesus can do anything miraculous right now. It's just too late!

In verse 23, Jesus breaks the cloud of Martha's doubt and unbelief with a powerful statement. "Thy brother shall rise again." Martha is still not on the same page with Jesus and responds, "I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day." Martha knew her theology. She had a doctrinal foundation without daily faith.

Listen, its one thing to have a doctrinal position, and another thing to posses a daily faith. It's one thing to give God your eternal destiny, and another thing to give Him your today. It's one thing to believe that God will do great things in the future, and another to believe that He can do great things today! Like Martha, through unbelief, we can limit God in our lives.

Then comes the great promise in verses 25-26. "Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?" Wow! What a great comprehensive promise! There is something Jesus can do now and later. This promise is two fold.

First, it speaks to those who are dead "in Christ." Those who have believed in Him and are presently dead, one day shall be called forth from the grave. We truly do not lose our loved ones who die in faith. When we lose something, it means we don't know where it is. We know where our loved ones are. They are with the Lord!

Second, it speaks to those who are alive and believe in Jesus. It says they shall "never die." They shall never die, because Jesus will conquer death by His glorious resurrection! Actually the Greek phrasing here is very strong. It literally says, "He will never, ever die forever." He will pass from this scene, yes, through what to all appearances looks like death, but there will be no darkness, no loneliness, no separation, no limitation of his powers; he will pass immediately into life. Death is no longer death for the believer, it is sleep! Jesus had told His disciples earlier, "Lazarus is sleeping."

D. L. Moody, once said, "One day you will hear that D. L. Moody of Northfield, Massachusetts, is dead. Don't you believe it! In that day I will be more alive than I have ever been before."

Jesus challenged the doubts and unbelief of Martha with a promise and asked her, "Do you believe this?" Her answer is recorded in verse 27. "She saith unto Him, Yea, Lord: I believe that Thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world."

G. Campbell Morgan had already enjoyed some success as a preacher by the time he was 19 years old. But then he was attacked by doubts about the Bible. The writings of various scientists and agnostics disturbed him (e.g., Charles Darwin, John Tyndall, Thomas Huxley, and Herbert Spencer). As he read their books and listened to debates, Morgan became more and more perplexed. What did he do? He canceled all preaching engagements, put all the books in a cupboard and locked the door, and went to the bookstore and bought a new Bible. He said to himself, "I am no longer sure that this is what my father claims it to be--the Word of God. But of this I am sure. If it be the Word of God, and if I come to it with an unprejudiced and open mind, it will bring assurance to my soul of itself." The result? "That Bible found me!" said Morgan. The new assurance in 1883 gave him the motivation for his preaching and teaching ministry. He devoted himself to the study and preaching of God's Word. Someone has said, "You can't break God's promises by leaning on them!" We all experience times of doubt. Things can happen in our lives causing us to doubt God's love, care and concern for us. Worry is nothing but doubting the Lord's ability to provide. In times of doubt, we must remember the sure and steadfast promises of God! In seasons of doubt, we must immerse ourselves in the promises of God and believe them!

SECOND, AS LORD OF BETHANY, JESUS CONQUERED MARY'S
DESPAIR WITH HIS REASSURING PRESENCE

In verses 28-33 we read, "And when she had so said, she went her way, and called Mary her sister secretly, saying, The Master is come, and calleth for thee. As soon as she heard that, she arose quickly, and came unto Him. Now Jesus was not yet come into the town, but was in that place where Martha met Him. The Jews then which were with her in the house, and comforted her, when they saw Mary, that she rose up hastily and went out, followed her, saying, She goeth unto the grave to weep there. Then when Mary was come where Jesus was, and saw Him, she fell down at His feet, saying unto Him, Lord, if Thou hadst been here, my brother had not died. When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping which came with her, He groaned in the spirit, and was troubled," Though Mary greets Jesus with the same words as Martha, she does so in a totally different atmosphere. John stresses here that when Jesus saw Mary, she was weeping along with all those who came with her. When Martha came to Him she was far more stoical and resigned. She was a more practical, pragmatic person, and she was able to handle it better. There was no sign that she was weeping or broken up with this, though she must have grieved inside tremendously. Her faith, which Jesus focused upon, needed to be stretched. But when Mary came, she was overwhelmed with her feelings. Her heart was broken. She was torn with grief and pain. It was obvious that she was suffering tremendously from a deep sense of loss of her dear brother.

