You may be seated.
As I mentioned in my prayer, we're in John chapter 11.
! If you want to turn to your Bibles right now, it's on page 1066 of your pew Bible.
And as you're turning there, has anybody recognized the name Jonathan Edwards?
Jonathan Edwards is known, most well known for his sermon, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.
But over the course of two years of his life, he wrote a number of what he calls the resolutions.
There's 70 resolutions.
And he would weekly read these resolutions so that he could live fully for Jesus.
The thing about it is he wrote the first 21 when he was at the tender age of 17.
And then he wrote the rest when he was 18.
Listen to these three.
17-year-old.
Resolution 9.
Resolved.
To think much on all occasions of my dying and of the common circumstances which attend death.
Or number 17.
Resolved.
That I will live so as I shall wish I had done when I come to die.
Or when he was 18.
Resolution 43.
Resolved.
Never henceforth.
Till I die.
To act as if I were in any way my own.
But entirely and altogether God's.
Teenager.
Which becomes evident as you read through the resolutions.
This man is given to the Lord.
And it doesn't seem like he fears death.
For us, it's kind of a different story.
We tend to fear death, don't we?
We, when we think about our dying, we can get a little nervous.
In fact, we have come up with our own language for it.
Listen to some of the words and phrases we use for death.
He's no longer with us.
She passed away.
He expired.
She's in a better place.
Death is harsh.
We don't like being confronted by it.
Let alone our own deaths.
So when you think about your own death, where does your mind go?
Are you kind of like this?
La, la, la, la, la.
I'm not listening.
Or do you go logistics?
I want to have everything lined up so when I die, those who come after me, they're all set up.
That's what you focus on.
Or maybe when you think about the process of dying, you start thinking, well, I don't want to die that way.
But what happens after you breathe your last?
What is in store for you and me?
After we breathe our last?
Here's the truth of it.
Unless Jesus returns, everyone in this room will die.
Everyone.
We will all breathe our last breath.
And this morning, Jesus has good news.
Both in something he says and something he does.
It's good news for those who are facing death.
John 11 is the account when Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead.
It is the seventh sign of the book of John, of John's gospel.
And in this account, this whole chapter, all 57 verses, it unfolds in four scenes.
Scene one is a surprise.
Scene two is a confrontation.
Scene three is glory.
Give me a glory.
Oh, man.
Scene one.
And then scene four is a targeting.
What Jesus says and does in this passage will help you anticipate your own death.
But not in fear.
Less and less fear.
In more and more hope.
Trust.
Because Jesus has authority over death.
He has authority over your death.
So let's look at scene one, a surprise.
Because of the amount of verses we got to cover, I'm just going to be summarizing things.
And I'm going to ask you just to kind of hold on as we go through, all right?
So scene one, verses one through 16.
If you remember last week, Jesus had this confrontation with the Pharisees over two titles.
Christ and the Son of God.
And they seek to arrest him.
So Jesus bolts.
He leaves.
It's not his time to die.
So Jesus is out of town, out of Jerusalem.
And that's where we pick up in verse 11.
I'll just read these first five verses.
Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha.
It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair.
We'll read that account next week.
Well, their brother Lazarus was ill.
So the sisters sent to Jesus, who was out of town, saying, Lord, he who you love is ill.
But when Jesus heard it, he said, this illness does not lead to death.
It is for the glory of God.
So that the Son of God may be glorified through it.
Anyway, so Jesus is across the Jordan when Lazarus gets sick.
And we're introduced to Lazarus.
We're introduced to his sisters, Mary and Martha.
This was a sibling group who lived in Bethany.
And Jesus had a particularly unique relationship with them.
What we're going to see as this unfolds is that Martha and Mary are two very different women.
And they have a similar question for Jesus.
In verse 5, I just want you to note, now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.
So right out of the gate, John is helping us to see that Jesus' motives in this whole story is one of love and of God's glory.
Well, in verse 3, Mary and Martha send word to Jesus, he whom you love is ill.
It's getting at a unique relationship between Jesus and Lazarus.
They must have been buddies.
But this isn't just kind of like an FYI.
So don't you know, Jesus?
This is Jesus.
Lazarus is seriously ill.
We know you can heal him.
Would you please come?
And so Jesus responds in verse 4.
And now he's talking to his disciples.
This illness does not lead to death.
It's for the glory of God.
So that the Son of God may be glorified through it.
What Jesus knows in advance, before any of this significantly unfolds,
is that what's going to happen is for his glory.
There's going to be a revelation.
