Good morning. Well, it’s time to get Lazarus out of the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. Jesus told them to remove the stone. Martha told Jesus that by this time there will be a stench, for he has been dead four days. A note on the four days – many Jews believed that the soul remained near the body for three days after death in the hope of returning to the body. In other words, he might have been “merely dead“ à la the wizard of Oz instead of “most sincerely dead“. That didn’t deter Jesus. Did I not say to you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God? How are you going to argue with that? Jesus raised His eyes and said, Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. I knew that You always hear Me, but because of the people standing around I said it, so that they may believe that You sent Me. He cried out with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. The man who had died came forth, bound hand and foot with wrappings, and his face was wrapped around with a cloth. If that had happened to someone who had not really died, think how scary that would be. You revive, it is completely dark, and you are bound. Lazarus seemed to know what was happening to him. He had some of the same trappings that Jesus had when He was buried - the wrappings and the face cloth.
Therefore many of the Jews who came to Mary, and saw what He had done, believed in Him.
Some of them, however, went to the Pharisees and told them the things which Jesus had done. They of course got upset. It’s kind of like if someone went into a hospital, prayed for all the patients and they all got healed, there would be people that would complain because all the doctors and nurses would be out of work. Father thank You that You take care of us, even in our most distressing situations. Help the reader to overcome everything that comes against him/her.

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