In The Previous article we placed emphasis on the Father’s gift of the spirit to His Son, through which he bestowed unparalleled powers on our Lord. We make this statement in full consciousness of what the Lord God did through Moses to declare His name Yahweh. In a supreme act of deliverance, “Moses stretched out his hand over the sea,” thus ensuring that the children of Israel could pass over dry shod and escape from the pursuing Egyptians, who were engulfed by the same waters. Great wonders were indeed wrought by Moses but the powers he exercised were more limited than those exercised by the Lord Jesus.
Power to raise the dead
There is no record that Moses ever revived a dead person, but the Lord was able to claim, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: and I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of my hand” (John 10:28). There are three occasions recorded when the Lord revived dead persons. Matthew 19:18-19, 23-25, Mark 5:22-23,35-43 and Luke 8:41-42, 49-56 all tell how the Lord brought back to life the daughter of Jairus. Luke is alone in recounting how Jesus restored to the widow ofNain her only son (see Luke 7:11-17). In these two cases there is no evidence that the young persons were followers of our Lord. As for Jairus, our Lord responded to the plea of a grieving father, and in the instance of the widow of Nain, our Lord was moved with compassion for her.
When we come to the raising of Lazarus, there are unique features and they merit our attention. Lazarus was a disciple, one whom Jesus loved (cf. John 11:31). What we might all too easily miss, because of the chapter division, is the dramatic way in which the events of chapter 11 confirm and illustrate the claims made by Jesus in John 10:28 (cited above). It is in this same chapter that he develops the allegory of the good shepherd and identifies himself as the one of whom Ezekiel had prophesied: “Therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle and cattle. And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd (34:23-24).
The sheep hear his voice
First we note the claim made by our Lord, “I am the good shepherd” (vv. 11,14). As such, he knows and is concerned with every single member of his flock, “He calleth his own sheep by name” (v. 3). He knows them all individually. In the chapter there is repeated emphasis upon the response of the sheep to the shepherd’s voice: “The sheep hear his voice” (v. 3); “for they know his voice” (v. 4); “they know not the voice of strangers” (v. 5); “And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice” (v. 16). It is indeed a familiar fact that however humble the intelligence of sheep may appear, they unhesitatingly recognize the voice of their shepherd and even the subtlest attempts to imitate his voice do not deceive them. Here, surely, is a lesson for us in these latter days. We need to be thoroughly acquainted with our Lord’s voice and be able to recognize unhesitatingly any spurious presentation of his teaching.
When the Lord finishes the allegory, there is a dispute among his hearers — to the unbelieving he declares, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: and I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of my hand” (vv. 27-28). In the care of the good shepherd, and in his alone, there is security, a security which nothing can threaten.
The raising of Lazarus
Coming to John 11, we note Lazarus was evidently desperately sick and his sisters, Martha and Mary sent an urgent message to the Lord in the hope he would come soon to restore their brother to health. But the Lord was in no hurry — the sickness would provide a revelation of the Father’s and Son’s glory (v. 4). In the death of Lazarus, as in the case of Jairus’ daughter (see Matt. 9:24), the Lord taught that death was merely a sleep from which a person could be awakened. The Lord’s unnecessary delay must have been a grievous disappointment to the sisters. When Jesus eventually arrived in Bethany, Martha greeted him with the statement that if he had been with them, Lazarus would not have died (v. 21). At the same time, Martha expressed confidence in the Lord, “And even now I know that, whatsoever thou shalt ask of God, God will give it thee” (v. 23). Although Martha went on to express her faith in the resurrection at the last day (v 24), her expressions of confidence were to acquire an immediate significance for the Lord declared, “I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth on me, though he die, yet shall he live” (v. 25).
When finally Jesus arrived at the grave in the company of the sisters and others, he gave instructions for the removal of the stone sealing the tomb. Whatever faith Martha possessed, now in a down-to-earth reaction to her brother’s condition, she exclaimed, “Lord, by this time he stinketh: for he hath been dead four days” (v. 39) If ever there was a challenge to the powers invested in the Lord, and claimed by him, here was a situation to test them — a follower whose corpse by this time was decaying. As our present subject is more particularly the Father’s re-sponse to the Son, we should pay special attention to what the Lord does and says. First, as on other occasions he looks up to heaven and thereby shows that his authority is derived from his God. Then he says, “Father, I thank thee that thou heardest me. Now I knew that thou hast heard me. And I know that thou hearest me always: but because of the people which stand by I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me.” (vv. 41-43).
John 10 foreshadows John 11
Here is the supreme test of the Father’s response to His Son: can the Lord, in a situation utterly beyond human power, bring back to life one of his beloved followers? In the allegory of the good shepherd, he had said that he called the sheep individually by name (10:3) and that each member of the flock knew the shepherd’s voice. With these reflections in mind, we note what happened at the grave side in Bethany — the Lord cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth” (v. 43). One of the flock hears his name, and knows that it is pronounced by the good shepherd. From a human viewpoint, the result was extraordinary: “He that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes and his face was bound with a napkin. Jesus said unto them, loose him, and let him go” (v. 44). The circumstances of the miracle were in every way unprecedented. While it is true that Lazarus was not on this occasion made immortal, the Lord demonstrates that no physical obstacle can come between the good shepherd and his sheep, not even death itself. It is thus that his promise to his followers will be made good, “And they shall never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of my hand” (John 10:28).
Reflection upon the raising of Lazarus may remind us of an extraordinary incident in the Old Testament which presents parallels. In the days of the kings, a man was buried in the sepulchre of Elisha, and revived and stood upon his feet (II Kings 13:21). The incident, remarkable as it was, is doubtless evidence of the holiness of Elisha’s character. By comparison, however, this episode is but a hint of what was to come. The raising of Lazarus vindicates Jesus’ claim to be the resurrection and the life, the ever-living Lord who will, at a time determined by his Father, descend from heaven and raise the dead of all ages. As Jesus expressed in an earlier incident, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, the hour cometh, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and they that hear shall live” (John 5:25). It is imperative to listen to the voice of our Lord, for therein lies the key to eternal life.
When he taught the figure of the good shepherd, the Lord had us Gentiles in mind, “And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd” (John 10:16). The message for each disciple could not be clearer. While it is folly and death to ignore the shepherd’s voice, it is joy and life to respond to it.
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One