Lazar I                                                          

It is the beginning of my thirtieth year when a messenger from Mary and Martha comes to us in Batanea. "Lazarus is sick." The messenger is afraid that he will die. But I just know that I will see him again. I had asked my father to let me say goodbye to my loved ones before I died. Then I came up with a plan to visit Simon, Lazarus, Martha, and Mary in Bethany for my last Passover with family and friends.

Going now is too dangerous. Perhaps the Judeans will arrest me before the time comes. But after two days, I become restless. I lie awake all night, praying and tossing and turning in my bed. I feel that I must go to Judea after all. Lazarus is dead.

I say to my friends:

"Let's go to Judea."

'But Master, didn't the people there want to stone you just a short while ago? Why should we leave this safe region?'

"We can be careful not to be taken by surprise, can't we?"

But they are not convinced. So I tell them what I feel:

"Lazarus has fallen asleep. I must wake him up."

"Leave him. If he's sleeping well, he'll get better."

"He's dead." Now they are silent. "And I want to go to him."

Juda Tomas, the twin, throws his arms around me and says to the others:

"Let's go with him. If we have to die, we'll die together."

Through Herod's Perea        

On our way to Jerusalem, we pass through numerous towns and villages. Everywhere there are people who recognize us and speak to us. When we arrive in Perea, things become more tense. Perea belongs to Herod's empire, although I don't expect him to be too concerned about me at this point.

But the people here remember exactly why Herod had John arrested and killed. Some want to test me. A lawyer is sent to me with the question of whether a man may divorce his wife. The great and pious Hillel, the former president of the High Council, has listed numerous situations in which divorce is permitted. Perhaps out of love, but perhaps also to avoid having to condemn many members of the elite, and even Herod the Great himself, for breaking the law.

"What do you yourself read in the law of Moses?" I ask.

"That in such a case you must make a divorce settlement." That is true, but the great prohibition against adultery does not quote this law scholar.

"That is no more than a provision because he knows your hard hearts and wants to mitigate the evil consequences. But it remains a sin. For God created man and woman so that the man should cleave to his wife and they should be one flesh. What God has joined together, let no one separate. Rather, heaven and earth will pass away than one comma of God's law fall away. Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery, and the relationship between a divorced woman and another man is also adultery."

Some of the disciples were shocked by my harsh words.

"If that's the case, it's better not to marry at all."

"Not everyone understands this, but those who want to accept it do. For with God all things are possible."

"Is that why you never married yourself?"

"No, things turned out differently for me. I also know that there are men who are not allowed to marry because they were born with a sexual abnormality or were castrated by other people. But there are also people, Secluded Ones like Lazarus, who do not marry in order to work for God's kingdom. That is how I am, if you understand what I mean."

My clear stance is also a tribute to John, who was arrested and killed in these parts by an adulterous king and his new love. But I welcomed the Samaritan woman who had had many husbands, and brought them the good news of God's kingdom, without demanding that they leave each other. With God, everything is possible, but breaking love and faithfulness remains a sin. And who will ask God for healing as long as he denies that he is sick?

The day of rest interrupts our journey. After the celebration in the local assembly, the leader of the assembly invites us to eat with him. More devout people and teachers of the law gather at his house. Someone asks, "Are many people going to be saved on the Day of God's Judgment?"

"I wouldn't wait for it. Enter through the narrow gate while you still can. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. Fight for your life. Do not wait until night comes and the gate is closed. Whoever knocks then will be greeted with suspicion by the master of the house. "Who are you?" he will ask. "We have eaten and drunk with you. In our streets you spoke of the gate of life. Open the gate for us, for it is dark and unsafe on the streets." But a wise head of the household will not let strangers in: "I do not know you. Only robbers and criminals are still on the streets. Go away."

Some of the devout return to the unpleasant discussion about the divorce. They warn that it won't be long before the Herodians hear about it. They fear that I will end up like the Baptist. But unfortunately, that is inevitable. "Tell that fox that I will continue to do what I must do. Today and tomorrow I will be in Perea healing people. On the third day I will be across the border. We will not stay anywhere long enough to be arrested, for it is not right that a prophet should be killed outside Jerusalem."

