"When the large crowd of Jews realized that he was there, they came not only because of Jesus but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. So the high priests planned to kill Lazarus, too, since he was the reason why so many of the Jews were leaving to believe in Jesus". John 12:9-11
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Have you ever wondered why some people are so intent on preventing others from speaking their mind? Why a conservative speaker is unwelcome on a college campus? Why, If we say something that bothers somebody...we get shouted down as a "hater"?
Look no farther than Lazarus...
Why would the Pharisees want to kill Lazarus? He didn't do anything. He was only the beneficiary of a glorious miracle. Wouldn't killing Jesus be enough? No! Jesus was the idea but Lazarus was the evidence confirming the idea. He had to go.
No evidence...no idea.
I've often been perplexed that , otherwise, smart people could be so intellectually suicidal when it comes to uncomfortable ideas. They prefer eliminating all evidence the idea exists rather than performing an honest assessment. So...I'm shunned if I'm pro-life. I'm detested if I'm for traditional marriage. I'm not supposed to share my faith with others. I'm ridiculed for believing the authority of God's Word.
Why? I'm the evidence of the idea.
I shouldn't take it personally. It's not about me. It's about the idea. And, the ideas is this; God loves us and sent His son to redeem us from our sin. As believers, we live our lives to evidence our blessed deliverance from destruction. I pray we shine brightly.
Even so...many of our friends are so opposed to the idea that they want to erase the evidence...as though thay could erase the idea. This, of course, raises an important question; is my life evidence of any redemptive idea? If it is, I can be certain there will always be somebody who will "unfriend" me. Fortunately, they may be successful in destroying all the evidence but...the idea will not die.
Lazarus couldn't help it...he had been raised from the dead. His very presence in the community was evidence of the idea. He couldn't escape. But, on the other hand, many people came to faith because he "evidenced" the idea.
How about us?
Live boldly out there today...
