THE LIFE OF CHRIST SERIES VOLUME X

Jesus in Jerusalem

by Gordon Lindsay

Published By

CHRIST FOR THE NATIONS

Box 24910

Dallas, Texas 75224

Litho U.S.A.

Reprinted 1978

All Rights Reserved

Contents

Chapter I

Jesus Goes Up to Jerusalem. .................................................5

Chapter II

The Woman Taken in Adultery. .........................................11

Chapter III

The Healing of the Man Born Blind. ..................................19

Chapter IV

The Good Shepherd. ...........................................................25

Chapter V

The Raising of Lazarus. ......................................................29

Chapter I

Jesus Goes Up to Jerusalem

1

If He were to continue to teach in an orderly way, it was

impossible for Jesus to remain any length of time in Capernaum

with the great crowds following Him about. It was therefore

necessary for Him to make a change of locale in His ministry.

Apparently for some time He had been considering returning to

Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles which was to take place

shortly. Even then, there was great activity in Galilee and soon

the annual caravan of pilgrims would be leaving to go to

Jerusalem to celebrate the feast.

The Feast of Tabernacles was one of the most important of

the annual festivals of the Jews. During the seven days it was

celebrated, the people lived in booths, thus recalling their desert

wanderings. The Law was read daily and each morning the

trumpets sounded twenty-one times. The feast also had special

significance because it followed four days after the atonement,

when a solemn expiation was made for the sins of the people.

About this time Jesus’ brethren came to Him with some

advice about making this trip.

Now the Jews’ feast of tabernacles was at hand. His

brethren therefore said unto him, Depart hence, and go

into Judaea, that thy disciples, also may see the works that

thou doest.

John 7:2-3

It was evident that His brothers in the flesh thought they

knew what was best for Him, better than He Himself knew. They

were getting ready to make the journey and they thought He

ought to go also.

Since the fame of His ministry had spread at that time, there

was a certain distinction to being a brother of Jesus. They were

not believers in the sense that His disciples were, but they had

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Jesus in Jerusalem

seen the miracles He had performed and did not rule out the

possibility that He could be the Messiah. Of course, their idea of

the Messiah was the same as that shared by the multitude. If

Jesus were what He claimed, He should delay no longer. Let the

nation know who He was. Why all the secrecy?

For there is no man that doeth anything in secret, and

he himself seeketh to be known openly. If thou do these

things, shew thyself to the world. For neither did his

brethren believe in him.

John 7:4-5

It is difficult to know just all that was in the minds of His

brethren when they told Him these things. They apparently

assumed that Jesus was as eager for notoriety as they and was

restrained only by cowardice. The Lord could have been insulted

by their remarks but He chose not to be. Instead He answered

them kindly and with dignity.

He explained that His time had not come and He would not

yet go up to this feast. So He let His brethren depart uncertain of

His intentions.

Actually, it was necessary to the security of His plans that

the people should not be advised about them, lest the more

enthusiastic attempt to make Him king—as they proposed doing

after He had fed the five thousand. The people, of course, would

be asking His brethren whether He was coming to the feast and

it was necessary that His brethren should answer with perfect

truthfulness that they did not know whether or not He was

coming.

As might be anticipated, there was a great expectation that

Jesus would attend the feast. People kept asking, “Where is

He?” At the same time there was a heated argument concerning

the character of His mission. “Some said, He is a good man:

others said, Nay; but he deceiveth the people” (John 7:12).

Suddenly in the midst of all the discussion Jesus appeared,

apparently unaccompanied by any of His disciples. Directly He

went up to the temple and began teaching. As the Jews listened

6

Jesus Goes Up to Jerusalem

to Him, they were puzzled. This man had never attended any of

the rabbinical schools—where then did He get His wisdom? It

was a similar question to that which had been raised in Nazareth.

Jesus answered their question by saying that His wisdom

had come from His Father in heaven. Moreover, He gave them a

challenge saying, “If any man will do his will, he shall know

of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of

myself” (John 7:17).

Then Jesus cut closer to the line. He told them that although

Moses had given them the Law and indeed they had obeyed it in

a punctilious sense, they were wholly ignorant of its principles.

Despite their fanatical observance of trivialities, they had failed

to keep the basic commandments of the Law.

Then Jesus said, “Why go ye about to kill me?” This was a

guilty secret that the rulers of the Jews had concealed from the

multitude, and it startled them. They parried the statement by a

rude accusation, “Thou hast a devil: who goeth about to kill

thee?”

Jesus took no notice of this impudent sneer but reasoned

with them in deep earnestness. He referred to His previous

miracle of healing which had taken place on one of the porches

of Bethesda on the Sabbath day. They were still marvelling over

that miracle; nevertheless, because it was done on the Sabbath

day the Jews had sought to kill Him. Jesus pointed out their

inconsistency. The Law directed that a child be circumcised on

the eighth day. If it happened to be on the Sabbath, the child was

circumcised on that day anyway. And was not healing more

important than circumcision?

The news of Christ’s return to Jerusalem soon got around to

the chief priests. Someone brought them the information that

Jesus was teaching in the temple and they asked, “Do the rulers

know indeed that this is the very Christ?” But the answer was

that it could not be so. “Howbeit we know this man whence he

is: but when Christ cometh, no man knoweth whence he is”

(John 7:27).

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Jesus in Jerusalem

Then the Lord began to speak even more boldly. He made

His claim that He came from the Father. This was too much.

They sought to take Him, but when it came to action none had

the boldness to lay hands on Him. Jesus was not awed by their

threats and went on preaching.

Then said Jesus unto them, Yet a little while am I with

you, and then I go unto him that sent me. Ye shall seek me,

and shall not find me: and where I am, thither ye cannot

come.

John 7:33-34

What did Jesus mean by this? Was He going to the dispersed

among the Gentiles? His enemies could not understand what He

meant. He told them that the hour was coming when they would

seek Him. When the terrible judgments fell on the land and

Jerusalem was surrounded by the Roman armies, they would

then remember and would seek Him—but it would be too late.

The Great Prophecy of the Coming of the

Holy Spirit

In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood

and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me,

and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath

said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But

this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him

should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given;

because that Jesus was not yet glorified.

John 7:37-38

On the last day of the feast Jesus made His most significant

prophecy. Early in the morning the priests went to the Pool of

Siloam to draw water for the ceremonies of the temple. Also on

this day the people, after giving thanks for the harvest, prayed

for rain. It was probably after the people had prayed for the

precious gift of God that Jesus arose and began to speak of the

life-giving water which He would give to all those that believed

on Him. It was a prophecy of the coming of the Holy Spirit,

which would come upon the disciples on the day of Pentecost.

