February 18
“Then many of the Jews who had come to Mary, and had seen the things Jesus did, believed in Him. But some of them went away to the Pharisees and told them the things Jesus did. Then the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered a council and said, ‘What shall we do? For this Man works many signs. If we let Him alone like this, everyone will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and nation.’ And one of them, Caiaphas, being high priest that year, said to them, ‘You know nothing at all, nor do you consider that it is expedient for us that one man should die for the people, and not that the whole nation should perish.’ Now this he did not say on his own authority; but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation, and not for that nation only, but also that He would gather together in one the children of God who were scattered abroad,” John 11:45-52.
Four days after Lazarus’ body was in the grave, Jesus stood outside the tomb and called, “Lazarus, come forth!” and Lazarus rose from the dead and walked out of the tomb. This was the greatest miracle that Jesus performed except for His own resurrection. One would think that all who witnessed it would have rejoiced and praised God. Indeed, some believed in Jesus, while others, who doubted, went away to report to the religious leaders what Jesus had done.
Immediately, the religious leaders called a special council meeting and said, “What shall we do? For this Man works many signs. If we let Him alone like this, everyone will believe in Him and the Romans will come and take away both our place and nation.” The religious leaders could not deny that Jesus was performing miracles, but they refused to believe what it all meant. They feared that if they did nothing to stop Jesus, the common people would believe in Him and say that He was their king. That would result in trouble with the Roman government, and possibly lead them into captivity.
As they argued back and forth, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, took the floor and offered what he considered to be a solution for their problem. He told them that they did not know what they were talking about. He suggested that the solution would be to have this one man die, because He was to blame for all of the unrest and agitation among the people. By sacrificing Jesus, they would get rid of this troublesome person, and it would persuade the Romans that they were loyal citizens.
Caiaphas, without realizing it, was suggesting the fulfillment of a prophecy: Jesus, indeed, would die, not just for the people of Israel, but for all the people in the whole world. That is why Jesus had been born into the world. On the night He was born, the angel announced to the shepherds, “Fear not; for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord . . . And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: ‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men!’ ” Luke 2:10-11, 13-14.
Yes, Jesus came into the world to be the Savior of all people. He suffered and died to wash away the sins of all people, not just those who believe in Him, but also those who reject and deny Him. Scripture speaks very clearly, “He died for all,” 2 Corinthians 5:15. “(God) made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him,” 2 Corinthians 5:21.
The miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead, as all of His miracles, was visible evidence of the fact that Jesus is the Son of God and the Savior of all people. He has saved us from sin, death, and the devil.
We pray: O Holy Spirit, keep us in the faith and make us ever more faithful witnesses of God’s love in Christ Jesus. Amen.