There's going to be something spectacular.
Jesus is going to be revealed.
The Son of God is going to be revealed in a new way.
It's the seventh sign of the Gospel of John.
Think of that word glorify.
As a revelation of something amazing about God.
And what Jesus is saying here is that the Son of God is going to be exalted.
He's going to be made new through this illness.
In verses 5 and 6, we again read,
Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.
But there's a connection.
Look at it.
Jesus loved them so because he loved them.
Because he loved him.
When he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was.
Now that's surprising.
Because I thought, hey, Jesus, if he really is your buddy,
if you got word that he's sick and it's serious, boy, wouldn't you just pack up and go?
But in love, he stayed two more days.
There's something else operating here.
We know that he loves them, but he's waiting.
And then there is this whole thing.
It's about God's glory.
In verses 7 and 8, we start learning what he's been waiting for.
Then after this, he said to his disciples,
Let's go.
Now Judea is home of Jerusalem, also Bethany.
And his disciples in verse 8 have an objection.
Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone you.
And are you going there again?
It hasn't been a week, Jesus.
They were looking to kill you.
Why do you want to go back?
Reasonable.
Then Jesus says,
Are there not 12 hours in the day?
What he's getting at is this.
His time on earth is coming to an end.
And he is going to walk in the light.
He's going to do his Father's will.
Those who walk in the darkness don't do God's will,
but those who walk in the light do.
And he's going to be committed.
And he has an appointment in Bethany at a tomb.
And then there's this classic misunderstanding.
After saying these things, Jesus says,
Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep.
I've got to go wake him up.
Disciples are like,
Lord, if he's asleep, that's good.
He needs to recover.
He needs to get his sleep.
And Jesus is like,
You're totally missing what I'm saying.
It's this misunderstanding we've been seeing
through the Gospel of John.
And Jesus says very plainly,
Verse 14,
Lazarus has died.
And then he says,
And for your sake,
I'm glad that I was not there,
so that you may believe.
But let us go to him.
He's not glad Lazarus died.
He's glad at the opportunity
this is affording his disciples
to see his glory on display.
And so, of all people,
Thomas, as in doubting Thomas,
chapter 20,
Let's go die with him!
Nobody understands what's going on here.
Nobody knows what's coming.
Why doesn't he go?
There's something bigger and better
that he's after.
There's something bigger and better
that he's going to reveal.
This is about his glory.
I want to point something out.
Nowhere,
nowhere here,
do you have any sense
that Jesus asked Lazarus' permission
to do what he's about to do.
Nowhere does he ask Martha or Mary
if it's okay,
Hey, guys,
like a month earlier,
I'm going to do something in a month
that's going to be really difficult.
You just hang in there with me.
He's doing what he wants to do.
There's something else
that I want to see.
Have you ever prayed
to the Lord?
Have you ever sent word
to the Lord?
Lord,
I'm regularly praying
for a couple people
in our family
that I dearly love.
Lord,
would you do this?
Please do this.
I know you can do this.
But he doesn't do it.
He doesn't show up.
Anybody experience that in the room?
Something else is going on, gang.
He's working off
a different economy.
What we know from this text
that he loves his own.
And he's working for his glory.
There's a greater glory coming.
That's scene one.
Jesus surprisingly stays put.
Scene two,
Jesus is confronted.
He's confronted by
Lazarus' two sisters.
And this is in verses 17 through 37.
In 17 through 19,
Jesus arrives
outside of Bethany.
Again,
it's 1.75 miles
from Jerusalem.
And so it's to remind you
that there are people
who want to kill Jesus
just down the street.
A lot of people are there
in Mary and Martha's home.
They're from Jerusalem.
They're there to comfort them.
And it's also another thing
to remind you,
word can get out
that Jesus is in town.
If you'll notice
in verse 20,
when Martha hears
that Jesus was coming,
she went and met him,
but Mary remains seated
in the house.
These are two very different women.
Two different people.
They have two very different temperaments.
And in verses 20 and 27,
Martha confronts Jesus.
And let me just point out,
Jesus didn't call her.
She went.
She hears that he's like
down the street
and she's gone.
She goes.
It's quite an interesting exchange.
She says,
why didn't you come?
Look at verse 21.
Lord, if you had been here,
my brother would not have died.
Lord, we send word to you.
If you had been here,
Lazarus would still be breathing.
I know what you're capable of.
And so there's this sense of like,
why didn't you come?
In verse 22,
it sounds like Martha
is asking Jesus to pray
that God would raise him
from the dead.
