Resurrection and Life

When I was a teenager, I became fascinated, appalled, and grieved by the literature of the Holocaust … One scene that haunts me is a picture from Auschwitz. Above the entryway to the concentration camp were the words, Arbeit macht frei. The same thing stood above the camp at Dachau. It means, "work makes free"—work will liberate you and give you freedom.

It was a lie—a false hope. The Nazis made the people believe hard work would equal liberation, but the promised "liberation" was horrifying suffering and even death.

Arbeit macht frei. One reason that phrase haunts me is because it is the spiritual lie of this age. It is a satanic lie. It's a religious lie. It is a false hope—an impossible dream for many people in the world. They believe their good works will be great enough to outweigh their bad works, allowing them to stand before God in eternity and say, "You owe me the right to enter into your heaven."

It is the hope of every false religion—arbeit macht frei. But it's the love of God that liberates. It's the blood of Jesus Christ that liberates. He died in my place, and I am free.

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“I am.” Seven times in the gospel of John we have Jesus using this formula to tell us something about himself. Jesus is:

the bread of life

the light of the world

the gate, and

the good shepherd

This morning I want us to look at another of the “I am” statements of Jesus. This one is found in the eleventh chapter of John. So please turn with me to John 11.

In chapters 8, 9, and half of 10 Jesus is in Jerusalem celebrating the Feast of Tabernacles Three of the “I Am” statements are found in those two-and-a-half chapters which cover about a week. Then, between verses 21 and 22 three months pass. Verse 22 says:

Then came the Festival of Dedication at Jerusalem. It was winter. (John 10:22)

This festival is celebrated in December, though like Easter, its date is based on the lunar cycle and not on a specific date. The celebration remembers an event that took place just over a hundred and fifty years before the birth of Jesus. The story goes that as the Jews were rededicating the temple they realized they only had enough oil to light the menorah in the Holy Place for one day and it would take eight days to prepare more oil. Each day they expected the lights to go out, but each day they continued to burn. They saw it as a miracle from God and celebrate the event to this day. Today it’s known as Hanukkah.

Jesus is once again in Jerusalem celebrating this festival. This is important to us this morning only because at some point in the week some of the Jews pick up stones to stone him for blasphemy because they understood Jesus was claiming to be God. As a result of the threats on his life, Jesus withdraws about a two day journey to the Jordan River.

40Then Jesus went back across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing in the early days. There he stayed, 41and many people came to him. They said, “Though John never performed a sign, all that John said about this man was true.” 42And in that place many believed in Jesus. (John 10:40-42)

This is where Jesus is when we come to John 11. You will remember this story. Jesus has received word that Lazarus, the brother of Mary and Martha, is sick. That the sisters send word to Jesus about his sickness should tell of something of the seriousness of it. Why send a messenger to find and notify Jesus if it’s something Lazarus would quickly recover from? This is not your average runny nose or a simple fever. No, they know it’s serious and the only one they know that can help is Jesus. So they send a message, “Lazarus, the one you love, is sick.”

I think we can understand the desperateness of their situation. We have faced problems in our lives that we just couldn’t handle. We’ve had loved ones that we knew were not going to get better. Where do you go when everywhere you’ve been hasn’t helped? Mary and Martha go to Jesus. “Will you come and heal our brother?”

It’s interesting that they refer to the love Jesus has for Lazarus. Jesus loves everyone, but this tells us something of the special relationship Jesus had with this family. We know of the story of Jesus stopping at their home one day. As Jesus teaches Mary sits at the feet of Jesus while Martha runs around the house preparing a meal. Martha is upset that Mary isn’t helping and when she mentions it to Jesus he says that Mary has chosen what is better. We also know that very soon Mary will anoint Jesus with some expensive perfume. Jesus had a special relationship with this family.

So the reaction of Jesus is a little puzzling. He receives word that Lazarus is sick and instead of immediately going to help, he intentionally delays the trip making it sound like Lazarus will get better. It’s not until two days later that Jesus shows any kind of concern, and even then it’s a little vague. “We better go see Lazarus.” “Why,” the disciples ask. “You said he would get better. Plus, the Jews there are trying to kill us.” “Lazarus has fallen asleep and I need to go wake him up.” Understandably the disciples don’t understand. “If he’s fallen asleep that means he going to get better.” It’s only then that Jesus just comes out and plainly says, “Lazarus has died.”