Someone enters with swollen legs and arms. His body cannot get rid of the fluid. He comes to me full of expectation. I look at my host. "Do you think I should heal someone on the Sabbath?" No one dares to agree, afraid that the others will disagree. "Another question then. Would you let your ox or your donkey lie in the water if it fell in on the Sabbath?" I look at them one by one. Again, no one dares to say "yes." I am allowed to pray for the man.

When the meal is served, everyone finds their place. I see them thinking about where they will sit. As close as possible to their guest of honor, but not so close that more distinguished people will feel passed over. When everyone is seated, I am welcomed and asked to say a few words.

"My first words are for the guests. When someone invites you to a wedding, you don't sit in the front seats, because those are often reserved. Imagine having to get up again and find a seat at the back. Isn't it a much greater honor to sit at the back and find that a seat has been reserved for you at the front? Because the master of ceremonies will bring you forward. So it is with God's kingdom: everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted by God.

But I also have a word for the host. When you organize a midday or evening meal, don't just invite your family, your friends, and your wealthy neighbors. They will do the same for you, and you will have no further reward from God. Invite also the poor and the disabled, who cannot repay you. Then you can expect a blessing on the day when God raises the righteous from the dead.'

One of the guests responds enthusiastically: 'How wonderful it will be to eat at God's table.'

'But don't forget what I just told you. Now you are invited, so go in through the gate of life. For it will be like the supper that someone prepared. He invited many, and when everything was ready, he sent his servant to bring the guests. But the first said, 'I'm sorry, but I've just bought a field that I have to go and inspect. The second said, 'I'm sorry, I've bought five oxen that I need to break in. Maybe another time.' And another said, 'I've just gotten married. Can you apologize to your master for me?' When the servant reported this, his master was indignant. 'What do you mean, another time? Go to the streets and alleys of the city. Bring in the poor and disabled, for everything is now ready." And when the servant had done this, he returned and said, "There are still places available." "Go and search outside the city, on the roads and in the countryside. Bring people in and fill my house. When night falls and the invited guests are on their way back from their fields or their oxen, you will know the answer: I'm sorry, but there is no more room." '

       *      

When we set out after the Sabbath, many people followed us. They did not realize the danger they were in. I turned and said to them,

'If anyone wants to come with me, he must give up his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters, yes, even his own life. Otherwise, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not take up his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. Which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when the foundation is laid and you have not finished, everyone will see it and begin to mock you, saying, 'This man began to build and was not able to finish. Or consider Herod. His soldiers are deserting him, and his army is getting smaller every day. Should he go to war with ten thousand men against King Aretas, who has already mobilized twenty thousand? Wouldn't it be wiser to send a delegation to his father-in-law to discuss the terms of peace? Think about it: only if you give up everything you have can you come with me now.

Understand me correctly. Of course you can come with me, but will you be able to endure it? Salt is delicious on food, but what use is it when it is no longer salty? It is inedible and not even suitable for manure. You must get rid of it. Remember that!

Someone asks if I mean that he must give up everything he has, like those who join the Seculars. That is fine, of course, but my father does not demand that of us. I tell them a parable to make it clear.

"I know the story of a steward who worked for a rich man. When his master was told that he was squandering his wealth, he called him to him and ordered an investigation of his accounts. The steward panicked because he knew he would lose his job. Begging or working as a day laborer on the land did not seem like an attractive future to him.

He decided to use his master's wealth to make new friends who would help him if he ever lost his job. He called the people who owed his master money or goods to his office one by one. Together, they replaced the old debt notes with new ones on which they wrote a much lower debt. After his dismissal, he was well taken care of.

Didn't this man of the world handle money much more wisely than the Secluded Ones? Use the wealth entrusted to you in this world to secure your future. For if you live in the service of money, know that you will lose that job one day. And then what will you have? If you cannot manage the deceitful money now, who will entrust you with the true good? If you mismanage someone else's wealth, why should he reward you with wealth for yourself? Manage your wealth, but do not let it control you. For no one can serve two masters. You cannot live for your money and for God at the same time. Consider your possessions as God-given, and be his good steward. And God, who has entrusted his money to you now, will one day entrust you with much greater treasures.

