It was heartening to see that many of the people present when Lazarus was raised had a strong belief, but some of the witnesses reported what they had seen to the authorities. There was a meeting of the high council to discuss what they should do.
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The miracles I had performed were acknowledged but they caused an element of fear. The general opinion was that if they did nothing to prevent it then the whole nation would follow me. If that were to happen they feared the Romans would destroy the Temple and the people.
Caiaphas the High Priest was a leader of the Sadducees, he was wealthy and influential. He saw me as a threat to his power and the day that I raised Lazarus from the dead ignited a great fear in him. It was the motivation he required to see me arrested. He believed he had a lot to lose because he had been the High Priest for eighteen years. He thought that I threatened his security.
The suggestion originated from his insecurities that it would be better for one man to be sacrificed in death for the people, rather than the whole nation to perish at the hand of Rome. He felt that my death would safeguard his future. Rome allotted partial freedom to the Jews as long as they were quiet and obedient.
The miracles that I had performed were drawing undesired attention and Caiaphas didn’t want the entire nation to be punished for the disturbance. This is why he suggested that they got rid of the source of this attention, which was me. ‘The sacrificial lamb.’ It would serve two purposes, remove the attention and get rid of this imagined threat to his future power.
Caiaphas Thank you bibliaon.com
I was therefore prevented from moving about the region freely and I had to withdraw with my disciples to a village called, Ephraim. The time I had on earth was coming to its conclusion. I prevented myself from thinking too far ahead, there was still much work to achieve. It was predicted that my death would not be for Israel only but for all the children of God who were spread throughout the world.
A dark cloud was descending on my soul and I yearned for more time in quiet prayer with my Father. When I allowed my thoughts to linger on the near future, my limbs became weak and I had to fight off the trembling which shook me physically. I was feeling starved of oxygen and my breath was coming in sharp gasps as I tried to control my leaden feet.
The despair of Jesus Thank you freepik.com
I knew in my soul that God’s strength would sustain me, but the darkness was draining me. Despite my dreadful fear, I knew that there was no doubt that I would follow God. This was my destiny, the reason why I had been born, I had agreed to be a sacrificial lamb, but that didn’t mean that I wasn’t afraid. It didn’t mean that my terror wasn’t crowding in on me, the darkness was wretched and I had to keep bringing my mind back to God’s sustaining love and support.
The anxiety was growing and I was becoming much more agitated than I had anticipated. I closed my burning eyes, pictured my Father and taking a deep breath in I settled into His arms and nestled down. As my breathing became slower, so did my racing heart. I felt God’s comfort and His peace penetrated every fibre of my body, I became calm. My distress was replaced by God’s tenderness and I let out a slow breath that was now disciplined and I was ready for the ordeal to come.
Jesus at the Passover Thank you freebibleimages.org
It was six days before our celebration of Passover and Jerusalem was becoming very busy, as we arrived in Bethany, I was looking forward to being reunited with my friends. Lazarus was seated at the table, Martha was serving and Mary who had left the room briefly had returned carrying a large jar of perfume.
I have to admit that my heart was throbbing in expectation with what I knew Mary was planning to do. She knelt in front of me and poured the pure Nard over my feet, the fragrance was exquisite and it came from the mountains of India and was very expensive, the value was a full year’s wages. This message of love was in preparation of my death.
My disciple, Judas Iscariot, jumped to his feet, angrily declaring the waste of such an act. He shouted that the perfume could have been sold and the profit given to the poor. I surveyed Judas, a thief, an untrustworthy villain, who thought nothing of helping himself to the money that he looked after on our behalf. I knew that Judas would betray me. I sprang to Mary’s defence, “Leave her alone! The poor will always need help and they will always be among you, but I will not be with you much longer.” The faces around me expressed their disbelief.
Carole Crossley
Explore to Inspire 
