He raised a man from the dead! A man who had been dead for four days. It wasn't some type of illusion or trick. While Lazarus might be able to hold his breath for a couple of minutes, 4 days was a bit of a stretch. Jesus didn't pull up in an ambulance ready to perform CPR as Lazarus was way past that point. He had died, been prepared for burial, and placed in his tomb. There were those standing around who saw this miracle and immediately believed in Him. Others, however, feared the momentum that was gathering around this man, Jesus. The Pharisees who heard of this event couldn't deny it happened. There were way too many eye witnesses. They saw a man who was dead with rigor mortis taking over. There was no doubt this man was dead because the stench of death was in the air. There was no denying what happened that day. A dead man was raised from the dead!
It is well documented that the Pharisees struggled with this Jesus. He was stirring things up. He was making things uncomfortable. He was doing things and saying things that were, well.....controversial. He was either unaware of the cultural/political climate or He just didn't care. He didn't send out pollsters or get a consensus prior to speaking or acting out. He was as unconcerned about what the religious leaders thought as He was about what the Roman government thought. He seemed to fear none of them nor what they might do to Him. He spoke the truth. He lived the truth. He was not concerned about being culturally relevant, politically correct, popular, or gathering a crowd. At the same time He didn't come to stand on a soap box. He didn't strive to prove He was right. He didn't condemn humanity because they opposed Him or His message. He spoke the truth and allowed man to make a decision to believe that truth or not. He granted mankind freedom. Freedom to accept that truth and in doing so he chose life. That same freedom afforded man the liberty to reject that truth and in doing so he condemned himself. Wow, imagine that....personal responsibility!
Those who opposed Jesus that were standing around the tomb of Lazarus that day, saw the same miracle that many others saw that day. And while many believed in Jesus after that miracle, these men responded completely different. How could that be? They witnessed a miracle that they could not deny, yet still were not on board with this man or His message. What was the matter with these men? What was holding them back? What were they afraid of?
46 But some of them went away to the Pharisees and told them the things Jesus did. 47 Then the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered a council and said, “What shall we do? For this Man works many signs. 48 If we let Him alone like this, everyone will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and nation.” - John 11:46-48 (NKJV)
Wow, they were afraid of an oppressive government! The truth is they had become puppets. They worked hard not to rock the boat and in doing so, they maintained their power. Along comes this Jesus and He starts rocking that boat. They are convinced that if they don't step in and do something, the waves Jesus is making is going to sink the ship. So, regardless of the incredible works He is doing, they reckon that the price is too high to pay to jump on board. They could lose everything. Their positions, power, and status are all at risk. Persecution was certain and they wanted no part of that. God forbid their faith cost them something. They wanted to simply sit back and do life as normal and they were willing to make whatever compromises they needed in order to maintain the status quo. They had sold their souls in order to be comfortable.
Jesus wasn't controversial for the sake of being controversial. He didn't stir up things simply because He wanted to. Jesus didn't set out to just tick people off. The clash between the truth and deceit, light and darkness is inevitable. It cannot be avoided. When the kingdom of God shows up, the kingdom of this world is shaken. When greed, pride, selfishness, and deceit is confronted with generosity, humility, sacrificial love, and truth there is a collision that is certain and completely unavoidable. To think that those two competing kingdoms can coexist without producing some major friction and fallout is extremely naive.
Like Jesus, the church does not have to purpose to cause waves. We do not have to jump on a soap box in order to get the world to notice us. We should never say or do anything for the simple reason of trying to stir up something. At the same time, we should never cower or compromise in order to pacify any person or entity. Jesus was simply who He was. When the church determines to be who they are suppose to be, darkness will sit up and take notice. Forces will collide. Boats will be rocked. Offenses will come. Speaking and living the truth isn't comfortable. It comes with great risk. Attempting to keep the peace is not the goal of the church. Being the light of the world is what we are here for. Determining to be that light in a world shrouded in darkness will always produce conflict. Being that light requires the courage and strength to stand for what's right when it is extremely unpopular. It requires one to speak the truth even when its rejected by most. It requires one to love when its easier to hate.
The Pharisees during the days of Jesus failed miserably. They were more concerned about keeping the Roman government happy then doing what was right. They determined to be politically correct in order to keep the peace, yet in the end, the Roman government did exactly what they feared the most. There is a spirit of tolerance that permeates throughout every fiber of our culture. Much like the Pharisees, we are faced with the temptation of compromising, cowering, and shutting up. The day we give in to that temptation is the day we turn off the light. I don't know about you, but turning off the light is not something I am ok with. Political correctness....No thanks!
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