Let’s finish the story.

Six days before Passover, Jesus returned to Bethany for a celebration. Once again the scene was set, the three siblings finally in their appointed places… Martha serving, Mary worshipping at Jesus’ feet, and Lazarus…

John 12:2-3 NLT
[2] “A dinner was prepared in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, and Lazarus was among those who ate with him. [3] Then Mary took a twelve-ounce jar of expensive perfume made from essence of nard, and she anointed Jesus’ feet with it, wiping his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance.”

…”was among those who ate with Him.”

What happened to Lazarus that changed everything? Let me again, use a little “poetic license”.

If Lazarus had a difference with Jesus that kept him out of the company when Jesus visited, perhaps Jesus used this opportunity to reveal something important to this man. He had a “near death experience”, except that he was really dead… for four days… already decaying in the tomb.

Is it possible that he tasted, for a brief time, the horrors of the place reserved for unbelievers? Was he the same Lazarus who featured in Jesus’ parable about the rich man and Lazarus, the only Lazarus named in Scripture? If so, then, in Jesus’ story, he was in paradise, not in hell, but what happened to change him from an absentee to a guest at the celebration? Did Jesus purposely let him die so that he would experience what it was like to die in unbelief? There must be some explanation for the change that came over him.

In no way am I trying to add to Scripture. I am only asking the question, what happened to Lazarus? The Jesus of Scripture is the Saviour of sinners, full of mercy, using every opportunity to search for the lost sheep, to bring it home, rejoicing in its rescue. As He always did, perhaps Jesus did the unthinkable…He purposely let Lazarus die to save him from hell!

Let’s examine the outcomes, all of which fitted into Jesus’ perfect timetable.

1. Lazarus rose from the dead, a new man with a new attitude and a new destiny.
2. The Father was glorified, always Jesus’ goal in doing miracles.

The blind man..

John 9:3 NLT
[3] “It was not because of his sins or his parents’ sins,” Jesus answered. “This happened so the power of God could be seen in him.”

Lazarus…

John 11:4 NLT
[4] But when Jesus heard about it he said, “Lazarus’s sickness will not end in death. No, it happened for the glory of God so that the Son of God will receive glory from this.”

1. This miracle was Jesus’ opportunity to throw down the gauntlet, sealing His own fate.

John 11:47-48, 53 NLT
[47] “Then the leading priests and Pharisees called the high council together. “What are we going to do?” they asked each other. “This man certainly performs many miraculous signs. [48] If we allow him to go on like this, soon everyone will believe in him. Then the Roman army will come and destroy both our Temple and our nation.”…
[53] So from that time on, the Jewish leaders began to plot Jesus’ death.”

1. Judas was humiliated in public, and strengthened in his resolve to betray Jesus.

John 12:3-5, 7 NLT
[3]” Then Mary took a twelve-ounce jar of expensive perfume made from essence of nard, and she anointed Jesus’ feet with it, wiping his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance. [4] But Judas Iscariot, the disciple who would soon betray him, said, [5] “That perfume was worth a year’s wages. It should have been sold and the money given to the poor.”
[6] Not that he cared for the poor—he was a thief, and since he was in charge of the disciples’ money, he often stole some for himself.
[7] Jesus replied, “Leave her alone. She did this in preparation for my burial.”

John 13:21, 26-27 NLT
[21] “Now Jesus was deeply troubled, and he exclaimed, “I tell you the truth, one of you will betray me!”…
[26] Jesus responded, “It is the one to whom I give the bread I dip in the bowl.” And when he had dipped it, he gave it to Judas, son of Simon Iscariot. [27] When Judas had eaten the bread, Satan entered into him. Then Jesus told him, “Hurry and do what you’re going to do.”

John 18:1-3 NLT
[1] “After saying these things, Jesus crossed the Kidron Valley with his disciples and entered a grove of olive trees. [2] Judas, the betrayer, knew this place, because Jesus had often gone there with his disciples. [3] The leading priests and Pharisees had given Judas a contingent of Roman soldiers and Temple guards to accompany him. Now with blazing torches, lanterns, and weapons, they arrived at the olive grove.”

1. Jesus was in charge of His own timetable. Everything regarding His arrest and crucifixion was on course. How amazing that Jesus, knowing that He had come from heaven to die for the sin of the world, deliberately orchestrated the circumstances that led to His arrest and crucifixion. Before the right time came, He evaded arrest. However, when all the circumstances came came together for the perfect moment, He was in charge, even to the exact time He died, when the Passover lambs were being sacrificed.

When Jesus predicted that He would lay down His life for His sheep, He meant exactly that.

John 10:17-18 NLT
[17] “The Father loves me because I sacrifice my life so I may take it back again. [18] No one can take my life from me. I sacrifice it voluntarily. For I have the authority to lay it down when I want to and also to take it up again. For this is what my Father has commanded.”

So, even in His earthly life, Jesus was always in charge, exercising His sovereignty in union with the Father, to fulfill His purpose. What people did or did not do fell in line with His will then and always, will now since, He is Lord.

The Lazarus event forms the apex of His miracles, the trigger for His death, and the perfect confirmation of His declaration..

John 11:25-26 NIV
[25]… “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me will live, even though they die; [26] and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”