Well amen and good morning. It's good to see each of you today. Please take your copy of God's Word this morning and turn with me once again to John chapter 11,
where we'll conclude our consideration of the raising of Lazarus from the dead. Because we have spent the last two weeks working our way carefully through this chapter, and because some of you may have not been with us for every part of the study,
I want to begin by reminding us of the road that John has taken us in bringing us to this moment.
Because what happens at the tomb in verses 38 through 44 cannot really be understood apart from everything Jesus has already said and done throughout the chapter.
John 11 began with a problem that from the perspective of Mary and Martha seemed simple enough.
Their brother Lazarus was sick.
Jesus loved Lazarus and therefore the sisters sent word to Jesus with what was almost certainly the expectation that the one who had healed so many strangers would surely come quickly to help someone whom he personally loved.
Yet from the very beginning, Jesus interpreted Lazarus' illness differently than everyone else did.
Because whereas Mary and Martha saw an emergency that needed immediate intervention, Jesus saw an occasion through which the glory of God would be displayed.
He says in verse 4,
And that statement governs the entire chapter.
Before Lazarus dies, before Jesus ever arrives in Bethany, before Martha comes running to meet him, before Mary falls weeping at his feet, and before Jesus stands outside the tomb,
He has already told us what all of this is ultimately about.
It is about the glory of God being revealed through the Son of God.
And then as we saw when we began this chapter, John tells us something that initially seems almost impossible to reconcile with the love of Christ.
John explicitly says that Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, and then, rather than saying that because he loved them, he immediately left for Bethany,
John says that because he loved them, he remained where he was for two additional days.
In other words, the delay of Christ was not a contradiction of his love, it was an expression of his love.
Because Jesus intended to give this family something far greater than the immediate relief that they were asking him to provide.
They wanted Jesus to prevent Lazarus from dying.
Jesus intended to reveal himself as the one who possesses authority over death itself.
That distinction matters because it reminds us the love of God cannot always be measured by how quickly he delivers us from difficulty,
nor can the goodness of God be assessed simply by comparing his providence with the outcome we would have preferred.
There are times when the love of Christ leads him to give us precisely what we ask for.
And there are other times when that same love, operating according to wisdom infinitely greater than our own,
leads him to delay, to withhold, or even to take us through circumstances we would never have chosen for ourselves.
The sisters prayed in effect, Lord, come and heal Lazarus.
Jesus loved them too much merely to answer that prayer in the way they expected.
As the chapter continues, Jesus eventually tells his disciples plainly that Lazarus has died,
and then he adds something which, apart from everything else we know about him, might almost sound cruel.
For your sake, I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe.
Jesus is not glad that Lazarus suffered, nor is he delighted in the grief of these sisters.
Rather, he is glad because he knows that what he is about to reveal concerning himself will strengthen the faith of his disciples
in a way that merely preventing the sickness from ending in death never could.
And so the themes emerge clearly.
Glory, faith, resurrection life.
By the time Jesus arrives in Bethany, Lazarus has already been in the tomb for days.
And Martha, upon hearing that Jesus is approaching the village,
goes out to meet him and says what has surely passed through the hearts of countless believers in moments of suffering.
Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.
There is faith in that statement, but also confusion.
Martha believes Jesus possesses extraordinary power,
but she cannot yet understand why he did not exercise that power when she wanted him to exercise it.
And it is into that confusion that Jesus speaks perhaps the most important words in the entire chapter.
I am the resurrection and the life.
Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live.
Jesus does not merely tell Martha that he is capable of performing a resurrection.
He tells her that resurrection is inseparably bound up with his own identity.
I am the resurrection and the life.
He is not merely one who possesses life.
He is the life.
He is not simply someone through whom resurrection may occur.
He is the resurrection.
Then he turns this great theological declaration toward Martha personally and asks,
Do you believe this?
Martha responds with that remarkable confession.
Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.
Then Mary comes and when she arrives, she falls at Jesus' feet and repeats the same words Martha had spoken.
Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.
Jesus sees Mary weeping.
He sees the mourners around her weeping.