Listen to what she says.
But even now,
I know that whatever you ask
from God,
God will give you.
It kind of sounds like that,
but that's actually
not what she's saying.
And we're going to see that
played out as we go along.
What she's actually saying
is more like this.
Okay,
I don't get what you're doing,
but I know you got
a connection with God,
so you have your reasons.
And I trust you,
even though I don't know
why you didn't come.
It's something of faith.
And then in verse 23,
Jesus says to you,
your brother will rise again.
Now for us,
who know the story,
we're like,
oh yeah,
he's going to rise again.
But not Martha.
Look how she interprets it.
I know,
verse 24,
I know that he will rise again
in the resurrection
on that last day.
That the last day,
all will be raised up
and separated
to be judged.
That's Revelation chapter 20.
That's Matthew chapter 25.
All good Jews believed that.
I know that there's a coming day,
chronologically speaking,
there's a coming day
when he will be raised
from the dead.
And then Jesus does
something remarkable.
He takes a chronological day
and he makes it personal.
I am the resurrection
and the life.
I want you,
Martha,
not to be focused
on a day.
I want you focused
on me.
To believe in me.
This,
I am the resurrection
and the life
is the fifth
I am statement
in the gospel of John.
And it does us well
to ask,
what is he saying?
Why is he saying this?
So when he says,
I am the resurrection,
day,
personal.
He's got the power
to raise
on the last day.
And so if you read
the rest of verse 25,
it says,
whoever believes in me,
though he die physically,
the day is set,
yet shall he live.
In other words,
hey,
don't focus on the day,
focus on me,
because when you die,
you will live again
if you believe in me.
I will raise you
from the dead.
But there's more.
Just not a chronological moment.
There's a qualitative
aspect to this.
So when he says,
I am the resurrection
and the life,
he's speaking qualitatively.
Listen to what he says
in verse 26.
And everyone who lives
and believes in me
shall never die.
You may die physically,
but the moment you believe
in me,
I give you eternal life.
In other words,
eternal life doesn't start
when you die.
Eternal life begins
when you believe.
So if you believe
in Jesus Christ,
eternal life has come.
Abundant life.
So what Jesus is getting
at here is both
a qualitative life
as well as
a chronological aspect.
It's like,
I've got all of your life
in my hands.
I'm the giver of life.
I'm the bread of life.
I'm the water of life.
I am the way,
the truth,
and the life.
I came
that they might have life
and might have it
abundantly.
What Jesus is saying
to her is
something bigger
than resurrection days here.
And then he asks her,
do you believe this?
Do you believe in me?
You see,
all the word believes,
there's three of them
in this passage,
these two verses.
And she says,
yes, Lord,
I believe that you
are the Christ,
the Son of God,
who's coming into the world.
This was the titles
that the whole kind of
fight was over
in John 10.
The Christ,
the Son of God.
This is what we see
at the end of John
in chapter 20.
All of these signs
are to demonstrate
Jesus is the Christ,
the Son of God,
that you would believe in him
and by believing,
you live.
Martha,
do you believe this?
She's the first sister
who confronts Jesus
and Jesus reveals
something about himself.
Do you get the sense
of what Jesus is saying?
When he says,
I am the resurrection
and the life,
that is a God-sized claim.
He's claiming,
I am the giver of life,
I have authority over death.
And then,
in verses 28 through 37,
Mary,
a very different woman
than Martha.
In 28,
Jesus sends Mary
to go tell Martha,
to go tell Mary,
the teacher's calling for you.
So,
unlike Martha,
Mary is called
and Mary gets up right away
and goes
and then those people
who are comforting
and consoling her,
they get up and go
because they're thinking
she's going to the grave,
she's going to weep some more,
but she actually brings them
to Jesus.
And when she gets to Jesus,
verse 32,
she fell at his feet.
Martha didn't fall at his feet.
I think Martha
was probably looking
at him nose to nose.
Mary fell at his feet.
Two very different women.
Jesus loves them both.
and notice what she says.
Lord,
if you had been here,
my brother would not have died.
Does that sound familiar?
Look at verse 21.
Martha said to Jesus,
Lord,
if you had been here,
my brother would not have died.
Two very different women,
very different temperaments,
wrestling with the same thing.
Where were you?
We sent for you.
We know you loved Lazarus.
You are able to heal him.
Where were you?
And when Jesus responds to Martha,
he drops the,
I am the resurrection
and the life.
Do you believe this?
The way he responds to Mary.
