John 11:45-57. Loyalty, a disappearing virtue

The ornate ossuary of Caiaphas

Would you describe yourself as being ‘faithful’, a person of faith? If so, are you loyal? There is a great overlap between meaning of these the two words. Today the concept of loyalty, even amongst Christians is waning. Marriages are under pressure, often because one or both partners say unkind and hurtful things to or about their partner that should never be vocalised. Divorces are occurring because spouses are no longer loyal to their marriage vows. They promised to love, cherish and even obey, but now have no intention of being loyal or faithful to their vows although they were made ‘for better or for worse’.

A cup had this caption on its side, “I like my wife the way I like my car…” The meaning was uncertain until the cup was emptied and you could read the print at the bottom – “a new model every year!”

Even people who claim to be the faithful ones do not demonstrate that ‘stickability’ that loyalty requires. Loyalty is surely to stay faithful or devoted to a cause or person, come what may because this is the right thing to do, it is the nature of God’s Spirit that helps us to keep going, even when the going gets tough.

Many characters in the Bible are characterised by their faithfulness.

Job chose to not to curse God despite his many unreasonable sufferings.

Abraham chose not to question God when challenged to offer up his son Isaac. He remained devoted to God above everything else.

Joseph was betrayed by his brothers, suffered, wrongly accused and imprisoned, but not a word of complaint from his mouth.

Ruth remained loyal to her mother-in-law Naomi and faithful to the Lord in spite of difficult circumstances

Daniel refused to bow to the King despite the threat of being thrown into the lions’ den. He stayed loyal to God.

In 2007, a group of twenty-three South Korean missionaries were captured by the Taliban in Afghanistan. They were terrified. The Taliban separated the group, isolated them and confiscated their possessions. One of the Korean women managed to hold on to her Bible. She ripped it into twenty-three pieces and secretly gave each of them a portion so that wherever they were, each person could read a part of Scripture when no one was watching.

The group knew that the Taliban had decided to kill them, one at a time. One by one the missionaries surrendered their lives again to Jesus saying, ‘Lord, if you want me to die for your sake I’ll do it.’ Then the pastor said, ‘I’ve talked to [the Taliban] because they are going to start killing us and I’ve told their leaders that if anyone dies, I die first because I am your pastor.’ Another said, ‘No, because I also am a pastor and I am your elder. I die first.’

Then the pastor came back and said, ‘You are not ordained, I have been ordained, I die first.’ And sure enough, he died first. Two more were killed before the rest were eventually rescued. They had demonstrated extraordinary loyalty to God and to each other.

These South Korean missionaries were following in the footsteps of the apostles who showed extraordinary loyalty.

Loyalty is a combination of love and faithfulness. It is a quality often lacking in our society today. Disloyalty destroys families, churches, businesses, political parties and even nations.

John Kenneth Galbraith was a noted economist in the early 1900s who was called upon by many senior politicians and businessmen to help sort the economic markets. He wrote the following story in his autobiography about his housekeeper:

“It had been a wearying day, and I asked Emily to hold all telephone calls while I had a nap. Shortly thereafter the phone rang. Lyndon Johnson was calling from the White House. ‘Get me Ken Galbraith. This is Lyndon Johnson.’ ‘He is sleeping, Mr. President. He said not to disturb him.’ ‘Well, wake him up. I want to talk to him.’ ‘No, Mr. President. I work for him, not you.’ When I called the President back, he could scarcely control his pleasure. ‘Tell that woman I want her here in the White House.’”

Emily the housekeeper understood an important truth—she was a servant to one man and obeyed his wishes explicitly. Her loyalties were to Mr. Galbraith alone. What a great example of a true servant.

The Loyalty of Mary’s friends

When Lazarus died many Jewish friends and family came to support Mary. It was traditional for this consolation for the bereaved to last thirty days. Jesus had prayed at the tomb of Lazarus, after he had ordered the stone to be taken away, but the reason he prayed was very significant.

