Who is lazarus to jesus

She was upset with Jesus that He had not come sooner to help Lazarus. I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever lives and believes in Me will never die.

When they arrived at his tomb, Jesus said to roll away the stone that covered the entrance. Mary and Martha were so happy to have their brother back with them.

How would you like to have a best friend like that? Well, you do! Very possibly. Now that was gone. It was a catastrophe on many levels for them to lose Lazarus. Jesus, even knowing the good outcome, wept for his friend. Can you imagine a friendship so true that the Son of God would stand at your grave with tears running down His face? Lazarus must have been a great man. Jesus chose Lazarus to demonstrate His power as he foreshadowed what would happen to Himself on Easter.

This powerful incident upset the Pharisees and Chief Priests who felt they were losing a grip on their people. They were concerned that this man who did signs and wonders would cause problems with the Romans. It was right after this miracle that these evil leaders plotted to kill Jesus, and as the Bible tells us, they were successful in crucifying Him.

When he learns that Lazarus is ill, Jesus stays in Bethany two extra days out of affection for him. The Church Fathers and scholars since have wondered whether Jesus experienced genuine grief or a simulation of it—or perhaps both, since he was human and divine.

Perhaps the classical ideal of friendship, with its emphasis on conventional and mainly masculine virtues, was too narrow for a community that fostered universal fellow feeling among believers, or too secular.

On the whole, the New Testament prefers the vocabulary of kinship—brothers and sisters—to describe bonds among the faithful. Later, when the Jews see Jesus weeping, they say that he really loved Lazarus, employing the related verb philein.

Were Jesus and Lazarus, then, friends in the classical sense, like those famous pairs, Orestes and Pylades or Theseus and Pirithous, in Greek mythology? Good questions, all. David Konstan, "Jesus, Lazarus, and Friendship ", n. Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors. Share Flipboard Email. Jack Zavada. Christianity Expert.

Jack Zavada is a writer who covers the Bible, theology, and other Christianity topics. Updated March 04, Cite this Article Format. Zavada, Jack. Meet Thomas the Apostle of Jesus Christ. Relive the Resurrection Story of Jesus Christ. What Did Lazarus Experience in Heaven? Your Privacy Rights. To change or withdraw your consent choices for LearnReligions. At any time, you can update your settings through the "EU Privacy" link at the bottom of any page. These choices will be signaled globally to our partners and will not affect browsing data.