Ch. 47, Resurrecting Lazarus
“Son of Man: Urantia,” 2nd edition
Resurrecting Lazarus
It was just after noon on Thursday when Martha ran out of the house to meet Jesus coming over the hill to Bethany. Her brother Lazarus had died four days before, and they had put him in the family’s private tomb at the far end of the garden late on Sunday afternoon. Then earlier that morning before Jesus arrived in Bethany they had rolled the stone in place that was used to close off the entrance.
When Mary and Martha had sent the messenger to tell Jesus that Lazarus was sick, they were confident that Jesus would do something to heal him. They knew that their brother was deathly ill, and although they did not expect Jesus to just drop everything he was doing to come to their aid, they were confident that all he had to do was say the word and Lazarus would be healed. So when Lazarus died a few hours after the messenger left, everyone thought that it was because the runner had not reached Jesus in time and that Lazarus had already been dead for several hours before Jesus knew what was happening. But then the messenger came back Tuesday morning and told everyone that Jesus had said “...this sickness is not to the death,” so they did not know what to think. They also could not understand why Jesus had sent them no more word or offered them any help.
Mary, Martha, and Lazarus came from a well-to-do family: all three of the children passionately supported Jesus and they were all well respected in town. Their father had been an honorable Jew and had been admired as a leader of the community. They had inherited a large vineyard and olive orchard, and being wealthy they could afford a private burial tomb on their property in which their parents were already resting. When the news of Lazarus’ death spread across the land, many of their friends from nearby hamlets and others from Jerusalem showed up at the house to comfort the two sisters.
Mary had given up hope that Jesus was coming and gave into her grief. Martha though, had clung to the hope that Jesus would arrive right up to the moment they rolled the stone in place to seal the tomb. Even then it appears that she kept some hope because she had told a boy to station himself on the brow of the hill east of Bethany to watch for Jesus coming down the road from Jericho. This was who later let her know that Jesus was arriving.
When Martha reached Jesus she fell down at his feet saying “Master, if you had been here my brother would not have died!” Martha was scared, but she showed no doubt and did not criticize or question Jesus about Lazarus dying. When she was done speaking, Jesus reached down and lifting her up to her feet he said “Only have faith Martha, and your brother will rise again.”
Martha said “I know that he will arise again in the resurrection of the last day, and even now I believe that whatever you will ask of God our Father will give you.”
Then Jesus, looking straight into Martha’s eyes said “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in me though he dies yet he will live. In truth whosoever lives and believes in me will never die. Martha, do you believe this?”
Martha said “Yes, I have long believed that you are the Deliverer, the Son of the living God, even he who should come to this world.”
Jesus then asked about Mary, and Martha went into the house and whispered to her sister “The Master is here, and has asked for you.” Mary quickly got up and hurried out to meet Jesus who was still standing a way off from the house where Martha had first met him. The friends who were there to comfort Mary followed her when she went out of the house thinking that she was going to the tomb to cry.
Many of the people present in the house were Jesus’ bitter enemies. That was why Martha had gone out to meet him alone, and why she tried to keep it secret when she told Mary that Jesus was asking for her. Martha longed to see Jesus but she was also wanted to avoid any problems from him suddenly walking into a large group of his enemies from Jerusalem. So her intention had been to stay in the house with all of their friends while Mary snuck out to talk with him, but instead they followed Mary and suddenly everyone found themselves standing in front of Jesus.
Mary fell to Jesus’ feet crying “If you had only been here my brother would not have died!” When Jesus saw their grief his soul moved with compassion. The mourners stood a short distance away and waited. Mary and Martha talked with Jesus, and he urged them to keep their faith in the Father and remain in complete resignation to his will. Jesus’ human nature was torn between his love for Lazarus and his sisters, and his contempt for the outward displays of affection that the unbelieving Jews—those who were intent on murdering him—were showing. Jesus resented the spectacle of forced mourning by some of Lazarus’ so-called friends because that false sorrow was mixed with their hatred for him.
At Lazarus’ Tomb
Jesus took Mary and Martha aside from the other people to comfort them. After a few moments he said “Where have you laid Lazarus?”
Martha said “Come and see.”
