Well, last Sunday we heard about one of the greatest miracles that Jesus ever did,
raising Lazarus from the dead.
And we continue that story this morning.
I'm reading from John chapter 11, verse 45 and 46.
Therefore, many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary and had seen what Jesus did,
believed in him.
But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.
So now we come to the response to this great miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead.
As we heard last Sunday, it wasn't just Mary and Martha who witnessed this.
There was a whole group of witnesses.
And let's just go back and trace this out quickly.
Back to verse 19 of chapter 11.
When Jesus first arrived in Bethany, John tells us that many Jews had already come to Martha and Mary
to comfort them in the loss of their brother.
Now, if Jewish funerals were like some of ours,
we might have assumed that these visitors had all gone home already before Jesus even arrived.
Lazarus had already been buried for four days.
But then we come down to verse 31.
And we discover that at least some of these visitors were still there with Mary and Martha.
There were some who were in the house comforting Mary, John tells us.
And these Jewish friends follow Mary out to the place where she meets with Jesus when he arrives.
John tells us that these friends, at least some of them, were weeping along with Mary in verse 33.
And some of them remarked at how Jesus himself wept.
But some of them said,
Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?
Then we finally come to the moment of the miracle.
Jesus prays to his father and says at the end of his prayer,
I've said what I said in this prayer for the benefit of the people standing here,
so that they may believe that you sent me.
Literally, it's on account of the crowd standing around.
So these Jewish friends who had been with Mary are all here at the tomb with her,
and with Martha, and with Jesus.
And then Jesus does the miracle and raises Lazarus from the dead in the sight of all of them.
So we've had this group of witnesses,
and now we find out about their response to the miracle.
What's their reaction?
John tells us in verse 45 and 46.
He tells us that many of them who had seen what Jesus did believed in him.
The miracle that they saw with their own eyes sealed the deal.
Yes, you really are, just as Martha says, the Messiah, the Son of God.
But John tells us also that some of them went to the Pharisees and told them about what Jesus had done.
Now, this is kind of an ominous statement.
On the one hand, we might think, well, that's great.
You go tell those Pharisees what Jesus did.
Give them some more evidence that Jesus really is the Son of God and the Messiah.
But on the other hand, the Pharisees have been plotting to kill Jesus.
They are his enemies, his opponents.
They've been looking for opportunities to get their hands on him.
So why are they going to Jesus' enemies?
Now the Pharisees will know where Jesus is.
And he's not far away.
Bethany is just two miles outside the city of Jerusalem.
So this is almost kind of like reporting Jesus to the local police.
As if he just committed a crime or something.
Well, this report triggers a big meeting.
Verse 47.
Then the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin.
The Sanhedrin is the ruling council in Israel.
It's also the highest judicial body in the land.
Except for the Roman authority, which was over them at the time.
So you can maybe think of it a little bit like the legislative assembly and the Supreme Court of Canada merged together into one.
But a religious version.
Made up of chief priests.
Pharisees.
Scribes.
Sadducees.
Elders.
Wealthy.
Individuals.
So big meeting.
And now we hear a little from John about what was said at this meeting.
What are we accomplishing?
They asked.
Here is this man performing many signs.
If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him.
And then the Romans will come and take away both our temple and our nation.
Can you hear the frustration that they have about Jesus?
What are they so worried about?
They're worried that everyone will come to believe in Jesus.
That's what they don't want to see happen.
People are coming to believe that Jesus is the Messiah.
And Messiah means king.
And if the whole nation gets behind this man as their king, their Messiah,
then it would almost certainly be perceived as a revolt.
And cause the Romans to come hard against them.
It would ruin this whole little bit of freedom that we have underneath the Romans
to be our own nation that we've got going here in our little corner of the Roman Empire.
So these were the kinds of things being said at this high-level meeting.
And we can't help but wonder,
where, O leaders of Israel, is your faith in God?
He promised that the Messiah would come and reign on David's throne.
And if Jesus is that Messiah,
which the signs are overwhelmingly pointing to,
if Jesus is that Messiah, then why should we fear the Romans?
If God is with this man, then who can be against him?
So there's not a lot of faith in God happening amongst this group of religious leaders
and political leaders.
And there's something else that's dark and ugly here.
Is it really just Rome that you're worried about?
Is it really for the greater good of the nation that you are worried?
Or is it your own positions of power and influence and wealth
over the people of Israel that you're worried about?
If Jesus does become king, where does that leave the Sanhedrin?
Out of a job.
Out of the spotlight where they love to be.
It leaves them under authority instead of over the people like they're used to.
No longer the ones who decide what's true and how things will go in the land.
It leaves them with people not believing in them anymore and instead believing in Jesus.
That's what's really going on here beneath the surface.
We see Jesus as a threat, they say.
And we cannot, we must not let him go on like this.
Because if we do, everybody will believe in him.
That's how compelling the signs were.
