The Lazarus Brigade: Part 2- Behind Blood Falls

Pamela Thorson

December 7, 2023

When the worst happens to us, where is Jesus?

When Lazarus became deathly ill, his sisters entreated the Lord for help. Not only did He not run to their side, He purposely stayed away for two days.

While they prayed and waited and anxiously attended to their brother, Jesus refused to come and heal him.

They were witnesses of His power. They knew He could heal Lazarus. His absence could only mean He had chosen not to come. His reply to the messenger that the sickness would not end in death made no sense as they watched Lazarus grow sicker and die.

Finally, the Lord told His disciples He would return to Judea.

Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I go, so that I may awaken him out of sleep…Lazarus is dead, and I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, so that you may believe; but let us go to him.

– John 11:11, 14

When Jesus and His disciples arrived in Bethany, Lazarus had already been dead and in the tomb for four days. Although stage one of decomposition begins four minutes after death (a process called autolysis), it is during stage two (three to five days later) an unembalmed body begins to bloat and putrefy.

If Only…

When Martha got word that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him. But Mary stayed in the house. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask.”

– John 11:20-22 NLT

At the news of Jesus’ arrival in Bethany, the sisters had drastically opposite reactions. Mary, the one who loved to sit at her Master’s feet and hear Him teach, didn’t even leave the house to greet Him. Was her grief too overwhelming, or was she struggling with resentment at the Lord’s apparent lack of compassion toward them?

Martha immediately went to meet Him. Her first words were a tumble of confusion and faith. Was there a touch of reproach in Martha’s voice? If only You would have come when we sent for You.

There they are, two of the saddest words spoken from a broken heart, words drenched in regret and yearning.

If only He had rescued us from hardship and loss. If only we didn’t have to learn the lessons of suffering.

Martha assured Him she didn’t doubt His ability to talk to God on their behalf, leaving the doubt of His compassion hanging unspoken between them. How little she understood about her Master and His plans for His beloved friends!

Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”

– John 11:23

Yes, she knew that. But she still didn’t get it.

The Great “I AM”

Martha said to Him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.”

– John 11:24

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes In Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?” She said to Him, “Yes, Lord, I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God, even He who comes into the world.”

– John 11:25-27

The book of John records seven great “I AM” statements of Jesus directly identifying Him with the “I AM” of Exodus 3:14:

And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM”; and He said, “This is what you shall say to the sons of Israel: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”

In Hebrew, the term “I AM” is a declaration of a perpetual state of being.*

This declaration, the fifth in the series of such in John’s account, reveals Jesus’ motive in allowing Lazarus to die. Martha believed Jesus to be a great prophet who had the ear of God. She did not realize with whom she spoke. Before her stood the very God of Moses; the Word and second Person of the Trinity; the great I AM in the flesh. The death of Lazarus set the stage for God’s demonstration of the eternality of life, Jesus’ authority over all creation, and His identification with the everlasting, all-powerful Triune God.

God’s way is always perfect. His answer to every desperate cry is always the perfect one.

After this exchange, Jesus called for Mary. As Martha went to find her sister, a rush of emotions must have flooded her. Why had he questioned her faith? What was he about to do?