“Father, I thank you that you have heard me, but I say this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe you sent me.” John 11:41

Jesus knew that he was very soon to raise Lazarus from death, but what Jesus wanted was for these loyal friends of Mary to believe in him. And God did answer Jesus’ prayer. They had witnessed Lazarus’ return to life,

“Therefore many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary and had seen what Jesus did, put their faith in him.” John 11:45

Actually all Jesus had done was to say some words, but then the word of God has always had huge power. The effect that Jesus wanted was that people should put their faith in him, that they should be loyal to him. Tradition tells us that Lazarus lived another thirty years, but then he had to die again.

The Disloyalty of the Informers

The next verse displays how disloyal people can be to their friends and family. Doubtless there had been great rejoicing in that family and probably a spontaneous party, but some of the guests did not share in the joy of Lazarus coming to life or of the many who had come to faith in Christ as the long awaited Messiah. How disloyal they were to this happy family,

“But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.” John 11:45

Such informers, these disloyal ‘sneaks’ or ‘snitchers’ went straight away to Jerusalem and sought out the religious leaders, doubtless because they were known to be antagonistic to Jesus. The informers had made their choice. They left Jesus and those loyal to him and went to try and undermine his ministry. People often say that if they had witnessed a miracle of Jesus they would, of course, become his followers. Yet here were a group of people who witnessed the raising of Lazarus and did the very opposite! These informers so stirred up the opposition that they led to Jesus’ crucifixion.

On another occasion, Jesus had told the parable of a rich man who had an unfortunate beggar, also called Lazarus, who begged outside his home. In time both died, but the rich man went and agonized in hell whereas Lazarus went to heaven. There was no possibility of travelling between the two places. Lazarus begs Abraham,

“Then, I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my Fathers house, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.” Luke 16:27

The previously rich man wanted this Lazarus to be resurrected so he could go to speak to his brothers.

“Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’

‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone went from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’

He said to to him, ‘If they will not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced if someone rises from the dead.’” Luke 16:19-31

This story illustrates what Jesus said. These despicable informers had witnessed one of the most extraordinary miracles of Jesus’ ministry, yet they would not believe.

This account by John tells us of the two responses to Jesus that always occur,

‘Many . . . put their faith in him. But some of them went to the Pharisees . . .” John 1:45

There are no other responses, there is no middle way. Either people are faithful to Jesus and therefore loyal to him or they turn away from him. Today all of us are in one camp or the other, either we are loyal to him and his family or, over time, we will move away. ‘Sitting on the fence’ shows disloyalty to Jesus.

The Disloyalty of the Plotters

The informers go to the Jewish leaders, who were well known to be antagonistic to Jesus, to tell on him. Doubtless, between them, they tried to find a reason to indite Jesus with some Jewish law that had been broken. The High Priest then summoned together the Sanhedrin, the ruling Jewish Council, that consisted of seventy one senior men. They had been delegated limited power by the Roman authorities to deal with Jewish issues.

“What are we accomplishing?’ they asked.” John 11:47

This supports the notion that there had been a concerted plot by the authorities to get rid of Jesus and at that stage they were not succeeding. John has already made many references to the antagonism between the Jewish authorities and Jesus.

a. It started when the Jews in Jerusalem had sent ‘priests and Levites’ to interrogate John the Baptist about who he was and why he was baptising people. John 1:19-28

b. The Pharisees again became concerned when they heard that Jesus was gaining and baptising more disciples than John. John 4:1

c. When Jesus received increasing support when he taught in the temple, ‘the Chief priests and the Pharisees sent temple guards to arrest him.’ John 7:32

d. The chief priests and Pharisees were very angry when the guard failed to arrest Jesus, accusing them of being’ deceived’ by Jesus. John 7:45-47

e. They challenged Jesus’ claim to the people to be ‘the light of the world’ John 8:12

f. They challenged and then hurled insults at the healed man who had been born blind when he refused to say that Jesus was ‘a sinner’ as they had told him to do. John 9:28

There was clearly a deep hatred for Jesus and his claims to be the Messiah. All their efforts to reduce his influence were failing. ‘What are we accomplishing?’ is an admittance of discrimination against him. Jesus was becoming more popular than ever. The evidence of hostile witnesses is always important when they confirm the certain facts. They continue,

“Here is this man performing many miraculous signs.” John 11:47

They recognised that what Jesus was saying, supported by his miraculous signs, was undermining their position.

