Raised From The Dead

Raised from the Dead

Q: How long had Lazarus been dead when Jesus raised him from the dead?

• a. 4 hours
• b. 4 days
• c. 4 weeks

When Jesus lived on the earth, he experienced feelings the same as we do. He was happy, sad, and angry at different times. He had friends he loved. Mary, Martha, and Lazarus were especially close to Jesus.

Lazarus became sick, so his sisters sent a message to Jesus to come quickly. But Jesus waited before he went to see them, and in the meantime, Lazarus died. Jesus knew Lazarus would die, and that would give Jesus a chance to once again demonstrate God’s power.

Martha went to meet Jesus. He told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?”

“Yes, Lord,” she told him. “I have always believed you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one who has come into the world from God.”

Jesus asked her to take him to where Lazarus was buried. He had people roll the stone away, and then he prayed: “Father, thank you for hearing me. You always hear me, but I said it out loud for the sake of all these people standing here, so that they will believe you sent me.” Jesus knew God understood his very thoughts, but he prayed aloud for the sake of those nearby. Then Jesus called for Lazarus to come out.

Lazarus walked out of the tomb alive again. After this, many people believed Jesus was the Son of God.

Jesus could have kept Lazarus from dying in the first place, but he wanted to do a great miracle to show the people God’s power.

For You

Some people only believed after they saw Jesus’ miracles, but today we believe because we have the Bible or someone has shared the Good News with us. Share with someone today how you came to believe in Jesus.

Answer: b

“Roll the stone aside,” Jesus told them. But Martha . . . protested, “Lord, he has been dead for four days. The smell will be terrible.”   John 11:39

(The Whole Story: John 11:1-45)