John 11:35, the road to Bethany carries another kind of pressure, when Jesus tells the disciples they are going back to Judea, they remember the danger, John 11:8. Bethany is not far from Jerusalem, John 11:18 says it was about 15 stadia away, a little under 2 miles, the place where Lazarus is buried is close to the place where opposition to Jesus is already building. So, when Jesus turns toward Bethany, he is not only walking toward grief, he is walking toward danger. Thomas understands at least that much, John 11:16, Thomas probably does not understand the full meaning of his own words, none of them do yet, but John lets that sentence hang over the road, this journey is not safe.
The miracle will not be performed from a distance, Jesus is moving toward the grieving family and toward the hostility that will soon gather around him. Jesus waits, then Jesus goes and the going costs more then the sisters can see. When Jesus finally approaches Bethany, he does not first meet the tomb, he meets Martha, John 11:17. John 11:19, the house is no longer just a home, it is a place of mourning, people are there, voices are there, the grief has witnesses. Martha hears that Jesus is coming and goes out to him while Mary remains in the house.
The road becomes the place where grief and doctrine collide, John 11:21, that is not a clean theological statement, it is a sentence with a bruise inside it, she believes in his power, that is why the absence hurts, she is not saying you could not have done anything, she is saying you could have. Then she adds in John 11:22, Martha is standing in front of Jesus with real faith and real pain at the same time, Jesus tells her in John 11:23, your brother will rise again and Martha answers with something true, John 11:24, I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day, that is sound doctrine. Jesus does not rebuke it, he does not erase the future resurrection hope, he brings the future hope into the present tense.
John 11:25, Martha believes resurrection is something God will do someday, Jesus reveals that resurrection is standing in front of her, not just an event on God’s calendar, a person on the road, this is the first great reframing of this chapter, Jesus does not merely explain resurrection, he identifies himself as its source. Then Jesus asks Martha the question that is larger than Martha, John 11:26, do you believe this? Not, can you explain the delay? Not, can you make sense of the two days? Not, do you understand why I did not arrive before the burial? Do you believe this? Martha answers in John 11:27, do not flatten her into unbelief, she gives one of the great confessions in John’s gospel, but she is also still a sister whose brother is dead.
The miracle will not be performed from a distance, Jesus is moving toward the grieving family and toward the hostility that will soon gather around him. Jesus waits, then Jesus goes and the going costs more then the sisters can see. When Jesus finally approaches Bethany, he does not first meet the tomb, he meets Martha, John 11:17. John 11:19, the house is no longer just a home, it is a place of mourning, people are there, voices are there, the grief has witnesses. Martha hears that Jesus is coming and goes out to him while Mary remains in the house.
The road becomes the place where grief and doctrine collide, John 11:21, that is not a clean theological statement, it is a sentence with a bruise inside it, she believes in his power, that is why the absence hurts, she is not saying you could not have done anything, she is saying you could have. Then she adds in John 11:22, Martha is standing in front of Jesus with real faith and real pain at the same time, Jesus tells her in John 11:23, your brother will rise again and Martha answers with something true, John 11:24, I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day, that is sound doctrine. Jesus does not rebuke it, he does not erase the future resurrection hope, he brings the future hope into the present tense.
John 11:25, Martha believes resurrection is something God will do someday, Jesus reveals that resurrection is standing in front of her, not just an event on God’s calendar, a person on the road, this is the first great reframing of this chapter, Jesus does not merely explain resurrection, he identifies himself as its source. Then Jesus asks Martha the question that is larger than Martha, John 11:26, do you believe this? Not, can you explain the delay? Not, can you make sense of the two days? Not, do you understand why I did not arrive before the burial? Do you believe this? Martha answers in John 11:27, do not flatten her into unbelief, she gives one of the great confessions in John’s gospel, but she is also still a sister whose brother is dead.