He sees everything that sin and death have done to this family, their hopeless grief.
And John tells us that he is deeply moved and greatly troubled.
Then comes that simple sentence, Jesus wept.
We saw last week that this is not merely the emotional response of a sympathetic friend,
although it is certainly that.
Rather, there is something deeper happening in Jesus.
Because the language John uses conveys not only sorrow, but indignation.
Jesus stands in the presence of death and is moved with holy anger.
Jesus grieves because death and unbelief is an enemy.
But he does not grieve as one who is powerless before that enemy.
He is about to confront it.
Christian hope does not eliminate grief.
It gives grief something to hold on to.
So with that, we come to John chapter 11, verses 38 through 44.
Let me pray for us before I read it.
Father God, we thank you this morning for your word.
We thank you that you have not left us to invent our own ideas about your son,
but have given us this inspired testimony
so that seeing who he is and understanding what he has done,
we might believe that Jesus is the Christ.
And that by believing, we might have life in his name.
Guard us, we pray, from the kind of familiarity
that allows us to read of a dead man walking out of a tomb
without being astonished by the glory of Christ.
Give us eyes to see him, ears to hear his word,
faith to trust him, and hearts that delight in his glory.
And Father, if there are those among us who remain spiritually dead in their sins,
would you, through the gospel this morning,
cause them to hear the voice of your son and live?
We ask this in Jesus' name and for the glory of that name.
Amen.
John 11, I'll begin reading in verse 38.
Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb.
It was a cave and a stone lay against it.
Jesus said, take away the stone.
Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him,
Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead for days.
Jesus said to her,
did I not tell you that if you believe you would see the glory of God?
So they took away the stone.
And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said,
Father, I thank you that you have heard me.
I knew that you always hear me,
but I said this on account of the people standing around,
that they may believe that you sent me.
When he had said these things,
he cried out with a loud voice,
Lazarus, come out.
The man who had died came out,
his hands and feet bound with linen strips,
and his face wrapped with a cloth.
Jesus said to them,
unbind him and let him go.
If you'll allow,
I'd like to draw your attention to our text
in four alliterated points.
You know, I've heard the argument made at times
that alliteration is meant to help us remember the points of a sermon,
but I'm fully aware that too much is said in these sermons
for you to really remember the points.
I'm hoping that you might take notes
or go back and listen to the recording later.
So I want you to know that I alliterate just for fun.
I spend a lot of time staring at words on a page,
and so I just enjoy doing it.
So there we are.
The Baptist joke often seems appropriate.
I don't do it for that reason.
I do it because it's fun.
So, number one,
Jesus confronts death.
We see these in these first two verses,
and I've mentioned it already.
John's description is almost startling in its simplicity.
There's no attempt to dramatize the scene artificially
because the facts themselves possess more than enough weight.
There's a cave.
There's a stone covering its entrance.
There's a dead man inside,
and standing outside is Jesus Christ,
the one who has just declared himself
to be the resurrection and the life.
John tells us that Jesus is deeply moved again
using the same strong language we encountered earlier in the chapter,
which means that as Jesus approaches the tomb,
he is not merely experiencing the sadness of a friend who has lost someone he loves.
He is confronting with holy indignation the dreadful reality of death and unbelief itself.
The Bible never treats death and unbelief as though it belonged to the original goodness of God's creation.
When God created the world,
he looked upon all that he had made and declared it very good.
But death,
doubt,
entered through
sin.
So what now seems
universal and unavoidable
is nevertheless an intruder
into the world
that God made.
Paul writing in 1 Corinthians chapter 15
does not call death our friend.
He calls it the last enemy.
That distinction is important
because Christians
sometimes speak about death so casually
that we unintentionally say more
than Scripture itself says.
It is true that
for the believer,
death has lost its condemning power.
It is true that
to be absent from the body
is to be present with the Lord.
It is true that
death cannot separate us
from the love of God
in Christ Jesus.
But none of that means
death itself
has somehow
become good.
We were created for
life with God
and therefore
when the eternal Son of God
through whom all things were created
comes face to face
with the devastation
death has brought
into His creation.
He is deeply moved.
