[0:00] and welcome to our service this evening we pray God's blessing on our time under this word we're going to begin singing from psalm 33 and we're singing from verse 13 to the end of the psalm psalm 33 from verse 13 the lord from heaven sees and beholds all sons of men from will he views all from his dwelling place that in the earth do dwell he forms their hearts alike and all their doings he observes great hosts save not a king much strength no mighty man preserves and harsh for preservation is a deceitful thing and by the greatness of his strength can no deliverance bring behold on those that do him fear the lord hath set his eye even those who on his mercy do with confidence rely from death to breathe their soul in death life unto them to yield our soul doth wait upon the lord he is our help and shield so in his holy name we trust our heart shall joyful be lord let thy mercy be on us as we do hope in thee i'm going to sing these verses and 33 from verse 13 to the end the lord from heaven sees and beholds all sons of men from well the lord from heaven sees and beholds all sons of men from well all sons of men from well all sons of men from well he views all from his dwelling place he views all sons of men from well he forms their hearts alike and all their giving things he knows great hosts save not a king much strength no mighty man preserves and harsh for preservation and harsh for preservation is a deceitful thing and by the greatness of strength and by the greatness of strength can do the goodness restring and by the greatness of strength another father next 59 the guten 12 facts power stege
[4:01] heavy tall His mercy do with dawn to history lie.
[4:23] From death to free their soul endures, life unto them to heal.
[4:42] Her soul doth wake upon the Lord.
[4:55] He is an help and shield. Sith in His holy name we trust.
[5:15] And heart shall joyful be. Lord, let Thy mercy be on us as we do openly.
[5:44] Let us come before God in prayer. Let us pray. Lord God in heaven, in whose name we are made. We would seek Your blessing to be upon us.
[5:59] Upon our service from beginning to end. From the words that we have been singing, may we derive comfort, encouragement, even the grace of faith by which we are to appreciate the privilege that is Your peoples who know the ministrations of Your Spirit in all the varying circumstances of life.
[6:36] We would ask that You would remember us this night in accordance with the needs that are before You. God who is the God who is the discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
[6:52] The one who knows our every thought or every emotion, be it physical or simply the motivation that is in our heart.
[7:10] That which moves us, that which draws our interest, our affection, our desire.
[7:22] Something that may be hidden from those round about us. Govern our thoughts as we listen to Your word. Read as we have it upon our lips even.
[7:34] In the singing of Your prayer. In the singing of Your praises we can confess as those who understand it for ourselves. That we can even go through the motions of worship.
[7:49] We can have Your word upon our lips. And at the same time there is a form of schizophrenia or a split personality where our thoughts are upon Your word and at the same time they are drawn elsewhere.
[8:11] Thinking of things that have nothing whatsoever to do with you, O God, and with Your word and with that which Your word is saying to us.
[8:23] We pray for grace to help when we struggle with our own sinful inclinations. When we wrestle with that which is within us that speaks of our humanity, that speaks of our fallenness, that speaks of our waywardness in whichever way it manifests itself.
[8:49] We ask that You would remember all the cares and concerns that we may have, that You may undertake for us what no other can.
[9:01] Remember our homes, our families, those near and dear to us, those amongst them for whom we may be concerned, for those that we may be fearful.
[9:13] May Your grace be imparted to us that we may know to lift our eyes to the heavens. That You are the God of whom the word speaks.
[9:26] I to the hills will lift mine eyes from whence doth come mine aid. My safety cometh from the Lord who heaven and earth hath made.
[9:36] We give thanks for those who understand that as an experience that they can speak of. That when they were persuaded to move their eyes, not to dwell upon the things that were pressing upon them, to look upon the God of glory in the person of Jesus Christ, how much it was a relief to them to find someone there that knew their need.
[10:14] So hear our prayers on behalf of those who are in need of being prayed for. Hear our prayers on behalf of those who do not pray for themselves.
[10:26] May we collectively, who do pray, remember to pay one another's burdens, as we are encouraged to pray for themselves. As we are encouraged to do, to plead in the courts of heaven for the mercies of God, to be bestowed upon those who have no inclination to seek them for themselves, no understanding of what it means to be without these mercies, to know for themselves what it is to have Christ as the Lord of their life.
