In our Wednesday Bible Study we have been going through the miracles of Jesus. Over the past few weeks we have been looking at Jesus’ miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead, recorded only in the gospel of John (John 11:1-44). Last week we focused on Jesus’ interaction with Lazarus’ sister Martha, recorded in verses 17-27. This week’s looks at Jesus’ interaction with Lazarus’ other sister, Mary, as recorded in John 11:28-37. There is so much rich material from the text, to much to fit into one 40 minute class. So below are some practical things to consider from this week’s text.
John 11 shows us both Jesus’ humanity and His deity. We see His humanity very plainly in 11:34-35, where Jesus asks the location of the tomb and then He weeps. But we see His deity earlier in the chapter, when He knows that Lazarus is dead and that He is going to raise him from the dead (11:11, 14); and when He tells Martha that He is the resurrection and the life and that whoever believes in Him will live even if he dies and will never die (11:25-26).
The fact that Jesus is fully man means that He can identify and sympathize with our problems. The fact that He is fully God means that He is sovereign over and can help with them. Of course, the God who made us completely understands us and is full of compassion towards us; Psalm 103:13-14. But Jesus’ humanity especially qualifies Him to sympathize with us (Hebrews 4:15).
Three aspects of Jesus’ humanity stand out from John 11:28-37:
(1) Jesus experienced grief and deep feelings, just as we do. Isaiah 53:3 prophesied that Jesus would be “a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.” The fact that Jesus wept at the tomb of Lazarus shows that whatever our grief may be, Jesus knows it and He enters into it with us.
(3) Jesus’ love underlies all His actions. In John 11:36 we read in response to Jesus’ weeping, “So the Jews were saying, ‘See how He loved him!” And they were right, because John has previously underscored Jesus’ love for Martha, Mary, and Lazarus (11:3, 5).
(2) Jesus was not ashamed to display human emotions. The N.T. states three times that Jesus wept (John 11:35; Luke 19:41, over Jerusalem’s unbelief; and Hebrews 5:7, in the Garden of Gethsemane). Jesus could have restrained His tears. After all, He knew that He would soon raise Lazarus. Besides, His tears could be misinterpreted as weakness or frustration on His part, as some of the Jews surmised (11:37). But Jesus did not worry about that. He was completely human (without a sin nature) and His tears show that it’s not wrong to express our feelings as long as our hearts are submissive to God.
It’s worth noting that John uses a different word in verse 33 for weeping to describe the loud wailing of Mary and the mourners than the word in 11:35. Jesus wept, but He was not wailing in despair. 1 Thessalonians 4:13 says believers are to grieve, but not as those who have no hope. It’s interesting, also, that while the shortest verse in the English Bible is John 11:35, “Jesus wept,” the shortest verse in the Greek N.T. is 1 Thessalonians 5:16, “Rejoice always!” Those verses are not contradictory! As Romans 12:15 says, “Rejoice with those who rejoice, and mourn with those who mourn.” Jesus genuinely mourned with Martha and Mary. As we become more like Christlike in our actions, we should not become more stoical, but rather people who express godly emotions in appropriate situations.
(4) In your trials, come to the Jesus just as you are, quickly and submissively. Martha’s words to Mary (11:28) are the Lord’s words for us when we’re hurting: “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.”
(5) Jesus is always present and is waiting for you to come to Him in your trials. Jesus was there, but Mary had to get up and go to Him. And even though you may not feel His presence, He is always present and available to give grace if you go to Him in your trials.
(6) Come to Jesus just as you are and share your feelings with Him. Mary went immediately when she heard that the Teacher was there and calling for her. She didn’t say, “I’ve been crying for four days. My mascara is streaked, my eyes are red and swollen. I can’t go to Jesus like this! I need to go and make myself presentable!”
But we often do that with the Lord. We’re in the midst of a trial or problem and we think, “I can’t go to the Lord until I get myself more together. I’ll wait until I’m calmer and more in control of my emotions.” But grace is for the undeserving, not for the deserving. Go to Jesus with your tears and He will weep with you.
If you’ve never come to Christ for salvation, the only way that you can come is just as you are. If you try to clean up your life or make yourself more presentable to Him, you don’t understand His grace.
(7) Come to Jesus quickly. Mary “got up quickly and was coming to Him” (11:29). She had friends at her side who were consoling her. She could have thought, “What will they think if I leave them and go to Jesus?” Or, she could have thought that their consolations were enough. But as comforting as our friends may be, they are no substitute for Christ who calls us to Himself. Don’t delay: Go to Jesus quickly! The sooner you go, the sooner you’ll experience His comfort and compassion.
(8) Fall at Jesus’ feet. Mary went and fell at Jesus’ feet (11:32). Every time we encounter Mary in the Gospels, she is at Jesus’ feet. In Luke 10:39, she was “seated at The Lord’s feet, listening to His word.” In our text, she pours out her grief at Jesus’ feet. In John 12:3, she anointed Jesus’ feet with the expensive ointment and dried them with her hair, as she prepared Him for His burial. In this, she is an example for us: First, learn God’s word about Jesus. Then you’ll know Him so that you can take your sorrows to Him in a time of grief. That will lead you to worship Him as the one who died for your sins.
Just a few things to think about as you try and apply what you read in John 11:28-37. In our next lesson we will focus on the actual resurrection of Lazarus as recorded in John 11:38-44.