The One You Love

So the sisters sent word to Jesus, “Lord, the one you love is sick.”

Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.

John 11:3;5

Today, we will begin the final sign of Jesus in the Book of John. Having gone through six of the signs and learned a lot from them, the final sign is set to give us even more revelation of Jesus in our lives. Over the next four days, we will examine Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead.

This is one of the most well-known miracles of Jesus in the Scriptures, and many people are familiar with it and have read it several times. However, there is much more to it than meets the eye. This sign is quite unique among the signs because it involves a friend of Jesus. As a close friend, there would naturally be high expectations given who Jesus is. Keeping that in mind, let us look at a few things over the next few days.

From verse one, we are introduced to this wonderful family of three from Bethany: Lazarus, Mary, and Martha. They have become close friends of Jesus. In verse two, we see a very important point: “This Mary, whose brother Lazarus now lay sick, was the same one who poured perfume on the Lord and wiped his feet with her hair.” This shows us that these people truly love Jesus, with Mary being a prime example. We are also told about Martha in Luke 10:38-40; she loved welcoming Jesus into their home and enjoyed cooking and serving Him. This was her expression of love. The first thing that captures our attention is that we are looking at a family who deeply loves Jesus and is devoted to serving and helping Him. They loved Jesus. So, the question to you today is, “How much do you love Jesus? And what evidence do you provide to others that you love Jesus?” This family had tangible evidence of their love for Jesus.

But we should not stop at the fact that they loved Jesus, because this sign also highlights that Jesus loved them. This is a profound statement, one that we must hold dearly in our lives. It is crucial to know that Jesus loves you because your relationship with Him depends on it. It is very difficult to get close to someone if you are unsure whether they love you. It is Jesus’ desire that you draw closer to Him and build a strong relationship with Him. But do you desire it as well? The only reason you would desire a close relationship with Jesus is if you know that He loves you and you are sure that you love Him too. So, can you say today that you truly love Jesus? Just as Jesus said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” This is the evidence of our love for Jesus. He has already shown us the ultimate evidence of His love by dying on the cross. Although there is much more evidence, that is the highest of them all. But what is your evidence that you love Him? Do you obey His commands?

You first need to accept and believe that Jesus loves you. Many of us go about our lives unsure if we are loved or not. But Jesus is saying to you today that He loves you wholeheartedly and wants you to believe in Him and love Him in return. I know there are many experiences that make us doubt His love, which we will address in the coming days, but nothing can ever change the truth that Jesus loves you. But you need to believe it.