[11:04] Remember those who proclaim the truth. Remember each and every congregation of our presbytery, of our island community, of our nation and all the nations of the earth.
[11:18] We pray for the word that is preached, that it may be a word that finds a place that is prepared for it.
[11:30] You tell us in your word, those who preach the word to go out and sow the seed in the morning and in the evening, not knowing what will prosper, this or that, but to be diligent in doing that very work, knowing that the God of heaven may choose to bless all that is done in your name.
[12:02] And we pray that you would not withhold your blessing. We pray for the congregation of Bach. We remember it especially as you have seen fit to place a pastor over them as a congregation once again.
[12:19] We ask that you would bless that ministry and bless the congregation who will know the preaching of the word in that new ministry begun.
[12:33] We pray that your blessing would be upon your servant and his family, upon the congregation and the community, remembering any of our congregations that may be looking to yourself to settle over them, one who would be one of your own choosing.
[12:56] Remember, Lord, the work of the gospel. It is your work. It is your glory that you have appended to it.
[13:08] It is the word of salvation to needy sinners. It is nothing other than a word that directs attention to Christ.
[13:19] May Christ be lifted up before us. Whatever else is brought to our attention, may he be given the preeminence.
[13:30] And may his grace, his mercy, his peace be our portion. We ask that you would remember the needy amongst us, those who are needing to remember because of their needs physically, mentally and spiritually.
[13:52] Those who are unwell, we commit and commend to your care, whether they be cared for in their homes or in hospital or homes for the elderly and the hospice.
[14:05] We remember all such who are being cared for in these environments. We ask your blessing to accompany those labors, those who labor in such spheres, and that they would receive their reward in seeing a fulfillment of their own calling to visit the sick in their need and to do for them what they are unable to do for themselves.
[14:33] Remember the brokenhearted, the bereaved and the sorrowful. You are making breaches in our congregations from time to time and in homes within these congregations.
[14:49] You are reminding us that here we have no continuing city, reminding us that we are but sojourners. On the scene of time, our time is appointed to us.
[15:01] May it be short or long, but it has a conclusion. You have told us that the day of birth will soon be followed by the day of death.
[15:12] However, we choose to measure our years. We know that you have given to us ample warning that we should spend our time wisely.
[15:23] We ask, Lord, that the wisdom that is from on high would become our possession, that we would avail ourselves of the day of opportunity.
[15:35] Hear our prayers then. Watch over us as individuals, collectively as a congregation, as a community, remembering our nation, those who govern us, remembering the Queen and her family, remembering the nations of the earth with all their varying needs, those who are in poverty and want, those who are suffering because of the various ways in which the climate has changed and brought its own destruction.
[16:07] Some places are suffering from deluge, some from lack of water, some from the world. Some who see the whole environment speaking to them of the accountability that all of us bear with the want and destruction that we are responsible for.
[16:33] Grant to us the wisdom to know where to look and who seek the guiding hand of the Lord upon all our deliberations be they considered at a level of individuals or governments throughout the world.
[16:49] Hear our prayers and petitions. Guide us in the truth for giving sin in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. I'm going to read from the scriptures of the New Testament and the Gospel of Jesus Christ according to John.
[17:05] The Gospel of Jesus Christ according to John. And we're reading chapter 11. Reading from the beginning of the chapter. John chapter 11.
[17:19] Now a certain man was sick, named Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. It was that Mary which anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.
[17:38] Therefore his sister sent unto him, saying, Lord, behold he whom thou lovest is sick. When Jesus heard that, he said, This sickness is not unto death.
[17:50] But for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby. Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.
[18:01] When he had heard therefore that he was sick, he abhor two days, stood in the same place where he was. Then after that, saith he to his disciples, Let us go into Judea again.
[18:15] His disciples say unto him, Master, the Jews of late saw to stone thee, and goest thou thither again. Jesus answered, Are there not twelve hours in the day?
[18:29] If any man walk in the day, he stumbleth not, because he see the light of this world. But if a man walk in the night, he stumbleth because there is no light in him.
[18:41] These things said he. And after that he saith unto them, What friend Lazarus sleepeth, But I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.