As Jesus followed the two sisters in silence, he wept. When the friendly Jews saw his tears, one of them said “Behold how he loved him. Could he who opened the eyes of the blind have not stopped this man from dying?” By this time they had arrived at the family’s burial plot, which was a small natural cave in the thirty-foot high wall of rock at the far end of their garden.
It is difficult to explain to humanity exactly why Jesus wept. While we have access to his combined human emotions and divine thoughts as they are written in the records of his Personalized Adjuster, we are not certain about the real cause of what we saw. We think that Jesus wept because of several things that he was feeling and thinking at once. Jesus had genuine sympathy for Mary and Martha and held a deep human love for these sisters who had lost their brother. He was agitated by the crowd of mourners, some who were sincere and others who were merely pretending: Jesus resented outward exhibitions of sadness. But he knew the sisters loved their brother and that they had faith in the survival of those who believe the gospel. Those conflicting emotions may explain why Jesus groaned as they all got closer to the tomb. And Jesus truly hesitated bringing Lazarus back to life. His sisters needed him, but Jesus regretted having to bring his friend back knowing the bitter persecution that Lazarus would have to endure as the subject of his most famous demonstration of divine power.
We can now tell you that although this story unfolds like it was a natural event in your human affairs, it has some interesting side lights. Even though the messenger had told Jesus on Sunday about Lazarus’ illness and Jesus sent word back to the sisters that the sickness was not to the death, he still went in person to Bethany and even asked the sisters where they had put Lazarus. Although this seems to indicate that Jesus was operating on just his normal limited human knowledge, the universe records show that just fifteen minutes before Lazarus died Jesus’ Personalized Adjuster ordered the indefinite detention of his thought adjuster on the planet. Did Jesus’ divine mind know even before Lazarus died that he was going to raise him from the dead? We do not know: we only know what we are placing here on record.
Many of Jesus’ enemies sneered when they saw him weeping, and among themselves said “If he thought so much of this man why did he wait so long before coming to Bethany? If he is what they claim why did he not save his dear friend? What good is it to heal strangers in Galilee if he cannot save those he loves?” In many other ways they mocked Jesus and made fun of his teachings.
On this Thursday afternoon at about half past two o’clock the stage was set. In this little village of Bethany, Michael of Nebadon was about to act out his most celebrated feat of divine power during his time in the flesh. His own resurrection did not happen until after he had been released from the flesh, the mortal state.
The small group of people gathered together outside of the Lazarus’ tomb little realized what was happening around them. Near at hand under Gabriel’s leadership and as directed by Jesus’ Personalized Adjuster was a vast host of many different types of celestial beings all waiting, all vibrating with excitement, to execute Jesus’ orders. When Jesus commanded “Take away the stone,” the assembled celestial host prepared to bring Lazarus back to life as a human being. This type of resurrection is more difficult to do than the normal type of resurrection, and requires more facilities, organization, and celestial beings than just bringing the person back to life in the bodies we inhabit in the Morontia realm.
When Mary and Martha heard Jesus’ command, they were torn between what to do. Mary was hoping that Lazarus would be arisen from the dead, but Martha, while she shared some of Mary’s faith was more afraid about how Lazarus would look. Because of this she said “Do we have to roll away the stone? My brother has been dead now for four days, and by this time his body has begun to decay.”
Martha also said this because she was not exactly sure why Jesus wanted the stone rolled back; she thought that maybe Jesus just wanted one last moment with his friend. Martha was confused. As everyone stood around hesitating to roll away the stone, Jesus said “Did I not tell you from the beginning that this sickness was not to the death? Have I not come to fulfill my promise? After I came to you did I not say that if you would only believe you would see the glory of God? Why do you doubt? How long before you will believe, and then obey?” After Jesus spoke, the apostles and the others rolled the large stone away opening the entrance to the tomb.
The common Jewish belief was that the drop of gall on the tip of the sword of the angel of death began to work by the end of the third day, and that it took full effect on the fourth day. They believed that a person’s soul may hang around the tomb until the end of the third day hoping to bring the dead body back to life, but they firmly believed that the person’s soul had gone on to the realm of spirits before the fourth day had dawned. In this particular case with Lazarus, these beliefs about the dead and how the soul exits the body worked to ensure that everyone knew that Lazarus was dead and that this was an actual case of Jesus bringing him back to life.
