11:1 Lazarus is a Greek name, derived from a Hebrew name: Eleazar. The meaning of Lazarus is: God Helps.
11:2-4 Similarly to the blind man in the previous chapter, Lazarus' ailment was the opposite of happenstance and illness. Lazarus' predicament was guided by God and through him would come an integral part of God's plan: to familiarize humanity with the spiritual eternity that exists for God's children. People required tangible proof of this concept and therefore God chose His kindest, most courageous (yet humble) children to bring it forth. Jesus' promises that Lazarus' illness will not result in death.
11:5-6 To bolster their strength for the coming lesson of which they were a part, and also to express His love and care, Jesus remained with Martha and Lazarus for some time. Jesus has the details of an intricate plan, created by God, in His mind.
11:7 After spending time with Lazarus, knowing He would return to join him again soon, Jesus travels to Judea. Here is a preview of the plan: Lazarus is going to be a living example that there is no death for God's children, in order to prove that, Lazarus must die (on earth). For people to believe that Lazarus truly passed, Jesus needed to be away from Him for several days.
11:8-9 The disciples are weary about entering such a dangerous place but Jesus reminds them that those who walk in the light of day (a symbol for: those who walk in the philosophy of God's light/wisdom) must work productively and compassionately without fear. For those who walk in the light, work with God, will not stumble in their task. Jesus explains that as long as there is work to be done, it must be worked -- and without fear because a purpose aligned with God is without insurmountable barrier.
11:10 However, when someone walks in the night (a symbol for working deceptively, selflessness, greedily) will find many insurmountable barrier. Their lives will be lived with discontent, fear, frustration, and anger. The light is not in that person because the light is the philosophy of God and their selfish actions deny and reject that philosophy.
11:11 The moment Lazarus' spirit leaves the earth (due to his illness), Jesus is aware. Interestingly, Jesus does not call Lazarus' passing a "death," he calls it "sleeping." The reason for this is because Jesus is keenly aware that God's children immediately open their eyes with God the very second they close their eyes on the earth. Additionally, Jesus knows that God can place a spirit right back on earth if and when He wishes to. In that way, death truly is a slumber -- something we can and do, easily wake from. Usually we wake in the spirit with God... but Lazarus will awake again on earth to exemplify to humanity that death is not final.
Side note: derive also from this verse how precisely aware Jesus and God are of our specific, individual lives and spirits. They know us. They love us. They are always with us. They miss nothing.
11:12-13 The disciples do not yet understand this concept of death as sleeping. This is precisely why Jesus and God worked through Lazarus to teach them.
11:14 Jesus explained to them plainly, Lazarus is dead. Do you know why He said it "plainly?" Jesus was not upset because He knew that Lazarus was as alive as any of them, very much alive indeed. And even better: was alive with God. He also knew that those who loved Lazarus would see him come alive again on earth and would be reassured that life is eternal for God's children in spirit.
11:15 The plan is set expertly in motion. Jesus was away during the time of Lazarus' death, giving the people time to contemplate his death (death as they knew it). Jesus moves to rejoin Lazarus' family and Lazarus himself.
Jesus is "glad" that He was not their for the sake of the disciples -- so that they would personally experience that Jesus knew the exact moment Lazarus died without even being anywhere near Him. It's important to Jesus to show the disciples that He truly does have the plan of God in His mind -- privy to information that He had not yet been informed of and often had not even occurred yet.
He wants them (and us!) to realize how passionately woven our lives are with God's love, awareness and plan.
11:16 Thomas agrees to join Lazarus and the family to mourn with them. Not yet do they know, there is nothing to mourn: Lazarus is a living child of God.
11:17-19 Jesus arrives, it's a long travel He endured to be there. During the time he journey, the family buried Lazarus and worked to come to terms with his death. It's important that they experienced the full motions of their loved on leaving earth... Jesus wanted to show that even when live appears to be quite final, it is not final at all.
11:20-21 Martha is very faithful -- she loves and trust Jesus. The only concept of "life" at the time was that it could only exist on earth. Martha believes that Jesus can ensure a person's life on earth, but she does not yet know that Jesus can ensure a person's life in spirit... in eternity, elsewhere from earth.
Even though Lazarus had died, and she believed it a final death, her faith in Jesus remained. She remained convinced and connected with His compassion and wisdom. She continued believing that He was capable of amazing miracles of kindness, such as healing. Her faith, undoubtedly, is part of what inspired God to work with her brother on such a beautiful matter.
11:22 Martha is saying: Even though my Lazarus died, I know that God is good and that He answers the prayers of His children according to His will, His will which nourishes, protects and chooses the best plan for each of His children.
11:23 Jesus informs her of what is to come: Her brother will come alive. (Of course he will, we know that God's children are always alive.)
11:24 Martha is faithful, she believes that upon God's return to humanity all will rise. However, she also knows that that will not come for humanity for sometime.
