Hope when you need it - John 11.17-27 (Scrapped Draft)

Prayer

Let us pray:

Dear Lord,

We hear who you are in your word.

English Standard Version Chapter 1

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. 5 For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too. 6 If we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; and if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which you experience when you patiently endure the same sufferings that we suffer. 7 Our hope for you is unshaken, for we know that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in our comfort.

Help us now Lord to have unshakeable hope. As our hearts break and search for meaning s to what is going on help us we pray.

Amen.

Hope when you need it

Today is not one of those days where it is difficult to imagine a need for hope is it? As we sit here now and pray there are many of men and women from various nations searching for four individuals who have been lost in this tragic helicoper crash. There are at least four families hoping beyond all hope for any sort of promising news that their loved ones are ok. There are some now who have been up since Firday evening whose bodies are failing them with exhaustion but stay awake in the dim hope that all might be made right.

At a time like this we need hope. I need hope. It is times like this where I jsut lose sight of what is going on. More I get angry and sad and confused as to why thing are the way they are. I grieve that things are not how I think they should be. And if you feel the way I do tonight, Im sorry to say I have no magic way to make these feelings go away. But what we will do tonight is open up the Bible and have God to speak into our loss. I think what would be a productive use of our time is to see three snapshots of Jesus and be reminded why it is we can have hope and where to find it. We begin in John 11.17-37

English Standard Version Chapter 11

17 Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. 18 Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off, 19 and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother. 20 So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. 21 Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22 But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” 23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” 24 Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” 25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” 27 She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.”

Jesus Weeps

28 When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying in private, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.” 29 And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to him. 30 Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met him. 31 When the Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary rise quickly and go out, they followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there. 32 Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” 33 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. 34 And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” 35 Jesus wept. 36 So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” 37 But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?”

Lazarus’s death

Jesus had been called to see his friend Lazarus. Lazarus was sick, Jesus could heal, so they sent for Jesus. But by the time Jesus got to the site Lazarus had been dead for four days. There was no hope for him.

But Jesus does come and some would be righty questioning - whats the point. He even missed the funeral. Why would Jesus bother coming at all. And then Jesus makes this declearation at verse 25. They say to him that they know that if Jeuss had come sooner that Lazarus might not have died. They say that they trust that there is a resurrection and then Jesus states plainly:

English Standard Version Chapter 11

I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this

Jesus says that I am the resurrection. The way to eternal life is through him and he would later show them just that when after being dead for three days he rose from the grave. Jesus provides hope through his promise. A promise he proves he is good for by rising from the grave after three days. And this is hope to hold onto. This is hope that is good and true and for the Christian is essential. For those who trust in God eternal life is granted and assurec becuase of Jesus’ victory for you.

But I point us to this passage this evening for a seond reason. You see as good as that promise is, I’ve got to admit, I’m still hurting at the moment. I’m still grieving loss and needing hope.

And friends, we come to this passage to be reminded that we have a friend in Jesus who understands this hurt. Who is here with us walking besude us in this pain. Who is gently holding our hand to remind us of the hope we need to cling onto in him. This Jesus is not someone who is unable to sympathise with us but feels the pain and loss as acutly as we do. Look down at the second half of the passage:

English Standard Version Chapter 11

33 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. 34 And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” 35 Jesus wept.

This is a Jesus who wept at the grave of a friend. Jesus, strong and able to conquer death itself understands the brokenness of this world and is here right with us now. He is the God of comfort who knows our heart and our deepest pain. Jesus ebing deeply moved is perhaps more accuratly understood as he was ‘outraged in the spirit and troubled’