They readily recognized that Jesus had not just worked miracles, but that his many miracles constituted signs, pointing to something more than just doing good. What was their concern? They wondered “What do we do?” They felt the need to take action. John 11:47 reports: “Then gathered ( syn ēgagon) the chief priests and Pharisees a council ( synedrion).” More than just getting together for an informal conversation or committee meeting, this assembly must have been something of an official gathering, the calling of a session of the Sanhedrin with both parties, the chief priests (the Sadducees) and the Pharisees involved. Indeed, before that triumphal day arrived, other important legal steps had already been set into motion. This report, which must have been tantamount to the filing of an official complaint, galvanized the deep division between the two extremes that confronted Jesus as he humbly rode into Jerusalem on the day after his last ordinary Sabbath. While many saw it the first way and believed on Jesus, others continued to fear that Jesus had tricked or “deceiveth the people” (John 7:12, 47) and “some of them went their ways to the Pharisees, and told them what things Jesus had done” (11:46). Either it was the greatest manifestation ever seen of divine power in the Temple district, or it was the most deceptive act ever imagined by a clever imposter. How could that have happened? Perhaps the raising of Lazarus, which was the greatest and most closely observed of all of Jesus’s miracles, was simply too powerful, too convincing, too threatening, or too unusual, and at the same time too close to Jerusalem for it have been ignored, one way or the other. In addition, without seeing the raising of Lazarus as background to the Passion Week, it is perhaps even harder to imagine why the chief priests turned Jesus’s popularity into utter abandonment and were able to move so quickly and tactically to arrest him, condemn him, take him to Pilate, accuse him, get permission to execute him, and complete the crucifixion, start to finish, all within about ten hours’ time. John makes it clear that the crowd was especially excited by the raising of Lazarus: The people who were “with him when he called Lazarus out of his grave, and raised him from the dead” were talking openly and strongly and did “bear record,” and because of that, “for this cause” the people in the city came out and “also met him, for that they heard that he had done this miracle” (12:17-18). Many of the leading Jews in Jerusalem had come out to Mary’s home “and had seen the things which Jesus did” and they “believed on him” (11:45). Without seeing this as background, it is hard to imagine a reason why a large multitude of people would have followed Jesus into Jerusalem shouting Hosanna! Save us now! It was widely known that he had saved Lazarus from the grave. That personal favor, offered by Jesus to Mary, Martha, and Lazarus whom he loved (John 11:5), is reported is detail in John 11, right before his entry into Jerusalem in John 12. That event was the raising of Lazarus at the home and at the behest of Martha and Mary. But the events of Passion Week cannot be understood without backing up to the event just a few days earlier in Bethany, just over the hill to the east of Jerusalem. Everyone rejoiced and thanked Jesus for his awesome power.The celebration of Easter usually begins with Jesus’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. Jesus ended up bringing Lazarus back to life! He wanted to show just how powerful he was that he can even bring someone back from death.
Well, Jesus had a plan and his timing was not a mistake. Mary and Martha were so sad and confused and they wondered why Jesus hadn’t come in time to heal him.
Well, Jesus took a few days to get there, and when he arrived, Lazarus had died. So, they sent word to Jesus to come and heal their brother. So, when Lazarus got really sick, they knew that Jesus could heal him. Lazarus and his sisters, Mary and Martha, loved Jesus and believed that he was God. But, this miracle is even more amazing than those, and it involves his friend Lazarus. He healed many people from terrible sicknesses and even helped lame people walk again. He fed 5000 people with just a few loaves and fishes. Jesus did some pretty cool things while he walked the Earth.
In today’s lesson, we’re going to learn about one of the coolest miracles Jesus performed.
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