death not what it was

The reason why the crowd went to meet him was that they heard he had done this sign.

John 12:18

The “sign” John is telling us about with this comment was Jesus raising His friend Lazarus from the dead. It is pretty hard to keep quiet about a resurrection! People were understandably amazed. And it was creating quite a stir for Jesus as He made His way through Jerusalem in preparation for His own coming death and resurrection. All the buzz about Lazarus being raised from the dead by Jesus was creating a public relations crisis for the Pharisees.

Their observations in John 12:19 show how threatened they feel. 1) They were not gaining new followers to their brand of legalistic religion. 2) Huge crowds were attracted to Jesus: “…the world had gone after him”. This was something they should have noted as worth investigating. None of the Pharisees could bring the dead back to life. Yet they refused to believe Jesus and plotted a way to put an end to the perceived threat He posed.

The truth is that the One Who raises the dead is worth going after! He has now destroyed the finality of what sin and death had once done to humanity. He rose victorious from the grave so that for us, death is no longer the fearful separation from God that it once was. It is now the portal to eternal life. In Christ, all who believe are made alive! And that is truly amazing good news! Who doesn’t want to find real life like this in Jesus and know that eternal life is a present and future possession? We believe the good news that He Who rose from the dead and Who raises the dead also gives life to all who trust in Him!