Our Friend Lazarus has died

John 11:1-44

The Gospel of John is about signs, and of course, the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. I point out in this sermon that the Gospel of John is often divided into two primary sections. First, up through chapter 11 is the Book of Signs and then from chapter 12 on is the Book of the Passion of Jesus. This is an oversimplification in many ways, but still helpful. For example, there is another miracle of Jesus in John 21 and of course the resurrection of Jesus is the most central miracle of all. However, John 21 is obviously a kind of epilogue, balancing the prologue of John 1, and the resurrection of Jesus is of a nature very different from the miracles Jesus preformed on others.

The first chapters record seven miracles that Jesus did, which John calls signs. Signs point to something, and for John, the miracles of Jesus point to His glory. (Link to the sermon power point for more info.) I've always had trouble defining "glory." In the sermon I say that glory is "brightness, splendor, honor and essence." These are the central ideas given by any Greek lexicon. The idea is that the miracles Jesus preforms, at least in the way John is looking at them, reveal something about the splendor and honor and glory of Jesus. In his first chapter, as he is introducing Jesus, John says, "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:14)

So each miracle is a window into the true essence of Jesus. Each one points to some truth about his real nature and purpose. Take the time, if you will, to look at each of these seven miracles and ask, "What does this sign teach me about Jesus?" As you seek the meaning of the miracle, pay attention to the context, especially the conversation and teaching that happens as a result of the sign. In the sermon, I mention briefly the relationship of the sign in John 2 and the conversation with Nicodemus in John 3. Here are John's seven signs:
Water to wine, John 2:1-11
Healing the son of a nobleman, John 4:46-50
Healing a lame person by the pool of Bethesda, John 5:1-17
Feeding the multitudes, John 6:1-13
Calming the storm (and walking on water), John 6:13-21
Open the eyes of one born blind, John 9:1-41
Raising Lazarus from the dead, John 11:1-44

After you do this exercise, you might google the seven signs of the Gospel of John and see how others have viewed these miracles. Bible students find different things (not that every one is always right!) and hearing from each other can be a good thing.

Another key to understanding these two primary sections of John can be seen in the use of the word "hour." In the first section, Jesus tries to avoid attention and escapes harm, because his hour had not yet come (see 2:4; 7:20; 8:20). However, in chapter 12, things change and Jesus says his "hour has come" (see also 13:1 and 17:1). The "hour" no doubt is the time for his crucifixion, his passion as we call it, and the latter part of John is all about Jesus preparing his followers for his departure, and then the crucifixion and resurrection, and then Jesus' appearances afterward, leading up to his ascension.

John is a wonderful telling of the life of Jesus and a great piece of finely crafted literature. Study it and you will not be disappointed.

Thanks for digging deeper.