8

Jesus Goes Up to Jerusalem

As Jesus taught the people, more and more of them were

persuaded that He was that Great Prophet spoken of by Moses.

Others were convinced that He was not only a prophet but the

very Christ.

Nevertheless, some of the Jews put forth an objection, which

is a good illustration of how a little knowledge can be worse

than no knowledge at all. The objectors pointed out that the

Scriptures taught that Christ would be born in Bethlehem, and

they noted that He had been born in Nazareth. As we all know,

Jesus was indeed born in Bethlehem and this lack of true

knowledge of the facts led them astray. If, however, they had

been well-versed in the Scriptures, they would have known that

the Great Light was to shine also in the darkness of Galilee. This

light was from Immanuel who would be called “Wonderful,

Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The

Prince of Peace.”

Nevertheless the dimness shall not be such as was in

her vexation, when at the first he lightly afflicted the land

of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, and afterward did

more grievously afflict her by the way of the sea, beyond

Jordan, in Galilee of the nations. The people that walked

in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the

land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light

shined ... For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given:

and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his

name be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God,

The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Isa. 9:1-2, 6

The time had come for the officers who had been sent by the

Sanhedrin to take Jesus. The division of opinion among the

people afforded a favorable opportunity to do so. The officers

they sent stood half-sheltered behind the temple pillars waiting

for the moment to carry out their orders. But as they listened to

the words of Jesus, they too came under His spell and their will

was paralyzed to act. When they returned to the Sanhedrin

empty-handed and the chief priests and Pharisees asked them

why they had not brought Him, they could only answer, “Never

9

Jesus in Jerusalem

man spake like this man.”

The exasperated Pharisees replied to this explanation with

angry taunts: “Are ye also deceived? Have any of the rulers or

of the Pharisees believed on him? But this people who

knoweth not the law are cursed” (John 7:47-49).

Only one voice raised in favor of Jesus, and it was a timid

one. This was Nicodemus who had visited Jesus by night. He

said, “Doth our law judge any man, before it hear him, and

know what he doeth?” Nicodemus could never forget that night

he spent with Jesus and His words had haunted him ever since.

However, he feared to confess his faith, knowing the storm of

abuse he would receive. So he merely raised a point of order,

asking whether or not it was legal to condemn Jesus before they

had heard Him. Even this mild query roused their scorn and they

asked him if He were also of Galilee. “Search, and look: for

out of Galilee ariseth no prophet” (John 7:52).

Here was the heart of their error. They considered that

Jerusalem was the center of all religion. When the Messiah

appeared, He would come from, or near Jerusalem. They looked

upon Galilee as a mere provincial territory. Nothing good could

come from there. In their ignorance they overlooked the fact that

several prophets had arisen from that region, including Jonah,

Elijah and Nahum.

On this note the Sanhedrin broke up. There is no blindness

so blind as that which refuses to see. They had not succeeded in

apprehending Christ but they had resolved in their hearts they

would never cease until their diabolical purpose was achieved.

10

Chapter II

The Woman Taken in Adultery

2

There is a great deal of controversy over the authenticity of

the first eleven verses of the eighth chapter of John. It is true that

these verses are not found in some of the manuscripts.

Nevertheless, they appear in some of the oldest readings. It is

quoted by a number of the Early Church fathers such as St.

Augustine and Jerome. Although scholars claim to find the style

of the verses different from other parts of the book, John could

well have embodied it in his gospel from other writings. The

story has the ring of truth and fits in well with the continuity of

thought developed in the chapter.

When the events of the previous day had been concluded,

Jesus went to the Mt. of Olives to spend the night. Just where He

laid His head, whether in the Garden of Gethsemane or near it, is

not certain. He simply slept on the green turf under the olive

trees and when He awakened at dawn He could resume

communion with His Heavenly Father.

Early the next morning Jesus was back at the temple, only to

learn that a fresh plot had been hatched against Him. It is quite

probable that during the festival, with people living in the

freedom of the booths that acts of immorality occurred. One

such case had been discovered on the previous night and the

woman involved was apprehended and brought to the scribes

and Pharisees. Apparently her guilty partner had not been

detained.

According to the Law of Moses, the adulteress was guilty of

death by stoning. In the Law there was a provision of the fearful

ordeal of “water of jealousy” by which guilt was determined

(Nu. 5:14-29). However, because of the prevalence of

immorality and the decadence of national life, the Mosaic

penalty was no longer carried out. The scribes and Pharisees had

11

Jesus in Jerusalem

no horror of the evil, since it was only too true that many of

them were involved in immoral acts.

Nevertheless, when chance brought this guilty woman into

their power it occurred to them that here was just the

opportunity they had been looking for to annoy and entrap the

man whom they regarded as their archenemy. They were

heedless of the fact that Roman Law would prevent them from

carrying out the penalty. The case of this woman did not differ

from that of countless others, and if they had truly and honestly

desired an opinion of Jesus it would not have been necessary to

drag the miserable woman into the presence of Jesus.

But that is what they did. The Pharisees took her fresh from

the shame of the act into the temple where Jesus was teaching.

They brought this terror-stricken, disheveled creature into the

midst of the people to use her as an instrument of their evil plans

to ensnare or embarrass Jesus. It evidenced on their part a

calculating malice and a revolting brutality of the lowest order.

Having set the woman before Jesus, the Pharisees in a tone of

earnest piety and hypocritical deference explained that the

woman was taken in the very act of adultery. “Now Moses in

the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what

sayest thou?” (Verse 5).

The Pharisees thought they had Him. They knew full well

His compassion for sinners, how He had even chosen a publican

for a disciple, that sinners sat with Him at dinner and harlots

even bathed His feet with their tears. Would He therefore acquit

the woman and free her, thus making Himself the target for a

charge that He openly violated the Law? Or, if He should

condemn her He would shock the people who were touched by

His love and tenderness. Perhaps He would also anger the

magistrates who would feel that He was intruding into their

domain. It seemed to the complacent Pharisees that they had

Him trapped and that it was absolutely impossible for Christ to

extricate Himself from this difficulty.

What disgust must have stirred the heart of Jesus by the

crude display of the meanness that these despicable hypocrites

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The Woman Taken in Adultery

showed! In their coarseness they had overriden every thought of

compassion, piety and delicacy. Jesus grieved for the

degradation of the poor woman, but even more for the

unblushing malignity of her accusers who obviously had lost the

last trace of human decency.

Jesus answered the challenge in a peculiar way, which

showed His definite compassion and wisdom. He bent forward

in His seat as if He did not hear the accusers, and began writing

with His finger on the ground. The Pharisees, mistaking His

failure to speak for confusion on His part, began to press for an

answer.