But beware. There was a rich man, always well dressed and always ready for a feast. At the gate of his house lay a leper begging for alms. I will call the leper Lazarus. He hoped for the scraps that would fall from the table. But the dogs were there first and even licked his sores.

The two men died at the same time. The rich man saw God's messengers carrying Lazarus away to lie beside Abraham at God's table, while he himself was sinking into the fire of hell. He cried out to Abraham and begged him to have Lazarus bring him a drop of water to ease his pain. But Abraham replied, "Child, you received good things in your life and Lazarus received evil things. Now it is the opposite. You did not help him, and now it is impossible for us to help you."

"Father, send him to my family's house. For I have five brothers who live as I did. Let Lazarus warn them."

"They have Moses and the prophets; let them listen to them."

"They won't! But if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent."

"If they won't listen to Moses and the prophets, they won't be convinced even if someone rises from the dead."

I hope my friends are now prepared for the disappointment to come. Not that I doubt that God will give Lazarus back to us. I just know that for many, that will not be a reason to accept us.

Lazarus II                              

When I arrive in Bethany, I hear that Lazarus has indeed been dead for four days. Still outside Bethany, not far from the cemetery, Martha comes to meet me. "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. If you had prayed to God, he would surely have spared him."

"Your brother will rise again, Martha."

"Yes, Lord. The righteous will rise on the last day."

"Dear Martha, whoever trusts in me has eternal life, even if he dies. For he has not died for eternity. You know that, don't you?"

"I know that you are the Son of God who was to come. I know it. But the sorrow remains."

She turns and runs away crying.

Shortly afterwards, Mary comes to us, accompanied by the other mourners from the house. She falls at my feet, weeping. "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." The same words as her sister. They must have waited and hoped for me in vain for days. Now I too must weep. I help her to her feet. "Where did you lay him?" "Come with me, I'll show you."

I hear the people around us. Some sympathize, others reproach me for not coming sooner. When we reach the tomb, Martha is there again. I ask them to roll away the stone from the tomb. Martha protests, "Lord, it's already the fourth day since he was laid there. It will smell terrible."

"I told you he would rise again."

When they roll away the stone, I smell that my father has heard me. I thank him aloud, not only for Lazarus, but also for the people who will learn to trust in the resurrection because of him. Then I call out loudly, "Lazarus, come out."

And there he is. Stumbling because of the grave clothes he was wrapped in, he comes toward us. His sisters help him home.

       *      

In the evening, Lazarus calls Simon and me to him. He has something to tell us, but does not want the others to be present. "Yeshua, I must apologize to you. I was angry with you. I did not want to return to this life at all.

When I died, I saw a light so full of love that I felt completely understood. There were heavenly messengers who took me through a narrow gate of light. When we left this world behind, we came to a kind of garden with the most beautiful flowers you can imagine. There were more people of light who greeted me. They took me to a place whose walls were like light. At the entrance, I was clothed in a white robe. Then I myself was also made of light. Inside, I heard songs of praise. But all this paled in the presence of an old man with a young face. I felt cherished by his presence in an all-encompassing love. Then I saw his eyes. He has eyes like yours, Yeshua. And he said without words: "You must return, Lazar, my son needs you." But I did not want to go back. He said: "Do not be afraid, you are invited to my son's wedding." Then the messengers took me away. They took the white robe off me and we went back through the gate. They stayed with me until the light was gone. And then you called me.

Lazar and I both cry. Simon looks at us questioningly. I tell him that the light is so beautiful and loving that anyone who is touched by it is never the same again. But it is also something that is difficult to share with someone who has not experienced it. Then I tell them about my encounter on the mountain. And finally, that I must die in Jerusalem on Passover.

I experience Lazar's story as an enormous comfort from my father. I long to see that light again. On the mountain, Moses and Elijah showed me that I will rise on the third day. I experience God's refusal to let Lazar rot in his grave as a promise. I go to sleep with the words of David on my lips.

