his unholy ambition there was
fulfilled in him the promise of His Lord in glory, "To him that
overcometh will I grant to sit with Me on My throne."

The time came when there was no longer occasion for the other ten
apostles to be "moved with indignation concerning James and John,"
because of their pride and ambitious seeking. This John is the disciple
whom, with all his imperfections, Jesus loved most of all; this the man
known as the most lovable of men; this the one who well-nigh reached
human perfection through his ardent and ever increasing love for Jesus;
this the one who is called _the Apostle of Love_.

_CHAPTER XVIII_

_John and the Family of Bethany_

"He entered into a certain village; and a certain woman named
Martha received him into her house. And she had a sister called
Mary, which also sat at the Lord's feet, and heard His
word."--_Luke_ x. 38, 39.

"Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, of the village of
Mary and her sister Martha."--_John_ xi. 1.

"Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus."--_v._ 5.

"Jesus ... said, ... Lazarus is dead."--_v._ 14.

"Jesus wept."--_v._ 35.

"He cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. He that was dead
came forth."--_vs._ 43, 44.

"As he (John) gives us so much more than the synoptists about the
family at Bethany, we may infer that he was a more intimate friend
of Lazarus and his sisters."--_A. Plummer, D.D._

In four sentences Luke draws an unfinished picture of a family group,
whose memory has become especially precious because of what John has
added to it. His probable familiarity with the family made this
possible. No wonder if he felt that the original picture must be
enlarged and retouched. The place where that family lived had become to
him too sacred a spot to be called simply "a certain village." Martha
was more than "a certain woman," who though hospitable, was distracted
in her housekeeping. Mary was fairer than Luke had painted her. John
had seen her do more than sit at Jesus' feet. He manifestly felt that
the resurrection of Lazarus was too great an event to be omitted from
the gospel story, as it was by the other Evangelists who, when they
wrote, might have endangered the life of Him whom the Jews sought to
destroy. John's heart demanded a stronger tribute to Mary than Matthew
or Mark had given. Let him be our guide to the blessed home. With