But suddenly Jesus looked up with His searing glance,

which caused the accusers to pause. He spoke slowly and

deliberately, “He that is without sin among you, let him first

cast a stone at her” (Verse 7).

Jesus had not abrogated the Mosaic Law. He admitted the

justice of the Law. And how those words at first must have come

as a death warrant to the poor woman’s heart. The terrible Law

stood as written and Jesus did not rescind it. But the way He had

spoken had a most unexpected effect. He had struck at their

consciences. It is easy for the hypocritically righteous to crowd

back into their sub-consciences their own sins, when they think

nobody knows about them. But suddenly fear came over these

men. Did Jesus know their secret sins?

They wondered what Jesus was writing on the ground, and

they looked to see. We are not told what He wrote but what

could it possibly have been? Was it not something relevant to

what He had just spoken, “He that is without sin....” ? What

could Jesus have been writing but some of the sins of the

accusers, beginning with the eldest and going down the line to

the youngest? The MSV in St. Marks in Venice has indeed the

curious reading, “He wrote on the ground the sins of each one of

them.” If this were the truth, and there is no reason to suppose

otherwise, we have the explanation of why the eldest left first

and then one after another in turn. When they saw the terrible

indictment in the sand, they wanted to get away in a hurry. The

13

Jesus in Jerusalem

scribes and Pharisees who a moment before had been rude and

insolent, were conscience-stricken and left as rapidly as their

dignity would permit. To have condemned the woman would

have brought the thunder crashing down upon their own heads.

Jesus did not even watch them leave but permitted them to

slink away silently. He had no desire to punish them further by

exposing their evil lives. He knew that they would make no

further move against the woman, for indeed they had left her

sitting on the ground. Suddenly Jesus lifted His head again and

looked, and seeing none there but the woman He asked her,

“Woman, where are those thine accusers? hath no man

condemned thee?” She replied, “No man, Lord.”

The woman might have gone also, for there was none to

hinder her. It would have been the natural impulse for her to

flee, to get away from the scorn of the people, to escape from

danger, to hide her shame. But cowering on the ground, she

would not move before her judge. He had a look of holy

innocence, but at the same time one of kindness and forgiveness

and made her feel her shame to the utmost. Now at last she felt

hope within her. Her remaining there was a sign of her

penitence. As St. Augustine put it, “Two things were here left

alone together—Misery and Mercy.”

The case was dismissed for lack of executioners, and Jesus

bade her to depart forgiven. “Neither do I condemn thee: go,

and sin no more” were His parting words. Surely His words

were never forgotten and her deliverance was for eternity.

Is this beautiful passage of the Scriptures genuine? Dean

Farrar in his Life of Christ gives his satisfying answer:

Were the critical evidence against the genuineness of this

passage far more overwhelming than it is, it would yet bear

upon its surface the strongest proof of its own authentic

truthfulness. It is hardly too much to say that the mixture

which it displays of tragedy and of tenderness—the contrast

which it involves between low, cunning, and exalted nobility

of intellect and emotion—transcends all power of human

imagination to have invented it; while the picture of a divine

14

The Woman Taken in Adultery

insight reading the inmost secrets of the heart, and a yet

diviner love which sees those inmost secrets with larger eyes

than ours, furnishes us with a conception of Christ’s power and

person at once too lofty and too original to have been founded

on anything but fact. No one could have invented, for a few

could even appreciate, the sovereign purity and ineffable

charm—the serene authority of condemnation, and of pardon

—by which the story is so deeply characterized. The repeated

instances in which, without a moment’s hesitation, He foiled

the crafty designs of His enemies, and in foiling them taught

some eternal principle of thought and action, are among the

most unique proofs of His more than human wisdom.

Christ, The Light of the World

How soon Jesus resumed His teaching again after this

incident we do not know, but it was not long. After a short

interval He began again, this time speaking in the treasury (John

8:20). The conviction that had been wrought in the hearts of the

Pharisees who had accused the woman may have been the

occasion for the theme of His message.

Or it may have been the giant candelabra, fifty cubits high,

that stood in the temple and which burned during the Feast of

the Tabernacles. At any rate, He began His message with the

moving words, “I am the light of the world: he that followeth

me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of

life” (John 8:12).

In the address which follows, Christ began to present His

claims. His introduction harks back to the prologue of John,

which declares “In him was life; and the life was the light of

men. And the light shineth in, darkness; and the darkness

comprehended it not” (John 1:4-5). The ensuing argument was

the conflict of the light of revelation with the darkness of

religious prejudice and ignorance. The divisions of the discourse

are plainly marked.

1. Christ declares His divinity.

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Jesus in Jerusalem

When the Pharisees answered Jesus and declared that He

was glorifying Himself, He defended His position by stating that

He had another witness, the witness of the Father:

It is also written in your law, that the testimony of two

men is true. I am one that bear witness of myself, and the

Father that hath sent me beareth witness of me.

John 8:17-18

Incidentally, in speaking of Christ’s relationship with the

Father He showed that there was both unity and plurality of the

Godhead, for He likens Himself and His Father to two persons.

This plurality, or actually a triunity, could in no wise affect

the absolute unity of the Godhead. Elsewhere He says, “I and

my Father are one” (John 10:30).

2. He declares the solemn truth that the unbelieving will die in

their sins.

Because the Jews knew Him not, they did not and could not

know the Father. The awful consequence was that they would

die in their sins:

Then said Jesus again unto them, I go my way, and ye

shall seek me, and shall die in your sins: whither I go, ye

cannot come.

John 8:21

This statement merely provoked the Jews into a captious and

irrelevant questioning. Did Jesus mean that He would kill

Himself, “because He saith, Whither I go, ye cannot come”?

Humanity knows nothing of its origin or destiny beyond what

has been revealed. Christ alone possessed this knowledge, and

therefore was qualified to be a witness. He repeated His

statement that He was from above, while they were from

beneath. If therefore they did not believe in Him, they would die

in their sins.

3. Jesus reveals His approaching death.

Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have lifted up the

Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do

16

The Woman Taken in Adultery

nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I

speak these things.

John 8:28

Jesus then referred to His coming death on the cross, that

many who did not believe on Him during His lifetime would

believe as the result of His death. But God would be with Him

even then, “for I do always those things that please him”

(Verse 29).

4. Those whom the Son set free were free indeed.

If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be

free indeed.

John 8:36

Even as Jesus spoke, many were convinced and believed.

But Jesus showed that momentary faith was not enough. Men

had to continue in His word if they were to be true disciples. If

they did that, then they should become free.