            My heart is glad and my tongue rejoices.

            Even my flesh rests safely.

            You will not let my soul sit in hell.

            You will not allow your holy one to see decay.

            You will make me know the path of life,

            that I may rejoice in your presence,

            and delight in your presence forever.                             Psalm 16:9-11

*

In the middle of the night, Simon wakes me up. Nicodemus has sent a messenger to Bethany to warn us. The Sanhedrin has convened to discuss the events. The news that Lazarus has been raised from the dead is considered extremely dangerous. The rationalist members of the Council see it as a clever trick on our part to make the people believe that God's blessing rests on our movement. Serious consideration is being given to the possibility of an uprising against the Romans, or at least to the fact that the Romans themselves might see it that way. This is all the more so since rebel leader Bar-Abbas has shifted his activities to Judea.

High Priest Caiaphas has proposed to initiate proceedings against me for false prophecy, magic, and seduction to idolatry, which carries the death penalty. Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea and a few other pious men tried to formulate a milder charge, but Caiaphas was resolute this time: 'Don't you understand how serious this is? Don't you realize that this is also in your interest? If we make mistakes now, we will all be dismissed. It is better that one man die than that the whole people be lost.'

Nicodemus sent his messenger immediately. He expects the vote to go against us. There is a good chance that an arrest team will be sent to Bethany before daybreak.

The Jewish tradition

            The procedure                                 

            During the preparations for Passover, Yeshua was hanged.

            Forty days before he was executed, a messenger went around shouting:

            "Yeshua must be stoned because he has practiced magic

            and led Israel astray.

            Let anyone who wants to plead for him come forward or remain silent forever.'

            But no one stood up for him, and he was hung on the cross.

            Councillor Ulla said:

            'It is unthinkable that he could still be defended.

            Was he not a deceiver of whom the law says:

            "You shall not spare him, nor spare him, nor cover his guilt." '

            But with Yeshua, it took longer for action to be taken,

            because he had friends in the High Court.            Decisions of the High Council - 43a

No region is safe anymore. Messengers will be sent to the courts throughout Palestine to inform them of the proceedings and to request evidence and my arrest. But Simon has a solution. He suggests that we go into hiding with the Seculars in Ephraim, a small town in the Judean desert, far away from the main roads. He quickly writes a letter for us. We agree that we will return to him on the day of rest before Passover.

Ephraim                                                                  

We wake up the Twelve and tell them the news. We quickly gather our belongings and leave. As we pass Jerusalem at daybreak over the hills to the east and north of the city, I am overcome with melancholy. "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you. How often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings. But you were not willing. Behold, your house is left to you desolate. You will not see me again until you say, 'Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

       *      

It is the spring of my thirtieth year when we arrive in Ephraim. We will stay there for a month. Once again, I read the scroll of the prophet Daniel. I remember how Simon once pointed out to me that it says here that the Anointed One would die. Strange, I have become so accustomed to it that I am no longer even frightened to think about it. Perhaps it will be different when the time comes. Now I am much more concerned with understanding what is going to happen. I read what Daniel heard hundreds of years ago—when the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and carried its inhabitants away—about me and about the future of our city.

            Daniel,

            70 times have been determined for your people and for your holy city.

            To atone for its transgressions and to forgive its sins.

            To atone for her iniquity, to bring eternal righteousness.

            To seal up vision and prophecy, to anoint the Most Holy.

            Know this, therefore, and understand: from the command

            of the rebuilding of Jerusalem until the Anointed One, there will be seven times and sixty-two times.

            The city will return and be rebuilt, but the times will be troubled.

            The Anointed One will be killed after those 62 times, he has nothing.

            The people of a future ruler will destroy the city and the sanctuary.

            The city will be flooded with battle until there is nothing left.

            He will make it difficult for many to keep the Covenant for a time.

            In the midst of that time, he will put a stop to sacrifices and offerings

            and there will be abominations in the temple.