11:25-26 Jesus explains to her that through Him comes all life -- because He is the embodiment of all that God is. When one accepts Jesus, they subsequently accept God's philosophy. Likewise, when someone accepts God's philosophy (in whichever manner they come to know it) they subsequently accept Jesus. Those with the philosophy of God in their souls never truly die. They only symbolically "sleep" when they leave earth.
11:27 Martha is so strong in her faith... and her life is impacted amazingly by it.
11:28-29 Mary is also deeply faithful. She's enthusiastic and comforted to be with Jesus.
11:30-32 Jesus joins with Mary to pay respect together to Lazarus.
11:33 Let's explore Jesus' groan. Imagine how overcome with emotion Jesus must have been (and must often be): Although He's perfectly, faithfully, personally aware of spiritual life all God's children are given after leaving earth, those who He loves most are not aware -- and they're suffering great sadness. Jesus is emotionally impacted by what we, His beloved, experience in our own hearts. He passionately wants us to be comforted by our creator but He knows that we (throughout time) have struggled to develop that strong, trusting relationship -- and for that reason, have experienced deep sadness.
It's a heavy load to bear and He selflessly, passionately accepted it. He placed it, Himself, on His own shoulders. To experience the pain of those you love is the hardest sadness to bear. He wanted to heal them, to comfort them but humanity is often so stubborn and too obtuse to realize and accept the natural love that surrounds them.
Jesus is also entirely aware of how difficult it can be to live on earth. He came to earth to live the experience of earth, the waves of emotion, the peaks and craters of happiness and desperation. It is a necessary experience for us to create who we are, to develop our authentic faith, but it's not an easy experience and He understands that. He truly was troubled because He just wanted to love and even cradle humanity -- but He knew that we must go through this, sometimes very difficult, experience in order to choose and therefore inherit true, lasting peace and life.
11:34 Wanting, needing to move forward in the plan of God, Jesus asks to be brought to Lazarus.
11:35 Jesus wept. This is the shortest verse in the entire Bible but it speaks of so much. It was so generous of Jesus to join humanity on earth. Emotions coursed through Him -- He was made aware of the entire plan for humanity, from conception to completion. He therefore was fully informed of all the generations of suffering and sadness humanity would face at the hands of the unkind and unjust (who also are given freedom to create who they wish to be). God needs each of us to identify to Him who we are in order to know where to place us.
Imagine how courageous, how strong, how selfless a soul needs to be to carry such knowledge, such emotion for the whole of humanity.
11:36-37 As always, there is a split between believers and non-believers. Part of believing in God is understanding that sometimes we will not at first understand His plan. There are some believers who, at the first sight of trouble, completely abandon God. Others are more contemplative, more faithful in understanding that there is order and compassionately calculated plan behind every aspect of life (whether they yet understand it or not).
God has the ability to keep each human alive forever, even on Earth... but sometimes we must accept that a person has earned their right and gift of residing with God in the spirit (and for a time we miss them while we remain on earth).
God has the ability to keep each human alive forever, even on Earth... but sometimes we must accept that a person has earned their right and gift of residing with God in the spirit (and for a time we miss them while we remain on earth).
11:38-39 Jesus is ready and prepared to bring Lazarus' spirit back to earth. He Himself is deeply contemplative, undoubtedly conversing with God -- praying for the ability to properly carry out the plan.
11:40 Remember your faith, Jesus is saying, trust the words I promised.
11:41 Jesus always lifts up His eyes. God is always at the forefront of everything thing He does and thinks. He always thanks God for hearing and for being with Him. It's also comforting for us to keep God (and gratitude toward Him) with us in every of our endeavors and thoughts. He hears and He answers, be perceptive enough to listen.
11:42 Jesus speaks aloud to exemplify the conversations we can and should have with God. God is with us in our thoughts just as well as He was/is with Jesus in His. Jesus spoke out so that they would understand the familiarity God has with us and our situations and that we can speak directly with Him about all of it. Also: Jesus wants everyone (and us) to understand that He was sent by God, to carry out God's plan. Jesus is humble and He always ensures that people (we) know everything He does is from, by and because of God.
11:40 Remember your faith, Jesus is saying, trust the words I promised.
11:41 Jesus always lifts up His eyes. God is always at the forefront of everything thing He does and thinks. He always thanks God for hearing and for being with Him. It's also comforting for us to keep God (and gratitude toward Him) with us in every of our endeavors and thoughts. He hears and He answers, be perceptive enough to listen.
11:42 Jesus speaks aloud to exemplify the conversations we can and should have with God. God is with us in our thoughts just as well as He was/is with Jesus in His. Jesus spoke out so that they would understand the familiarity God has with us and our situations and that we can speak directly with Him about all of it. Also: Jesus wants everyone (and us) to understand that He was sent by God, to carry out God's plan. Jesus is humble and He always ensures that people (we) know everything He does is from, by and because of God.