This disturbed them, for being Abraham’s seed they

considered themselves already free men. But Jesus spoke frankly

that “whosoever committeth sin” was the servant of sin. Only

if He, Christ, set them free could they be free men. Here was the

Jews’ great error. They could conceive of no freedom but

political freedom. They wanted a Messiah that would rid them of

the Romans and free them from paying tribute. That to them was

freedom.

5. Being in bondage to sin, they were the children of the devil.

Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your

father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning,

and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in

him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he

is a liar, and the father of it.

John 8:44

Jesus then made a statement that deeply wounded their

national pride. The Jews boasted that they were Abraham’s seed

and heirs of the promise. Jesus recognized that they were indeed

Abraham’s seed after the flesh (Verse 37), but not Abraham’s

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Jesus in Jerusalem

seed by faith, and faith was what really counted.

This was no time for diplomatic niceties; the blunt truth had

to be told. Their hatred of Him was proof that instead of God

being their Father, they were the children of the devil.

Then Jesus gave them a challenge. Earlier He had indeed

convicted the accusers of the woman caught in the sin of

adultery, so that they slipped out from His presence. But He then

said, “Which of you convinceth me of sin?” (Verse 46). Stung

by the rebuke, they could not point to any sin but in blind fury

they said that He was “a Samaritan, and hast a devil.”

6. The offer of eternal life was given to those who believed in

Him.

Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying,

he shall never see death.

John 8:51

This statement by Christ puzzled His audience. Abraham

and the prophets were dead. How then could Jesus say, “If a

man keep my saying, he shall never see death”? Their

spiritual vision was so darkened that what Jesus said was all a

mystery. He added to the mystery, saying, “Abraham rejoiced

to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad” (Verse 56).

When did Abraham see Jesus? Did He not see Him in the

theophany? (Gen. 18). In Abraham’s bosom, or paradise, were

not the saints given instruction concerning the coming of the

One who was the resurrection and the life? Were not these saints

rejoicing, since the time of their deliverance from the lower

paradise was at hand?

7. Jesus reveals His pre-existence that He is the Eternal One.

Jesus ended the discourse with a final statement. The Jews

pointed out that Jesus was not yet fifty years old. How then had

He seen Abraham? He told them that “before Abraham was, I

am.” This was too much for the Jews. They took up stones to

stone Him. But something held them back, and “going through

the midst of them” he passed by.

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Chapter III

The Healing of the Man Born Blind

3

And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which was blind

from his birth. And his disciples asked him, saying,

Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was

born blind? Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned,

nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made

manifest in him.

John 9:1-3

On the following Sabbath day as Jesus and His disciples

were making their way along one of the streets of Jerusalem, He

saw a man who had been blind from birth. The neighbors

characterized him as a beggar (Verse 8).

His disciples when they saw him seemed more interested in

speculating on the cause of His blindness rather than ministering

to him. Therefore, they asked Jesus the question as to who had

sinned, he who had been born blind or his parents? Since the

man had been born in that condition, to assume that his affliction

was the result of his own sins would have meant that the man

had sinned in some previous existence. Some rabbinical teachers

actually held to the doctrine of pre-existence and reincarnation

of the human soul and the disciples may have been brought in

contact with that teaching.

The Law affirmed that Jehovah would visit the sins of the

fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of

those who hated Him (Exod. 20:5; 34:6-7). This is true of course

by the nature of sin, rather than by the direct act of God. The

profligate may by his life of sin cause his child to be born totally

blind or otherwise handicapped. Jesus refused to follow them

into the unprofitable regions of barren speculation and declined

to sit in judgment upon the sins of others.

One thing we can be sure of, however. If sin had not come

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Jesus in Jerusalem

into the world there would have been no sickness, no blindness,

no death. For everything of God’s creation was good and was

pronounced so by God. Therefore, all the misery in the world

has come about because somebody sinned. It could be a parent’s

sin, or it could be the result of a sin committed by someone

further back. Again, it might have been the result of the

individual’s sin.

In this particular case Jesus said that the affliction was not

the result of the man’s sin or of the parents. There is no

punctuation in the original Greek and the sentence could be

punctuated as follows: “Neither did this man sin, nor his

parents, but that the works of God should be made manifest

in him, I must work the works of him that sent me, while it

is day: the night cometh when no man can work.” Whether

this is the correct punctuation or not, one thing seems certain.

God permitted this incident to be recorded to correct a belief

quite common in that day, that all diseases were the result of a

person’s sin. That many diseases are so caused goes without

saying. Perhaps even the majority of illnesses are the

consequence of some sin of omission or commission. But since

there are cases, no doubt many, in which the person is in no way

involved in the cause, it is therefore inadvisable to accuse the

afflicted person as being responsible. Jesus had told the man

healed in John 5, to “sin no more, lest a worse thing come

unto thee” (John 5:14).

But the lack of sight of the blind man had aroused the Lord’s

compassion; therefore, he directed Himself to the task of healing

the man, using what seemed a novel method. In other cases of

healing of the blind He either spoke the word or else touched the

man’s eyes. But in this instance He did something entirely

different. Jesus spat on the ground, made clay with spittle, put it

upon the blind man’s eyes and bade him to “go, wash in the

pool of Siloam.” The man went his way and did what he was

told, and he received his sight.

Everything Christ did was for a specific purpose. Other

blind were healed by the spoken word. Why did He do it

20

The Healing of the Man Born Blind

differently this time? The answer seems apparent. In the other

cases it was a matter of healing. This time, it was a creative

miracle; the man had never seen even from birth. Since God

originally created man from the dust of the earth, symbolically

Christ picked up the dust, made spittle and new eyeballs were

created. When the eyes were washed the man could see.

Since the man was well-known in Jerusalem as a blind

beggar, his appearance with his eyes whole resulted in a tumult

of excitement. The Jews could scarcely believe his testimony

and they made him repeat it again and again. They questioned

him as to who had healed him, and he replied that a man named

Jesus did it. They then brought him to the Pharisees, who were

by no means happy over the news. Immediately they pointed out

that it was the Sabbath day, and that by healing him, Jesus had

broken the Sabbath. Therefore, He was not of God. Not all the

Pharisees agreed with this view, but were sensible enough to see

that only God could have performed it.

Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not

of God, because he keepeth not the Sabbath day. Others

said, How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles?

And there was a division among them.

John 9:16

As usual, the ones that are the most critical are those whose

voices are the loudest. They took over the inquisition of the

blind man. First they asked him who had been healed what he

thought of Jesus? He replied saying, “He is a prophet.”

