LAZARUS AWAKENED

LAZARUS AWAKENED

Lazarus and Jesus loved each other. More than once Jesus had eaten in his house at Bethany with him and his sisters. Now one day Lazarus fell ill, and sent word of it to Jesus. And Jesus answered, "This sickness is not unto death." (John 11:4) Two days went by. But on the third day He said to His disciples, "Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep." (John 11:11) He was near to Bethany when Martha came to meet Him as if to reproach Him.

"Lord, if Thou hadst been here my brother had not died." (John 11:21) And a little later Mary too said, "Lord, if Thou hadst been here, my brother had not died." (John 11:32) Their repeated reproach touched Jesus, not because He feared He had come too late, but because He was always saddened by the lack of faith even of those dearest to Him.

"And be said, where have ye laid him? They said unto him, Lord, come and see. . . . Jesus therefore again groan­ing in Himself cometh to the grave. It was a cave and a stone lay upon it. Jesus said, Take ye away the stone." (John 11:34-39)

Martha, the housekeeper, the practical, concrete character, interrupted, "Lord, by this time he stinks: for he hath been dead four days." (Vs. 39) But Jesus did not heed her, "Take away the stone." And the stone was rolled away. Jesus made a short prayer, His face lifted towards the sky, drew near to the bole and called His friend in a loud voice, "Lazarus, come forth." (John 11:43)

And Lazarus came forth, stumbling, for his hands and feet were shrouded and his face covered with a napkin.

"Loose him, and let him go." (Vs. 44)

And all four, followed by the Twelve and by a throng of thunderstruck Jews, returned to the house. Lazarus' eyes grew accustomed again to the light. He walked on his feet, although with pain, and used his hands. Martha, moving rapidly, got together the best dinner she could in the confusion after four days of demoralized sorrow—and the man come back to life after death ate with his sister and his friends. Mary could scarcely swallow a mouthful of food, nor take her eyes from the conqueror of death, who, having wiped the tears from His eyes, broke His bread and drank His wine as if this day were like any other day.

These are the resurrections narrated by the Evangelists, and from their account we can draw some observations which will allow us to dispense with learned, that is to say with unsuit­able, commentaries. In all His life, Jesus raised from the dead only three persons, and this He did, not to make a show of His power and to strike the imagination of the people, but only because He was touched by the sorrow of those who loved the dead, to console a mother, a father, and two sisters. Two of these resurrections were public; one that of the daughter of Jairus, was accomplished in the presence of very few, and Jesus asked those few to say nothing about it.

Another point, and the most important; in all these three eases Jesus spoke to the dead person as if he were not dead but only asleep. He had no time to say anything about the condition of the son of the widow, because that decision was taken too rapidly, but even to him, He said, as to a child, idly oversleeping, "Young man, I say unto thee, arise." (Luke 7:14) When they told Him that the daughter of Jairus was dead, He an­swered, "Weep not, she is not dead but sleepeth." (Luke 8:52) When they confirmed the news of the death of Lazarus, He insisted, "He is not dead but sleepeth." (John 11:11) He made no claim to bring back from the dead, only to awaken. Death for Him was only a sleep, a deeper sleep than the common sleep of everyday, a sleep only to be broken by a superhuman love. This love was for the survivors more than for the dead; it was the love of one whose tears flow at the sight of others' tears - compassion.