[18:52] Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well. Howbeit, Jesus spake of his death, but they thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep.
[19:04] Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead. And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, to the intent ye may believe.
[19:17] Nevertheless, let us go unto him. Then said Thomas, which is called Didymus, unto his fellow disciples, Let us also go, that we may die with him.
[19:29] Then when Jesus came, he found that he had lain in the grave four days already. Now Bethany was nigh unto Jerusalem, about fifteen furlamps off.
[19:41] Many of the Jews came to Martha and Mary to comfort them concerning their brother. Then Martha, as soon as she heard that Jesus was coming, went and met him.
[19:52] But Mary was sat still in the house. Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died. But I know that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee.
[20:09] Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise again. Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection of the last day.
[20:22] Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection and the life. He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.
[20:35] Believest thou this? She saith unto him, Yea, Lord, I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world.
[20:46] And when she had so said, she went her way, and called Mary her sister, secretly saying, The Master is come, and calleth for thee. As soon as she heard that, she arose quickly, and came unto him.
[21:01] Now Jesus was not yet come into the town, but was in that place where Martha met her. The Jews, then which were with her in the house, and comforted her, when they saw Mary, that she rose up hastily, and went out, followed her, saying, She goeth unto the grave, to weep there.
[21:22] Then when Mary was come, where Jesus was, and saw him, she fell down at his feet, saying unto him, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died.
[21:35] When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping, which came with her, he groaned in the spirit, and was troubled, and said, Where have ye laid him?
[21:47] They said unto him, Lord, come and see. Jesus wept. Then said the Jews, Behold how he loved him. And some of them said, Could not this man, which opened the eyes of the blind, have caused, that even this man should not have died?
[22:05] Jesus therefore again, groaning in himself, cometh to the grave. It was a cave, and a stone lay upon it. Jesus said, Take ye away the stone.
[22:18] Martha, the sister of him that was dead, saith unto him, Lord, by this time he stinketh, for he hath been dead four days. Jesus saith unto her, Said I not unto thee, that if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God.
[22:35] Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, Father, I thank thee that thou hast heard me.
[22:47] And I knew that thou hearest me always. But because of the people which stand by, I said it, that they may believe that thou hast sent me.
[22:58] And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with grave clothes.
[23:15] And his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loosen and let him go. And so on.
[23:28] May the Lord add his blessing to this reading of his word. To his name be the praise. We're going to sing now from Psalm 116.
[23:40] Psalm 116. And at verse 9. Verse 9.
[23:52] To the end. I, in the land of those that live, will walk the Lord before. I did believe. Therefore I spake, I was afflicted sore.
[24:04] I said, when I was in my haste, the dawn meant liars be. What shall I render to the Lord for all his gifts to me? I'll of salvation take the cup.
[24:16] On God's name will I call. I'll pay my vows now to the Lord before his people all. Dear in God's sight is his saint's death.
[24:28] Thy servant, Lord, am I. Thy servant sure. Thine handmaid's son, my bands thou didst untie. Thank offerings I to thee will give, and on God's name will call.
[24:43] I'll pay my vows now to the Lord before his people all. Within the courts of God's own house, within the midst of thee, O city of Jerusalem, praise to the Lord, give ye.
[24:59] Let us sing these verses, Psalm 116, from verse 9 to the end. I, in the land of those that live, will walk the Lord before.
[25:10] I, in the land of those that live, will walk the Lord before.
[25:28] Lord, amen. For the Lord. I, in the land of giving, earth for may I speak, I was a father's on fire, who is sorry for me.
[25:42] For the Lord, that I think I was a son of a scary thing. For the Lord is silent. I said when I was in my case, The domine, the year's king.
[26:00] What shall I render to the Lord For all his gifts to me?
[26:15] I love salvation, dear God, On God's name will I call.
[26:32] I pray my best now to the Lord Before his people all.
[26:49] The event of sight is this day's death, Thy seven Lord am I.
[27:05] Thy seven Lord am I. I've made some my plans, Thou didst untie.
[27:21] But God's name will I. The day will give, And on God's name will call.
[27:38] And be like a shadow to the Lord Before his people all.
[27:54] Within the course of God's own place, Within the midst of thee, God's name will I.
