Why are the disciple John, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus all referred to as being loved by Jesus?
This is a good question because the Greek does give us more insight into these phrases. In John 11:3 it says, “Therefore the sisters sent to Him, saying, ‘Lord, look, whom you love is sick.” Here the word for love is PHILEO, which is the word for “friend.” Jesus was close to Mary, Martha, and Lazarus and often stayed at their home and at dinner. It was just outside of Jerusalem and a good place to rest and stay. The text goes on to say in John 11:5, “Now Jesus was loving Martha and her sister and Lazarus.” The Greek word here is AGAPE. This indicates that Jesus was concerned about their spiritual welfare and waited for Lazarus to die so that the glory of God could be manifested through him (Lazarus). In summary, Jesus loved (AGAPE) everyone and died for the sins of the whole world (John 3:16). He did have close friends that were part of His inner circle of ministry – people whom He could trust and who would be there for support while He dwelt among us in the flesh.