And He says in verse 39,
take away the stone.
Notice the authority
with which Jesus speaks.
He doesn't ask
whether everyone is comfortable
with the opening of the grave
nor does He offer
a lengthy explanation
of what He intends to do.
He simply commands
that the stone be removed.
And Martha immediately
raises what
from every ordinary
human perspective
is a perfectly reasonable
objection.
Lord,
by this time
there will be an odor
for He has been
dead for
days.
Fun fact,
the King James
renders this statement
by Martha.
Lord,
by this time
He stinketh.
death.
It's remarkably
direct.
But it communicates
exactly what Martha
understands about
the situation.
Jesus has told them
to open a grave
containing a body
that has been dead
for days.
Martha is not denying
Jesus' power
in some abstract sense.
She has already confessed
that He is the Christ,
the Son of God.
What she is struggling with
is the collision
between what she believes
about Jesus
and what she knows
about the body
lying behind that stone.
Lazarus is dead.
Not recently.
Not apparently.
Not unconscious.
Not hovering
somewhere near death.
Lazarus
is dead
and her faith
is faltering.
John is taking
great care
to remove
every possible
natural explanation
for what is about
to happen.
Because Lazarus
has been in the tomb
long enough
that decomposition
has begun.
And Martha knows it
well.
Lord,
he stinketh.
Now,
a tomb allows us
to place
a boundary
around death.
We know what is inside
but the stone
prevents the side of it,
sterilizes
its reality.
There's something
merciful about burial
for that very reason
because we commit
the bodies
of those
who we love
to the ground
rather than watching
the process of decay
unfold
before us.
But Jesus orders
the boundary removed.
He is about to
confront death
in all its
ugliness.
And this is where
we need to remember
that Christianity
is not fundamentally
a program
designed to help
basically healthy people
become somewhat
better versions
of themselves.
If our problem
were merely
ignorance,
Jesus would have
come
as a teacher.
If our problem
were merely
bad habits,
Jesus would have
come as a
moral instructor.
If our problem
were merely
political disorder,
Jesus could have
come as a statesman.
If our problem
were merely
emotional instability,
Jesus could have
come
as a counselor.
And it comes
as many of those
things.
But our problem
fundamentally
goes far deeper
than any of
those things
because we are
sinners
standing under
the sentence
of death.
Alienated from
the God
who made us
and incapable
of resurrecting
and rescuing
ourselves.
Jesus did not
come merely
to improve
our lives.
He came
to give
life
to the dead.
And so,
although His
Lordship certainly
transforms marriages
and families,
affects the way
we work,
teaches us how
to forgive,
changes how
we handle money,
and reshapes
every dimension
of human life,
we must never
reduce Christianity
to just
those
things.
The gospel
is not fundamentally
about becoming
a nicer person.
the gospel
is about
reconciliation
with God
through the
death and
resurrection
of Jesus
Christ.
It is about
resurrection.
I have no doubt
that Paul has
this miracle
in mind
as he writes
in Ephesians
chapter 2.
And you were
dead
in the trespasses
and sins
in which you
once walked,
following the
course of this
world,
following the
prince of the
power of the
air,
the spirit
that is now
in work
and the
sons of
disobedience,
among whom
we all once
lived in the
passions of
our flesh,
carrying out
the desires
of the flesh
and the mind,
and were by
nature children
of wrath
like the
rest of
mankind.
But God,
being rich
in mercy,
because of the
great love
with which he
loved us,
even when we
were dead
in our
trespasses,
made us
alive together
with Christ.
By grace
you have been
saved,
and raised us
up with him
and seated us
with him in
the heavenly
places in
Christ Jesus,
so that in
the coming
ages he
might show
the immeasurable
riches of his
grace and
kindness toward
us in
Christ Jesus.
Jesus we
see first
confront
death.
Second,
Jesus calls
us to see
his glory.
Verse 40,
Jesus responds
to Martha,
did I not
tell you that
if you
believed you
would see
the glory
of God?
Now the
great theme
has governed
this entire
chapter returns.