I like Thomas’ reaction at this point. History has nicknamed him Doubting Thomas, but in this story we see his commitment to Jesus. Thomas says, “We might as well go and die with him.” Why would he say that? He said it because the last time they were in Jerusalem, and Bethany is less than five miles east of Jerusalem, the Jewish leaders tried to stone Jesus. Thomas fully expected to die for the sake of Jesus, but he is more than willing to go.

By the time they reach Bethany, the home of Lazarus and his sisters, Lazarus has been dead for four days. The custom then as it is in that region today, is to bury the dead on the day they die. So Jesus is not only too late to heal Lazarus, he’s also missed the funeral, though the wake is continuing. It was believed that the spirit stuck around for three days before departing. This is now the fourth. The spirit of Lazarus is gone and the body, as it will be pointed out, has started to decay. All hope that Jesus could do anything has vanished.

When Martha hears that Jesus has arrived she goes out meet him and confronts him.

“Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” (John 11:21)

I don’t think she’s blaming him, but she is stating the obvious. If Jesus had only come sooner he could have done something. Lazarus wouldn’t have died and they wouldn’t have to go through this suffering.

That’s the faith of many still today. It’s the belief that if God loves and is with us God will keep us from experiencing painful events. But that’s not what the Bible teaches. Think of the many Old Testament stories of people suffering and how God used that suffering to bring about good. For example, Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers, but when he had the opportunity to get revenge he didn’t because he knew that while they intended it for harm, God used it for good. We this same principle in the New Testament too. The stoning of Stephen seems senseless, but God was able to use it. At the end of that story we read there was a young man there guarding the cloaks of those doing the stoning by the name of Saul. That event shaped the man Paul became. In the Bible God teaches us that he uses pain and sorrow to teach us and he uses us to teach others. We should never confuse the dificulties we may face with God’s lack of love or presence.

Despite this comment about Jesus’ absence, Martha still express faith.

“But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.” (John 11:22)

What did she believe Jesus might ask? She had heard about how Jesus had raised son of a widow and the daughter of Jairus back to life. Did she believe Jesus might raise Lazarus from the dead too? It doesn’t appear so. Listen to some more of the conversation.

23Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” 24Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” (John 11:23-24)

While Martha believes in the resurrection of the dead at the day of judgment, she doesn’t believe she will see him before then. It is then that Jesus gives us the next “I am” statement.

25Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; 26and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26)

Let me read that one more time and allow it to sink in. Martha says she believes her brother will rise on the last day in the resurrection and Jesus replies:

25I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; 26and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this? (John 11:25-26)

Do you believe that? Do you believe that Jesus is the resurrection and the life? Do you believe that those who believe in Jesus will live even though they die and that those who live by believing will never die?

If you’re not familiar with it, there’s a very popular show on ABC titled “The Walking Dead.” You may be familiar with the phrase “dead man walking.” That refers to someone on death row waiting for his execution. They know they’re going to die it’s just a matter of when. That’s not what the show is about. “The Walking Dead” is about zombies.

I’m sure there are some who watch it. Unbelievably, this fall it will begin its eighth season. I know there many who never miss an episode. Personally, I’ve never been able to get interested in it. When it started I watched the first episode but I couldn’t watch the entire episode. I’ve not watched it since.

A zombie can best be described as the undead. A zombie isn’t alive, but is someone that’s died and is now walking around in a coma-like state as a result of some disease or radiation. Maybe that’s why I’ve never been interested in watching shows about zombies. This is not what Jesus is talking about. Who would want to come back to life like that?