Lazarus’ Resurrection
As this group of about forty-five people stood outside the tomb they could dimly see Lazarus’ body wrapped in linen bandages resting on the right lower corner of the small cave. While these earth creatures stood there in breathless silence, a vast host of celestial beings swung into place preparing for Gabriel’s signal. Jesus lifted his eyes up to the sky and said “Father, thank you for hearing and granting my request. I know that you always hear me, but because of those who stand here with me I am speaking to you like this so that they can believe that you have sent me into the world, and that they can know that you are working with me in what we are about to do.” After he had prayed Jesus cried out in a loud voice “Lazarus, come forth!”
While the people remained motionless the vast celestial host went to work at their master’s command. In just twelve seconds of earth time Lazarus’ lifeless body began to stir and soon sat up on the stone ledge: he was wrapped in the bandages and his face was covered with a cloth napkin. As Lazarus stood up in front of them, Jesus said “Unwrap him and let him come out.”
Everyone that had gathered around—except Mary, Martha, and the apostles—ran away and back to the house: they were pale, scared, and astonished. Lazarus went up to Jesus and the apostles: he was confused because he was wearing grave clothes and waking up in the garden. After the others went aside, Mary and Martha told him about his death, burial, and resurrection. Mary and Martha had to explain that he had died on Sunday and was now brought back to life on Thursday because while Lazarus was dead he had no consciousness of time.
As Lazarus walked out of the tomb Jesus’ Personalized Adjuster, now the chief of his kind in this local universe, commanded Lazarus’ former Adjuster, now in waiting, to resume its place in Lazarus’ mind and soul.
Lazarus and his sisters went over to Jesus and the three of them knelt at his feet offering gratitude and giving praise to God. Jesus took Lazarus by the hand and lifted him up saying “My son, what has happened to you will also be experienced by everyone who believes this gospel, except that they will be resurrected in a more glorious form. You will be a living witness of the truth that I have spoken: that I am the resurrection and the life. But now let all of us go into the house and feed these physical bodies.”
As Jesus and the others walked to the house, Gabriel dismissed the assembled celestial host and then recorded the first time on Urantia, and the last, where a mortal creature was resurrected in the same physical body.
Lazarus could hardly understand what had occurred. He knew he had been sick, but he could only remember that he had fallen asleep and then been awakened. He was never able to tell anyone anything about the four days in the tomb because he was completely unconscious. Time is nonexistent to those in the sleep of death.
Though many people believed in Jesus because of this mighty miracle, others only hardened their hearts and rejected him more. By noon the next day the story of Lazarus being raised from the dead had spread throughout Jerusalem: scores of men and women went to Bethany to talk with him, while the Pharisees—now alarmed—quickly called a meeting of the Sanhedrin.
Meeting of the Sanhedrin
While raising Lazarus from the dead strengthened the faith of believers, it also quickened the Sanhedrin’s resolve to destroy Jesus. At one o’clock the next day, Friday, the Sanhedrin met to discuss what to do with him. After more than two hours of bitter debate one of them presented a resolution that called for Jesus’ immediate death on the grounds that he was a menace to Israel. Time and again this imposing body of Jewish leaders had ordered Jesus’ arrest on charges of blasphemy and breaking Jewish sacred law. Once before they had even gone so far as to declare that he should die. But this was the first time the Sanhedrin had gone on record demanding his death before he had a trial. This resolution did not come to a vote because fourteen members resigned as a group when it was proposed. While their resignations were not formally acted on for almost two weeks, the men withdrew from the Sanhedrin that day and never again sat in the council. When the resignations later went into effect, five other members were also thrown out because of their suspected ties to Jesus. With the removal of these nineteen men the Sanhedrin was now positioned to condemn Jesus with almost unanimous approval.
The next week Lazarus and his sisters were ordered to appear before the Sanhedrin. After their story had been heard there was no doubt that Lazarus had been raised from the dead. Although the Sanhedrin’s actions virtually admitted that Lazarus had been resurrected, their record stated that this and all other wonders crafted by Jesus were attributed to the power of the prince of devils. No matter what the source of Jesus’ power, these Jewish leaders were convinced that if he was not stopped immediately soon all of the common people would believe in him. And furthermore, that serious complications with the Roman authorities would result since so many of his believers thought he was the Messiah, Israel’s deliverer. It was at this same meeting of the Sanhedrin that Caiaphas, the high priest, first stated the old Jewish adage that he later repeated many times, “It is better that one man die than the community die.”
