Jesus Speaks Gently to Martha While Mary ListensBible World
11:5John 11:5
Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus.
Jesus held a deep, personal, sincere and sympathetic love for Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. Their humble home at Bethany gave Him sincere welcome, holy friendship, rest and human fellowship amid misunderstanding elsewhere, with listeners who treasured His teaching even without fully grasping His mission. Because the sisters knew that love and His power to heal, they sent only a trusting message about Lazarus and fully expected their Friend to come at once. His remaining two days and letting sickness triumph into death was not lack of interest or lessened love but divine wisdom, allowing Satan power for a time so faith tried by sorrow would shine brighter and the victory would serve the family, Lazarus, Himself, and the disciples. His tears at the grave showed His sympathy, and after four days when the body saw corruption He called Lazarus forth by His word as crowning proof that He is the Son of God, the Saviour and Lifegiver, pointing forward to the resurrection of the dead in Christ to immortal life.
Jesus' Love and Friendship
John 11:5 declares deep, personal, sincere and sympathetic love for Martha, Mary and Lazarus. That love was true affection for each member of the family, a close personal bond felt with sympathy for them in their affliction.
His special affection for the Bethany family did not lessen His love for all people. Moved by human woe, that love labored even for those who persecuted and insulted Him, drove Him from Bethlehem and Nazareth and Jerusalem, condemned Him without cause and forced Him with His few faithful followers to seek temporary asylum. It healed the sick, restored sight to the blind and hearing to the deaf and speech to the dumb, fed the hungry, comforted the sorrowful, held thousands entranced by words of wisdom, walked upon the heaving billows and stilled their angry roaring by a word, cast out devils who in departing confessed Him Son of God, and waked the dead. Yet it could not reach hearts blinded by prejudice and hardened hatred that resolutely rejected the light.
Their humble home at Bethany was a place of sincere welcome and holy friendship where He found rest and repose, human fellowship, and relief from the misunderstanding He endured elsewhere. There He found listeners who understood and treasured His teaching, showing His close personal connection with the family. Though they could not fully grasp His divine mission and the burden He carried for humanity, their faith and love made their house a refuge for Him.
Because the sisters knew His love and His power to heal all manner of diseases, they counted on that love when Lazarus fell violently ill. They sent only a confiding message about their brother, without urgent demand, fully expecting their beloved Friend to respond at once and come to Bethany as soon as He could to heal him. They waited anxiously for Him while life remained, clinging to hope that Lazarus would live.
Delay, Death, and Resurrection
His remaining two days where He was after hearing of the illness, and His not coming before Lazarus died, was guided by divine wisdom and not by lack of interest or lessened love. The sisters trusted Him to do what was best, though some questioned how the real Christ could let one He loved die. Even while He stayed away He suffered every pang of sorrow they endured.
His love did not keep Him from letting sickness worsen and death triumph. Though He knew from afar what was taking place and could have stayed the power of death from afar, He allowed the sisters with heavy and anguished hearts to watch their brother die, prepare him for burial, lay him in the grave, and spend long sorrowful days anxiously longing for His comfort and His words before He came. After waiting two days He called Lazarus His friend, spoke of death as sleep that He would awake, then said plainly that Lazarus was dead and that He was glad for the disciples' sakes He had not been there so they might believe. He stayed away on purpose to suffer Satan to exercise his power for a time in order to drive him back as a conquered foe, since in the presence of the Life-giver Satan would have had no power over Lazarus and death could not have aimed its dart at him. He permitted Lazarus to pass under the dominion of death knowing the sisters' faith, tried by looking on the dead face, would be severely tried and then shine forth with greater power, and knowing that through that struggle a victory was to be gained for them, for Lazarus, for Himself, and for His disciples.
He let Lazarus die to make the sorrow an occasion for undoubted proof of divine power. That raising was His crowning miracle and crowning evidence that He is the Son of God, the Saviour of the world, and the Messiah, revealing the Father and demonstrating His character as Saviour and Lifegiver, meant to unite the disciples to Him in a faith that could not be broken and to convince all who could be convinced. It was a final test for the Jewish nation, and to Nicodemus it gave undeniable evidence of His Messiahship.
Lazarus lay dead four days with his body seeing corruption before Christ called him from the tomb by His word. Afterward Lazarus had no experience of the dead to report, but was raised to testify to Christ's divine power and sonship. Like the widow's son and Jairus's daughter he returned to mortal life without immortality, still subject to death and decay.
Jesus' tears at the grave and His restoring Lazarus to His sisters show His sympathy for their grief and care for them and brought joy to them. The resurrection deeply affected people and drew a large enthusiastic multitude, and the raising led many to believe in Him and glorify God, though others remained hardened in unbelief. He knew each such rescue, paid for at Calvary, brought Him nearer to the humiliation and death He would suffer for humanity and showed His mission to lift humanity to new life. His power to raise the dead points forward to the resurrection of the dead in Christ at His return to immortal life with the Lord.