He sees Mary weeping.
He sees those weeping with her.
Verse 33.
And then he was deeply moved
in his spirit
and greatly troubled.
And when you hear
greatly troubled,
deeply moved in his spirit,
you may be thinking,
oh,
he was overwhelmed
with sadness.
But when you do a word study
on this little phrase,
deeply moved,
by the way,
it shows up in verse 38,
deeply moved.
Do you know how it's used
throughout the rest
of the New Testament?
Stern rebuke.
Indignation.
Holy anger.
Jesus sees all this weeping
and it's safe to say
he gets angry.
And out of his anger,
he asks,
where did you lay him?
I'm going to do something
about this.
And he is told,
come see.
And in verse 35,
Jesus wept.
In that moment,
he goes from being indignant
to weeping.
Jesus is mad.
Sad and mad.
He's experiencing
the full range
of human emotions
kind of surrounding grief.
Anybody been angry
when somebody dies before?
Anybody been sad?
Yes.
Jesus is experiencing
the full range
of humanity.
And he does it
without sinning.
He weeps.
He's angry.
And he's like,
show me
where you buried him.
What's striking
about this
is that we have
two very different
human beings,
Martha and Mary.
and they are
confronting Jesus
and struggling
with the same thing
and they say it verbatim.
Lord, if you had been here,
my brother
would still be alive.
How many times
have we said
something similar?
Lord, if you had moved,
if you had done
what I asked,
then we wouldn't
be dealing with this.
it's a soft questioning.
Jesus, do you know
what you're doing?
He's operating
for a glory.
He's got something else,
something bigger
and better in mind.
In this passage,
following both
of these confrontations,
we learn something
about Jesus.
One, that he's
totally God.
I am the resurrection
and the life.
And we learn
that he's totally man.
We see him experience
the fullness
of human emotions.
He's angry
and he's sad.
And now he's
going to do something.
The Jews that are there
who had followed Mary,
some see him
responding the way he is
and they're like,
oh, how,
he just loved Lazarus
so much.
And then others
are there
and they're like,
wait, wait,
hold on a second.
Isn't this the guy
that healed the blind,
man born blind?
Couldn't he have
stopped this
from happening?
They don't have
any idea
what's about to happen.
Which brings us
to scene three.
Glory.
Give it to me.
Oh, that was weak.
I'm going to say glory.
You give it back.
Glory.
Okay, here we go.
In verses 38 through 44,
Jesus raises Lazarus
from the death
and there's been
quite a build up
to this moment,
hasn't there.
We've covered
a lot of ground
leading up to this point.
Now Jesus is on the scene.
He's in Bethany
and he has showed up
to the tomb
and he's deeply moved,
verse 38.
He's hot.
He's angry.
He's indignant.
He's sad,
but he's angry.
What's he going to do?
He's made the claim,
I am the resurrection
and the life.
And now he's going
to demonstrate it.
In verse 38,
deeply moved again,
he comes to the tomb.
Jesus says,
take away the stone.
You got to hear the tone.
Where is his body?
Take away the stone.
It's not because the stone
is going to get in the way
of what he's about to do.
It's going to get in the way
of the guy coming out.
Martha,
the direct sister,
says,
Lord, by this time
there will be an odor
for he has been dead
for days.
His body
has already started to decay.
If you open that up
there's going to be a stink.
This is why
I think
back in verse 22
she's not asking
Jesus to ask God
to raise Lazarus
from the dead.
She has no idea
what's going on here.
Jesus says to her,
did I not tell you
that if you believed
you would see
the glory of God?
There's no record
of he saying that
to Martha.
There is record of that
in verse 4
to his disciples
this illness
does not lead to death.
It is for the glory
of God
so that the Son of God
may be glorified
through it.
There must have been
something said
that John doesn't record
that Jesus is saying
Martha,
I'm going to be glorified
through this.
And then in
verse 41,
42,
Jesus prays.
He thanks God
for what is about
to happen.
It's another indicator
that Jesus is doing
the works of his Father
and he's already
giving thanks to God
and asking God
to use what is about
to happen
in this display
of his glory
to cause belief,
to result in belief
in those present.
And then in verse 43,
it would be like this.
Think volume.
God,
thank you so much
for hearing me.
End of the prayer.
He steps back
and then you see
his veins in his neck
pop out.
Lazarus,
come out!
It was a voice.
There's this quip
among preachers.
It goes something
like this.
if Jesus had not
specified Lazarus,
then all of the dead
in all of the world
would have come out
at that moment.
