Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, vols. 13–63

Our Lord's greatest miracles were always the reward of faith.

Verse 27. She said unto Him, Yes, Lord I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, which should come unto the world.By which she as good as said, "I believe that and I believe everything else. I have an implicit faith in You. Whatever You say, whatever You have said or shall say, I am prepared to believe it all, for I believe in You. I believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world."

28. And when she had so said, she went her way, and called Mary her sister secretly. Because she knew that the Jews hated the Savior. She could not tell what would come of it if they knew of His coming, so she whispers to her—

28-30. Saying, The Master is come, and calls for you. As soon as she heard that, she arose quickly, and came unto Him. Now Jesus was not yet come into the town, but was at that place where Martha met Him. Their cemeteries were outside the town and probably the Savior was near the very grave where Lazarus slept.

31-32. The Jews then which were with her in the house, and comforted her, when they saw Mary, that she rose up hastily and went out, followed her, saying, She goes unto the grave to weep there. Then when Mary was come where Jesus was, andsawHim, she fell down at His feet, saying unto Him, Lord, if You had been here, my brother hadnot died. Her thought was the same as the thought of Martha, but she did not say as much as Martha. She never did. Martha had a dialogue with the Savior, but Mary bowed at His feet.

33. When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping which came with her, He groaned in the spirit, and was troubled, and said, Where have you laid him? They said unto Him, Lord, come and see. Jesus wept Then said the Jews, Behold how He loved him! And some of them said, Could not this Man, which opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that even this man should not have died? Jesus, therefore, again groaning in Himself came to the grave. Many have asked why Christ groaned. Why, Brothers and Sisters, it is the way in which He gives life—by His own death! We sometimes say of one who does a great action, "It took so much out of him." So it did out of the Savior. He must groan that Mary, and Martha, and Lazarus may rejoice. It is not without the stirring of His very life that He gives life to the dead!

38-39. It was a cave and the stone lay upon it Jesus said, Take you away the stone. Martha, the sister of him that was dead, said unto Him, Lord, by this time he stinks: for he has been dead four days. "It were a pity to roll away the stone."

40-41. Jesus said unto her, Said I not unto you, that if you would believe, you should see the Glory of God? Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up His eyes, and said, Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. That is grand praying, is it not? Sometimes we ought to say, "Just so." "Father, I thank You that You have heard me."

42-44. And I knew that You hear Me always, but because of the people which stand by, I said it, that they may believe that You have sent Me. And when He had thus spoken, He cried with a loud voice, Lazarus come forth! Andhe that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with grave clothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. He probably slipped himself off from the ledge in the tomb upon which he been laid and there he appeared before them bound so that he could not move farther.