11:43 Having thanked and consulted God, Jesus is ready to restore Lazarus on earth.
11:44 Without delay, Lazarus' spirit returned to his body on earth. An extraordinary moment. Through Jesus came the thriving life and ability of God. God's love courses through us and it truly is enlivening, bold, brilliant... overwhelming even, in the best of ways.
11:45-46 There is still a division between the people who are perceptive of the miracle-philosophy of God before their eyes and the people who arrogantly strive to retain their own authority on earth.
11:47-48 Jesus' adversaries did not know how to proceed. They desperately feared losing their authority over the people and nation and wanted to eliminate Jesus... moreover, they knew that if Jesus continued to move throughout humanity teaching and performing miracles, they would never again have control over anything. Jesus made the formerly oppressed strong and wise and therefore, no longer vulnerable to their corrupt oppressors.
11:49 Caiaphas called Jesus' adversaries out for being without logic. To plan to kill a just and godly prophet indeed revealed that they knew nothing at all.
11:50-51 Caiaphas has prophesied, been given knowledge and perception from God regarding Jesus' purpose. Jesus' life enabled to many to live. Jesus' life was devoted to teaching people how to thrive, how to disentangle themselves from chaos and selfish desire and because of that, ensured that so many would actually live purposeful and redeeming lives.
11:52 Caiaphas tried to explain to them: Jesus' life is a good thing for us, the best thing. Jesus' purpose and message worked (and continues to work) to unite all of the compassionate people (God's children) throughout the earth.
11:53 They were stubborn and driven by their own greediness and refused to listen to Caiaphas. They ignored and rejected the message Jesus' life taught and exemplified to them. They remained intent on killing Him.
In different ways, people today still work to extinguish the elements of God's philosophy from the earth. Every act of evil, injustice, unkindness, selfishness is a rejection of Him and what He stands for. Do not rest complacent thinking that people like the Pharisees and Jesus' adversaries are gone from the earth. Every day we must work with God to uncover their corruptions and free the victims of their actions. These people are corrupt church leaders, despotic rulers, moral-less companies... we have a responsibility to protect and foster humanity. It is our greatest work, our most important task and we will triumph in it when we work with God.
11:54 Jesus kept a lower profile because He still had work to be done. It was essential that He perfectly complete the entire plan, reach each person who was a part of it. These people He was with would be the very people who brought us this scripture... God's philosophy needed to be cemented in the earth, made available for all through generation and location.
11:55-57 People, the adversaries especially, were on high alert for spotting Jesus. On holidays especially they plotted to capture Him. They were desperate to mute the Voice which threatened their corrupt authority. They will always fail in their efforts. God's prominent voice WAS, IS, and ALWAYS WILL BE triumphant.
11:47-48 Jesus' adversaries did not know how to proceed. They desperately feared losing their authority over the people and nation and wanted to eliminate Jesus... moreover, they knew that if Jesus continued to move throughout humanity teaching and performing miracles, they would never again have control over anything. Jesus made the formerly oppressed strong and wise and therefore, no longer vulnerable to their corrupt oppressors.
11:49 Caiaphas called Jesus' adversaries out for being without logic. To plan to kill a just and godly prophet indeed revealed that they knew nothing at all.
11:50-51 Caiaphas has prophesied, been given knowledge and perception from God regarding Jesus' purpose. Jesus' life enabled to many to live. Jesus' life was devoted to teaching people how to thrive, how to disentangle themselves from chaos and selfish desire and because of that, ensured that so many would actually live purposeful and redeeming lives.
11:52 Caiaphas tried to explain to them: Jesus' life is a good thing for us, the best thing. Jesus' purpose and message worked (and continues to work) to unite all of the compassionate people (God's children) throughout the earth.
11:53 They were stubborn and driven by their own greediness and refused to listen to Caiaphas. They ignored and rejected the message Jesus' life taught and exemplified to them. They remained intent on killing Him.
In different ways, people today still work to extinguish the elements of God's philosophy from the earth. Every act of evil, injustice, unkindness, selfishness is a rejection of Him and what He stands for. Do not rest complacent thinking that people like the Pharisees and Jesus' adversaries are gone from the earth. Every day we must work with God to uncover their corruptions and free the victims of their actions. These people are corrupt church leaders, despotic rulers, moral-less companies... we have a responsibility to protect and foster humanity. It is our greatest work, our most important task and we will triumph in it when we work with God.
11:54 Jesus kept a lower profile because He still had work to be done. It was essential that He perfectly complete the entire plan, reach each person who was a part of it. These people He was with would be the very people who brought us this scripture... God's philosophy needed to be cemented in the earth, made available for all through generation and location.
11:55-57 People, the adversaries especially, were on high alert for spotting Jesus. On holidays especially they plotted to capture Him. They were desperate to mute the Voice which threatened their corrupt authority. They will always fail in their efforts. God's prominent voice WAS, IS, and ALWAYS WILL BE triumphant.