But he did specify
Lazarus.
And by the way,
when he says,
Lazarus,
come out,
he's just not saying,
come out of the cave,
Lazarus.
He's saying,
come out of death,
Lazarus.
And he says,
44,
the man who is dead
comes out.
Jesus says,
unbind him,
let him go.
The burial cloths
would have been
restricted.
Anybody seen
any zombie movies
lately?
It's not like,
that's not how
Lazarus came out.
Lazarus probably
came out,
I don't know,
but he wasn't
decaying anymore.
He wasn't
half living.
He didn't have
a limb falling off.
At the very next
chapter,
this same Lazarus
is seated
at table
with Jesus
at a feast.
He's been
restored,
resurrected
and restored.
He's not been
given a resurrected
body,
but he's back
to health.
He's been
raised from the
dead,
he's no longer
sick.
And what's striking
is,
nowhere in this
chapter does
Lazarus say
anything.
Lazarus,
come out.
Now,
if you were
there,
Lazarus comes
out,
I would be
like,
what?
He was just
dead.
This never
happens.
And then,
it would dawn
on me,
the guy that
just told him
to come out
with just
words.
He didn't go
in with those
electric shocker
things.
He didn't go
in with some
kind of
soup.
With just
words,
Lazarus came
out.
The one who
created all
things with
just words
speaks to a
dead man,
and death
obeys.
Death gives
up.
He gives
up,
Lazarus.
Totally
God,
totally
man.
God
incarnate,
almighty,
he is the
Christ,
the son of
God.
He has
authority over
all things,
including
death.
It's a good
thing he
just limited
to Lazarus,
otherwise there
would have
been a,
like the
resurrection
of the
last day,
which is
going to
happen.
if Jesus
was able
to raise
Lazarus
from the
dead,
who he
loved,
he is
more than
able to
raise you,
Christian,
from the
dead,
who he
loves.
So if you
are a
believer,
you've already
been given
eternal life,
that eternal
life has begun,
you will die
one day,
but you
don't need
to fear
it,
because there's
coming a
day when
Jesus will
say,
Michael,
come out!
You think I
can resist
that?
You think you
can resist
that?
I'm talking
about.
In verses
45 through
53,
targeted,
Jesus is
targeted.
In verses
45 and 46,
there's this
mixed response.
Some of the
Jews there
who see this
happen,
instead of
believing,
they're like,
oh no,
we're going to
go to Jerusalem
and tattletale
on Jesus to
the Pharisees.
And so they
tattletale on
Jesus,
and then the
Pharisees,
they call this
emergency meeting
of the Sanhedrin,
the council.
We see that
in verse 47.
And they say,
what are we
going to do?
For this man
performs many
signs.
There's no
denying that
he just
raised a
dead man.
If we let
him go on
like this,
keep doing
these miracles,
everyone's
going to
believe.
That's
ironic.
And the
Romans will
come and
take away
both our
place and
our nation.
So now
you see
what they're
really concerned
about.
Their
temple,
their
people,
their
position.
This is
prophetic.
Because in
70 AD,
the Roman
general
Titus
comes to
Jerusalem.
He sacks
Jerusalem,
the temple
is destroyed,
and the
Israel people
get scattered.
It's prophetic
in one sense.
But there's
more prophecy.
the chief
priest of
the time,
of that
year,
his name
was
Caiaphas.
And he
comes on
the scene
in verse
49,
and he
says in
verse 49,
you know
nothing at
all.
It's kind
of like him
saying,
duh.
And then in
verse 50,
nor do you
understand that
it is better
for you that
one man should
die for the
people,
not the whole
nation should
perish.
Well,
that's
interesting.
That one
man should
die for the
people?
That there
should be a
substitute?
One die
for many?
What is he
saying?
Caiaphas,
who doesn't
believe that
Jesus is the
Christ,
the Son of
God,
he's not
thinking that
Jesus is the
Savior from
people from
their sins.
He's seeing
him more as
a scapegoat
so that they
can hold on
to their
power,
hold on to
their position,
hold on to
the status
quo.
But for
those of us
who believe,
we hear that
and we're
like,
he has no
idea what
he's saying.
This is good
news to my
ears.
And that's
exactly what
John helps
us to see in
verse 51.
John,
the gospel
writer,
steps in.
He did not
say this of
his own
accord,
but being
high priest
that year,
he prophesied
that Jesus
would die for
the nation.
And not for
the nation
only,
not just for
the Jews.
He would
die,
but also
to gather
into one
the children
of God
who are
scattered abroad.
