John 11:45-57

The Plot to Kill Jesus

Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what Jesus did, believed in him. But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what he had done. So the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the council, and said, ‘What are we to do? This man is performing many signs. If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and destroy both our holy place and our nation.’ But one of them, Caiaphas, who was a high priest that year, said to them, ‘You know nothing at all! You do not understand that it is better for you to have one man die for the people than to have the whole nation destroyed.’ He did not say this on his own, but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus was about to die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but to gather into one the dispersed children of God. So from that day on they planned to put him to death.

Jesus therefore no longer walked about openly among the Jews, but went from there to a town called Ephraim in the region near the wilderness; and he remained there with the disciples.

Now the Passover of the Jews was near, and many went up from the country to Jerusalem before the Passover to purify themselves. They were looking for Jesus and were asking one another as they stood in the temple, ‘What do you think? Surely he will not come to the festival, will he?’ Now the chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that anyone who knew where Jesus was should let them know, so that they might arrest him.

The raising of Lazarus from death led many of those who witnessed it to join the growing number of Jesus’ followers. As Jesus himself would say to Thomas much later, “You believe because you see, but even more blessed are those who don’t see, yet believe”. If we’re honest, we’re all more willing to believe something once we have seen some evidence to back it up, so let’s not be too harsh in judging the masses mentioned  who believed in Jesus after witnessing Lazarus being raised from the dead.

This event is a turning point – not just for all those people who became believers as a result of it, but also for how things were going to pan out for Jesus and his disciples from here onwards. The Jewish ruling body first saw him as a threat , and then after Caiaphas’ pep talk, as a pawn. Both options have the same ultimate goal: Jesus must die.

Meanwhile, word about Jesus is spreading fast. As more people hear what happened to Lazarus, more people turn up to catch a glimpse of Jesus in action. Jesus, meanwhile, had withdrawn from the bustle to spend more time with his disciples.

Blessings as we pray that we might have faith even though we do not see, but rather that we might truly see.  Be safe!  Be well!  The Spirit has come!

To Ponder:

• Why do you think the Pharisees and chief priests were so concerned about Jesus’ popularity?
• If you were a leader and suddenly became very famous, how would you cope?