[28:18] The day will I. The day will I. Christ will the Lord give me. Amen.
[28:29] Amen. Amen. Amen. We again turn to the passage of Scripture that we read together. The Gospel of Jesus Christ according to John, Chapter 11.
[28:44] And we can read again at verse 27. Well, we can read from, Take up the reading again at verse 23.
[28:58] Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise again. Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day.
[29:11] Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection and the life. He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. Whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.
[29:25] Believest thou this? She saith unto him, Yea, Lord, I believe, that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world.
[29:40] Yea, Lord, I believe. The doctrine of the resurrection from the dead is considered to be almost exclusively a doctrine that is Christian.
[30:03] There are many who believe in life after death, but not in the way in which the Bible speaks of it.
[30:20] The Bible tells us that when a patient dies, the body of that patient will return to the dust, but the soul of that person will return to God who gave it.
[30:37] Now, not everybody believes that to be the case. There are many religions who believe that the body is merely a carrier for the spirit or the soul.
[30:56] and their whole attitude to the body is that it is the sooner it decays or corrupts the better.
[31:09] It will mean a release for the spirit. It's a prison as far as some are concerned. A confinement for the soul.
[31:22] A death is a release. That's a complete perversion of what the Bible says. The Bible clearly teaches that man consists of a body and a soul.
[31:35] And God has given us a body and a soul. And the body will return to the dust and the soul will return to God who gave it.
[31:49] and following the resurrection there will be a reuniting of the body and the soul. It will then become a glorified body with the soul intact.
[32:08] The believer going to be with God or with Christ in glory. And the unbeliever shut off from the presence of God and cast into the place that the Bible describes as a place prepared for the devil and his angels.
[32:27] Now here we find that Martha clearly believes that to be what she believes.
[32:42] This is what she believes. And she makes that acknowledgement. I'm sure you're all familiar with the account that we have here in John chapter 11.
[32:58] And the account I suppose has got many tiers to it and the more time you spend thinking about the account that we are given here there are many things that we might consider perplexing.
[33:23] For example at a human level it is stated quite clearly that the Lord loved Lazarus and he also loved Mary and Martha Martha and her sister and Lazarus it is stated quite clearly and not only do they know that but the congregation if you like those who are gathered together to mourn with the two sisters the death of Lazarus they know the relationship that existed between them and they ask a question which you might think is an obvious question to ask bearing in mind the knowledge that they have of Jesus you know they are observing the grief of these women and they know the person of the
[34:33] Lord Jesus Christ that he was able to heal the sick whether they believe that he was able to restore life to the dead or not they certainly know that this was a man who had performed miracles in the past could not this man which opened the eyes of the blind have caused that even this man should not have died and these are just ordinary bystanders ordinary observers if you like professional mourners some of them might have been but they would have known the family and they would have known the relationship that existed between Jesus and Christ and they ask this question and you think well it's a good question to ask and the more you study what is happening here the grief that is in the heart of these women and we cannot underestimate the reality of it we think it's just a story then we're completely wrong these women are dealing with a real situation that has caused them sorrow and they're dealing with the reality of their own relationship with the
[35:54] Lord Jesus Christ as one that loves them and could have saved them prevented this sorrow from being in their experience and it may well have been the same question that they were asking whether they allowed the question to be asked loudly or not but the Lord speaks to them and tells them that what they had to endure was something that was going to be for God's glory and that was going to prove to them the love that he had for them in a way that his intervention at an earlier stage might not have proved so I suppose there are these levels at work in the telling of this story that I think underline for us the reality of what is being dealt with here it's precisely because of his love that the words that he speaks into this situation are so precious and they might not ever have been uttered had these events not played out as they did if
[37:22] Lazarus had been healed so that he had not died then Jesus might not have spoken these words about the wonder of the resurrection on his part in it well I want us to think about the question that Jesus asks because it is a question that he asked here he makes this well known statement that many people derive comfort from some rightly so some perhaps a comfort that is a false comfort because Jesus says here I am the resurrection and the life he that believeth in me though he were dead yet shall he live and his words are part of the liturgy of many is a burial that takes place throughout the world a Christian burial they would refer to these words and the implication is that every person that is being buried will have a resurrection and to life everlasting though he were dead yet shall he live and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die but unfortunately not everyone believes in
