Reflection on John 11:45-56

Rev. Marcel E. Okwara, CSsR

Saturday, April 4, 2020

Sisters and brothers, in today’s Gospel, the chief priests and the Pharisees came together and plotted to kill Jesus because he raised Lazarus from the dead. Shocking! Isn’t it? You would think that everyone will applaud Jesus, adore him, venerate him, follow him and above all believe him and believe in him for doing what no one could do. Bringing a dead person back to life is a huge deal. Think about this! Jesus spoke in time, he called Lazarus in time, and Lazarus who had passed unto eternity heard him and came back. Rather than see his miracles, signs and wonders, especially the raising of Lazarus from death as a further prove and testimony that Jesus is who he said he is, the chief priests and Pharisees convened and planned to kill him. Remember that Jesus had previously said to them, “If I do not perform my Father’s works, do not believe me; but if I perform them, even if you do not believe me, believe the works, so that you may realize that the Father is in me and I am in the Father” (Jn. 10:37-38). Remember again that when Jesus restored the sight of the man born blind, the same Pharisees argued that he was not from God. Even when the man born blind suitably observed, “If this man were not from God, he would not be able to do anything” (Jn 9:33), the Pharisees refused to believe. In the end, they told the man that he was totally born in sin and eventually threw him out. Jesus healed the sick, gave sight to the blind, raised the dead, and spoke powerfully and wisely to the amazement of everyone of the truths of God. He spoke and acted like God.  He could not have done all these except through God. 

But how did we get to this point? Today’s Gospel says that many of the Jews who had come on condolence visits to Mary and saw what Jesus had done began to believe in him. However, there were some— the haters, the naysayers, the jealous and envious people, the sadists, people who cry when others are happy and laugh when others are suffering— who left the scene and went straight to the Pharisees and reported what they had seen and witnessed. From that very moment, the powers that be began to lay the groundwork for the killing of Jesus. Rather than ponder over the works of Jesus and take a second hard look at him to see if he was truly the Christos of God, they wondered, “What are we going to do?”  They miss what should have been obvious: that God is working through Jesus. 

Now, I do not want to sound too dismissive of the worry of the chief priests and the Pharisees. Their concern was grounded in reality. They have every reason to panic about Jesus’ popularity and influence. According to their own submission, “If we leave him alone, all will believe in him and the Romans will come and take away both our land and our nation.” At that time, the Roman authorities’s punishment on anyone who dared them was quite excessive. They brutally suppressed any popular uprisings and revolts (Acts. 5:36-37). If Jesus attracted a large following and was hailed as the Messiah, Rome might preemptively strike to eliminate a perceived threat to its rule. They will strike not only at Jesus and his followers but will also remove the Jewish leaders for failing to deal with the threat posed by him. So, the fear of the Jewish leaders was that if they did not stop Jesus, the Romans will come and take away their land and nation, take away the Temple and whatever autonomy the Jewish people still enjoyed. There is an element of self-interest in their fears. They were concerned that Rome will take away their authority over the Temple and people unless they do something to stop Jesus. 

You know, by the time this Gospel was written, what the chief priests and the Pharisees feared had happened. In 70 A.D. the Roman army destroyed the Temple in their attempt to crush a Jewish revolt. And after the Gospel was written, Rome suppressed a second revolt in 135 A.D. and banned Jews from entering Jerusalem, thereby removing their last mark of identity as a political nation. 

I understand the fear and concern of the Jewish leaders. Their worry was based on reality. But this is where they got it wrong: They allowed their self-interest to lead them into doing something that is totally wrong, totally forbidden and completely sinful and criminal. They connived to kill Jesus thinking that their problems will be solved. How many times did you and me allow our self-interest to lead us into doing something that we know is completely against God’s will and against our nation? There are still among us people who after witnessing or hearing of something good that has happened to someone else would leave to distort what they had seen and witnessed. The phrase, “enemies of progress” is very familiar to us. Such people are still among us. We have them everywhere— in churches, in families, in working environment, in places of trade, among friends and places where we live. These people are jealous over every little good thing that happen to you. But when you suffer, lament and cry, they are happy. They are Mister and madam Kill Joy. Such people were part of the plot to kill Jesus. If you are one of them, today’s Gospel invites you to repent. When something good happens to another person, rejoice with the person. The blessing of another will not hinder your own blessing. There is enough blessing to go round. God has unlimited number of blessings for you, your neighbor and even for your enemy. If someone has received his or her own blessing, do not be jealous. Do not tarnish the person’s blessing. Not every wealth comes from the devil. Not every successful man or woman is a cult member. Do not forget that silver and gold belongs to God. God is capable of making people rich. If you think you have not been blessed in a great deal, be patient. But do not forget to work hard. Blessing is not going to walk into your bedroom and hug you. The principle here should be work and pray. God will remember you. And remember to thank God for the daily blessings you receive. If you are able to wake up today healthy, I bet you, you have been greatly blessed. If you doubt me, watch the news.