Jesus weeps with his friends · and calls Lazarus out
A Bible story to tell as a family · John 11:32–44 · ages 4–12 · 12 min
The story
In Bethany, a little village close to Jerusalem, lived three siblings who were friends of Jesus: Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. The Bible says it plainly: Jesus loved all three of them. One day Lazarus got very sick, and the sisters sent Jesus a message: “Lord, the one You love is sick.” But Jesus waited two more days before setting out. When he finally arrived, Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days.
The house was full of people who had come to comfort the sisters. Martha ran to meet Jesus on the road, and there he told her one of the most important sentences in the whole Bible: “I am the resurrection and the life.” Martha answered with faith: “Yes, Lord,” she said, “I believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world.” Then she went back and quietly called her sister: “The Teacher is here and is asking for you.”
Mary got up quickly and went out. The people in the house followed her, thinking she was going to cry at the tomb. When Mary saw Jesus, she fell at his feet and said the same words her sister had said: “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.” She was crying. And everyone around her was crying too.
Now listen closely, because here the story slows way down. Jesus saw Mary crying and was deeply troubled, his heart heavy. He asked, “Where have you put him?” They answered, “Come and see, Lord.” And Jesus wept. The Son of God, who knew what he was about to do, did not tell Mary to stop crying. He cried together with her. The people said, “See how He loved him!”
The tomb was a cave with a big stone across the entrance. Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, always practical, warned him: “Lord, by now he stinks,” she said. “It has already been four days.” Jesus replied, “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?” So the men pushed the stone aside. Everyone held their breath.
Jesus lifted his eyes to heaven and thanked the Father for hearing him. Then he called out in a loud voice: “Lazarus, come out!” Silence. And then, out of the dark cave, someone came slowly moving, hands and feet wrapped in strips of cloth and face wrapped in a cloth. It was Lazarus. Alive!
Jesus gave one more command, and this one was for the people standing around: “Unwrap him and let him go.” Imagine the sisters running to loosen the strips, laughing and crying at the same time. That day, many of those who had come to comfort Mary saw what Jesus did and believed in him.
32When Mary came to Jesus and saw Him, she fell at His feet and said, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.” 33When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, He was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. 34“Where have you put him?” He asked. “Come and see, Lord,” they answered. 35Jesus wept. 36Then the Jews said, “See how He loved him!” 37But some of them asked, “Could not this man who opened the eyes of the blind also have kept Lazarus from dying?” 38Jesus, once again deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. 39“Take away the stone,” Jesus said. “Lord, by now he stinks,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man. “It has already been four days.” 40Jesus replied, “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?” 41So they took away the stone. Then Jesus lifted His eyes upward and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. 42I knew that You always hear Me, but I say this for the benefit of the people standing here, so they may believe that You sent Me.” 43After Jesus had said this, He called out in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” 44The man who had been dead came out with his hands and feet bound in strips of linen, and his face wrapped in a cloth. “Unwrap him and let him go,” Jesus told them.
What the Bible says
- v. 33: Jesus saw Mary and the others weeping and was deeply troubled.
- v. 35: Jesus wept. Before he acted, he felt his friends’ pain.
- v. 44: Lazarus came out alive, still bound, and Jesus told the others to unwrap him.
What we learn
Jesus is in no hurry to pull us out of sadness with ready-made phrases: he weeps with those who weep. But he doesn’t stop at tears, because he has power over death. He said “I am the resurrection and the life” and showed it in Bethany, pointing ahead to his own resurrection. At home we can do both: make room for the sadness of someone who has lost a loved one, and put our hope in Jesus. And like the friends who unwrapped Lazarus, we are called to help one another get free.
Questions to talk about
For little ones
- How did Jesus feel when he saw Mary crying?
- What did Jesus shout in front of the tomb?
For kids
- Why do you think Jesus cried, if he knew he was going to bring Lazarus back?
- Jesus asked the people to take off Lazarus’s strips of cloth. Why did he let others help?
For teens
- Martha and Mary told Jesus: if you had been here, my brother would not have died. Is it okay to talk to God that honestly? What does Jesus’ reaction show?
For adults
- When someone in the family is hurting, are we quicker to give answers or to cry with them? What would change if we started with come and see?
Activity
Lazarus’s wrappings: gently wrap a volunteer’s arms and legs with toilet paper or strips of cloth (never the face). Someone reads John 11:44, and when they hear unwrap him, everyone helps set the volunteer free. Then talk: what holds us bound today (fear, sadness, hurt), and how can the family help set each other free?
To memorize: John 11:25
Prayer
Lord Jesus, thank you that you weep with us when we are sad. You are the resurrection and the life. Take care of those who have lost someone they love, and teach our family to help one another get free. Amen.