“If we let him go one like this, everyone will believe in him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.” John 11:48

What had Jesus done to upset the authorities? He had miraculously healed people publicly and taught how people could obtain eternal life by becoming members of God’s kingdom. He was fulfilling the Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah and had been identified as the Messiah by John the Baptist.

Their prime concern appears to be their own status and power. Had they forgotten that, in their Scriptures, the Lord had committed himself to protect his people if they remain faithful to him? Was this an admittance that they knew their hearts were far from God. They must have known, but overlooked, that they were acting in ways that were contrary to directives in the Old Testament, such as,

“And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8

They were certainly not acting justly as Jesus did, they had not shown the mercy Jesus demonstrated and there is not a hint of the humility that all could see in Jesus.

The question must be asked why these Jewish authorities were so antagonistic towards Jesus and his ministry. At first sight, it may seem that they were trying to protect the people from a false teacher but it transpires that it is they who are opposed to truth and integrity. There was no fair investigation of Jesus’ claims, just hatred. They think that Jesus is being judged by them, but it is by their own actions that they are condemning themselves. The problem was that Jesus was becoming too popular. Their real concern was,

“. . . everyone will believe in him.” John 11:48

If they don’t stop Jesus, the limited influence they hold would disappear. They rejected the chance to enter God’s eternal kingdom chosing instead to clinging on to a few years power in this world. They were fulfilling what John had said early in his book,

“He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.” John 1:11

Some liberal scholars suggested that many of the names used in the gospels were made up. However in November 1990 some workers were building a road in the southern part of Jerusalem and discovered an ornate limestone ossuary. According to the inscription, this elaborate ossuary contained the bones of the high priest Caiaphas, or “ Yosef bar Caifa.”

Caiaphas was clearly one of the ring-leaders of this group that was so antagonist to Jesus. He and Annas, his father-in-law, were in total control of the Sanhedrin. They were members of one of the ruling Jewish sects, the Sadducees. Sadducees were often wealthy men of high position and, as they sought to appease their Roman rulers, were heavily involved in politics. They held the majority of seats in the Sanhedrin, the Jewish high court, over which Caiaphas had ruled for the eighteen years he had served as high priest. In terms of theology, Sadducees denied the afterlife and any existence of the spiritual world (angels, demons, etc.). Because of these things, they were often at odds with Jesus due to His teachings about humility, heaven, and His own deity.

Joseph ben Caiaphas, to give him his full name, lived from BC14 to 46AD. He was appointed High Priest in 18AD and ruled for eighteen years, more than other High Priests, which infers that he had a good relationship with the ruling Roman authorities. Annas, Caiaphas’ father-in-law, Annas, had been deposed by the Roman Proconsul Lucius Vitellus during a turbulent period but his five sons and son-in-law all followed him as High Priest but he retained much influence. Annas was clearly the king-maker and a key ‘plotter’.

There can be no excuse for the subsequent illegal behaviour as they planned the execution of a man who had not had a fair trial, especially on the basis that he was becoming too popular and the concern that ‘everyone will believe in him’. It was usual for anyone arrested by the Temple Guard to be held overnight and arraigned before the full Sanhedrin the following day. This clearly was not followed.