But the Jews still were not convinced that the man had ever

been blind and suspected that they were being hoaxed by

someone who had put the man up to it. Even today, when some

unusual miracle takes place and the evidence is irrefutable, the

spirit of unbelief takes shelter in the theory that a fraud has been

committed. Not until the parents of the man had been called

before them and they had identified him as their own son who

had been blind, were the Jews finally compelled—though much

against their will—to accept the miracle. Perhaps they hoped to

browbeat or bribe the parents into a denial of the relationship,

21

Jesus in Jerusalem

but in this they were foiled. The parents who with a certain

cunning refused to be drawn into any statement that might

implicate them or result in unpleasant consequences, told them

that if they wanted further information to go to their son: “He is

of age; ask him; he shall speak for himself.”

These words spake his parents, because they feared

the Jews: for the Jews had agreed already, that if any man

did confess that he was Christ, he should be put out of the

synagogue.

John 9:22

Still suspecting some trick had been played on them, the

Pharisees called in the man again for further cross-examination.

They soon found that he was made of sterner stuff than his

parents. He was not overawed by their affected superiority and

was able to hold his own with them without any difficulty.

They began their interrogation with a pious platitude

followed by an accusation of Jesus. “Give God the praise: we

know that this man is a sinner.” The man who was healed

gave them a swift answer, which will ever be remembered as a

gem of personal testimony. “Whether he be a sinner or no, I

know not: one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I

see.”

Foiled in their hopes of intimidating him, they repeated their

old questions. “What did he to thee? how opened he thine

eyes?” The man was not to be bullied by these arrogant

inquisitors. They had never done anything for him and he saw no

reason to take their insolence. He replied that he had told them

before and they paid no attention. Did they wish to hear again

that they might be His disciples?

This man plainly showed no fear of his questioners. He who

had given him sight had done him an infinite favor and he was

not ready to compromise on his testimony. They poured out a

volley of abuse upon him, followed by a whining expression of

piety, “We are Moses’ disciples.”

The one-time blind man grew bolder then and led the

22

The Healing of the Man Born Blind

conversation. “Herein is a marvellous thing.” A great miracle

has been performed. “Since the world began was it not heard

that any man opened the eyes of one that was born blind. If

this man were not of God, he could do nothing” (John 9:32-

33).

The Pharisees could hardly believe their ears. They saw that

they were being interrogated, rather than being the interrogators.

They were getting nowhere with this man. There was one thing

at least that they could do. They could show their authority by

excommunicating him and putting him out of the synagogue.

And with the words, “Thou wast altogether born in sins, and

dost thou teach us?” they cast him out. Their parting shot was

one of their old traditions, that a man born blind was in that

condition because of his sins—the very thing that Jesus said was

not true.

The Lord heard about the man’s being cast out of the

synagogue, and when He found him He said, “Dost thou believe

on the Son of God?” The man had utter confidence in whatever

Jesus would say. So he said, “Who is he, Lord, that I might

believe on him?” Then Jesus revealed Himself to him saying,

“Thou hast both seen him, and it is he that talketh with

thee.” And the man answered, “Lord, I believe,” and he

worshipped Him.

Only twice did the Lord make such a spontaneous revelation

of His deity. This time to the outcast from the synagogue and on

the other occasion to the outcast from the nation.

Jesus then made a peculiar statement, one that was half

allegory and half parable.

And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this

world, that they which see not might see; and that they

which see might be made blind.

John 9:39

The Pharisees still hovering about heard these words and

they said, “Are we blind also?” Jesus answered, “If ye were

blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see;

23

Jesus in Jerusalem

therefore your sin remaineth.”

24

Chapter IV

The Good Shepherd

4

There are those who suppose that the discourse on the Good

Shepherd belongs somewhere else in the sequence of the Book

of John. The allusion to the healing of the blind man in Verse 21

indicates, however, that it is located in its proper place. Grieved

with the high-handed action of the Pharisees and the rulers of

the Jews who had driven a man out of the synagogue because he

testified of his healing, He spoke the parable of the Good

Shepherd.

In a sort of allegory, He described the sheepfold of that day

and the shepherd. The sheepfold was in charge of a porter who

admitted none but those who had the right of admission. A

shepherd knows every member of his flock and he calls them by

name. Since the shepherd has no other companions in the

wilderness, a very close relationship develops between him and

the sheep.

In the morning He would call them out and lead them to

pasture. They will not follow a stranger because they do not

know the voice of a stranger. On occasion the shepherd may

imperil his life to protect the flock. Thieves come to kill and

destroy, but the Good Shepherd came that “they might have

life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” For the

sheep, He would lay down His very life. The hireling on the

other hand, flees when the wolf comes, “and the wolf catcheth

them, and scattereth the sheep.”

The immediate purpose of the parable was to give

encouragement to the blind man but it has been a favorite

passage with God’s people of all time. The early Christians

loved to use the story of the Good Shepherd as a text for their

sermons. The Christian tombs of the catacombs are adorned with

sketches portraying Christ carrying the lost lamb on His

25

Jesus in Jerusalem

shoulder.

What did it matter then that the Jews had cast the man out of

the synagogue? He, Christ, was the door of the sheep. “By me if

any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out,

and find pasture.” The comparison went further. The rulers of

the Jews were only hireling shepherds, in it for what they could

get by fleecing the sheep.

In the parable Jesus also showed that He had other sheep not

of this fold. These were the Gentiles, for Christ was the

Shepherd—not only of Israel, but of the lost sheep of all

mankind. For these sheep Christ was ready to lay down His life.

This parable that He spoke caused a division to develop

among the Jews. Some said that He had a devil, but others said,

“These are not the words of him that hath a devil. Can a

devil open the eyes of the blind?” (John 10:21).

The Feast of the Dedication

The Feast of the Dedication was celebrated in December,

just about the time of our Christmas season (John 10:22). It

commemorated the purification of the temple by Judas

Maccabaeus after it had been defiled by the execrable Antiochus

Epiphanes. It was celebrated all over the land and pilgrims

usually did not come up to Jerusalem.

During the Feast of Dedication Jesus came into the temple at

a place called Solomon’s Porch. The Jews came to Him

determined that they would settle the matter of His Messiahship

once and for all.

Then came the Jews round about him, and said unto

him, How long dost thou make us to doubt? If thou be the

Christ, tell us plainly.

John 10:24

Jesus answered saying that the works that He did bore

evidence of His ministry. There was nothing more that He could

do or say to prove it to them. He said, “Ye believe not, because

26

The Good Shepherd

ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you” (Verse 26).

The Lord then made some profound remarks of which the

blind Jews understood very little.

