We try very hard to avoid the facts concerning death. Even in funerals we apply bright veneers to everything. That would not have been possible in Bethany, about two miles from Jerusalem, around AD 30. Death is real when a tomb is opened for all to see – and smell. John, the eye-witness first century biographer of Jesus records that Jesus ordered the tomb of Lazarus to be opened four days after the burial. He asks his protesting sister to believe into him and through that “discern the glory of God.”
So they took the stone and Jesus lifted the eyes up above and said, “Father, I thank you that you heard me. In fact, I myself had discerned that you are always hearing me, but through the crowd standing around I said - in order that they may believe that you sent out me.” And having said these things, he shouted in a great voice, “Lazarus! Here! Outside!”
At that time two things were then “lifted”: the stone covering the corpse in the tomb; and the eyes of Jesus whose Father “above” was listening to him.
The dead one came out, the feet and the hands tied up with bandages, and his face had been bound around in a napkin. Jesus states to them, "Release him and leave him to go away.”
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So many of the Judeans, having come towards Mary and having perceived themselves what he did, believed into him. In fact some from them came away towards the Pharisees and said to them what Jesus had done. So the lead priests and the Pharisees gathered together a Sanhedrin and stated, “What do we do in that this man is doing many signs? If we may leave him in this way, everyone will believe into him, and the Romans will come and lift up both our place and nation.”
Back there in AD 30 “many of the Judeans”, friends of Martha and Mary, the dead man’s sisters, believed into Jesus. Most of us studiously avoid knowing anything at all about him. Are we afraid of something?
In fact, the Pharisees in Jerusalem, kept informed about the resurrected Lazarus, could not possibly deny the truth about these “signs” of the true identity of Jesus and his Father. There could be no doubt about that. But there was an even more important issue which was of greater concern to them than their own resurrection: our position (temporary – only until death) and our place in our nation and society will be "lifted up" (third use of "lift up") from us if this Jesus, and his Father, carry on like this.
The danger was that everyone will believe into Jesus (not us, though).
In fact someone, one of them, Caiaphas (who was lead priest that year), said to them, “You discern nothing. You do not even reckon that it profits you that one man may die on behalf of the community, and that the complete nation may not destroy itself.” In fact he did not say this from himself but, being lead priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus was about to die on behalf of the nation, and not on behalf of the nation only, but also in order that the children of God, those having been scattered, he may gather together into one. So from that day they resolved together in order that they may kill him.
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So Jesus was no longer walking openly among the Judeans, but he came away from there into the space near the wilderness, into a town stated “Ephraim”, and there he stayed with the disciples.
“Ephraim” was not in Jewish territory – the name means “double fruitfulness”.
So, what do you think? Did Mary and Martha “discern the glory of God”? Lazarus was resurrected. But did they, later, see something much more glorious? They saw Jesus give his own life “to gather into one” all who love his name - to gather them into eternal resurrection life.
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