Kill Lazarus Too

Scripture: John 12:1-11  (Click link for scripture in Bible Gateway)

9 When all the people heard of Jesus’ arrival, they flocked to see him and also to see Lazarus, the man Jesus had raised from the dead. 10 Then the leading priests decided to kill Lazarus, too, 11 for it was because of him that many of the people had deserted them and believed in Jesus. (John 12:9-11 NLT)

It should be inconceivable that the most moral of the Jews, the teachers of the Law of Moses, the guardians of the faith, could decide to murder Lazarus, simply because Jesus had raised him from death, and the subsequent stir and excitement and notoriety was causing people to believe in Jesus and desert them! Nicodemus, one of their own, had tried to speak some sense to them, but they shouted him down. (John 7:50-52)

As soon as they decided that maintaining their system of  placating the Romans and the puppet King Herod was more important than doing right, things went south in a hurry. As soon as they had decided that protecting their religious system was more important than doing the right things, than actually obeying the laws they professed to teach and uphold, murdering an innocent man wasn’t a big deal at all.

One bad decision can break the ice. One step down from integrity and truth can set in motion the collapse of an entire lifetime of justice and right. One choice that puts political expediency, or personal gain, above truth and justice and right, can initiate the slide into darkness. When someone compromises conscience, the conscience develops scar tissue and before long it will become calloused and insensitive.

That can happen to us, friends! No one is exempt from the slide into deeper and deeper sin once character and conscience are compromised. Evil escalates! Temptations abound in a world of political polarization and “us versus them” mentality.

Love the truth! Follow Jesus’ prime commands to love God supremely and to love others as we love ourselves. Including “really other” others – the ones whose politics and doctrines and opinions drive us up the wall! Don’t slander! Don’t falsely accuse! Don’t post things on Twitter and Facebook that you haven’t validated by responsible fact-checking. And if you don’t know how to do responsible fact-checking, take a break from posting until you learn! I love you, friends! I don’t want you to be anything but lovers of God, lovers of others, lovers of the Truth! End of Rant (for now!)

Prayer:

Father, Plant deep in our hearts a passionate love for the Truth! For Jesus’ sake!