John Lesson 33

Introduction

Can you imagine religious people hating Jesus so much that even when he raised Lazarus from the grave, they wanted to put Lazarus back to death again? Why would religious people have that kind of reaction to Jesus? Well, we’re going to talk about that in our lesson today, and we’d like to encourage you to get your Bibles and open to John chapter twelve. Where there we read how that the chief priest among the Jews consulted how they might put Lazarus back to death, even after Jesus had raised him from the grave. Really, some of the attitudes that prompted them to want to do this are also seen even in our generation of Christ. There are people who are religious who claim to love God, but when their doctrines are challenged, in fact, when they are opposed even by the truth, they get mad and they get angry, and they would do anything they could to stamp out whatever might show them to be in error.

Is that your attitude toward the Lord? What is your attitude toward the Bible as the Word of God? If in fact you’re shown to be in error, would you be willing to say I was wrong and I’m willing to change, I’m willing to accept what is truth? Well, there were different reactions in the days of Jesus Christ. Some people who love God proved it by the fact that they accepted Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God. There were others who claimed to love God, but they proved that they really didn’t, or they were not willing to accept Jesus as the Christ, and though they remained religious, they hated Jesus, the Christ, the Son of God, and all the good works that he did. And thereby they really proved that they didn’t love the Father either.

In our last study, we talked in John chapter eleven how that how that Jesus came to the grave of Lazarus in the village of Bethany, the city where Mary and Martha lived and with their brother Lazarus. And after Lazarus had died, and in fact had been dead some four days, Jesus raised him from the dead. And that was a significant miracle, one of the most significant miracles that Jesus worked. There was no question but that it was a miracle. The fact that he’d been four days set it apart from any other kind of miracle. There’s some even today who claim that people have been raised from the dead, and you begin to investigate a little more closely, and what they’re talking about are some of the amazing things of modern medicine.

Maybe a person’s heartbeat has stopped for a few seconds or even for uh perhaps a minute or so, however long they may want to claim. But it’s not as though someone has been dead four days, whose body has already begun to decay. But that’s the situation with Lazarus. Jesus raised him from the grave. Jesus said in John 11, 25 and 6, I am the resurrection and the life. He had power over death. He it is that can grant life, not just physical life, but Jesus Christ can grant spiritual life. It is through him that we could come to the Father, and only through Jesus as the Christ. But when Jesus raised Lazarus from the grave, there were different reactions. There were those who rejoiced, no doubt Mary and Martha and the close friends, who were thrilled that Jesus had brought Lazarus back to life again.

Then there were those who witnessed it and believed as a result of this miracle. As Jesus had said in John chapter 11, that that Lazarus died not just for death itself, but rather that there might be glory to the Father, that the Son of God himself might be glorified thereby. That’s in verse 4 of John 11. That is, the death of Lazarus brought about the proving that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, the exaltation, therefore, unto God who could raise him from the grave, and to Jesus Christ as the Son of God, that he had the power to work this work of God Almighty. It brought glory to God. And that effect, that caused the effect of belief in the hearts of many. But not all believed.

For in John chapter eleven we read last time how that in verses forty six and seven there gathered a council, the chief priests and the Pharisees, and they said, What do we? For this man doeth many miracles. Now rather than send this man doeth many miracles, why not accept him and believe in him? Their reaction was, if we let him thus alone, all men would believe on him, and the Romans should come and take away both our place and our nation. What were they worried about? God’s will or their place and their nation? Well, it’s quite obvious that they were worried more about their position among uh among the Romans and what’s going to happen to them as a nation of Israel or of the Jews.

They weren’t really ready to accept Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of God. They didn’t deny that he worked a miracle. They could not deny that Lazarus had been dead and now is alive again. But they would not accept Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God. It did not matter how many miracles he worked. And then we also read in the latter verses of chapter eleven, how that the high priest, Caiaphas, made a prophecy. Unwittingly he made a true prophecy about Jesus Christ. He was really talking from his point of view about the nation of the Jews themselves. He said that one should die for the whole nation, that Jesus should die for that nation. And that is true. Jesus did die for that nation.

In fact, Jesus died for all men, as 1 Timothy chapter 2 and verse six says, he died as a ransom for all. He died for you and for me. He died for Jew and for Gentile. But Caipus didn’t understand the spiritual application of that. What he said was that Jesus is going to die. In other words, if we let all men believe on him as the Messiah, we’re going to lose our place among the Romans. So in order to keep us as a nation intact and keep us from losing our place among the Romans, we’ll put Jesus to death. And so they they began to lay plans whereby they might put Jesus to death. Jesus came to the Passover at Jerusalem. As we close chapter eleven, it says that the Jewish Passover was at hand.

