Besides His disciples, Jesus did have close friends, notably three residents of Bethany, Lazarus and his sisters, Martha and Mary.
John 11 relates that the sisters, fearing for Lazarus’s life, sent Jesus a message that “he whom You love is sick.” Jesus delayed in going to them, and by the time He arrived Lazarus had been dead and buried for four days. Jesus told Martha that Lazarus would rise again.
Martha thought Jesus was talking about the future resurrection of the righteous, but Jesus replied, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live” (v. 25). Later Jesus encountered Mary; she and her companions were weeping, and Jesus Himself was so moved that (in the Bible’s shortest verse) “Jesus wept” (v. 35).
Jesus went to the tomb, ordered the stone over the entrance rolled away, and called “Lazarus, come forth!” (v. 43). Lazarus did, and this, the most impressive of Jesus’ miracles, led many Jews to put their faith in Him.
When the story was reported to the Jewish priests, they feared (correctly) that Jesus’ following would increase. They decided not only that Jesus must be killed but Lazarus as well.
This is the high point in Jesus’ ministry, the sign that He could not only heal the sick and revive those who had just died but also raise someone already buried. It is a sort of “preview” of what will happen to all believers.
