Or, Sovereign Gladness and Sovereign Sorrow Do Not Contradict
Scripture: John 11:7-16
Date: March 24, 2013
Speaker: Sean Higgins
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God gladly gets us into spots that only He can get us out of. Because He loves us, He loves to show us His glory. He purposes to increase our trust in Him and sometimes that means that He purposes to increase our sorrows so that we will turn to Him.
John 11 contains a story that is much easier to pass on than it is to possess. As is often the case, great stories outrun great souls. Talking about all the reasons we have for believing is much easier than actually believing. We’re on common little-faith ground here because the same was true for Jesus’ first disciples. They were eye-witnesses and ear-hearers and still had trouble trusting Him. We’re also bringing our little-faithed hearts to the right place because one way God grows our confidence is by the power of His word as His glory is proclaimed.
A friend of Jesus is sick (John 11:1). His name is Lazarus and his sisters, Martha and Mary, who were also friends of Jesus, send a messenger to Jesus to report Lazarus’ condition (verse 3). Jesus was friends with these siblings; He loved them (verse 5).
At first Jesus responded to the news by saying that “this illness does not lead to death” (verse 4). His disciples must have interpreted that to mean that Lazarus was not going to die and their confusion a few days later corroborates it. How they interpreted that Lazarus’ recovery would be “for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be gloried through it” is not known. Perhaps they figured that Jesus was just sticking a verbal ornament on God’s ordinary providence again.
John states Jesus’ love for all three siblings in verse 5 and builds verse 6 on it. Jesus loved…“so, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was” (verse 6). This does not appear to be the loving thing to do. We don’t have a category for this “love language” (it isn’t verbal affirmation, it isn’t a gift, it isn’t quality time, it isn’t physical touch, it isn’t an act of service). John helps us to see how it is love as the story continues. For the disciples, at this point, they wouldn’t have had any reason to suspect anything was wrong. Little did they know what they were in for.
In verses 7-16 Jesus communicates His plans to go back to Judea and the disciples don’t like it. It is all part of His love for glory.
Jesus expresses His intention to set out and return to Judea.
Then after this he said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.” The disciples said to him, “Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone you, and are you going there again?” (John 11:7–8, ESV)
John emphasizes the deliberate delay with an almost unhealthy amount of adjectival (verse 6) and adverbial (verse 7) additions. Then after this, after the two days longer that they stayed. The only thing that happens is that time passes. There is no new word about Lazarus (or anyone else), no second messenger has come.
From the disciples’ perspective, Jesus’ summons to leave not only came out of the blue, it also must have seemed crazy. Jesus said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.” Jesus does not say why; He doesn’t until verse 11. He also doesn’t say that they should to Bethany, the city where Lazarus was, but instead to the region of Judea. Bethany was in Judea, but Judea is much less specific. So the disciples heard Jesus say two days ago that Lazarus was not sick to death. Now Jesus said He wanted to go back to Judea with no reason. Why would they have connected that to Lazarus?
They did connect it to the last time that they were in Judea with Jesus, in particular, when they were in Jerusalem. That’s why they weren’t in Judea anymore: the threat of death to Jesus and possible to themselves as well. So they remind Jesus why going back would be a bad idea. Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone you, and you are going there again?
They are trying to be helpful. The question forms a polite disagreement with/discouragement to Jesus. Maybe Jesus doesn’t remember. It had been a few weeks at least, maybe a couple months, since He was almost stoned. The just now highlights that the antagonism was palpable. The disciples remembered how angry the Jews were like it was yesterday.
What was the disciples’ problem? Their problem was that they didn’t truly comprehend God’s glory in Jesus. If they knew His glory they would have trusted His omniscience rather than attempting to apprise His forgetfulness. They would have trusted His power rather than fearing the persecution of the Jews. They would have said “Which way?” when He said “Let’s go” rather than “Are you sure?” They didn’t need to know all the facts (otherwise He would have told them), they needed to trust Jesus. He was in the process of helping them do that.
Jesus does not respond to their fear with His specific purpose, not yet. Instead, He gives them a general principle. Those who do what God wants with the time they have will have all the time to do all that God wants them to do. This is Jesus’ explanation and His confidence.
Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.” (John 11:9–10, ESV)
The disciples fear that Jesus will be killed if He returned to Judea. They did not understand first, that His mission included death and second, that He could not die until it was the right hour. Jesus begins the principle with an easily agreed upon truth. Are there not twelve hours in the day? The Jews (and the Romans) referred to a day as the working day, as the part of the day that was light in which a man could walk and work. So, If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. In other words, there is a set amount of time when the light is available. If a man works at the right time then he will have all the light he needs.
On the other hand, if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him. This concerns more than the presence or absence of daylight. The opposite in verse 10 is not a man who stumbles because he cannot see the light (verse 9), but a man who doesn’t have the light in him. This clearly isn’t about when but about how.
In other words, a man who walks in the light, who walks according to God’s ways, has all the day he needs. He won’t run out of day before his day is over. But a man who doesn’t walk in light will stumble. He will lose his opportunity and his way.
