Daily Scripture Reading John 11:7-31
American missionaries do missionary work all around the world. Sometimes, there is political upheaval or rebellion that puts missionaries in a life-threatening situation. Humans tend to avoid danger. When there is political upheaval that threatens the safety of missionaries, they often flee the country.
In some ways that makes sense. By preserving their lives, they are living to spread the gospel in the future. However, there was a time when Jesus decided to go back to an area where His life was at risk. Thomas, had a mindset about the danger that was very different than the mindset about danger held by many Christians today. In today’s scripture reading we will consider whether we should emulate Thomas.
Yesterday, we read in John 10:31 that the Jews picked up stones to stone Jesus because Jesus said He and the Father are one. Jesus eluded the threat to His life, left Jerusalem, and went beyond the Jordan River. While there He heard that Lazarus was sick, but He remained beyond the Jordan for two more days.
John 11:7 Then after this He said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.”
Jesus and His disciples were on the East or right side of the Jordan River. Judea was roughly 30 miles / 50 km away. That was about a one day journey. It was a steep, uphill climb. The colors on the map indicate elevation. The Jordan River is 1,300 feet / 400 m below sea level. Judea is around 2,800 feet / 800 m above sea level. That is like climbing up a 4,000 feet / 1,200 m mountain.
John 11:8 The disciples said to Him, “Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone You, and are You going there again?”
John 11:9 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.
John 11:10 But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.”
The disciples asked a very clear question, but Jesus responded with a cryptic answer. Just as walking in darkness leads to stumbling, while walking in the light does not, so too Jesus knew when His time would come, so His journey back to Judea was not a walk into the unknown. Since Jesus knew about the threat, He could take steps to avoid it and protect Himself. Jesus was trying to assure His disciples that His journey back to Judea was not as risky as they thought it would be.
John 11:11 He said these things, and after that He said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I go, so that I may awaken him.”
John 11:12 The disciples then said to Him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will be saved from his sickness.”
John 11:13 Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that He was speaking of actual sleep.
John 11:14 So Jesus then said to them plainly, “Lazarus is dead,
John 11:15 and I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, so that you may believe; but let us go to him.”
Jesus had deliberately delayed going to Lazarus, because He wanted Lazarus to die so that He could raise Lazarus from the dead and prove His divinity.
John 11:16 Therefore Thomas, who is called Didymus, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, so that we may die with Him.”
Ponder the phrase, “that we may die with Him.” In some ways Thomas was pessimistic. However, he also articulated a commitment to Jesus that we should emulate.
You and I have a natural instinct to preserve our lives. When we see danger, we seek to avoid it. However, when it comes to serving Jesus, perhaps we should be willing to sacrifice our lives.
American missionaries do missionary work all around the world. Sometimes they work in societies that are very hostile to Christianity. Other times political upheaval or rebellion creates a life-threatening situation.
American missionaries tend to avoid danger. When there is political upheaval that threatens their safety, they often flee the country. However, perhaps they should have Thomas’ attitude and be willing to die with Jesus.
John 11:17 ¶ So when Jesus came, He found that he had already been in the tomb four days.
John 11:18 Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, about fifteen stadia away;
It was about 1.5 miles / 2.5 km from Bethany to Jerusalem.
John 11:19 and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary, to console them about their brother.
John 11:20 Martha therefore, when she heard that Jesus was coming, went to meet Him, but Mary was sitting in the house.
John 11:21 Martha then said to Jesus, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.
John 11:22 But even now I know that whatever You ask from God, God will give You.”
Martha demonstrated great faith. She believed Jesus could do anything. She had never seen Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead, but based on the miracles Jesus had performed, she was confident Jesus was able to do so.
John 11:23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”
John 11:24 Martha said to Him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.”
John 11:25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies,
John 11:26 and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die—ever. Do you believe this?”
Notice the word “believe” was used three times in verses 25-26. Twice we see the phrase “believes in Me”. Everyone who believes in Jesus will have eternal life.
Think about what it means to believe in Jesus. If a person believes in Santa Claus, it means they believe there is a person who lives at the North pole, knows whether kids have been naughty or nice, and then delivers presents accordingly on Christmas Eve by flying around the world in a sleigh pulled by reindeer. If you don’t believe that person exists, then you don’t believe in Santa Claus.
If you believe in Jesus, it means you believe what the Bible tells us about Jesus. The Bible tells us God came to earth as a man named Jesus. He was born of the virgin Mary, performed miracles, healed people, was crucified, rose from the dead, went back to heaven, and is coming again to take all who believe in Him to heaven for eternity. If you believe Jesus is God and Lord, then you believe in Jesus. If you don’t believe Jesus was a real person who did what the Bible says He did, and is who the Bible says He is, then you don’t believe in Jesus.
John 11:27 She said to Him, “Yes, Lord; I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God, the One who comes into the world.”
In the first century AD the Jewish people were expecting a Messiah to come. The Greek word for Messiah is Christ. Jesus is the Messiah. Martha believed Jesus is the Messiah.
John 11:28 ¶ And when she had said this, she went away and called Mary her sister, saying secretly, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.”
John 11:29 And when she heard it, she got up quickly and was coming to Him.
John 11:30 ¶ Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha met Him.
John 11:31 Then the Jews—who were with her in the house and consoling her—when they saw that Mary rose up quickly and went out, they followed her, thinking that she was going to the tomb to cry there.
Missionaries do missionary work all around the world. Sometimes they work in societies that are very hostile to Christianity. Other times political upheaval or rebellion creates a life-threatening situation.
Humans tend to avoid danger. When there is political upheaval that threatens their safety, missionaries often flee the country.
Here are some questions to ponder.
If the missionaries flee the country when there is instability in the society, what message does that send to the people they are trying to convert to Christianity?
Does fleeing reveal a lack of faith or commitment to Christ on the part of the missionaries?
If missionaries are trying to convince non-believers that Jesus is worth living for and dying for, do they undermine their message when they flee danger?
At what point should missionaries adopt the mentality of Thomas and be willing do die with Jesus?
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“Scripture quotations taken from the (LSB®) Legacy Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2021 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org and 316publishing.com.”