And there were many who were coming to Jerusalem to purify themselves and to be prepared for this significant memorial feast. It actually lasted seven days. And so the time now of our text, and our study in the Gospel of John, is really nearing the last week of the life of Jesus Christ. They’re coming to Jerusalem, and in fact, knowing, Jesus knowing that the chief priests have have made some kind of plan by which they might take him and put him to death. Yet Jesus was not afraid. Jesus knew that there would come a time for his death. As we see in our study in John chapter twelve, he knew that that hour was now here. I’m reading now in verses one through eight of John twelve, and I’d like to encourage you to get your New Testament and read right along with us.

1. Mary Anoints Jesus: She Hath Done What She Could

You’ll certainly get more out of the lesson if you will study the Bible with us. We call the program, let the Bible speak, just so that people can take a verse by verse analysis of the Bible. There’s no better way to study the Bible than what we’re doing. Trying to get the context and get the thought and make the proper applications as we see the text itself. There’s a beautiful story here in the first eight verses of John 12, told about an event that happened late in the life of Christ, just shortly really before his death. The scripture says, then Jesus, six days before the Passover came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, which had been dead, whom he raised from the dead. There they made him a supper, and Martha served.

But Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with him. Then took Mary a pan of ointment, a sparkner very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair, and the house was filled with the odor of the ointment. Then saith one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, which should betray him, why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence and given to the poor? This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief and had the bag and bare what was put therein. Then said Jesus, let her alone, against the day of my burying hash she kept this. For the poor always ye have with you, but me ye have not always.

And it is a significant story, and in fact, one of the other records says that wheresoever the gospel is preached, this story about Mary shall be told as a memorial for her, and so it is true. That wherever the gospel about Jesus Christ is preached, the story about Mary’s unloading of Jesus is told. Indeed, Jesus came to Bethany. The scripture here says six days before Passover. He knew they had a plan to try to put him to death, but he was not afraid of the Pharisees. They would not put him to death before the time was come. He’s always been a welcome guest at Bethany, but can’t you imagine that even more so now that Lazarus was raised from the grave? In the account of Matthew, we’re told that it was two days before Passover that this feast was prepared.

There’s a special banquet, you might say, in honor of Jesus, this one who has raised Lazarus from the grave. And after this feast in the house of Simon, Martha it was that was doing the serving. But Mary brought a box of ointment of Spitner, it said, and that’s a very costly perfume. In fact, the scripture here, Judas uh gave us a value of it when he said it’s worth three hundred pence. A penny in that day and time was worth one day’s wage. You can read the parable in Matthew chapter 20, verses 1 through 16, and the man was hired for a penny a day. And so can I measure that by by a man’s wage today? What would you earn in one full day of work?

Well, multiply that by three hundred, and that’s the value of this ointment that Mary poured on Jesus. Matthew says that that she poured this on his head. And then later in verse 12 of Matthew 26, it said it’s on his body. John simply tells us that that she poured this on his feet, and then took her own hair and wiped his feet with her hair. Now, you have a contrast in attitudes. When Mary did this, there stood Judas who held the bag, and the scripture says he was a thief. He really showed an attitude of covetousness. Mark says, Why this waste? Now Judas was saying, look, she she could have taken this and given it a poor. That was that was really a kind of a dodge.

That wasn’t his real problem. His real problem was he saw the amount of money that this was worth. And he saw a pouring out this on the feet of Jesus, and he calls it a waste. I wonder if they’re not those today who sometimes say that they’re they’re trying to be wise in their planning and they’re frugal with their money. When really the problem is much like that of Judas. It’s not that wise planning is their problem. They’re stingy. They do not give generously to the Lord, and they’re not willing to give of themselves and be ready to even give to the cause of the Lord, because they’re really covetous. They’re like a Judas, they’re really a stingy. Well, it’s true, you cannot buy your way into heaven, my beloved, but you can be so stingy that it’ll prevent you from going to heaven.

In contrast to the attitude of covetousness that Judas had, here was Mary. In Mark 14, verse 8, Jesus said, She hath done what she could. Mary has given of herself. She has done what she could. There should be that attitude with all who love the Lord, truly love him, that we would do what we could. There is no expense too great for the Lord. She has has given a amount of perfume or poured in the lawn of Jesus, even three hundred days of work. Yet she did it freely and generously. Because there was sincere devotion on the part of Mary. Well, Jesus said that indeed what she has done, let her alone. She’s done this against the day of my burying. She, you’ll not have me always, and she has done something significant to honor this beloved disciple, this beloved Son of God, of whom she is a disciple.