Jesus began
by saying that
Lazarus'
sickness was
for the glory
of God so
that the
Son of God
might be
glorified through
it, and
now standing
outside the
tomb with
Martha
understandably
concerned about
what will
happen when
the stone
is removed,
Jesus calls
her back to
what he
has already
said.
Did I
not tell
you?
That question
is more
important than
we might
initially realize,
because Jesus
does not answer
Martha primarily
by giving her
new information,
he answers her
by reminding
her of the
word she
has already
received.
And very
often, that
is precisely
what struggling
faith needs.
There are
seasons in the
Christian life
when what we
most desperately
require is not
some new
revelation from
God, but a
renewed grasp
of what God
has already
revealed.
We are slow
learners and
quick to
forget,
particularly
when suffering
narrows our
vision.
We know
that God
is sovereign,
but the
circumstances
begin to
unravel and
we find
ourselves
behaving as
though he
has lost
control.
We know
that Christ
loves his
people, but
then he
delays in
answering a
prayer and
we begin to
interpret
silence as
indifference.
We know
that the
promises of
God are
certain,
but then
death,
sickness,
disappointment,
fear,
occupies the
whole field
of vision and
suddenly the
things we
confessed yesterday
seemed much
more difficult
to believe
today.
At that
point, the
written word
comes to us
as Jesus
comes to
Martha and
asks,
did I not
tell you?
Did I not
tell you that
I am the
resurrection and
the life?
Did I not
tell you that
whoever believes
in me,
though he
die,
yet shall
he live?
Did I not
tell you that
no one can
snatch my
sheep from
my hand?
Did I not
tell you that
all things
work together
for good for
those who
love God
and are
called according
to his
purpose?
Did I not
tell you that
nothing in all
creation can
separate you from
the love of
God in
Christ
Jesus?
faith does
not require
us to
know
everything
God
is doing.
Faith
requires us
to trust
what God
has said.
And Jesus
tells Martha
that through
believing she
will see
the glory
of God.
And Jesus
tells Martha
that if she
will grasp
hold of this
reality,
she will
be enthralled.
Now we need
to be careful
with these
words because
this verse
has sometimes
been interpreted
as though
Martha's faith
itself were
the force
that would
make the
miracle possible.
As though
Jesus was
saying that
if she
could summon
enough
confidence,
her faith
would unlock
divine power.
That cannot
possibly be
the point.
The power
of this
passage does
not belong
to Martha's
faith.
The power
belongs to
Jesus Christ.
Lazarus
will not
walk out
of the
tomb
because
Martha
has
finally
achieved
the
proper
psychological
condition.
He will
walk out
of the
tomb
because
the
Son of
God
possesses
authority
to give
life
to the
dead.
Faith
does not
create
the glory
of Christ.
Faith
beholds
the glory
that already
belongs
to Christ.
That is
an enormously
important
distinction,
particularly
in an age
when faith
is so often
treated as
though it
were a
force
within us
by which
we manipulate
outcomes.
Biblical
faith is
not confidence
in
confidence.
It is not
believing
strongly
enough that
something
desirable
will happen.
Biblical
faith
has an
object.
It
rests upon
the character,
promises,
and person
of God
supremely
revealed
in Jesus
Christ.
And that
brings us
to the
question,
what exactly
is the
glory Martha
is about
to see?
Certainly
she is going
to witness
something
spectacular
because her
brother is
about to
walk out
of his
tomb.
But in
John's
gospel,
the glory
of God
is never
merely
spectacle.
John told
us at the
very beginning
of the
gospel that
the eternal
word became
flesh and
dwelt among
us, and
that in
him the
disciples
beheld
the glory
of the
only Son
from the
Father.
In other
words, the
glory of God
is being
revealed in
the person
of Jesus
Christ.
If you
want to
know what
God is
like,
look at
the Son.
This
morning as
we consider
Christ standing
outside the
tomb, behold
your God.
This
morning as
we look
and read
testimony of
the resurrection
of Lazarus,
behold your
God.
Faith
beholds the
glory of
Christ.
So when
Jesus tells
Martha that
she will see
the glory of
God, he
is not merely
promising her
an extraordinary
moment.
