John 11:17-27 Then when Jesus came, he found that he had lain in the grave four days already.… I. MARTHA SAW NOT THE CONNECTION BETWEEN THE DEATH AND BLESSEDNESS OF CHRIST'S SERVANTS. She had largely in her thought the Jewish idea of death as the disturber of fellowship. Truer to have said, "Thou hast been here and my brother has lived." Christ's influence goes to make men feel that they are citizens of heaven. The whole meaning of our life is in the future; death is the portal to that perfection. 1. We feel in our hearts that there is an inseparable connection between faith and knowledge. The relation is not complete here. We must die to know the right coordination of the two. 2. Aspiration and perfection are not equal here. In eternity demand and satisfaction are one. 3. How sundered are love and happiness here, where love and sorrow are fellows. In heaven measureless love will yield limitless gladness. 4. Power and opportunity are frequently divided. In heaven power and environment will be matched. We must die to realize the true correlation of our being with the spiritual universe. III. SHE DID NOT SEE THE CONNECTION BETWEEN CHRIST'S DELAY AND THE GOOD OF ALL CONCERNED. Jesus was absent not that Lazarus might die, but that he might die in faith without sight. Christ might have checked the disease in Person, but His delay furthered the purposes of His love. 1. To educate their trust. 2. To prepare them for the actual work about to be wrought. 3. To reveal His glory more fully. 4. To make the deepest impression on the unbelieving. III. SHE DID NOT SEE AS WE DO NOW THE CONNECTION BETWEEN THEIR SUFFERING AND THE MYSTERY OF THE CROSS. John shows us how the miracle was a distinct link in the chain of events that led to the death of Jesus. 1. They suffered because Christ was to suffer. As some on-rushing star sets up perturbations in other worlds that come within the range of its influence, so this great process of God in sacrifice draws into its vortex the lives of men. 2. They suffered because Christ must suffer, "Ought not Christ to suffer these things?" Ought not His disciples to share in the community of His sorrows? This is the explanation of pain and conflict. To see the relation between our pain and Christ's Cross is to be qualified to meet and conquer it. The fellowship of such suffering carries in its heart even now the sharing of His glory. (J. Matthews.) Parallel Verses KJV: Then when Jesus came, he found that he had lain in the grave four days already.WEB: So when Jesus came, he found that he had been in the tomb four days already. |
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