2. Why Religious People Would Put Lazarus to Death

The poor you’ll have always with you. But now read with me in verses 9 to 11, where it says, Much people of the Jews therefore knew that he was there, and they came not for Jesus’ sake only, but that they might see Lazarus also, whom he had raised from the dead. But the chief priests consulted that they might put Lazarus also to death. Because that by reason of him, many of the Jews went away and believed on Jesus. Now, the word passed around, surely, that Lazarus had been raised from the grave. And there were many who came to see, is this really so? They came to see this man Lazarus, and they were believers, they were made believers as they saw that indeed this man Lazarus, who was dead, is now alive again.

But the Jews, the chief priest, rather than rejoicing, and rather than giving thanks to God that this great miracle has been worked, verse 10 says, they consulted how that they might put Lazarus to death. Can you imagine someone having that kind of hatred in their heart? Why would anyone put Lazarus to death? Why would these religious people especially put Lazarus to death again? You might expect that, you’d say, of the of the atheists, you might expect that of people who really didn’t believe in God and didn’t want anyone to believe in God. But these chief priests were religious people, and they were the ones consulting to put Lazarus to death again. I say to you that the reason they wanted to put Lazarus to death was for that same reason that religious divisions exist today.

Think with me for a moment. Why is it that the religious world is divided? You sometimes hear the explanation, well, we really can’t see the Bible alive. I say to you, that’s not the real problem. You hear people say, Well, it doesn’t really matter what you believe, just accept what you want. Believe what you want, and we’ll all go to heaven. That isn’t the Bible truth. That’s nowhere taught in the Word of God. The fact is that the Bible can be understood. The reason that there are differences today is the same reason that Lazarus was put to death. You see, to accept the miracle and what it testifies. That is, that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, would make a change in these religious rulers.

And these chief priests were not ready to accept the changes that would be brought about in their thought and in their practice. And therefore, since it was going to be different from what they wanted to believe and what they wanted to practice, accepting Jesus as the Christ, they harden their hearts. And there are people today who, when they hear something that’s different from what they want, they will harden their hearts, and they will not accept the truth. They will hate even those who preach anything different from what they’ve already accepted. If it’s different from what they believe, would have been getting the Bible open and saying, Well, let’s see what it says. There are those who just close their Bible and say, Well, you just go your way, and I don’t really think we can understand the Bible alike anyway.

And that’s the wrong attitude. 2 Thessalonians 2 verses 10 through 12 says that those who will receive not from the truth, God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie that they might be damned, who believe not the truth, but have pleasure in unrighteousness. May God help us not to be of that disposition to harden our hearts. In fact, the Bible can be understood. Ephesians chapter 3, verses 3 to 5 declares unto us that Paul said, How that by revelation God made known unto me their mystery as I wrote afore in a few words. In other words, by the revelation of the Holy Spirit, Paul said, He wrote the word. And when that word is written, he said that ye may read, and when you read, ye may understand my knowledge and the mystery of Christ.

So they could come to the understanding of truth by reading the word. You and I can also come to that understanding of truth. Even as first Corinthians 1 verses 10 through 13 teaches that we ought to speak the same thing, be of the same mind and the same judgment. There should be no divisions religiously. We can have unity religiously. That doesn’t mean that it will happen. Or there will be religious people today, just as in the first century, who would reject the truth. They are not going to accept anything different. But you know the difference. Whether or not we submit in obedience, whether or not our heart is willing to be like that of the Beatitude, the first one, when Jesus said in Matthew 5 and 3, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

3. The Triumphal Entry: Behold, Thy King Cometh

The man who will humble his heart and say, Lord, not my will but thine be done. The man who keeps his mind open and his Bible open and will search the word of truth. And when he finds truth, no matter what changes it may make in his life, he’ll make those changes. May we learn a lesson from the Pharisees and from the chief priests and not be like them. But let’s look a little bit further. For if we read in verses 12 through 19, Scripture says on the next day, much people that were come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm trees and went forth to meet him, and cried, Hosanna, Blessed is the king of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord.

And Jesus, when he had found a young ass, sat thereon, as it is written, Fear not, daughter of Zion. Behold, thy king cometh, sitting on an ass’s coat. These things understood not his disciples at the first, but when Jesus was glorified, then remembered they that these things were written of him, and that they had done these things unto him. The people, therefore, that was with him when he called Lazarus out of his grave and raised him from the dead, bear record. For this cause the people also met him, for that they heard that he had done this miracle. The Pharisees therefore said among themselves, Perceive ye how ye prevail nothing. Behold, the world is gone after him. Now this is a significant story. You’ve probably heard of the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem.

A public entry. And that’s the story told here in John. And it’s also significant that the same event is told in all four of the accounts of the life of Jesus Christ. In Matthew 21, verses 1 through 11, in Mark 11, verses 1 through 9, in Luke 19, verses 29 through 39, and then in this text, we have this story told, and there are some details that are given in the other accounts, but are not given here in John. But the main significant thing of all of these is that Jesus Christ was not afraid of the religious leaders. When it came time for his death, in a public manner, he came right into Jerusalem. And also that he did so in fulfillment of prophecy. Jesus Christ fulfilled the scripture.