Jesus held a deep, personal, sincere and sympathetic love for Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. Their humble home at Bethany gave Him sincere welcome, holy friendship, rest and human fellowship amid misunderstanding elsewhere, with listeners who treasured His teaching even without fully grasping His mission. Because the sisters knew that love and His power to heal, they sent only a trusting message about Lazarus and fully expected their Friend to come at once. His remaining two days and letting sickness triumph into death was not lack of interest or lessened love but divine wisdom, allowing Satan power for a time so faith tried by sorrow would shine brighter and the victory would serve the family, Lazarus, Himself, and the disciples. His tears at the grave showed His sympathy, and after four days when the body saw corruption He called Lazarus forth by His word as crowning proof that He is the Son of God, the Saviour and Lifegiver, pointing forward to the resurrection of the dead in Christ to immortal life.
Jesus' Love and Friendship
John 11:5 declares deep, personal, sincere and sympathetic love for Martha, Mary and Lazarus. That love was true affection for each member of the family, a close personal bond felt with sympathy for them in their affliction.
His special affection for the Bethany family did not lessen His love for all people. Moved by human woe, that love labored even for those who persecuted and insulted Him, drove Him from Bethlehem and Nazareth and Jerusalem, condemned Him without cause and forced Him with His few faithful followers to seek temporary asylum. It healed the sick, restored sight to the blind and hearing to the deaf and speech to the dumb, fed the hungry, comforted the sorrowful, held thousands entranced by words of wisdom, walked upon the heaving billows and stilled their angry roaring by a word, cast out devils who in departing confessed Him Son of God, and waked the dead. Yet it could not reach hearts blinded by prejudice and hardened hatred that resolutely rejected the light.
Their humble home at Bethany was a place of sincere welcome and holy friendship where He found rest and repose, human fellowship, and relief from the misunderstanding He endured elsewhere. There He found listeners who understood and treasured His teaching, showing His close personal connection with the family. Though they could not fully grasp His divine mission and the burden He carried for humanity, their faith and love made their house a refuge for Him.
Because the sisters knew His love and His power to heal all manner of diseases, they counted on that love when Lazarus fell violently ill. They sent only a confiding message about their brother, without urgent demand, fully expecting their beloved Friend to respond at once and come to Bethany as soon as He could to heal him. They waited anxiously for Him while life remained, clinging to hope that Lazarus would live.
Delay, Death, and Resurrection
His remaining two days where He was after hearing of the illness, and His not coming before Lazarus died, was guided by divine wisdom and not by lack of interest or lessened love. The sisters trusted Him to do what was best, though some questioned how the real Christ could let one He loved die. Even while He stayed away He suffered every pang of sorrow they endured.
His love did not keep Him from letting sickness worsen and death triumph. Though He knew from afar what was taking place and could have stayed the power of death from afar, He allowed the sisters with heavy and anguished hearts to watch their brother die, prepare him for burial, lay him in the grave, and spend long sorrowful days anxiously longing for His comfort and His words before He came. After waiting two days He called Lazarus His friend, spoke of death as sleep that He would awake, then said plainly that Lazarus was dead and that He was glad for the disciples' sakes He had not been there so they might believe. He stayed away on purpose to suffer Satan to exercise his power for a time in order to drive him back as a conquered foe, since in the presence of the Life-giver Satan would have had no power over Lazarus and death could not have aimed its dart at him. He permitted Lazarus to pass under the dominion of death knowing the sisters' faith, tried by looking on the dead face, would be severely tried and then shine forth with greater power, and knowing that through that struggle a victory was to be gained for them, for Lazarus, for Himself, and for His disciples.
He let Lazarus die to make the sorrow an occasion for undoubted proof of divine power. That raising was His crowning miracle and crowning evidence that He is the Son of God, the Saviour of the world, and the Messiah, revealing the Father and demonstrating His character as Saviour and Lifegiver, meant to unite the disciples to Him in a faith that could not be broken and to convince all who could be convinced. It was a final test for the Jewish nation, and to Nicodemus it gave undeniable evidence of His Messiahship.
Lazarus lay dead four days with his body seeing corruption before Christ called him from the tomb by His word. Afterward Lazarus had no experience of the dead to report, but was raised to testify to Christ's divine power and sonship. Like the widow's son and Jairus's daughter he returned to mortal life without immortality, still subject to death and decay.
Jesus' tears at the grave and His restoring Lazarus to His sisters show His sympathy for their grief and care for them and brought joy to them. The resurrection deeply affected people and drew a large enthusiastic multitude, and the raising led many to believe in Him and glorify God, though others remained hardened in unbelief. He knew each such rescue, paid for at Calvary, brought Him nearer to the humiliation and death He would suffer for humanity and showed His mission to lift humanity to new life. His power to raise the dead points forward to the resurrection of the dead in Christ at His return to immortal life with the Lord.