As I’ve already mentioned, by this time Jesus had already raised two people back to life. The first time he literally stopped a funeral procession in order to raise a widow’s son back to life. The second time the girl has just died and was still lying on her bed. After kicking all the mourners out of the house Jesus goes to her bed and raises her back to life. And we know that this time Jesus will raise Lazarus back to life even after he’s been dead for four days and started to decompose. Martha mentions the fact that he’s already begun to stink – the body has already started to decay. In each of these cases the person raised back to life eventually died again and Jesus is talking about never dying. This is not what Jesus is talking about either. Jesus is talking about life beyond the grave. Jesus is talking about eternal life.

There are all kinds of beliefs as to what happens when you die. Nihilism teaches that when you die you just cease to exist. It’s all over and you know nothing. Buddhism teaches that you become one with the universe. You just dissolve into nothingness but you are aware of it. Hindus believe that after you die you are reincarnated. If you are good your next life will be better, but if you are bad in this life your next life will be worse. In each life you then have the ability to improve your next life. Muslims believe that martyrs will receive seventy wives in the afterlife. I assume they think that’s a good thing. Can you imagine trying to keep up with seventy birthdays? Jesus isn’t talking about any of these. When Jesus talks about those who die will live he has something much better in mind.

After battling with cancer, professional golfer Paul Azinger wrote:

I’ve made a lot of money since I’ve been on the tour, and I’ve won a lot of tournaments, but that happiness is always temporary. The only way you will ever have true contentment is in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. I’m not saying that nothing ever bothers me and I don’t have problems, but I feel like I’ve found the answer to the six-foot hole.

Azinger said he found the answer to death and the answer is Jesus because Jesus is the resurrection and the life. Jesus didn’t just rise from the dead to die again later, Jesus is the resurrection. Jesus didn’t just come back to life, he is life. Jesus is the giver of life. As John wrote:

1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was with God in the beginning. 3Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. (John 1:1-4)

Paul Azinger believes what as Christians we believe and celebrate today – that Jesus Christ died for our sins and rose from the dead. We believe that, but there are many in the world, and surprisingly even some who call themselves Christians, that don’t believe Jesus rose from the dead. They can’t believe that God has the power to bring someone back to life much less give eternal life.

There is a story of what happened to Lazarus when he grew old. The Roman emperor had grown to hate Christians because they refused to bow down and call him lord. When Lazarus’ stories reached him, he decided to make an example of him. He brought Lazarus before him in chains and demanded: “Renounce your faith in this Christ.” But Lazarus refused.

In anger the emperor shouted “If you don’t renounce your faith, I’ll have you put to death.” For a moment Lazarus said nothing, and then he began to laugh. The emperor became angrier and shouted even louder. “Don’t you realize I have the power of life and death? I have the power to put you to death!” But Lazarus only laughed longer and louder.

Then Lazarus looked the emperor and finally said: “You cannot hold me in fear, death is dead! I’ve been there. I’ve done that. You can’t scare me.”

That’s a great story, but it’s just that – a story. We have no idea what happened to Lazarus after he rose from the dead. We do know that the religious leaders put him number two on their most wanted list. They wanted to kill him along with Jesus.

What’s interesting about the story is that it’s from a play called Lazarus Laughed. The man, who wrote the play, Eugene O’Neill, was an atheist. He didn’t believe in Jesus, he didn’t believe in the resurrection of the dead, but he understood the power of this biblical story of Lazarus rising from the dead.

Think about it. Even in this atheist, there was an understanding of the power of Lazarus being raised from dead. Even though he rejected Jesus, he understood the central message of this story. Death had been defeated and Jesus offers the promise of life and the hope of resurrection. He just didn’t believe it. Do you? Do you believe that Jesus has power over life and death?

Maybe you’re here and you feel like your problems are too heavy to bear or share. You feel weighed down by the horrible things in life. You feel like your life stinks. But Jesus says that he is the resurrection and the life. Jesus doesn’t deny you have problems. But no matter what they are you turn them over to Jesus.

Some of you have had problems for a lot longer than a few days. Some of you have had problems for years. Some of you feel overwhelmed everyday by the problems you face. You’ve prayed for the Lord to take the problems away and he didn’t fix them. And so you settled into a faith like Martha that says one day, but not right now. But all the while Jesus is waiting for the right time to come and fix them as he waited with Lazarus. Jesus was waiting for the best time to give God the glory in it all. Jesus was waiting for your heart to be ready for the miracle he wanted to give you. But you stopped waiting for him. You moved on. You gave up on the idea that Jesus could or would fix your problem. You figured you’d be stuck with it forever.