Verse 49.
Then one of them, named Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, spoke up.
You know nothing at all.
You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people
than that the whole nation perish.
He did not say this on his own, but as high priest that year,
he prophesied that Jesus would die for the Jewish nation.
And not only for that nation, but also for the scattered children of God,
to bring them together and make them one.
So from that day on, they plotted to take his life.
So Caiaphas, the high priest, the top dog, interjects at the assembly,
and he gives his own evaluation of what we should do here.
And it seems that what he says is accepted by the group.
Decision made.
What's best here is that this one man, Jesus, die.
It's better that than the alternative,
which is that he puts the whole nation in danger,
and the whole nation perish.
So this is the solution that the high priest puts forward.
But notice who the primary benefactors are here.
It's quite something how he words it, isn't it?
He says, you all do not realize that it is better for you,
and that's a you plural, as in it's better for you guys,
here at the meeting, that Jesus die, than the whole nation perish.
So whose interests come first here?
Those of the nation?
Or those of the Jewish leaders at the meeting?
He could have said, it's better for the nation.
But no, it's better for you guys if it goes this way,
if Jesus dies.
This is the man in the highest religious position in Israel.
What a sad solution.
And it's clear that this is what Caiaphas meant,
because look at what John says next in verse 53.
He says, so from that day on, they plotted to take his life.
Now the NIV translation and a few others,
I don't think get it quite right here.
Plotted is probably not quite the right meaning
of the word that's used in the original language.
The word used here means to reach a decision
about a course of action.
It means to resolve, to decide something.
And here's why this is so important.
This moment is not just the Pharisees doing more
of what they've been doing all along,
plotting and scheming.
This moment is the moment that the decision was made official
by the Sanhedrin to take Jesus out.
The Pharisees have been plotting and scheming for a long time,
but now this is more than just the Pharisees.
This is the whole Jewish ruling council.
Pharisees, Sadducees, scribes, teachers of the law.
It's now official.
Decision made.
This man needs to go.
They resolved.
They decided to take his life.
And notice what's missing.
This is not a decision to bring him in
so that we can question him some more.
There's no mention of any need to put Jesus on trial
or examine him.
The decision is made to take his life,
as in to kill him.
This is not good.
Now let's go back for a moment.
What are we to make of this statement that John makes,
that Caiaphas prophesied that Jesus would die for the Jewish nation?
This is kind of a strange, maybe a little bit unexpected remark.
And we're probably wondering here,
did Caiaphas even know that he was prophesying,
that God was speaking through him?
Because it sure doesn't seem like Caiaphas is speaking from God.
It seems like he's proposing a very human and even sinful solution
to the problem of Jesus that the leaders have.
It's better for you guys that Jesus die
than for the whole nation to perish.
And it seems obvious by how the council responds
that this is how they understood Caiaphas' words.
We got to figure out a way to take his life,
to put an end to him.
But then John tells us
that Caiaphas did not say this on his own.
Literally, he did not say this from himself.
Amazingly and mysteriously,
Caiaphas was also speaking from God.
Or maybe we might say, rather,
that God was speaking through him.
And I'll be honest,
I'm still trying to wrap my head around this a little bit.
John makes special mention
that he was the high priest that year.
And the high priest,
at least in Israel's history,
was responsible for,
partially for revealing God's will to the people.
He had the urim and the thummim,
those kind of dice that would be rolled
to consult with the Lord.
In some ways,
the high priest is a mediator
between God and man.
And so prophecy,
or speaking from God,
was something that we might expect
to hear from the high priest.
And so,
it seems,
as John is saying,
that because he was the high priest,
God deliberately chose to speak through him.
But as Caiaphas spoke,
surprisingly,
it seems that what Caiaphas intended
and what God intended
were two different things.
Caiaphas predicted that Jesus would die
as a substitute
on behalf of the nation.
And that's exactly what happened.
But Caiaphas intended Jesus' death
so that the nation wouldn't be wiped out
by the Romans.
Yet God intended Jesus' death
to save his people
from their sins,
to save them from perishing
in a much greater
and a much different sense.
maybe what Caiaphas envisioned
was that somehow,
in the midst of all this,
the scattered children of God,
Jews from all over,
would come together now
and be united,
even though this Jesus turned out
not to be the Messiah
that they had been hoping for.
But what God intended
was that through his son Jesus,
all of his children,
who are scattered all over,
both Jew and Gentile
would come to believe in Jesus
and would be made into one flock,
one people of God,
united in Christ,
their Lord and Messiah.
So that's my best guess
at what's going on here.
There is one word of prophecy spoken,
and yet it seems
two different intentions.
There's Caiaphas' intention,
and there's God's intention.
And amazingly,
even though there are
two different intentions,
there's only one result
and one outcome.
We might sum it up
in the words of Joseph
to his brothers.
