The Lazarus Brigade: Part 1 – Behind Blood Falls

Pamela Thorson

November 29, 2023

Who was Lazarus?

Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha.

-John 11:1

The New Testament introduces us to two men named Lazarus. One is a poor man described in a parable of Jesus in Luke 16:19-31.

The other Lazarus was the brother of Martha and Mary and one of the disciples of Jesus living at Bethany. John MacArthur places this Bethany as about two miles from Jerusalem on the east side of the Mount of Olives along the road to Jericho. The account of Lazarus is documented in John 11:1-12:17.

This Lazarus became the recipient of one of Jesus’ most dramatic miracles as the Christ approached the day of His arrest and crucifixion. His story is documented in John 11:1-12:17, an event electrifying those who witnessed it and making him an enemy of the religious leaders by simply being alive.

So the sisters sent word to Him, saying, “Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick.” But when Jesus heard this, He said, “This sickness is not to end in death, but for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by it.”

-John 11:3-4

The Desperate Hours

As often happens in our lives, the Word of God comes to us in our desperate hours, and it appears to contradict the reality with which we’re confronted.

Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when He heard that he was sick, He then stayed two days longer in the place where He was.

-John 11:5-6

What an awful two days Martha and Mary must have endured while they awaited their Master! What agony they must have suffered, fearing the worst, driven by the desperation of the moment. Their brother was sick, perhaps dying, and the one who could save him seemed in no rush to do so.

The contradiction is startling:

Jesus loved them.

So He did nothing.

His very inaction seemed to scream a shocking indifference. Yet those of us on the other side of history understand the Lord had a greater deliverance planned than merely healing Lazarus. This plan would take time and all the trust Mary and Martha could muster.