January, 1937
T HE K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
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could be no true resurrection until Jesus, “the firstfruits” (l,,£or. 15:20), rose from among the dead. The occurrence recorded in John 11 was a selective restoration; there was only one Lazarus who was addressed, and only one came forth. The victory and testimony of God’s power were undeniable credentials of the Lord’s claims. The voice that created the universe had been heard and obeyed in the darkness of the tomb. Lazarus came forth bound with grave- clothes. These had to be removed from him in order that he might be set free. Likewise, when sinners dead in trespasses and sins are brought to life, they must be stripped of the trappings of the grave wherein they dwelt. Points and* Problems 1. Our Lord’s words to Martha in John 11:25 and 26 have puzzled many readers. If the two cases refer to physical resurrec tion, then the promise of verse 26 “shall never die,” seems untrue, for true believers are dying every day. This difficulty has led a number of interpreters to regard verse 25 as a reference to physical resurrection, and verse 26 as a reference to spiritual life. This, however, seems to me to violate the context. The subject of the whole passage is physical death and the resurrection of the body. Martha had no other subject in mind. The key to the problem, I feel, is found in Martha’s words in verse 24: “ I know that he shall rise . . . at the last day.” In Martha’s mind the resurrection of “the last day” was linked with the coming of Messiah. In His reply, therefore, our Lord adopted that time distinction. The passage might be paraphrased as follows: “ He that believeth in Me, though he should die (be fore I come), yet shall he live. And who soever is living and believing in Me (when I come) shall never die.” 2. Both sisters undoubtedly believed that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of God, but they had an imperfect perception of His Person and His power. Both uttered the same plaint: “Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died” (vs. 21, 32). They failed to see His omnipresence. They did not fully understand that as God, His power was not limited by either space or locality. Furthermore, Martha needed to learn that Christ not only was able to exer cise the power of resurrection, but that this power resided in Him personally. “ I know that he shall rise again,” said Martha. “ / am the resurrection,” answered the Lord. The personal pronoun is- emphatic in the Greek. So it is not enough that we should believe in the great truths of Christianity, but we should see in our Lord the personal
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