Jesus' reaction to all of this weeping is highly significant. It says He "groaned in the spirit, and was troubled." It is very difficult to capture in English what the Greek text is saying here. The word for "groaned in spirit" is a word that only occurs three or four times in the New Testament, and in each place it is associated with a sense of indignation, of anger. It is a word that the Greeks used to describe a horse snorting with anger. Jesus was indignant, He was moved with anger, and it showed in His face, that He "was troubled." He evidenced it by what He did and the way He looked. John emphasizes that His reaction to the deep grief of Mary and her friends was one of sharp anger.

What was Jesus angry about? Was it the fact that these people were weeping? Obviously not, for in verse 35 it says, "Jesus wept." His anger was focused upon the perpetrator of all this grief, pain, and suffering. All of this is to be laid at the feet of sin and Satan!

Sometimes, we experience the same flood of emotions as we witness senseless abuse. We are angry at those who would starve and abuse animals or children.

It is obvious that Jesus entered into Mary's grief. Verses 34-35 say, "And said, Where have ye laid him? They said unto Him, Lord, come and see. Jesus wept." The word "wept" used here is a word that literally means "He broke into tears." Jesus began to shed tears. While walking to the tomb, His grief overwhelmed Him, He so sympathized with them that He broke into tears, so that the Jews seeing Him said in verse 36, "Behold how He loved him!" I think they misunderstood. It is true Jesus loved Lazarus, but he is not weeping for that. He knew He was on His way to raise Lazarus from the dead! Jesus was weeping because He was sharing their heartache.

A little girl came home from a neighbor's house where her little friend had died. "Why did you go?" questioned her father. "To comfort her mother," said the child. "What could you do to comfort her?" "I climbed into her lap and cried with her." Praise God, we have a Savior who will crawl up in our lap and cry with us. Jesus is a High Priest who is moved and touched by our grief and despair! In the time of need, His presence as LORD OF BETHANY can be felt in our lives. The Psalmist said, "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me."

THIRD, AS LORD OF BETHANY, JESUS CONQUERED LAZARUS'
DEATH WITH HIS RESURRECTION POWER

There is one last family member remaining. Lazarus is dead; very dead! As Jesus moves toward the grave site, He is still confronted with doubt and unbelief. In verse 37, He gets the same line again. "And some of them said, Could not this man, which opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even this man should not have died?" Jesus ordered the stone to be rolled away from the mouth of the tomb, at which Martha retorts, "Lord, by this time he stinketh: for he hath been dead four days." It is obvious that Martha is still struggling with her faith. She still views Jesus as late, not Lord! Jesus responded in verse 40, "Said I not unto thee, that, if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God?"

The stone was removed and it was then that Jesus paused, turned His eyes to Heaven and prayed. "Father, I thank Thee that Thou hast heard me. And I knew that Thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that Thou hast sent me." What Jesus was about to do was nothing short of miraculous, and He wanted everyone to know it would happen because of His connection with His Father in Heaven. He wants them to see that God the Father is involved with Him in this, that He is not a magic worker coming to astonish them, not a free lancer getting glory for Himself, but that God was with Him. It is a simple prayer of gratitude, a wonderful expression, spoken aloud to prove that God is behind Him.

Verses 43-44 give us the description of what happens next. "And when He thus had spoken, He cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go." What a sight that must have been! The loud voice was not for Lazarus, he did not need any loud voice. When Jesus raised the young man in the village of Nain He merely spoke to him; when He raised the daughter of Jairus He only spoke to her. No, the loud voice was for the benefit of the people that they might hear that it is His voice that summons the dead. The personal name, of course, was meant for Lazarus otherwise Jesus would have emptied the cemetery! He himself said in John 5:25, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live." One day that voice will summon all the dead to rise, and all of them will, but here Lazarus is singled out.

The body of Lazarus came out of that tomb! Life returned to his body. We do not know how, no one can explain it, but as the crowd breathlessly observed, suddenly a figure appeared in the door of the tomb, bound in grave clothes, still wrapped in white, with a napkin still around his head, stumbling and staggering about. What a sight it must have been! Jesus was Lord over death!

As Vice President, George Bush represented the U.S. at the funeral of former Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev. Bush was deeply moved by a silent protest carried out by Brezhnev's widow. She stood motionless by the coffin until seconds before it was closed. Then, just as the soldiers touched the lid, Brezhnev's wife performed an act of great courage and hope, a gesture that must surely rank as one of the most profound acts of civil disobedience ever committed: She reached down and made the sign of the cross on her husband's chest. There in the citadel of secular, atheistic power, the wife of the man who had run it all hoped that her husband was wrong. She hoped that there was another life, and that, that life was best represented by Jesus who died on the cross, and that the same Jesus might yet have mercy on her husband.

One of the greatest manifestations of God's power I witness in ministering, is the hope springing forth from the lives of believers as they face death. We do not grieve as others who have no hope. Praise God for the power of the resurrection!