NL(4) Lesson 22- Raising Lazarus
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John 11:1-44 Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair; her brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent a message to Jesus, ʻLord, he whom you love is ill.ʼ But when Jesus heard it, he said, ʻThis illness does not lead to death; rather it is for Godʼs glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.ʼ Accordingly, though Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, after having heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was. Then after this he said to the disciples, ʻLet us go to Judea again.ʼ The disciples said to him, ʻRabbi, the Jews were just now trying to stone you, and are you going there again?ʼ Jesus answered, ʻAre there not twelve hours of daylight? Those who walk during the day do not stumble, because they see the light of this world. But those who walk at night stumble, because the light is not in them.ʼ After saying this, he told them, ʻOur friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going there to awaken him.ʼ The disciples said to him, ʻLord, if he has fallen asleep, he will be all right.ʼ Jesus, however, had been speaking about his death, but they thought that he was referring merely to sleep. Then Jesus told them plainly, ʻLazarus is dead. For your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.ʼ Thomas, who was called the Twin, said to his fellow-disciples, ʻLet us also go, that we may die with him.ʼ When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, some two miles away, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them about their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, while Mary stayed at home. Martha said to Jesus, ʻLord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask of him.ʼ Jesus said to her, ʻYour brother will rise again.ʼ Martha said to him, ʻI know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.ʼ Jesus said to her, ʻI am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?ʼ She said to him, ʻYes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world.ʼ When she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary, and told her privately, ʻThe Teacher is here and is calling for you.ʼ And when she heard it, she got up quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet come to the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. The Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary get up quickly and go out. They followed her because they thought that she was going to the tomb to weep there. When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, ʻLord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.ʼ When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved. He said, ʻWhere have you laid him?ʼ They said to him, ʻLord, come and see.ʼ Jesus began to weep. So the Jews said, ʻSee how he loved him!ʼ But some of them said, ʻCould not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?ʼ Then Jesus, again greatly disturbed, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. Jesus said, ʻTake away the stone.ʼ Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, ʻLord, already there is a stench because he has been dead for four days.ʼ Jesus said to her, ʻDid I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?ʼ So they took away the stone. And Jesus looked upwards and said, ʻFather, I thank you for having heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.ʼ When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, ʻLazarus, come out!ʼ The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, ʻUnbind him, and let him go.ʼ March 9, 2014 Lesson 22: Raising Lazarus
Transcript of NL(4) Lesson 22- Raising Lazarus
John 11:1-44Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair; her brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent a message to Jesus, ʻLord, he whom you love is ill.ʼ But when Jesus heard it, he said, ʻThis illness does not lead to death; rather it is for Godʼs glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.ʼ Accordingly, though Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, after having heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was. Then after this he said to the disciples, ʻLet us go to Judea again.ʼ The disciples said to him, ʻRabbi, the Jews were just now trying to stone you, and are you going there again?ʼ Jesus answered, ʻAre there not
twelve hours of daylight? Those who walk during the day do not stumble, because they see the light of this world. But those who walk at night stumble, because the light is not in them.ʼ After saying this, he told them, ʻOur friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going there to awaken him.ʼ The disciples said to him, ʻLord, if he has fallen asleep, he will be all right.ʼ Jesus, however, had been speaking about his death, but they thought that he was referring merely to sleep. Then Jesus told them plainly, ʻLazarus is dead. For your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.ʼ Thomas, who was called the Twin, said to his fellow-disciples, ʻLet us also go, that we may die with him.ʼ
When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, some two miles away, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them about their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, while Mary stayed at home. Martha said to Jesus, ʻLord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask of him.ʼ Jesus said to her, ʻYour brother will rise again.ʼ Martha said to him, ʻI know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.ʼ Jesus said to her, ʻI am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?ʼ She said to him, ʻYes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world.ʼ
When she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary, and told her privately, ʻThe Teacher is here and is calling for you.ʼ And when she heard it, she got up quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet come to the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. The Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary get up quickly and go out. They followed her because they thought that she was going to the tomb to weep there. When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, ʻLord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.ʼ When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved. He said, ʻWhere have you laid him?ʼ They said to him, ʻLord, come and see.ʼ Jesus began to weep. So the Jews said, ʻSee how he loved him!ʼ But some of them said, ʻCould not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?ʼ
Then Jesus, again greatly disturbed, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. Jesus said, ʻTake away the stone.ʼ Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, ʻLord, already there is a stench because he has been dead for four days.ʼ Jesus said to her, ʻDid I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?ʼ So they took away the stone. And Jesus looked upwards and said, ʻFather, I thank you for having heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.ʼ When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, ʻLazarus, come out!ʼ The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, ʻUnbind him, and let him go.ʼ
March 9, 2014Lesson 22: Raising Lazarus
March 9, 2014
The Big Story Truth: Jesus has the power even to give life. Because of Jesus, we need not fear death. We have the promise of life with God- now and forever!
About This Scripture Passage: This passage marks the beginning of the end for Jesus. Mary, Martha, and Lazarus were good friends of Jesus. But the location where they lived, Bethany, was right next door to Jerusalem and
by this point in the story, Jesus was being watched pretty closely by the officials in Jerusalem. At one point in the story as the disciples are trying to urge Jesus not to go, they remind him that he was recently almost stoned there. How could he go back? But Jesus does go. Even worse he makes this statement... “I am the resurrection and the life.” Of all the “I Am” statements that would have caused people to be upset that Jesus was claiming authority that he shouldn’t have, this one takes the cake. As Gail O’Day writes, “The magnitude of this claim
cannot be overstated, because it announces that God’s power of life over death, a central belief of the Old Testament faith, is shared with Jesus.” Jesus makes a bold claim that those who believe in him need not fear death. Jesus’ followers can live their lives in confidence trusting in that relationship and life with God will never end and that Jesus’ word even has the power to give life. Ironically, Lazarus will live again... but as a result of giving life, Jesus will be killed.
Raising LazarusJohn 11:1-44
“I Amthe resurrection
and the life.”
Making the Connection: This story presents an opportunity for us to talk to our kids about death in a context other than the loss of a family member or a pet. This is an opportunity to talk about Jesus’ promise of life with God and resurrection. The age of kids will make a big difference in how much they will understand about death specifically. For the youngest classes it will be enough to focus on God’s promise that nothing will ever be able to separate us from Jesus’ love. For the older kids, this is an opportunity to address real questions about death. The most important part of this conversation will be to help kids name the promise that they have been given, that the life they have been given in Christ is eternal and that nothing will ever be able to take that away from them or their loved ones... not even death.
Where in the World Are We? In the passage just before this one, Jesus left Jerusalem because the religious leaders were so angered by Jesus’ statements that they were ready to stone him. John 10:40 talks about Jesus retreating to Galilee, the place where John was baptizing and where we first heard John’s testimony about who Jesus is. Jesus is traveling back to Judea to the city of Bethany to raise Lazarus. Bethany’s location so close to Jerusalem is what is troubling to the disciples who want to keep him safe.
For Your Reflection:
John’s Gospel reveals that eternal life isn’t something that we wait to start living until after we die. Eternal life begins now in relationship with Jesus and continues even after our physical death. How does knowing this shape how you live right now?
What do you most want your kids to know about life, death, and faith?