            A determined end will be poured out on the Desolator.           Daniel 9:24-27

If this refers to me, I can only interpret it in one way. Seven decades after the destruction of Jerusalem, the temple was indeed rebuilt. And 62 decades after the destruction of Jerusalem, I was indeed anointed with God's Spirit. If all that is literally true, then sometime after my death there will be a decade of severe tribulation. It will be difficult to keep God's covenant. It will even become impossible when nothing remains of the temple.

I now understand what I saw on the mountain: a living temple is needed. One made of people, not stone. That is my task. For the Destroyer does not have the last word. A day will come when the Anointed One will return from heaven as a son of man. But when this will happen was not revealed in the vision.

            The powers on earth were stripped of their dominion,

            for their reign was limited to a certain time.

            But I saw more in the faces of that night.

            Behold, One came with the clouds of heaven, like a son of man.

            And he came to the Lord, and they brought him near to him.

            And he received dominion and honor and kingship,

            so that all peoples, nations, and languages would honor him.

            His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not be destroyed,

            and his kingdom will never be destroyed.                                             Daniel 7:12-14

*       *

I am using the time in Ephraim to prepare my friends for the period that is to come, when I am no longer with them.

"It is inevitable that you too will be tempted to fall away from God's kingdom. But woe to those who tempt others. They would be better off with a millstone tied around their necks and thrown into the sea than to cause one of these little ones who believe in me to fall. Beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. Then many will fall and betray one another and hate one another. More false prophets will arise and deceive many. And because of the increase of lawlessness, the love of many will grow cold.

Take good care of yourself. Even if your own hand or foot is your stumbling block, it is better to cut it off than to lose your whole hand and miss out on heaven. If your eye tempts you, it is better to pluck it out than to go with open eyes into hell, where an unquenchable fire destroys everything. Yes, everyone will be salted with fire. And that in itself is good, because without salt everything is bland.

But keep peace among yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. If he does not come to you, go to him. Talk to him privately; if he listens to you, you have won him back. If he does not listen, take two or three others with you, and talk to him again. If he still refuses to listen, report the matter to the church. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to him in the presence of two or three others, so that every word you say may be confirmed by their testimony. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to his father or his church. If he refuses to listen even to them, tell it to everyone. Therefore, pray with him to the Father. For if two or three of you pray together, the Father will hear you, no matter what he has done. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I with them to pray.

Peter asks, "Lord, how often must I forgive my brother if he keeps sinning against me? Seven times?"

'Even if he sins against you seven times a day and seven times returns to you repentant, you shall forgive him. Even if it is seventy times seven times.'

And I tell them a parable:

"Therefore, you can compare the kingdom of God to a king who asked his servants to settle the accounts. Someone was brought to him who owed him more money than all of Palestine could pay in taxes in ten years. But the servant was a slave who had nothing to pay with except his own wife and children and a few household items. He fell at the king's feet and begged, 'Lord, be patient with me, and I will pay you back everything.' The king was moved with compassion and not only forgave him his debt, but also set him free.

When the servant went outside, he found a fellow slave who owed him a few months' wages. He grabbed him by the throat and demanded his money. The man begged him to be patient with him, because he had not yet gathered the money. But the servant had him thrown into prison until he paid him. When the other servants saw this, they were saddened and complained to the king. And the king said to his servant, "You wicked servant, I forgave you so much when you begged me, shouldn't you have had mercy on your debtor as I had mercy on you?" The king looked at him. Then he became angry and put him in prison in place of the other, un until he had paid everything. So also will my Father do to you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.

*

At another moment, the Twelve return to my words. They are not confident that they will be able to stand without me. "Lord, give us more confidence."

'It's not about more confidence. It's about taking the first step in confidence. Like planting a mustard seed. Even if you had to tell this mulberry tree to transplant itself to the bottom of the sea, if you did it, it would obey you. Do what you have to do. Which of you, if you have a servant, will say to him after a long day's work, 'Come and rest, your meal will be served'? Won't you say to him, 'Prepare my meal and serve it to me, and when I have eaten and drunk, you may eat and drink'?

And if the servant does so, will you thank him for doing what he was told? Most masters would not. So you also must do what God has commanded you. Say to yourself, "I am only a servant of the Lord; I have done what I had to do."