John 11.14-15 14 Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus
has died, 15 and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may
believe. But let us go to him.” (ESV)
John 11 is one of my favorite chapters in Scripture. It’s
not the top ten, but it’s in the top. Jesus received word that His good friend,
Lazarus (lah-zaw-roos) had died. And He decided He was going to go and do
something about it. When pigs fly.
Who raises someone from the dead? Who decides to do something about someone who
has died? When pigs fly.
Jesus’ men, His personal band of disciples, objected
because He’d just left Jerusalem where He was about to be stoned, and now, He
was heading back into the fray – or at least in the vicinity. Jesus’ men were
astounded first, because He was heading back and second because He was going to
do something about Lazarus’ death? Who does that!? When pigs fly.
You could say this about Jesus: He invoked, evoked, and provoked. Jesus is an all-around Savior. He
invoked praise. He evoked wonder. And He provoked His enemies. I think He did
the latter just to make sure they really hated Him. He wanted them to be sure
they really knew they really hated Him. It’s all there in John 11.
The world cannot handle a Savior; they’re too busy saving
themselves. A Savior? When pigs fly! And the world really doesn’t want a
meddling Savior: let the dead be dead…
who wants to wake them anyway?
The reaction to Lazarus’ resurrection was anywhere from
invoke, to evoke, to provoke. Who makes a dead man come back to life!? When pigs fly!!! But He did, and he did
– Lazarus, dead as a doornail, came right out of that tomb to the stunned
amazement and wonder of the crowd and the disciples. So they can fly??
The account of Jesus and Lazarus is an odd story, not in
the compassionate sense, nor in the awesome sense, but in the belief sense –
people just couldn’t believe that it really happened or that Lazarus was really
all that dead or that it wasn’t some hokum that Jesus had come up with… the
prevailing judgment was: yeah, right,
when pigs fly!
Well, you know what? Pigs don’t fly. Never have, never will. But God raises the dead. Some
are going to be raised to glory and some are going to be raised to face the
music for, well, yeah, right; when pigs
fly! Unbelief is as odd as a flying pig.
I wasn’t there; I didn’t see it happen. BTW, I’ve never
seen anyone come back to life from
the dead. I do know a lady whose
husband died and she and her family left his body in the bed upstairs and
prayed for three days asking God to bring him back, to resurrect him. Didn’t happen,
but I think God smiled on a family who believed it could and acted like it
would.
I want my faith to include the truth about pigs and the
power of God to raise the dead. By the way, that family will all one day see
their risen father and husband. Pigs don’t fly but God raises the dead. Lord,
whether it was a one-time thing or not, I believe…pigs don’t fly, but death is
no match for You…
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