Although Jesus had been warned about the Sanhedrin’s doings this dark Friday afternoon, he was not worried. Jesus continued to rest over the Sabbath with his friends in Bethpage, a hamlet near Bethany. Then early Sunday morning like they had all before agreed, Jesus and the apostles met at Lazarus’ house to say goodbye to the family before returning to the Pella camp.
The Answer to Prayer
Jesus and the others had kept it a secret that they were returning to Pella, and they traveled alone on the road. Jesus refused to answer questions about resurrecting the dead: that topic was beyond the apostles’ spiritual development. Instead, the apostles spent their time asking Jesus questions about prayer and how it was answered. The following summarizes his answers.
Prayer is the finite mortal mind trying to contact the infinite divine mind. All prayer is limited by the person’s knowledge of God’s wisdom and attributes. Any answer to a human’s prayer will be based on the aims, ideals, and vision of the divine. Since the person praying to God cannot know all that God has to consider in response, there will never be an exact spiritual reply to a prayer.
When an answer to a prayer is delayed it often means that there is a better answer coming later. When Jesus said that Lazarus’ sickness was not to the death, he had already been dead for eleven hours. No sincere prayer is denied an answer except when God has a better answer: one that meets the request of the spirit of the person, rather than the request of the mere mind of the person.
Prayers that originate in the minds of the mortals living on the worlds of time and space are often so grand that they can only be answered as the person’s spirit progresses through eternity. Sometimes the person’s understanding of God is so childlike that any response to their prayers has to be delayed until the person matures. A prayer based on faith can be so all inclusive that the only answer can come from attaining Paradise, oneness with God.
Prayers originating in a mortal mind can often only be answered after the mind has become immortal: many prayers from material beings can only be answered after those people have reached the spirit level of existence.
A person might have so many incorrect ideas about God, and their prayer might be so full of superstition, that what they are asking for would actually not be in their best interest: it would harm them, not help them. In these cases the spiritual beings in between the person and God have to modify the prayer so much that when the person does receive the answer they do not recognize it as such.
All true prayers are to spiritual beings, and all of those requests have to be answered in spiritual terms and consist of spiritual realities. Spirit beings cannot give material answers to the spiritual requests of material beings. Material beings can only pray effectively when they pray in the spirit.
No prayer can hope for an answer unless it is born of the spirit and nurtured by faith. Your sincere faith suggests that you have in advance given those who hear your prayers the full right to answer your prayers according to the divine love and supreme wisdom that motivates the divine beings to whom you pray.
Children are always in their rights when they ask something of the parents, and the parents are always within their parental responsibilities when their superior wisdom decides that the answer to the child’s prayer should be delayed, modified, segregated, or transcended until the child reaches a higher level of spirituality.
Do not hesitate to pray for your spirit’s desires; do not doubt that you will receive the answer to your requests. These answers will be on deposit waiting for you to reach those future spiritual levels of actual cosmic achievement, on this world or on others, where it will become possible for you to recognize and use the long-held answers to your earlier but ill-timed requests.
All genuine spirit-born prayers are certain to be answered. Ask and you will receive. But you should remember that you are progressive creatures of time and space; you have to constantly keep in mind the time-space factor influencing the answers to your prayers.
What Became of Lazarus
Lazarus stayed at their house in Bethany visiting with sincere believers and other curious people until Jesus was crucified. He then learned that the Sanhedrin had also ordered his death. The Jewish rulers were intent on stopping the spread of Jesus’ teachings, and they were well aware that it would be useless to put Jesus to death if they permitted Lazarus, his most famous miracle, to live. Lazarus left his sisters in Bethany and fled down through Jericho and across the Jordan, never once slowing down until he reached Philadelphia. Lazarus was good friends with Abner and he felt safe there from the murderous plotting of the wicked Sanhedrin. Soon after, Mary and Martha sold their land in Bethany and joined Lazarus in Perea. In the meantime, Lazarus had become the treasurer of the church at Philadelphia and he was one of Abner’s strong supporters in his controversy with Paul and the Jerusalem church. Lazarus died when he was 67 years-old of the same sickness that had carried him off when he was a younger man at Bethany.