He is
inviting her
to see
more clearly
who he
is.
And
Christian
faith still
does exactly
that.
Faith looks
through the
providence.
It cannot
explain to
the Christ
whose
character
it knows.
And
consider how
remarkable
the revelation
is here.
Jesus
firstly
confronts
death.
Secondly
calls us
to see
his glory.
Thirdly
Jesus
communes
with the
Father.
Verses
41
and 42
so they
took away
the stone
and Jesus
lifted up
his eyes
and said
Father I
thank you
that you
have heard
me.
I knew
that you
always hear
me but I
said this
on account
of the
people
standing
around
that they
may believe
that you
sent me.
For those
keeping score
this is
I argue
the chiastic
center
of the
text.
Although we
have not
arrived at
the middle
of the
sermon.
verse 41
begins
so they
took away
the stone.
There's a
quiet beauty
in the
simplicity
of that
obedience.
Jesus has
spoken
Martha has
expressed her
concern
Jesus is a
reminder her
of his
promise
and now
the stone
is removed.
Then John
tells us
and Jesus
lifted up
his eyes
and said
father I
thank you
that you
have heard
me.
Before
Jesus speaks
to Lazarus
he speaks
to his
father and
for a
moment
John allows
us to
overhear
something of
the communion
that exists
eternally
between the
father and
the son.
This
relationship
has been
one of the
dominant themes
of John's
gospel from
the beginning.
The son is
from the
father.
The son is
sent by the
father.
The son
speaks the
words of
the father.
The son
performs the
works of
the father.
The father
loves the
son.
The son
perfectly
delights in
the will
of the
father.
There is
no competition
within the
Godhead.
No disagreement
of purpose.
No reluctant
father whom
the compassionate
son must
somehow persuade
to be
merciful.
Father and
son act in
perfect
unity.
me.
And so
Jesus lifts
his eyes
and says
father I
thank you
that you
have heard
me.
Notice the
tense.
Jesus does
not say
father I
hope you
will hear
me nor
does he
say father
please decide
now whether
you will
grant my
request.
He thanks
the father
that he
has heard
him.
Whatever
communion has
already passed
between father
and son
concerning
Lazarus is
not recorded
for us.
But Jesus
thanksgiving
makes clear
that the
miracle about
to occur
is the
outworking
of their
perfect
agreement.
Then he
says in
verse 42
I knew
that you
always
hear me.
There has
never been
nor could
there ever
be a
defect in
the communion
between the
father and
the son.
Every prayer
of Jesus
arises from
perfect
righteousness
perfect
wisdom
perfect
submission
and perfect
fellowship
with his
father.
And that
matters
because
Lazarus'
resurrection
is not
intended
merely to
demonstrate
that Jesus
is a
powerful
miracle
worker.
It reveals
his identity
who he
is.
Back in
John 5
which in a
broader
chiastic
structure
corresponds
with this
chapter
after Jesus
healed the
man at
the pool
of Bethesda
and the
religious
leaders
became
enraged
because he
was making
himself
equal with
God
Jesus
explained
that the
son does
what he
sees the
father
doing.
And among
the divine
works
Jesus
explicitly
claimed for
himself
was
the giving
of life.
He said
for as the
father raises
the dead
and gives
them life
so also
the son
gives life
to whom
he will.
Now
several
chapters
later
the truth
of that
claim
stands
before us
in visible
form.
The father
gives life
the son
gives life
the father
and son
are not
competing
agents
but act
together
in the
work of
God.
And
therefore
when Jesus
stands in
front of
Lazarus
grave
and prepares
to call
him out
we are
seeing
more than
a prophet
through whom
God
happens
to perform
an
extraordinary
miracle.
We are
seeing
the divine
son
exercising
the life
giving
authority
he shares
with the
father.
Jesus
then
explains
why
he has
prayed
aloud.
I said
this
on account
of the
people
standing
around.
In other
words
the prayer
is not
necessary
because
the father
needs
information
or
persuasion
Jesus
prays
audibly
for the
benefit
of the
crowd
and why
to what
end
to what
benefit
that they
may
believe
that you
sent
me.