1. No man had the power to pluck Christ’s sheep out of the

Father’s hand.

And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never

perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and

no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.

John 10:28-29

Here we have the promise of the security of the believer

from any attack by man or devils. None had the power to take

them from the Father’s hand. However, it should be noted as a

warning against presumption, that a man if he so wished could

leave the Father’s hand. God will not overrule the free will that

He has given man. Jesus made this clear when He said, “If ye

continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed” (John

8:31).

2. He makes a statement of His deity and of the unity of the

Godhead.

“I and my Father are one” (John 10:30).

Previously, Jesus had spoken of the distinction of the Father

and the Son, and compared them to two men (John 8:17-18).

Then He spoke of the essential unity of the Godhead. Men have

difficulty in reconciling the two conceptions. But both are true.

The triunity of God can be likened unto the three dimensions of

nature—length, breadth, and height. Each dimension is distinct

from the other, but none could exist without the other.

Christ’s avowal of His deity of course excited the fierce

opposition and unbelief of the Jews. They took up stones to

stone Him. But His dauntless bearing stayed their wild attempts

to kill Him.

Jesus appealed to the Scriptures, quoting the 82nd Psalm

which said according to the Hebrew usage, “Ye are gods,” that

27

Jesus in Jerusalem

man is indeed the offspring of God and made in the image of

God. If, therefore, God sanctified His Son whom He had sent

into the world, it was not blasphemy for Him to declare Himself

as the Son of God. This was a clear statement of His divinity.

The Jews would gladly have stoned Him and ended His life

then and there, but they dared not. He walked away from them

while the multitude covered His retreat. Jesus left Jerusalem to

return no more until it was to fulfill His mission as the “Lamb

slain from the foundation of the world.”

What were the thoughts of Jesus as He sadly departed from

Jerusalem? Perhaps they are best expressed in Luke 13:34-35:

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets,

and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would

I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather

her brood under her wings, and ye would not. Behold,

your house is left unto you desolate: and verily I say unto

you, Ye shall not see me, until the time come when ye shall

say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

Jesus left the Holy City deeply grieved by the unbelief of the

Jews. He had been rejected by them. Nevertheless, He had won

His own. They included not the great, the wise, nor the mighty

after the flesh, but they were those that the Father had given

unto Him.

Jesus then made His way to a place beyond Jordan where

John at the beginning had baptized. As usual, crowds gathered to

hear Him, “and many believed on him there.” He was not to

remain there long, however, before He received a call from a

family who was very dear to Him, a call that was of a very

urgent nature.

28

Chapter V

The Raising of Lazarus

5

The raising of Lazarus is one of the great climactic miracles

in the life of Christ. Skeptics make an unfavorable argument

against its authenticity because the other evangelists do not

mention this great miracle. It may seem strange that nothing is

said about it by the other evangelists; however, if we knew all

the facts, we would see that there was a perfectly logical reason

for its omission. Lazarus and His sisters no doubt became the

objects of vengeance of the Jewish authorities. The widespread

knowledge of the miracle of Lazarus’ being raised from the dead

was no doubt one of the most powerful weapons in the early

spread of Christianity. The rulers who had put Christ to death

were irrevocably committed to their course and would stop at

nothing.

Therefore, it can be understood in the earlier documents

prepared shortly after the Early Church was formed, that this

incident was omitted to spare the family the incessant

persecution of the Jews. It is noticeable that the synoptists make

a special effort to avoid identifying the family with the miracle.

When Mary anointed Jesus, she is simply called “a woman” by

both Matthew and Mark. Luke contents himself by calling

Bethany “a certain village,” although he knew the name of it

perfectly well. It appears therefore there were special reasons for

not bringing into dangerous prominence a man whom the Jews

were trying to get rid of as a witness to Christ’s miracle-working

power.

There was another important reason for silence. Lazarus had

been dead four days. Because of the great human interest in

what happens beyond the grave, the family would have been the

object of an irreverent curiosity. Jesus had said that “if they

hear not ... the prophets, neither will they be persuaded,

though one (this was another Lazarus) rose from the dead”

29

Jesus in Jerusalem

(Luke 16:31). There were many witnesses to the raising of

Lazarus, and many believed. But others were only angry about it

and wanted Lazarus put to death (John 12.10). At the time John

wrote some sixty years later—long after Jerusalem had been

destroyed—there was of course no need for silence.

Much that we would like to know about this family and their

previous history is hidden, and only one or two other incidents

are recorded which do throw considerable light on the respective

temperaments of the two women. There is no provision made in

the evangelical gospels for the mere gratifying of curiosity.

Whether Martha was a widow to whom the house belonged and

with whom Mary and her brother resided, we cannot tell.

Several things, such as the entertainment of Jesus, the number of

friends who came from Jerusalem to console the sisters, the

possession of their own burial vault, the very costly alabaster

box and ointment, would seem to indicate that the social

position, culture, and means of the family were above average.

With this family, Jesus had the closest of fellowship. Their

home afforded a quiet retreat from the multitude and the sordid

passions of the Jewish hierarchy. There He found refreshing

sleep after the toil of the day. There He enjoyed the fellowship

of kindred spirits and especially of Mary, whose tender devotion

and understanding of His mission was perhaps unequaled by any

other soul at that time.

Bethany is a city two miles from Jerusalem. All view of that

city is shut out by the long ridge of the Mount of Olives. From

there one may look down the steep descent into the valley of

Jordan and see the waters of the Dead Sea, and in the hazy

distance the mountains of Moab. In those days Bethany was

distinguished for a great variety of the most luxurious

vegetation. Olives, pomegranates, figs, and even date trees grew

in abundance in the vicinity.

One day into that peaceful home of Mary and Martha came

the shadow of a dark cloud. Lazarus, their brother, was stricken

with one of those malignant fevers that breaks out so suddenly

and pursues its course so swiftly. If anything were to be done, it

30

The Raising of Lazarus

had to be done quickly.

In their sore extremity there was one thing that instinctively

came into their minds. Their beloved friend Jesus, if only He

were there, He would heal their brother. Miracles of healing may

excite wonder, but there is no time when this gift of God can be

so really valued as when sickness strikes in the home. Therefore,

a messenger was summoned and told to go hurriedly to where

Jesus was, beyond Jordan.

That was all that could be done. The sisters returned to the

sick-bed to give such ministration as was possible. But they

noted with no little alarm that the symptoms were indicating a

rapid decline of the patient. The messenger had a long way to

go, for Jesus was far away in the confines of the Peraean hills.