All those
of God's
elect that
he had set
his love on
before the
foundation of
the world,
and he's
going to
call to
himself from
all around
the world,
every tribe,
tongue,
and nation.
He's going to
gather them
together into
one flock
with one
shepherd.
Jesus is
our
substitute.
He brings
about a
new nation,
a new
kingdom,
the church.
Instead of
believing,
the Sanhedrin
plots,
they make
plans to
kill Jesus.
verse 53,
and those
plans go
into motion.
But what
we're learning
is that all
throughout this,
the real plan
has been for
Jesus to
display the
wonder,
the glory of
the Son of
God in the
raising of
Lazarus from
the dead.
Not only does
he claim to
have authority
over death,
he demonstrates
it.
his glory,
our good.
So the
point of
this whole
story is to
demonstrate that
Jesus has
authority over
death.
It's both
claimed and
demonstrated.
And the
intended time
after is to
believe in
him.
So remember
what Jesus
asked Martha?
Do you
believe this?
That's my
question for
you.
Do you
believe this?
That Jesus
is the
Christ, the
Son of God
who has
authority over
the dead?
And not just
death in
general, he
has authority
over your
death in
particular.
You know,
Jesus also
raised Jairus'
daughter, Mark
5.
He also
raised the
son of a
widow in the
town of Nain,
Luke 7.
He has a
record of
raising people
from the
dead.
But those
people died
again.
Jesus
himself died,
was raised,
and is
alive today,
right now.
He's
defeated
death.
And do you
know what he
holds in his
hands?
Jingle,
jingle.
Revelation
1.18.
The keys to
death and
Hades.
It's a
picture of
him having
all authority
over death.
This is good
news.
Here's how we
apply it.
In light of
Jesus'
authority over
death,
demonstrated in
the raising of
Lazarus,
demonstrated his
own resurrection,
knowing that he
loves you,
Christian,
knowing that he's
in it for his
glory,
you need
not be
enslaved to
the fear of
death.
You need not
to be enslaved
to that.
You don't need
to fear that.
Your ears,
you're going to
hear someday,
Michael,
come out,
and there's
no resisting
it.
He will
raise you.
He will
give you a
new body
that matches
up with the
eternal life
already possessed.
Who likes
doing math?
Greater than,
less than,
or equal to?
Is Jesus
greater than,
less than,
or equal to
death?
Let's get
personal.
Is Jesus
greater than,
less than,
or equal to
your death?
Amen.
With words,
he will call
you back
to life.
Here's a second
application.
What do you
do when Jesus
doesn't show
up?
What do you
do when you're
asking for
something over
and over again
and it
doesn't happen?
My guess,
if you're like
me,
you may start
to question
Jesus.
Like Mary and
Martha did,
what we're
assured of here,
the face of
death in
particular,
Jesus loves
us,
and he's in it
for his glory.
glory.
So if he's not
doing what I'm
asking,
that's not a
failure on his
part.
I am able to
say,
based off this
passage then,
oh, he's got
the power,
and he loves
me,
and he's in it
for his glory.
So he must have
a bigger and
better glory in
store.
And I'm going
to wait on
that.
I'm going to
wait on that.
I'm going to
continue to pray
in faith,
but I'm going
to wait on
that.
It's for his
glory and our
good.
If you entered
this building
today,
fearing your
death,
my prayer is
that you're
going to leave
this building
today with a
greater sense of
confidence that
your life and
your death are
in the hands
of Jesus.
In other
words,
even death
cannot snatch
you from his
hands.
At the end
of this chapter,
the Sanhedrin,
such an
motion to
kill Jesus.
Jesus once
again, and we
see this in
54,
Jesus leaves.
He goes into
the wilderness.
It's not his
time.
And then in
verses 55
through 57,
we learn that
the Passover is
at hand.
It's going to
be Jesus'
last Passover.
And the
question all
these people who
are coming into
Jerusalem are
asking is this.
They know the
Sanhedrin wants
to arrest him,
and they're like,
is he going to
come?
And what is he
going to do if
he comes?
And we'll see
that answer next
week.
Will you pray
with me?
God in heaven,
we're so
grateful for
you, that
Jesus, you are
the resurrection
and the life.
You are our
resurrection.
You are our
life.
And you are
good.
God, would you
stir our hearts
to be freed
from the fear,
freed from being
slaves to the
fear of death?
death.
You've overcome
it.
And you've got a
track record of
doing it.
All glory to
your name.
Amen.