For those
of you
who don't
know
I'm a
type 1
diabetic
my phone
is on
silent
but not
when my
blood
sugar is
dropping
so that's
what's
beeping
very loudly
I'm
okay
don't
worry
about
me
my
little
stumbles
over
words
have
been
because
I
think
my
blood
sugar
is
dropping
but
we're
going
to
make
it
through
I'm
going
to
make
it
to
a
glass
of
juice
my
lovely
wife
is
going
to
go
get
me
one
right
now
thank
you
Sam
I
don't
think
I
could
tell
her
no
at
this
point
so
she'll
bring
it
up
here
momentarily
this
is
another
great
theme
of
the
chapter
right
not
only
glory
but
belief
Jesus
said
the
disciples
would
believe
he
asked
Martha
whether
she
believed
now
he
prays
so
that
the
crowd
might
believe
and
eventually
John
will
tell
us
that's
why
he
wrote
the
gospel
itself
John
20
you've
heard
this
many
times
verse
30
and
31
Jesus
did
many
other
signs
in the
presence
of
the
disciples
which
are
not
written
in
this
book
but
these
are
written
so
that
you
may
believe
that
Jesus
is
the
Christ
the
Son
of
God
and
that
by
believing
you
may
have
life
in
his
name
the
signs
are
never
intended
to
terminate
upon
themselves
they're
not
the
point
John
does not
want us
merely to
walk away
saying
what an
astonishing
miracle
he
wants
us
to
ask
what
does
this
miracle
reveal
about
Jesus
and
the
answer
is that
Jesus
is the
Christ
the
Son
sent
by
the
Father
the
one
in
whom
life
is
found
Jesus
confronts
death
number
one
Jesus
calls
us
to
see
his
glory
number
two
Jesus
communes
with
the
Father
number
three
and
lastly
Jesus
commands
the
dead
to
live
we
see
this
in
the
last
two
verses
in
closing
when
he
said
these
things
he
cried
out
with
a
loud
voice
Lazarus
come
out
and
that
was
fun
we
will
forever
remember
that
stain
and
where
it
came
from
now
we
arrive
at
the
moment
toward
which
the
entire
chapter
has
been
moving
when
he
had
said
these
things
Lazarus
come
out
perhaps
the
most
astonishing
feature
of
the
miracle
is
the
complete
absence
of
pomp
there
is
no
ritual
there
is
no
incantation
there
is
no
elaborate
ceremony
jesus
does
not
plead
with
death
negotiate
with
death
or
engage
in
some
cosmic
contest
whose
outcome
remains
uncertain
until
the
final
moment
he
simply
speaks
and
the
dead
man
obeys
that
should
be
astonishing
to
us
we
are
not
dualists
thinking
that
somehow
the
battle
between
light
and
death
is
not
already
settled
jesus
simply
says
lazarus
come
out
i think
our
familiarity
with
the
story
sometimes
prevents
us
from
feeling
the
force
of
what
john
records
imagine
that you
have been
there
you have
watched
lazarus
become
sick
you have
heard
that he
died
perhaps
you
had
helped
wash
and
prepare
the
body
you
have
attended
the
burial
you
watched
as
his
body
was
carried
into
the
doom
and
the
stone
rolled
across
the
opening
four
days
have
now
passed
and
you
have
spent
those
days
sitting
with
the
sisters
bringing
food
speaking
words
of
comfort
and
doing
what
people
have
always
done
in
the
face
of
death
grieving
because
there's
nothing
else
that
you
can
do
then
Jesus
arrives
!