Not a one was broken. In Zechariah chapter 9 and verse 9, so it was said that he would come in, even riding on an ass, the coat or the full of an ass, one that had never been ridden of before. And so it was that Jesus came. And the people, as they gathered, they’ve heard about this Jesus, and they are convinced that he is the Messiah. And their words are Hosanna, which literally means save, we pray. They knew that he must be the Messiah, that he is the one fulfilling Isaiah chapter sixty two, and in verse eleven. And they call unto him as one who has power of salvation, even as they spread their coats and the palm in front of him as he comes in, so he comes in as like one of royalty.

4. The Hour Is Come: Father, Glorify Thy Name

He is now the king. Indeed is the king of kings and the Lord of Lords. And they recognize who he is, and they honored him, and called him one who is indeed great. Now that had a reaction in the hearts of religious leaders again, the stirpement even to greater anger. In fact, in in verse 19 the Pharisees said, Perceive ye how we prevail nothing. Behold the world is gone after him. Rather than believing themselves, they become jealous. We we’re what are we going to do? The world’s gone after him. In verses twenty through twenty-eight, there were certain Greeks among them that came up to worship at the feast. The same came therefore to Philip, which was a Bethsay of Galilee, and desired him, saying, Sir, we would see Jesus.

Philip cometh and telleth Andrew, and again Andrew and Philip tell Jesus. And Jesus answered them, saying, The hour is come that the Son of Man should be glorified. Verily barely I say unto you, except the corn of wheat falls into the ground and die, it abideth alone. But if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit. He that loveth his life shall lose it. And he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal. If any man serve me, let him follow me, and where I am, there shall also my servant be. If any man served me, whom will my father honor. Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour. But for this cause came I unto this hour.

Father, glorify thy name. It’s a significant verse. Jesus said, What shall I say? Father, save me from this hour. I was touched as I was preparing this lesson and read again this thought statement in verse 27. When he says, Now is my soul troubled, the anguish, the inner turmoil that he must have been feeling. Jesus knew what was about to occur. He knew the agony that he was about to endure. Yet he willingly died. Now there was perhaps this temptation. Shall I say to my father, deliver me? In Matthew chapter 26 and verse 53, he said there that he could call twelve legions of angels and be delivered. He could have not died. He could have chosen not to give himself. Shall I say that? Jesus said.

In turmoil, he raises the question. Should I deliver myself? But then he said, For this very hour I’ve come. For this very purpose, for this cause came out of this hour. And then his words, Father, glorify thy name. The reason Christ came was to do the will of the Father. And whatever sacrifice it may make of him, whatever obligation to him, he was willing to submit himself to the will of the Father. In verse 23, the hour is come that the Son of Man should be glorified. Relates back to some other verses we’ve read in John. And remember back in John 2 and verse 4, we first began to make mention of this expression, he said, My hour is not yet come. Again in John chapter 7 and verse 6 and verse 8 and John 7 and verse 30.

And also John 8 and verse 20. Some five different times before now, he said, Man hour is not yet come. In other words, Jesus knew why he had come to the earth. He knew that his death was imminent. But until the time was ready, Satan would not prevail. There would be no man on earth, no group of men who could put him to death. But now Jesus understands that the time has come for his death. And he now says, Father, glorify thy name. You see, the hour that the Son of Man should be glorified would be an hour that God would be glorified. Jesus was glorified in death. He could say, Father, take me from this, keep me from God. But that wouldn’t have saved you nor me, and it wouldn’t have glorified the Father.

By being subjective even, submissive even to the death on the cross, Jesus Christ glorified the Father, and Himself was glorified. In Philippians chapter 2, verses 5 through 11, the apostle says, Let this man be in you, which also was in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men, and being fair and passionate as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name. For the name of Jesus, every knee should bow, of things in heaven and things in earth, and things under the earth.

Conclusion

Let every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, the glory of God the Father. There would be exultation even after his death. Hebrews 12, verses 2 and 3 speaks how that how that Jesus Christ despised the shame of the cross. But yet He saw the glory that should come, and therefore he willingly obeyed. Hebrews 5, 8 and 9 says, though he were a son, yet learned the obedience by the things he suffered. Now there’s a lesson in it for us. Not only do we thank the Lord that he was willing to die for us, but also we should learn a lesson. The lesson here where he says in verse 25, He that loveth his life shall lose it. What do you value most? Your life here and now?

The things of the flesh, the things of this earth, or do you value most the things that are spiritual and that are eternal in their nature? What do you value most? If you love your life, you’ll lose it, the scripture says.

If you love your life, you’ll lose it. But if you lose your life for him, you’ll save it.