The message that the sisters sent is touching in its brevity and

simplicity. They made no request; they did not ask Him to

hasten to them. They simply said, “Lord, behold, he whom

thou lovest is sick” (John 11:3). Surely those words bespeak a

calmness and serenity in the midst of danger. There is no

uncontrollable feeling, no useless lamentation. They had

breathed the atmosphere of tranquility so long that when the

sudden storm arose, they had peace. How different are they who

give no care to spiritual things, but when the critical hour comes

they yield to every fear and dread and are swallowed up in their

calamity.

In the meantime, the courier had found Jesus and delivered

to Him the message. Jesus replied saying, “This sickness is not

unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God

might be glorified thereby” (Verse 4). Jesus knew the end

from the beginning and that Lazarus had perhaps, even then,

died. He knew also what He would do. The disciples of course

only understood His full meaning afterward.

The courier received this message from Jesus and turned

about and sped on his way, thrilled with hope, to convey the

news to the sisters. But when he returned the message that he

bore brought no joy. Lazarus was even then beyond human aid.

He was dead. The faith of the sisters was having a severe trial.

31

Jesus in Jerusalem

To all appearances, Jesus’ Word had been belied. Much as they

wanted to believe Him, the cold facts of harsh reality stared

them in the face. We are told, “Jesus loved Martha, and her

sister, and Lazarus.” Yet they could hardly discern the Lord’s

purpose, hidden beneath His apparent neglect.

How the human heart beats with joy when the physician

gives the joyful sentence, “Out of danger,” and what a wild

tumult of emotion when the beloved one near the gates of death

opens his eyes and returns smile for smile. But it was not to be

so for the two sisters. Lazarus was dead, and the practical

Martha realized that preparations for burial could not long be

delayed.

The story of Lazarus carries an important message to those

who search for Christ’s deliverance. Not always is the healing

instantaneous. There may be a delay. Faith demands a committal

that looks not at the conditions, not at the symptoms, but only at

the promise. How were Mary and Martha to interpret Christ’s

confident message that the sickness would not be fatal? Was

there not a horrible temptation to fear that somehow they had

been deceived? Thoughts like that must have passed through the

minds of Mary and Martha as they kept the lonely vigil of death.

We are sure that even as Job who said, “Though he slay me, yet

will I trust in him,” they turned those thoughts away. Yet

Lazarus was dead and they knew not how they could reconcile

the words of Jesus with the fact. In those dark hours of

desolation how little they realized the great joy that soon would

be theirs.

But in the meantime, preparations for the funeral had to be

made. The mourners came and the purification rites were

observed. The winding sheet was wrapped around the deceased,

even as the weeping and wailing began. Finally the procession

moved slowly to the family sepulchre. The body was interred

and the last act of love was completed. The funeral ceremonies

were concluded and Mary and Martha went back to their

desolate home.

In the meantime, what had happened to Jesus? All the time

32

The Raising of Lazarus

Lazarus was in the Saviour’s thoughts. Yet He tarried beyond

Jordan two days longer. Whatever His purpose was in the delay,

we are not told. But He who is the resurrection and the life and

the Master of death need not hurry to keep an appointment with

death. Death must bow before His appointment!

Still there are clues to Jesus’ delay. Jesus tarried two days. It

required one or two days to return. That makes three or four

days. When Jesus got back to Bethany, Lazarus had been dead

four days. If Jesus had come at once Lazarus would have been

dead already. If He were to demonstrate that He was the

resurrection and the life, it would have been best to wait until

corruption had set in beyond all doubt. Therefore, He did not

return until Lazarus had been dead a full four days.

On the third day after Jesus received the message He said to

His disciples, “Let us go into Judaea again.” They were not

aware of what had really happened in Bethany and they were

solicitous for the Master’s safety. The disciples said, “Master,

the Jews of late sought to stone thee; and goest thou thither

again?” (Verse 8). Jesus reassured them that God’s protection

would be upon Him until His time had been fulfilled. And then

He informed them that Bethany, not Jerusalem, was His

destination. “Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I

may awake him out of sleep” (Verse 11). The disciples, still

innocent of what had really happened replied, “Lord, if he

sleep, he shall do well.”

Then it became necessary for Christ to tell them plainly that

Lazarus was dead. This was startling news and the disciples’

response was true to type. For once the impetuous Peter was

silent. He could think of nothing to say. But Thomas, a good

man but one inclined to look on the dark side of things said,

“Let us also go, that we may die with him.” Knowing that

Lazarus was dead and the Jews had a price on Jesus’ head, and

possibly theirs, this was the only suggestion Thomas had to

offer. So we have Thomases today, good people, but they cannot

see through the gloom into the realms where faith prevails. They

cannot look beyond conditions and circumstances to God’s

33

Jesus in Jerusalem

mighty promise of deliverance.

Finally Jesus and His disciples reached the city of Bethany.

Mary, quiet and retiring, was sitting in the house lost in her

sorrow, unconscious of Christ’s arrival. Martha, however,

received word of His approach and went out to meet Him. While

she was on her way word came to the apostolic party (which of

course they already knew) that Lazarus had been dead four days.

He had evidently died about the time Jesus had received the

message. Martha could not understand the disaster that had

come to their home. She spoke to Him almost reproachfully:

Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord, if thou hadst been

here, my brother had not died. But I know, that even now,

whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee.

John 11:21-22

The words “even now” seemed to indicate that she had not

altogether abandoned hope. It is not uncommon for the bereaved,

even the most practical, to clutch at a straw. Down deep in

Martha’s heart was a secret hope that she dared not put into

words, that Jesus would somehow perform the impossible.

Perhaps on the first day the hope had been strong. Had not the

daughter of Jairus been raised, and also the son of the widow of

Nain? But there was the long delay and the body by this time

was putrified. This is seen by her remonstrance against the

opening of the tomb (John 11:39). Why, oh why, had the Lord

delayed so long?

Jesus replied, “Thy brother shall rise again.” This only

made her heart sink lower. If He had said “live again,” she

would have had hope. But He had said “rise again.” That meant

that he would rise on the resurrection day. That was a real hope

but it was far away. Then Jesus made His great pronouncement

that He was the resurrection and the life.

Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life:

he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he

live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never

die. Believest thou this?

John 11:25-26

34

The Raising of Lazarus

The words, “Believest thou this?” were a challenge to

Martha. They are a challenge to all the sick and suffering that

resurrection power will go through their bodies if they can but

believe.

It was not for one like Martha to get the full significance of

all that Jesus meant but she did respond showing her great faith

in Jesus, “Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the

Son of God, which should come into the world” (Verse 27).