into
the
darkness
of
the
tomb
perhaps
already
recoiling
at
the
spell
that
Martha
had
warned
them
about
and
Jesus
cries
with a
loud
voice
Lazarus
come out
then
from
inside
the
tomb
there
is
movement
the
man
you
buried
walks
out
John
records
it
with
such
understatement
the
man
who
had
died
came
out
this
is
exactly
what
Jesus
said
earlier
in
John's
gospel
would
happen
in
John
5
he
declared
that
the
hour
is
coming
when
the
dead
will
hear
the
voice
of
the
Son
of
God
and
those
who
hear
will
live
what
happens
in
Bethany
is
therefore
not
merely
an
isolated
demonstration
of
miraculous
power
it
is
a
preview
of
the
life
giving
authority
that
belongs
to
the
Son
and
a
sign
pointing
forward
to
the
final
resurrection
there is
a connection
here
I think
with the
opening
chapter
of
John's
gospel
where
Jesus
identified
as
the
eternal
word
through
whom
all
things
were
made
in
Genesis
God
created
by
speaking
let
there
be
light
and
light
appears
God's
word
does
not
merely
describe
reality
God's
word
brings
reality
into
existence
and
now
the
eternal
word
through
whom
creation
was
made
stands
in
front
of
a
grave
created
by
the
consequences
of
sin
speaks
into
the
darkness
and
where
there
was
death
there
is
life
the
creator
exercising
his
authority
over
his
creation
and
at
least
three
great
truths
emerge
from
this
moment
first
Jesus
possesses
absolute
authority
over
physical
death
Lazarus
contributes
absolutely
nothing
to his
resurrection
which is
obvious
enough
once
we say
it
the
theological
significance
is
enormous
thank you
babe
if you
were
listening
to this
recording
I
spilled
I spilled
juice
all over
the
stage
and
now
my
wife
loves
me
enough
to
bring
me
another
cup
and
paper
towels
to
mop
up
my
mess
sorry
for
the
distraction
in
case
you
thought
I
was
a
handsome
robot
that's
an
old
ongoing
joke
right
Lazarus
has done
nothing
to make
this
possible
right
Lazarus
does not
hear the
command of
Jesus
evaluate
the
evidence
consider
whether
the
resurrection
would be
desirable
and then
cooperate
by summoning
enough
strength
to come
back
to life
he's
dead
Jesus
supplies
everything
necessary
Jesus
calls
Jesus
gives
life
now we
should
distinguish
carefully
between
Lazarus
resurrection
and the
resurrection
Jesus
himself
will
soon
experience
because
Lazarus
is
restored
to
ordinary
mortal
life
and will
therefore
die again
someday
a mortal
life
he has
received an
extraordinary
restoration
but he has
not yet
received the
final glorified
body
promised
to the
people of
God
his
resurrection
is a
sign
pointing
beyond
itself
towards
something
greater
there is
coming a
day
when Jesus
Christ
will speak
again
and every
grave
will yield
its dead
on that
day
those who
belong to
Christ
will not
merely return
to another
period of
mortal
existence
in which
death
waits for
them
again
the
perishable
will put
on the
imperishable
the
mortal
will put
on
immortality
the
bodies
of
God's
people
however
weak
diseased
broken
aged
or
decayed
they may
have
become
will be
raised
in
glory
what
hope
the
Christian
has
secondly
Lazarus'
resurrection
gives us
a vivid
picture of
the sovereign
grace of
God
in salvation
now we
should not
turn John
11 into
an allegory
because John
is recounting
an actual
historical
event in
which an
actual dead
man was
physically
raised from
an actual
tomb
nevertheless
the rest of
scripture uses
the language
of death to
describe our
spiritual condition
apart from
Christ and
therefore the
scene before
us provides a
powerful
illustration of
what divine
grace must
accomplish if
anyone is to
be saved
Paul I read
earlier says
in Ephesians 2
that we were
dead in
trespasses
and sins
that diagnosis
is considerably
more serious
than the way
human beings
naturally think
about themselves
we tend to
imagine that
our fundamental
problem is
lack of
information
lack of
discipline
bad examples
unhealthy
environments
or poor
choices
and while all
of those
things may
play some
role in
human
behavior
scripture reaches
beneath them
to a much