[38:41] Jesus in the way that Jesus means these words to be understood but I want us to think of the question that he asks as a response to this statement a question that's directed at Martha he asks her do you believe this and she responds and she confesses something that is very very clearly indicative of her relationship with the Lord so I want us to think about this confession and try and understand something about the nature of this confession some people think that we probably mention it again some people think that what Martha said was nothing more than a creedal statement a statement that she would have written perhaps on her heart that she had been taught because she believed in the resurrection and she had some notion of what that meant and that was all that a reply to the question meant yes Lord
[40:10] I believe and so on but I think that what we have here is a declaration of faith in very trying circumstances and the circumstances make the proclamation of her faith all the more vibrant all the more real and we can begin by considering that very first statement do you believe believest thou this she said unto him yes Lord I believe that thou art the Christ the son of God which should come into the world I believe that thou art Christ the son of God who should come into the world three parts to what she believes but the initial statement is a statement that undergirds what she believes it tells us that what she is saying is not just something that a person says for the sake of saying it but it is something that she says as one that genuinely believes that what she is saying is what she believes those who are scholars of the
[41:47] Greek language tell us that the tense that is used here is a perfect tense which suggests to us that she is entirely confident in the statement that she is making she has an implicit and a confident trust in the Christ that she identifies as Christ she's not just calling him Christ by name although she knows him by that name she knows him by the name as the one who possesses all the characteristics that that name implies and the problem a lot of people have when they read this is that her reactions her questions her response to her circumstances belies her confession it is in the eyes of some an impossibility even for a person to have such a proclaimed trust and belief in the
[43:10] Lord Jesus Christ to speak to him or often in the way that we detect that she is speaking of him or to him if you had been here Lord if you had been here then our brother would not have died but we have to remember that this person is a person who is genuinely grieving and in the turmoil that grief brings into the experience of a person in the darkness that comes with grief it is not always easy to see even the plainest truth as a truth that you can lay hold of and claim as your own whatever we have in this situation we cannot sterilise it we cannot take out of it what would make it straightforward you know many people think that Christians should behave in a certain way in all kinds of situations and one of these situations is a situation where a person dies and that person is known to be a believer and they themselves are believers and it seems that the onlooker who is either a believer or not a believer when they see this happening they are saying well this is the way that a person who believes should behave this is what they believe they believe that as in
[45:12] Martha's case there she has the doctrine of resurrection Jesus explains it to her and she understands what he's saying and she possesses the knowledge of it and it should be within the orbit of her experience to apply the doctrine to her circumstances and be reconciled with the confident belief that the person who has died will rise again that they have gone to glory that they are going to be with the Lord which is far better now we know that is the case but when grief is in this experience when sorrow is in the experience when the darkness and the perplexity of questions arising out of the circumstances are added to it then it's not always easy to come to a a clear understanding if you like of what is happening have you ever been in a situation and I'm sure you have if you think for yourself have you been in a situation where you realise your impotence to provide to a person who is inconsolable some word that you would think or would want to offer consolation to them when they are seeking some kind of remedy for their situation and you don't have that remedy for them they want relief and there is none they want comfort and there is none they want a sense in which what is happening to them is able to be dealt with in a way where they are at ease with it in some way and it's not always possible to say that if anything there are more often occasions where you feel the best thing you can do is remain silent it's difficult to deal with grief for that passion is so good grief struck that
[47:44] I was reading somewhere of a preacher who was standing at an open grave and the person who was being buried the starter came to the grave without without warning that this was going to happen and she just peered into the grave and asked the question not quietly but loudly where is he now and she was looking down at the coffin in the grave and the question that was asked was asked from the depths of grief where is he now because when the person is confronted with the reality of what death involves you're saying to yourself well is this all there is am I just taking this shell and burning it into the dust surely there's more to it than that and if there's more to it than that where is this person that I once knew they are no more where I can see them and touch them and speak to them now that question comes to some people when they are grieving when they are sorrowful when they are full of angst and perhaps not able to deal with it and who's to say you can't just say about Mary and Martha oh these were women of faith these were women who associated with the
