![]() ![]() So the sisters sent a message to Jesus, ‘Lord, he whom you love is ill.’ But when Jesus heard it, he said, ‘This illness does not lead to death rather it is for God’s glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.’ Accordingly, though Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, after having heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was. Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair her brother Lazarus was ill. It was the passage about the death of Lazarus that solidified this for me, being summed up in just four words: “Jesus began to weep.” At the time, Jesus was with his disciples across the Jordan teaching and healing, so Martha and Mary sent word of Lazarus’s death through messenger: Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. He was both fully human and fully divine, experiencing emotions just like the rest of us. The answer I received one day was twofold: Jesus was not simply God, but he was the God-Man. So then, why would Jesus need a relationship like the one he had with the Bethany family? These are the questions I would ask myself repeatedly. How could it be that he had any “need” for friendship? Was he not capable of being completely self-sufficient? Of course he was! God did not create human beings because he needed them but because God is love and his overflowing love prompted our creation. Jesus was God - far above all created beings in his divine nature. I would like to think that it was the same for Martha, Mary, Lazarus and Jesus.īut when I think more rationally about the situation, I’m a bit stymied. We have genuine interest in each other’s lives and are bolstered by the mutual joy and support. We look forward to getting together and the time passes so quickly that it seems we had only just arrived, and it was time to leave. The scenes remind me of the many times I’ve gathered with friends over a meal and conversation either in our home or theirs. When I read the Scripture passages, I get the sense that Jesus felt at home with them and that their house was somewhat of a refuge for him from the crowds to whom he ministered. At least this is the way I imagine it to have been. It seems to me that the threesome was a “family away from family” so to speak for our Lord. Clearly it was an honor for them to have Jesus in their home, because Martha went into a tizzy when she was left to prepare a dinner while Mary sat at Jesus feet listening to him speak. It was Mary who washed Jesus’ feet with her tears and anointed his feet with precious oil using her hair. Jesus had visited their home more than once, sharing meals, conversations and each other’s company. They were disciples of Jesus, certainly - but even more than that, they were friends. Clearly their relationship was special because it is mentioned in all four of the Gospels. ![]() One of the most interesting relationships in the Bible is that of Martha, Mary and Lazarus of Bethany with our Lord. ![]()
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