Their concern was that they might lose their influence. At this meeting in Caiaphas’ own palace, Caiaphas spoke up,

“You know nothing at all. You do not realise that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish.” John 11:49-50

Note that it was not better for the nation or the world but ‘for you’, the ruling body. Furthermore, what evidence does he give that the ‘whole nation would perish’ if Jesus is allowed to live? Presumably the details of what happened in this gathering of the Sanhedrin was later told by some who were there. We know that both Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus were on the Sanhedrin, and they became Christians, so presumably one of those passed on the information.

‘You know nothing at all’, sounds very rude. He was in fact quoting from old rabbinic writings. However he was also being prophetic for what he said was true.

John now makes a very telling comment,

“He prophesied that Jesus would die for the Jewish nation, and not only for that nation but also for the scattered children of God, to bring therm together and make them one.” John 11:51-53

This is the teaching of the whole Bible, that the Messiah would come and die as a sacrifice, taking on himself the sin of all who will turn to him. Unknowingly Caiaphas was stating the gospel in a nutshell. Isaiah put it like this,

“But he was pieced for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.

We all, like sheep have gone astray, each one of us to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” Isaiah 53:5-6

This is the message of the apostles, for example Peter wrote about Jesus,

“He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” 1 Peter 2:24-25

These plotters were disloyal to Scripture, to the people they led, to natural justice and, worst of all, to the Saviour of the world. But at this meeting the fate of Jesus was sealed

“So from that day on they plotted to take his life.” John 11:53

The Disloyalty of the Betrayers

Jesus knew the intention of the rulers but the time was not right. The Passover was the feast remembering that a lamb had been slain to avoid the death of the first born in Egypt. His sacrifice must wait until the Passover.

“Therefore Jesus no longer moved about publicly among the Jews. Instead he withdrew to a region near the desert, to a village called Ephraim, where he stayed with his disciples,” John 11:54

The Passover feast was a time when God’s people were ceremonially cleansed so they could take part in the Passover feast. This cleansing was only external and only lasted for a year. Presumably John slips this in as a contrast to the permanent forgiveness and cleansing from sin that Jesus was able to give to his people.

“When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, many went up from the country to Jerusalem for their ceremonial cleansing before the Passover.” John 11:55

The authorities hearts were still set on destroying Jesus and were on the look-out for him as it was obligatory for Jews to go to Jerusalem for the Passover.

“But the chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that if anyone found out where Jesus was, he should report it so that they might arrest him.” John 11:57

The leaders were now demanding that everyone joins them in their disloyalty. They expected people to betray Jesus, to be traitors to their faith and to be disloyal to the Lord. We know that one of Jesus’ own disciples responded to this pressure to betray Jesus – Judas Iscariot.

What a lesson this story is to all of us. We will all come under great pressures to be disloyal to the Lord Jesus and to our churches that are trying to faithfully proclaim him. We must beware that Satan does not use personality clashes to disrupt the cohesion of our church’s ministries. We must be faithful, we must be loyal, both to our Lord and to his people.

During the Korean war, a small group of Christians were meeting in a small chapel when communist soldiers barged in with machine guns. They were ordered to stand and line up against the wall. Then a soldier ripped a picture of Christ from the wall and threw it down on the floor. He then said,

“All right, one by one, I want you to come here, spit on this picture, and curse the name of Jesus.”

The first three in line were senior men in the church. They did what the soldier had ordered. The fourth in line was a high school girl. As she approached the picture she dropped to her knees. She wiped the spittle off the picture with her skirt and then said,

“Go ahead and kill me. I cannot curse his name.”

The soldier ordered her to get up and they blindfolded her and the three man and marched them outside. The people inside heard three shots. The soldiers then returned, bringing in the girl, still alive. One of the soldiers then said,

“Anyone who gives up what they believe that easily is not fit to be a communist.”

They then marched out leaving what remained of the small group of Christians to continue serving their Lord in very trying times.

It is never easy to remain faithful and loyal to the Lord Jesus, to his ministry and to his church. He has chosen a strange lot to follow him. Each of us have been included in his church and he has given us his Spirit to make our churches work for him.

BVP