[49:25] Lord who had fellowship with the Lord who had heard what the Lord had to say to them but here they were dealing not just with the death of their brother but with the reality of a friend who loved them and they loved not being there for them to take the illness away to prevent the death to speak to them in their time of need when Christ speaks and we listen there is a possibility of comfort now I know that when people there are many people who look at this passage and what they're seeing I'll give you an illustration of this what they're seeing is Martha making a confession that is not really her confession at that moment she's using words and the words have a meaning but the meaning is not something that has penetrated into her heart she knows the truth but it is not her truth at that moment
[50:50] I'll give you an example Mark Johnson suggests that at this moment when Jesus has spoken they proved of little consolation to her in her bereavement that's what he believes that the words of Jesus are not doing what Jesus meant them to do indeed he says even though she was able to confess Jesus as both Messiah and Son of God the power of death still loomed so largely on her horizons that it seemed to eclipse even the power of Jesus now that's an understanding that some have about these words that when Jesus spoke to her she knew the stock answer she knew what was expected of her and that's what she gave well I don't agree with that
[52:04] I might be wrong but I don't agree with it because faith can struggle faith can wrestle with issues that appear to undermine what they believe and still it can be a real faith and I think the confession that is solicited by Christ here is a confession that is made and it comes from the heart of somebody who has been asked a question which they answer honestly and earnestly even though their circumstances makes them feel that the comfort that they would want such a belief to bring is not there can you understand what I'm saying you can hold to a truth you can believe that truth you can possess that truth you can put your aim into that truth but at the same time how you feel you can't just dismiss the grief you can't just say ah well her brother is still dead her sorrow is still real her sister is grieving too and she's got to manage that and they're in an environment where those who are comforters are perhaps not as comforting as they might be when we look at verse 40
[54:01] Jesus said unto it said I not unto thee that if thou wouldst believe that thou shouldest see the glory of God and that is said to her when Jesus asked them to open the grave and this woman understands her brother is dead not only is he dead he's not just died he's been dead for four days she's not a stupid woman she knows that in that climate somebody who's been dead for four days if their body is left to corrupt then that will have clear evidences of that she understands that does that mean that she doesn't believe what Jesus is going to do no she's got this to deal with as well what Jesus can do and what
[55:10] Jesus will do and what Jesus has said that he is going to do is something that she understands and she trusts will happen what about in the confession briefly you are the Christ he says she says maybe to us that just is his name but she knew that to be the case but to Martha it was an acknowledgement of his title he is God's anointed one he is the one the scripture describes as the Messiah the prince the one that God is going to send into the world Martha was no theologian but she was someone who knew the Lord she was not schooled in any college but she understood the word of God and the truth that that word presented to her and she was willing prompted by the
[56:18] Lord to declare that she understood that that was who he was some would say that her words of incredulity when it comes to the Lord at the graveside is a sign of unbelief but I would say that it is a real evidence of the struggles that exist within the believer if you're a believer I'm sure you understand that I'm sure you don't want the experience to be your experience but you still have times when you know the truth of God it is your truth because God has bequeathed it to you through the life that is now you you possess it it is something that rules your life but there are times and occasions where the truth and your experience they collide and you don't like the experience what what she believed could only be fulfilled as she said earlier in the resurrection of the last day but
[57:45] Jesus has allowed her to move on from there and to believe that he is because of who he is the resurrection and the life he is God's anointed he is the Christ of God he is the son of God how are we to understand these words again I said she wasn't a theologian but she had a head full of theology a heart full of theology she knew the Lord personally she knew the Lord intimately she knew the Lord as someone who had doubtless expounded his word in her company and she had no difficulty in discerning him as the son of God Don Carson the theologian the commentator says these words that in John's gospel we very often come across the words son of
[58:45] God and there are various categories within the gospel of John where the terminology appears God's son and son are used to depict the relationship that is unique that exists between Christ as the son of the father and Christ as the son of God as the one who is the Messiah the one who has this title as the son of man this title as the saviour of sinners there is a functionality as he puts it in the description as well as a metaphysical relationship between God the son and God the father there is within John's gospel this insistence that Jesus is the son of