Having uttered her great confession, she went back to

inform her sister Mary of His arrival, for Jesus had asked for

her. She found Mary in the house. It is evident from the secrecy

with which she delivered the message and the haste and silence

in which she went to meet Jesus that precautions were necessary

and that there was danger that accompanied Christ’s visit.

Jesus was still outside the town surrounded by His friends

and disciples. When Mary reached Him, she was more

impassioned than her sister and fell at His feet weeping and said,

“Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died.”

Friends of the family followed her, all of them weeping. Mary’s

emotion was the more intense and she spoke only the few words

before abandoning herself to her anguish. So deep was her grief

that she entered into no further conversation, but in humble

reverence left all in His hands.

As Jesus looked at all this love and misery, beholding the

piteous spectacle of human bereavement and the utter futility of

words to console the bereaved, His own frame shook with strong

emotion. He could only say, “Where have ye laid him?” and

someone said, “Come and see.” He followed them with silent

tears flowing down His cheeks.

The company that had gathered at Bethany were by no

means all friendly to Jesus. It is not unlikely that there were

spies there watching to see if Jesus would return because of the

death of His friend. Nevertheless, while this dramatic scene was

unfolding no one was going to Jerusalem to inform the Jews of

His presence. In fact, some of them said with a dubious note,

“Could not this man, which opened the eyes of the blind,

35

Jesus in Jerusalem

have caused that even this man should not have died?” Jesus

heard their remarks and once more His own soul was swept by a

storm of emotion.

In the days of Jesus it was required by law that graveyards

be located a mile from town. Guides today show Lazarus’ tomb

across the valley over toward the Mount of Olives. The grave,

like most graves belonging to the wealthier families, was carved

out of the rock and a large slab of stone rolled before the

entrance.

When the company reached the tomb, Jesus said, “Take ye

away the stone.” The ever-practical Martha then made

objection. She had a feeling that after four days the spirit had

departed forever from the body, and she had a natural delicacy

that the shocking spectacle of the body of her brother beginning

to decompose ought not to be revealed to public gaze. Since it

was the fourth day after death, she would dissuade Him from

disclosing the ghastly spectacle.

Solemnly Jesus reminded her of His promise, “Said I not

unto thee, that, if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see

the glory of God?” No more was to be said. They rolled away

the stone from in front of the tomb. Then Jesus lifted up His

eyes and gave thanks to God for the raising of Lazarus, even

while he was yet in the tomb. Christ knew that God always

heard Him, even before the miracle took place.

Then raising His voice with its awful authority, He cried,

“Lazarus, come forth.” And when He had so spoken, a ghost-

like figure was seen to move in the darkness of the sepulchre.

Somewhere from the great eternity a spirit returned. From the

paradise of Abraham it came and re-entered the body of Lazarus.

Swathed in bandages and grave clothes he came, like a spectre,

staggering out of the darkness of the tomb.

“Loose him, and let him go,” was the command of Him

who had the power over life and death. They removed the

clothes that bound him, and the face was not livid or disfigured,

but there was a young man—glowing in health—and destined,

according to the traditional account, to live for thirty more years.

36

The Raising of Lazarus

Many of the Jews who were present at the raising of Lazarus

accepted Christ as the Messiah. But some, and what a

commentary on the perversity of human nature, were stubbornly

set in their ways. They made their way back to Jerusalem and

reported the miracle and its effect to the rulers of the Jews. The

chief priests and the Pharisees of the Sanhedrin gathered

themselves together to consider what they should do. They met

in a spirit of anger and perplexity. They could not deny the

miracle, but neither would they believe on Christ. They debated

as to what course to follow. They saw clearly that the miracle

was going to procure great popularity for Jesus. If the multitude

should rally and proclaim Him as Messiah and king of Israel, it

might well be that the Romans would send an army and take

over the rule of the nation completely.

Then gathered the chief priests and the Pharisees a

council, and said, What do we? for this man doeth many

miracles. If we let him thus alone, all men will believe on

him: and the Romans shall come and take away both our

place and nation. And one of them, named Caiaphas, being

the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye know

nothing at all. Nor consider that it is expedient for us, that

one man should die for the people, and that the whole

nation perish not.

John 11:47-50

The strange thing is that the Scriptures represent Caiaphas

“speaking not of himself but by the spirit of prophecy!”

(Verses 51, 52). To many it would seem incredible that of these

men who were committing the crime of the ages, the very

ringleader should be moved by the Spirit of God to speak these

things! Yet it is true, and this fact casts new light on the working

of the gift of prophecy. Jesus Himself said that some will

prophesy but will be rejected by Him as those He never knew

(Matt. 7:22,23).

Since he was the high priest, Caiaphas was supposed to have

the gift of prophecy. In the earlier centuries the descendants of

Aaron received supernatural revelation through Urim and

Thummim. When Caiaphas spake it was accepted as prophecy,

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Jesus in Jerusalem

and by accepting his words as prophecy which were truly

fulfilled, the Jews became guilty of the most terrible crime of the

ages. Quite oblivious of the fact that this prophecy spelled their

doom, they made the awful decision to put Christ to death. A

price was put on His head. The high priest was authorized to

offer a reward to the man who would give them information that

would secure the arrest of Jesus.

The decision, probably intended to be kept secret, was

known by Jesus at once of course. Therefore, He took His

disciples and left the vicinity of Jerusalem and went to a little

town near the wilderness by the name of Ephraim. They had not

long to wait. The Passover was near at hand and Jesus and His

disciples would soon be returning.

In the meantime, the proud Caiaphas was setting things in

motion for the arrest and trial of Jesus. Authorities were notified

to seize Him on sight. There was a further tragic irony in the

prophecy that Caiaphas had uttered. Unwittingly, he had

proclaimed Jesus as the true Paschal lamb. Though Caiaphas

thought that he and his colleagues were achieving their own

purpose, in reality they were working out the eternal plan of

providence and were bringing upon the nation the very events

that they sought to avert.

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Document Outline

- Jesus in Jerusalem

- Contents

- 1 Jesus Goes Up to Jerusalem

- The Great Prophecy of the Coming of the Holy Spirit

- 2 The Woman Taken in Adultery

- Christ, The Light of the World

- 3 The Healing of the Man Born Blind

- 4 The Good Shepherd

- The Feast of the Dedication

- 5 The Raising of Lazarus

Table of Contents

Jesus Goes Up to Jerusalem.

The Woman Taken in Adultery.

The Healing of the Man Born Blind.

The Good Shepherd.

The Raising of Lazarus.

Jesus in Jerusalem

Contents

The Great Prophecy of the Coming of the Holy Spirit

Christ, The Light of the World

The Feast of the Dedication