deeper
reality
apart from
Christ
we are
spiritually
dead
and dead
people do
not need
advice
they need
life
that is why
salvation must
be a work of
sovereign grace
from beginning
to end
the doctrine
of regeneration
is not some
cold theological
abstraction best
left to seminary
classrooms
it is tremendously
hopeful
it means the
salvation of
those you love
does not
finally depend
upon your
ability to
persuade them
you should
speak
clearly
you should
answer
objections
thoughtfully
you should
live
faithfully
you should
pray
persistently
but in the
end
salvation
belongs
to God
look at
Lazarus's
tomb
the deadness
of Lazarus
did not
exceed the
power of
Christ
and the
spiritual
deadness
of the
sinner
you love
does not
exceed
his power
either
we cannot
raise the
dead
but Christ
can
so preach
the gospel
pray
love
patiently
speak
truth
and do not
confuse
the apparent
hardness
of the
sinner
with
weakness
in the
Savior
third
Lazarus's
resurrection
points us
forward to
the resurrection
of Jesus
look carefully
again
at verse
44
the man
who died
came out
his hands
and feet
bound with
linen strips
and his face
wrapped
with a
cloth
Lazarus
comes out
of the
tomb
still
dressed
for burial
his body
is alive
but the
signs of
death
remain
wrapped
around
him
and so
Jesus
commands
unbind
him
and let
him
go
hold that
image
in your
mind
because
John is
going to
take us
eventually
to another
tomb
there will
be another
stone
there will
be more
linen
cloths
there will
be another
face
cloth
but when
Peter and
John
enter Jesus
tomb
on resurrection
morning
they will
not find
Jesus
stumbling
toward the
entrance
still
wrapped
in burial
garments
needing
someone
else
to untie
him
they will
find
the
linen
cloths
lying
there
and the
face
cloth
folded
separately
the
distinction
is
theologically
significant
Lazarus
has been
restored
to mortal
life
Jesus
rises
as the
victorious
beginning
of the
new
creation
Lazarus
will die
again
Jesus
rises
never
to die
again
Lazarus
resurrection
is a
sign
Jesus
resurrection
is
the
victory
so
Jesus
confronts
death
calls
us
to see
his
glory
communes
with
the
father
commands
the
dead
to
live
had
you
stopped
the
story
at
almost
any
point
before
verse
43
and
attempted
to
evaluate
the
faithfulness
of
Christ
merely
by the
visible
circumstances
you
might
have
concluded
that
something
had
gone
terribly
wrong
but
nothing
went
wrong
Jesus
knew
precisely
what
he
was
doing
the
delay
had
a
purpose
the
journey
had
a
purpose
the
tears
had
a
purpose
the
tomb
itself
had
a
purpose
and
through
all
of
it
Christ
was
moving
toward
the
revelation
of
his
glory
some
of
you
may
presently
be
living
somewhere
in the
middle
of a
story
whose
conclusion
you
cannot
see
you
know
that
Christ
loves
you
but
you
cannot
reconcile
that
love
with
what
he
has
allowed
you
have
prayed
and
the
answer
has
been
delayed
you
believe
but
you
are
grieving
you
trust
him
you
cannot
imagine
how
the
circumstances
presently
in
front
of
you
could
possibly
serve
any
good
purpose
I
cannot
promise
you
that
every
grave
you
stand
beside
will
open
in
this
life
John 11
does not
give us
space
for that
kind
of
promise
Lazarus
resurrection
is a
sign
not a
guarantee
that
every
tragedy
will be
reversed
according
to
our
preferred
timetable
but
the
sign
points
to
something
far
greater
and
far
more
certain
resurrection
is
coming
if you
belong to
Jesus
Christ
there is
no sorrow
in your
life
which can
overturn
his purposes
for you
no loss
which can
separate you
from his
love
no enemy
capable
of surviving
his
kingdom
and no
grave
capable
of holding
you
when he
commands
you
to
rise
there is
coming a
day when
the voice
heard
outside
Lazarus
tomb
will
sound
again
only on
that day
there will
be no
temporary
restoration
to a
mortal
life
that
eventually
ends
in
another
funeral
there will
be
resurrection
unto
everlasting
life
Jesus
is
the
resurrection
and
the
life
believe
him
trust
him
wait
for him
hold
up
and
hold
on
and
expect
the
glory
of our
God
let's
pray
together