[59:46] God as a second person Jesus is the son of God as the Messiah as the saviour of sinners as the one who is sent by God to fulfil all righteousness and with this final statement he is the one who should come the one who is going to come into the world one this is what Martha believes what does she believe when she says this she believes the scripture she believes the word of God she believes the word that tells her that God is going to send his son into the world to be a saviour of sinners she is he is before her as the coming he is the one that she has longed for that the scripture refers to and prophetically declares so return to the question do you believe do you think
[60:59] Martha doubted the Lord do you think she doubted her Lord sometimes the struggle to reconcile what is seen with the unseen is a powerful one you find somewhere in the scripture it's saying someone saying Lord I believe help thou my unbelief and it's not unique it's not unheard of these women had a unique experience in the privilege in the company of Christ he spoke with them and here he speaks into their grief he teaches them and when he teaches them they learn from his lessons doesn't mean that they're not easy doesn't mean that they're not difficult that they're not hard to deal with sometimes there are things that the Lord does that are not easily understood that's what
[62:17] I'm trying to say in one of Murdoch Campbell's books he talks about a woman who had a word from the Lord she believed that the Lord had spoken to her she was persuaded that it was the Lord who spoke to her and she was unwell and in her illness she believed that the Lord had taught her that this was going to be her final illness but she got better and that disturbed her that disturbed her because she was so convinced that the Lord had disclosed to her that this was to be her final illness you could say that she was disappointed and sometimes in the experience of God's people there are things that they don't understand there are things that fly in the face of what God has seemingly revealed to them and they have to deal with it in the way that the best way that they can this woman that
[63:39] Mordor Campbell speaks of although apparently she was recovering within a matter of hours of her standing at the door of her home perturbed and disturbed by her understanding that her illness was over and done with she passed away within a matter of hours of these thoughts being her head we can try and make sense of everything the Lord is doing sometimes it doesn't follow the logical pattern of how we would expect things to be so we began with this passage we began with thoughts that looking at the whole picture you would think that the wise thing to do as far as Jesus was concerned as the miracle work son of God that he could avoid all the issues that presented themselves simply by healing this friend avoiding death and sparing the sorrows of these women but that's not what he did if your question is why did he not do it in the way you want it well that's not a question that I can answer that's a question for himself and there are many such questions in the life of a believer why this and why now and why in this way but Jesus tells us that this was done for the glory of
[65:21] God and that God and that this to experience the resurrection there are there are many other questions which I can't even begin to ask and remind answer but may God help us to think of these things for ourselves and try and come to the place where we see how wise he is in the way that he deals with this the affairs of the children of men let us pray Lord oh God every one of us will at some point have to deal with the issues that surround the sorrows of death not one of us will avoid it in our lives and we can think back on how we dealt with it or even fail to deal with it and we give thanks that there are those who who were able to find the help of the
[66:28] Most High and the help that sustained through them through these sorrows guide us we pray in the truth for your word is truth and pardon the Son of Jesus Amen the final psalm is Psalm 16 Psalm 16 verse 7 I bless the Lord because he doth by counsel me conduct and in the seasons of the night my reins to me instruct before me still the Lord I set so that he doth ever stand at my right hand I shall not move it be because of this my heart is glad my joy shall be expressed even by my glory and my flesh and confidence shall rest because my soul engraved to dwell shall not be left by thee nor wilt thou give thine holy one corruption to see thou wilt me show the path of life of joy
[67:34] Christ there is full store before thy face at my right hand are pleasures evermore let us sing these verses in conclusion I bless the Lord because he doth by counsel me conduct I bless the Lord because he doth by counsel me of death and in the season of the night my voice to me this strife before me still at all
[68:37] I said to hell and soul I shall not live with thee.
[69:07] Because of this my heart is glad, and joy shall be expressed.
[69:26] If by my glory and my bliss and confidence shall rest.
[69:45] Because my soul in faith dwells.
[69:56] Shall I have my heat? Not will thou give thine holy one.
[70:14] Call and shall to see. Thou wilt me show the path of life.
[70:34] Of joy is let full start. Before I face a night.
[70:50] I can have a pleasure evermore.
[71:05] May grace, mercy and peace be God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit rest and abide with you all, love and always. Amen. Amen.