And so you still have the problem today, but you’re not looking to get it fixed anymore. You’ve gotten used to it. You figure you’ll always have it, and so you stopped trying to get help. But maybe, just maybe, today is the 4th day for you. Today is the day that Jesus wants to come and set you free from your emotional hang-ups. Maybe today Jesus wants to give you the strength you need to forgive that person. Maybe today Jesus wants you to bring Him to your stinking problem, open it up, and let Him fix it. Maybe today he wants to give you life from death. Maybe today is the day for you to finally get up out of your tomb, get out of your grave clothes, and let Jesus work in you. Today could be the day that Jesus does his miracle working in your life. God still specializes in resurrections.

Today, will you open up the graves in your life and let Jesus work? Will you let him bring life from death? Will you get up out of your problems, walk into the light and keep living for Jesus?

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Resurrection and Life

Ephesians 1:9-10

Philippians 3:10

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https://www.sermoncentral.com/Sermons/Print?sermonId=44317

Friend after friend had stepped forward, hugged Martha and kissed her and said “Your brother will rise again”.

She had probably lost track of the number of times she heard it as she stood by the coffin and at the tomb of her brother Lazarus.

And now Jesus came along and said the same thing “Your brother will rise again” (Jn 11:23).

Choking back a sob, she says, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day” (Jn 11:24) but that would be a long way off - and didn’t give her much comfort right then.

Then Jesus makes an astounding statement – one of the seven famous “I am” statements recorded in John’s Gospel

“I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die”

What did Jesus mean by that?

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A Muslim in Africa became a Christian and some of his friends asked him why.

He answered: Well, it is like this: suppose you were going down a road and suddenly the road forked in two directions. And you didn’t know which way to go.

If you met two men at the fork – one dead and one alive – which one would you ask to show you the way?”

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The Resurrection is not just a historical fact, it is more. Because he is risen, we are able to have a relationship with him. Because he is risen, he is able to touch our lives.

Story: In forensic science, there is a rule known as the Lockyear principle that simply stated says that “every touch leaves an impression” Some of us here can vouch for the fact that when our lives are touched by the Risen Lord, it has left an impression on our lives

Story: When a friend of mine – who was in prison for armed robbery – rededicated his life to Jesus, it left an impression on his life. Even the guards in prison noticed a difference. So much so that he was allowed into the special Section 23 Wing as a Chapel Orderly – something extremely rare.

Being a Christian can be a bit scary too. One day, while in prison, God told him to confess to a large number of other crimes he had committed, some of which were quite serious. So he did as God had told him, even though he was potentially looking at quite a long additional sentence. Once he had finished giving the statement to the police, the policeman took the statement to his inspector to discuss what to do. However, to everyone’s surprise, the inspector decided that my friend was such a changed man that he was prepared to give him a break. He didn’t charge him with the additional crimes, they simply went on his record. So when my friend left prison a year later, he was a free man with no fear that the crimes he had committed would ever come back to haunt him. Now he is studying a B.A. in Theology at Bible College – despite being dyslexic and having no GCSE’s. Conventional wisdom would have said he was crazy to confess – but when he obeyed Jesus he found that God knows what he is doing.

There are many of us here this morning who can testify to the goodness of God in their lives.

When Jesus said to Martha “ I am the Resurrection and the Life” – it wasn’t just a “nice little theological conundrum”. Rather, Jesus was presenting her with a challenge. “Do you believe me, when I make this claim? Do you want the life that I am offering?

Can I ask the same question this morning. Do you believe that Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life? Do you want to have that abundant life that Jesus offers?

https://www.sermoncentral.com/Sermons/Print?sermonId=30745

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Habermas’ passion for the subject of the resurrection includes a personal experience. “ I do not know why my wife passed away in 1995 . . . Nothing worse could have happened to me in life,” he said. “I don’t know why I suffered in 1995, but I do know Somebody that knows the answer. Here’s what the resurrection says: There is an answer, even if I do not know what it is. The resurrection says it’s not over.”