[T]he calling of God is like the light of day, which does not allow us to mistake our road or to stumble. Whoever, then, obeys the word of God, and undertakes nothing but according to his command, always has God to guide and direct him from heaven, and with this confidence he may safely and boldly pursue his journey. (Calvin, 428)
Again, a man who does what God wants with the time he has will have all the time to do all that God wants him to do. An obedient man will die right on time.
What is true for everyone is especially applicable to Jesus. He always walks in the light; He is the light. He never had any question about what His Father wanted Him to do so He never had any fears about being killed early. He would have the full twelve hours and wouldn’t stumble before then. He could go back to Judea without danger even though He would be threatened.
The disciples couldn’t get past their human perspective. Looking back over their time with Jesus, they should have had more trust. How many miracles had He performed? How many times had He not been killed? Looking forward to the promises of Jesus, they should have had more trust.
We all have twelve hours. Each one of us has an alloted “day” for walking and working. We cannot be taken early (or snatched out of the Shepherd’s hand). If we are seeing the light then we have every confidence that the Father will complete His desires for us. We fear because either we are not walking in the light (so everything seems uncertain) or we fear because we don’t think God knows what time it is. He doesn’t need our help to keep our lives; He is the resurrection and the life.
Now Jesus explains more specifically why He wanted to go back to Judea. This is His motivation.
After saying these things, he said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.” The disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover.” Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he meant taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus has died, and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” (John 11:11–15, ESV)
We don’t know if the disciples picked up on His point about the day and darkness. They did not pick up on His euphemism for death.
Jesus said, Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awake him. Either all the disciples were close to Lazarus or they were close because Jesus was close and they were close with Jesus. Lazarus had fallen asleep. This was a common way to say that someone had died but, again, the last that the disciples knew was that Lazarus was not sick to death. With no new message, why would Jesus want to go and wake him up from rest? Sleep is good for the sick to help their recovery.
They said, Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover. It’s good that Lazarus is getting some sleep. Why do You/we need to go back and put our lives on the line when Lazarus will wake up just fine on his own? It’s interesting that in John 7:1-10 Jesus’ brothers urge Him to go to Jerusalem and He wouldn’t. Now His disciples urge Him to stay away from Jerusalem and He wouldn’t.
John adds some perspective in verse 13. Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he meant taking his rest in sleep. Were they that oblivious? Or just dense? Or purposefully ignorant? Sometimes we have trouble interpreting things because we’re not walking in the light. They were afraid of going back so they may not have wanted to consider that sleep meant death.
Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus has died [you idiots].” That’s at least what I imagine He may have been thinking. He leaves no doubt about Lazarus’ condition, something that He only could have known by divine omniscience.
Jesus adds a surprising motivation in verse 15. For your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. Similar to last week, when He stayed because He loved, Jesus gladly didn’t go to keep Lazarus from dying. He didn’t wait for tensions to ease and make His way more safe. He didn’t wait so that Mary and Martha would get over their pain. He waited because He loved Lazarus, Martha, Mary, and His disciples so much that He wanted to show them all His glory. He was glad to ordain His own sadness (see verses 33, 35, 38) let alone theirs, for sake of increasing their believing.
He ordains discouragements, distresses, and even death so that His glory can be displayed. He purposes for deep and long hardships, even doubt and despair, so that we will know His deeper and eternal love. He does not instantly assist or fix our disorders; He promotes our believing in Him and beholding of His glory.
Believing, like breathing, is something that living persons do. But it is possible that to develop breathing is laborious. The disciples were already believing. This isn’t an evangelistic set-up. Jesus wants to build and bolster their believing believing, to strengthen their courage.
The disciples are afraid of dying when they are in the presence of the one who raises the dead. They do not have the courage they could because they do not see the glory they could. God’s glory is not a band-aid. His glory requires an impossible problem to appreciate. His life-giving power gives life to dead people.
This is why we trust Him. This is why we spend our twelve hours gladly and sacrificially and in ways that seem crazy to those in darkness. Do you want to be bold? Then prepare for it to be bad beyond your comprehension so that His glory can shine beyond your imagination.
It was not hyperbole to say that this is an easier story to study than to live. This is an easier glory to want for someone else to show. This is because our believing is weak. We see the circumstances. We feel the pain. But life comes out of death when God moves. He teaches us in His word and He teaches us in our difficulties. He gladly stretches us and puts us to grief for sake of our greater believing and glory seeing.
It was a process to build believing. Thomas didn’t get it (nor did the other disciples), not yet.
So Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” (John 11:16, ESV)
The attitude is resigned pessimism. Thomas is not thinking about life or glory. He may be committed but not optimistic. He urged his fellow disciples…let’s go die.
God is glad not to answer every prayer as soon as we say amen. He is glad that we get sick, that loved ones have hardships, that friends die. He is glad to give us reasons to doubt, reasons to fear, reasons to sit it out. He is glad not because He is disconnected but because He loves us and He loves for us to see His glory.
Not only does He want us to see the fullness of His grace and truth, we do not come with neutral hearts. He must correct our narrow, disbelieving hearts.
We want instant glorification gratification. He wants to display infinite glory. He also wants us to trust Him, to believe Him, and spend all twelve hours for Him. As long as we walk in the light, we have all the assurance in the world that we will have all the day God wants us to have.