Miraculous sign at Bethany (John 11) By Rev. Katherine Liu Bruce

Miraculous sign at Bethany (John 11)

By Rev. Katherine Liu Bruce                                                                                      2/2/2026

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Scriptures reading John chapter 11

Now a man named Lazarus was sick. He was from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. This Mary, whose brother Lazarus now lay sick, was the same one who poured perfume on the Lord and wiped his feet with her hair. So, the sisters sent word to Jesus, “Lord, the one you love is sick.” When He heard this, Jesus said, “this sickness will not end in death; No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” (John 1-4) …On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. Bethany was less than two miles from Jerusalem… Lord, Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this? (John 17-26) …

 When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”  When Jesus saw her weeping and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled… Jesus wept…(vv.32-35)

Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. “Take away the stone.” But, Lord, said, Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.” Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God? (vv.38-40).

So, they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here. That they may believe that you sent me. (vv.41-42).

When he had said this Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of line, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.” (vv.43-44).

 Therefore, many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, put their faith in Him…but the chief priests and Pharisees had given orders that if anyone found out where Jesus was, he should report it so that they might arrest him. (vv.45,57).

 

In the verse 4 Jesus said, “this sickness will not end in death; No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” The resurrection of Lazarus would demonstrate the glory of God even more than restoration from a sick bed. 

In the verse 8, the Lord had left Judaism and had come to a place from which He could proceed to Bethany, which was an early miniature of the church. In chapter 5, Jesus healed a man paralyzed 38 years at Bethesda (the house of mercy). At Bethany, Jesus raised a man from dead. Bethany means house of affliction.  In the eight foregoing cases, in chapter 3 to 10, religion was the main frustration to and opponent of life. Here, outside religion and on the new ground, life was going to raise a dead person. Here, life no longer faced religion with its rituals, but it was frustrated by many human opinions. The disciples’ opinions (vv.8-16), Martha’s opinion (vv.21-28), Mary’s opinion (vv.32-33), the Jew’s opinion (vv.36-38), and again, Martha’s opinion (vv.39-40.) opinions, which come from knowledge, belong to the tree of knowledge, but the Lord here was actually the tree of life for people to enjoy.

Verse 14 In the Lord’s salvation He does not merely heal the sick; He also gives life to the dead. Hence, He remained two days until the sick one had died (v.6). The Lord does not reform or regulate people – He regenerates people and raise them out of death. Therefore, the first of the nine cases in chapter 3-11 was a case of regeneration, and the last was a case of resurrection, revealing that all the aspects of Christ as life to us, as unveiled in the other seven cases, are in the principles of regeneration and resurrection. This last case was the actual changing death into life.  

In verse 24 The Lord told Martha, “Your bother will rise again” (v.23). This meant that the Lord would raise him immediately; but Martha expounded the Lord’s word so as to postpone the present resurrection to the last day. What an exposition of the divine word! Some of the knowledge of fundamental teaching is truly destructive and frustrates people from enjoying the Lord’s present resurrection life.  

Verse 25 He who believes in Me, even if he dies physically shall live spiritually and eternally. Whoever lives physically and believes in Me will never die spiritually and eternally.

In verse 27 the Lord said to Martha, “I am the resurrection and the life,” and asked her, “Do you believe this?” She answered, “Yes, Lord, I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God.” Her reply did not answer the Lord’s question. Her old, preoccupying knowledge covered her, preventing her from understanding the Lord’s new word. Man’s old knowledge and old opinions are coverings that keep him from knowing clearly the Lord’s new revelation. In verse 28 this might have been Martha’s opinion and not the Lord’s command.

Verse 35 Jesus wept. This word differs from the word translated weep and weeping in vv.31 and 33. Here it means to shed tears to wee silently. This is the only time the word is used in the New Testament.

Verse 41 their taking the stone away and loosing Lazarus were their submitting to and cooperating with the resurrection life.

Verse 52 the phrase gathers into one the children of God mentioned in this chapter implies that not only the Lord’s death but also the Lord’s resurrection life is for the building up God’s children. By His death the Lord released His life so that it could be imparted into those who believe into Him. This life is experienced by us in His resurrection. It is in the Lord’s resurrection that we grow together into one by His life to become His body.  

Bibliography,

Lee, Witness. The New Testament (R.V.) Anaheim, CA: Living Stream Ministry, 1985.

Ryrie, Charles C. The Ryrie Study Bible (NIV).Chicago, IL: The Moody Bible Institute, 1986.