What Caiaphas intended for evil,
God intended for good,
to accomplish what is now being done,
the saving of many lives.
That's what the death of Jesus
is all about,
by God's intention,
salvation,
the saving of lives.
So Jesus will die for the nation
as a substitute,
and it will result
in salvation for people
and a bringing together
of all the children of God
so that they may be united.
Prophecy fulfilled.
But you know,
the more I thought about this,
the more I realized,
isn't this something?
Here they are
in the middle of this meeting
trying to decide
what to do with God's Son.
Plotting,
scheming,
and now coming to a decision
to kill Him.
And yet,
in that very meeting,
God is there.
And God is speaking.
He even uses one of them
to declare what He will bring about.
through their plotting,
through their decision,
something good.
Something much more necessary
than the salvation
and the unification
that they have in mind.
God is able to bring about
His plan,
His good purpose,
through the plotting
and scheming
of wicked men.
the very word that sealed
Jesus' fate
at this meeting,
at least on the human level,
was ultimately
spoken by God
to bring about salvation
for His people.
And this is what the apostles
came to realize
after Jesus had ascended
into heaven.
Maybe you remember
later,
Jesus' followers
come to
have some conflict
with these same leaders
in Acts chapter 4
and they're threatened.
Don't you talk about Jesus anymore.
And they gather together
and they pray.
And this is what they say
in Acts chapter 4.
You spoke by the Holy Spirit
through the mouth
of your servant, Lord,
our father David.
Why do the nations rage
and the peoples plot
in vain?
The kings of the earth
rise up
and the rulers
band together
against the Lord
and His anointed one.
Indeed,
Herod and Pontius Pilate
met together
with the Gentiles
and the people of Israel
in this city
to conspire
against your holy servant,
Jesus,
whom you anointed.
But now listen
to what they say.
They did
what your power
and will
had decided beforehand
should happen.
Isn't that something?
Do you hear that?
Here in this meeting
of the Sanhedrin,
even though powerful men
are at work
against the Lord Jesus,
plotting and scheming
and planning
and deciding
to bring Jesus down,
God is totally
in control
and He is even
bringing about
His good purpose
and His will
through
their decision.
Something He's already
decided
should happen.
I think there's a word
for us in this
for our day,
isn't there?
I've seen
and I've heard
such concern
from Christians
all over the world
about what is happening
right now
in our days,
about powerful people
in positions
of leadership,
people who have
great influence
and are wealthy,
who are working hard
to bring about
what they want
to see
and it seems
that they're succeeding.
Now don't get me wrong,
we should be sad
when laws are made
that are unjust
and immoral
or when people
are harmed
or hurt
by the powerful
or people
are taken advantage
of
by the wealthy.
But let's not forget
that today,
just as then,
God is still
totally in control
of the situation.
It's not just
that he's off
to the side
and only occasionally
intervenes
just to make sure
that things still
go according to plan.
No,
he is working
through
what these people
are doing
to bring about
his good purpose,
his will
for his people
and nobody
can stop him.
Nobody
can thwart him.
So things
are heating up
for Jesus.
It's now official.
The religious leaders
are maybe thinking,
now we can finally
start printing
the wanted posters
and putting them
up on the walls
here in Jerusalem
and in every town
in Israel.
verse 54.
Therefore,
Jesus no longer
moved about
publicly
among the people
of Judea.
Instead,
he withdrew
to a region
near the wilderness
to a village
called Ephraim
where he stayed
with his disciples.
So again,
Jesus gets
out of town.
He puts
some distance
between himself
and them.
he finds
a small village
on the edge
of the wilderness
and he stays
there for a while
with his disciples.
I want to encourage
you to put yourself
in the shoes
of Jesus'
disciples
in this time.
How are they
feeling right now
as they follow
Jesus through
all of this?
Did they feel
safe?
Perhaps
they're feeling
like fugitives,
men on the run.
But even
though from
their perspective
it probably
looked like
things were
spiraling downward
and out of
control,
all this time
God was
totally
in control
and all
they needed
to do
was trust
him
and keep
following Jesus.
God
and his
son
Jesus
are seated
right now
on heaven's
throne
and no matter
what happens
in our world
they are
personally
seeing to it
that everything
goes
just as it
should
even in our
day today.
and so I
want to
encourage you
this morning
to trust
and obey.
Keep
following
Jesus.
He is the
way,
the truth
and the
life.
Let's pray.
it's such a
privilege
Lord Jesus
to know
your story
to know
you
to belong
to you
and to know
that we are
safe
because we
have you
for our
shepherd
our king
our lord
and we
long for
that day
when you
will return.
We long
to see
the fullness
of the
kingdom of
heaven,
the kingdom
of God
that you
spoke so
much about.
I pray
that you
would help
us to be
patient and
to trust
you.
Even though
we don't
know just
what or
when all
of this
will unfold.
May you
be glorified
in us.
In Jesus
name.
Amen.