Weeping may endure, but there should be comfort in knowing that this isn’t the end of it.

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“Jesus Christ. The Resurrection. Jesus Christ. The Life. Without Him you have no hope of either. But with him, you have the promise – from God, who cannot lie – of both.”

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Sir Alexander Mackenzie is a Canadian hero. An early fur trader and explorer, he accomplished a magnificent feat when he led an expedition across Canada from Fort Chippewyan on Lake Athabasca to the Pacific Ocean. His incredible journey was completed in 1793, 11 years before Lewis and Clark began their famous expedition to the west. Mackenzie’s earlier attempt in 1789, however, had been a major disappointment. His explorers had set out in an effort to find a water route to the Pacific. The valiant group followed a mighty river (now named the Mackenzie) with high hopes, paddling furiously amid great danger. Unfortunately, it didn’t empty into the Pacific, but into the Arctic Ocean. In his diary, Mackenzie called it the “River of Disappointment.”

You know, many of us find ourselves paddling up rivers of disappointments of our own. We struggle and strain. We try to do worthwhile things, but we fade away instead. We have all faced situations that looked hopeless, and sometimes we let them get the better of us. We have felt like Abraham Lincoln when he failed to get into the Illinois senate in 1858: “I feel like the boy who stubbed his toe: I am too big to cry and too badly hurt to laugh.” But we are not alone. We are not the first to walk through valleys of the shadow of death. Many have faced the big D of disappointment before. In today’s story out of John 11, we will see two ladies who felt hopeless and angry. And Jesus broke thru their darkness and shot great beams of light into their hearts. John 11:1-3. Mary and Martha’s brother was sick. But this was not news to Jesus. V4-6. Jesus did not go to help. Lazarus, whom Jesus loved, did not help him. This is an interesting picture of Jesus. Someone who doesn’t immediately pluck us out of our situations. Maybe you’re a little uncomfortable with that image. But there was a reason. God would get more focus and attention, more glory out of Lazarus dying.

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Because Jesus didn’t go immediately to help, the situation got worse. Maybe you have felt that way. Maybe you have felt how Martha felt when Jesus finally arrived on the scene. V17-21. Mary felt the same way in v32. Have you ever felt that way? “Lord, if you had been here, this tragedy would not have happened.” -“Lord, if you had fixed this like I asked, these bad things would not have happened.” – “Lord, if you had only done something…” And the blame goes to God for bad things in our lives.

Now what’s neat about this story is that Jesus doesn’t lash out at her. In fact, we can get a real glimpse of his love for struggling disciples, including Lazarus.

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Martha seemed to sense that Jesus could still help her – v22. Jesus gives her hope – v23. Martha didn’t quite pick up on all that Jesus was saying, but she knew enough theology to know that things would be better in the sweet by-and-by – v24. “Someday,” she said, “things will be better. Things will be better when we die. Heaven will be better.” And Jesus took that thought and said: v25. He said, “Actually, I am the source of hope. Things will be better someday, yes, but it’s because of me. I am what you need. I am your source of strength. I am who you need today.”

You know, in our times of struggles, we often forget these words. We know that heaven will be better someday, but we forget that Jesus is real in our lives even today. He wants to help us get through this life, not just hang by a thread, waiting for the rapture to pluck us out of here. He wants to be your source of strength and life and hope today, right where you are sitting now.

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Jews believed that the soul stayed near the body for 3 days, waiting to re-enter. As well, the Jews believed that the body did not begin to decay until the fourth day. So, by this time on Day#4, everyone had given up hope. Is that you today? Are you lacking in the hope department? Do you feel like you can’t go on somedays?

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You know, sometimes our problems really stink. They’ve been problems for too long. They’ve festered and grown and gone rancid. They suck the life out of us. Our problems seem too big for anybody to fix. But Jesus says, “Let me at them. Let me fix them. Believe that I can make them better. Have faith that I can bring life from death.”