Jane McClure Funeral: John 11:1-44

Introduction

Good afternoon, my name is Andrew McClure, 3rd and favorite grandchild of my grandmother Jane McClure.

But on behalf of all my family I want to thank you for being here and showing your love and support for my grandmother, and our family in this difficult time.

Let’s go to the Lord together in Prayer.

If you have a Bible, I’m going to read a fairly long but well known passage from the Gospel of John in John 11:1-44

John 11:1–44 ESV

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, whose brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent to him, saying, “Lord, he whom 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.” Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was. Then after this he said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.” The disciples said to him, “Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone you, and are you going there again?” Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.” After saying these things, he said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.” The disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover.” Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he meant taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus has died, and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” So Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother. So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.” When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying in private, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.” And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met him. 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. 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.” 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. And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” Jesus wept. So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?” 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 four days.” Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed 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.”

This week as I prayed and prepared to stand before you today, I thought, “What would Jesus say at a funeral?”

As a minister, I’m aware that nobody needs a word from me. Nobody needs my opinions, or perspectives, especially on something as painful and challenging as death.

What we all need is to hear from Jesus, the Son of God himself, and that thought led me to the only funeral in Scripture that Jesus preached.

And there are 3 quick observations I’d like to draw your attention to in this text.

First, I’d like to call your attention to the Setting

Lazarus had died.

Apparently he had been suffering from a very serious illness, as his illness is mentioned in vs 1, vs 2, vs 3, and 5.

And it was a grave illness, an illness that Jesus knew would result in death, even though a temporary one.

Lazarus was sick and Lazarus had died of his sickness.

Before Christmas, from most angles, mawmaw looked and seemed relatively healthy. She had mentioned some back pain, and her potassium levels were low. But being 83 years old, she carried herself with health and strength, the strength we all grew to know in her.

But when she was diagnosed with Pancreatic Cancer, we were all a bit stunned.

All cancer is horrifying, but Pancreatc is known to be aggressive, and cause significnat pain.

As soon as she was diagnosed, we all knew, mawmaw wasn’t heatlhy. She was ill, in fact, she was very ill.

3-6 months quickly became 3 or less.

And although nobody, but God, knew the time exactly, we all knew that this illness, much like Lazarus’ would result in death.

And death is so difficult.

We avoid talking about it. We divert attention away from it. And we feel so much pain and fear in the face of it.

It’s unpleasant to think about and encounter death.

As Martha stated in vs. 39… it’s been 4 days. The decay has begun.

It’s over. It’s final. The tomb is sealed.

So we have the setting, Lazarus’ illness had led to Lazarus’ death.

But then, as I survey this text what stands out to me are the variou sentiments expressed in response to this setting.

What i mean is that, all the people in this story were feeling, and feeling deeply.

Let me quickly point some of them out to you.

The Sentiments

First there’s the disciples.

When Jesus first said he’d return to Judea, the Discples expressed deep concern!

In John chapter 10, Jesus had just been threatened with a stoning. But he escaped from there hands.

Well here now in John 11, he wants to return back to that scene, and the disciples are concerned that Lazarus’ death will actually lead to Christ’s death.

Forgetting as the Psalmist says, “Our times are in his hands.”

And his life would be taken, only when it was time for him to lay it down.

They were concerned.

But they were also concerned for themselves!

vs. 16, Thomas says, well I guess we go to die with him too.

The disciples were concerned.

But they were also confused.

Jesus told them that Lazarus hadn’t died, just fallen asleep. And they thought he meant a power nap. They were confused at what was going on!

Then you have the Jews in Mass

As part of this family’s community they were there to console the remaining family in Mary and Martha.

They were weeping, as the family wept.

And as Mary got up to go meet Jesus, they didn’t want her to be alone and followered her out.

seeking to minister to them by being present, in such a tough time.

Just as many of you have done, and will continue to do over the coming days.

There is a true consolation that others can provide, but however kind and generous the sentiment is… if you’ve ever lost a loved one, isn’t it true that it’s just never enough.

The loss of death, leaves a hole that others in their consolation can ease, but never fill.

The Jews were consoling.

But then we have the Sisters

Martha was the first to approach Jesus, and what was the sentiment she expressed?

It was blame. “IF YOU HAD BEEN HERE!” Martha knew Jesus to be healer, and consequenlty she was angry! Angry that he had delayed his arrival. Angry that he didn’t heal as he had so many others. And that anger, led her to blame Christ for the death of her dear brother.

Mary felt the same.

But this time when mary got to Christ, she feel on her knees.

She was broken. The grief was unbearable, the pain persitent. She was weeping, and through her choked back tears she cries out, “IF YOU HAD BEEN HERE!”

WHERE WERE YOU!?

Her anger led her to blame.

But there was one sentiment that all parties shared in common:

Doubt.

The Disciples doubted Jesus’ plans.

The Jews doubted Jesus’ divinity. vs. 37, “could not he who opened eyes of th eblind, heal this man?”

And the sisters, doubted… They doubted Jesus’ love, care and goodness. For if he really loved Lazarus, really cared for him, and was really good! Wouldn’t he have come sooner!?

Wouldn’t he have healed!?

In times of great grief, we too are tempted to feel similar sentiments.

Confusion. Why God? Why such pain? Why such loss? Why such suffering?

Blame. Anger at God for allowing such pain, such loss, and such suffering.

And Doubt. We allow the pain we feel to produce doubt in the goodness and character of our God.

Family and Friends,

my prayer and my encouragement is to avoid such sentiments, and the only way to do that is by seeing the Sentiment of another..

JESUS Christ.

Jesus

Jesus felt too.

Inspite of their doubt, Jesus loved Lazarus

Inspite of their blame, Jesus grieved Lazarus. he wept.

And it may be hard to see, but Jesus also felt great anger over this death.

John 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.”

The gree word there for deeply moved actually means an “indignant groaning.”

He was angry.

And in verse John 11:38, as he came to the tomb he was angry again.

So what made Jesus so angry?

Well it wasn’t their lack of faith.

It wasn’t their blaming.

It wasn’t their confusion.

It was death.

Jesus’ anger was directed at the unpleasantness and finality of death.

Death is the consequence of sin.

For everyone who has sinned, the result of that sin is death. Death spiritually, as we are seperated from God.

Death physically, as we can no longer possess immortality with God.

Death eternally, as we can no longer access the presence of God.

Jesus hated death. Because death was, and is a constant reminder of sin. A constant reminder that things are not as they should.

Well, that day with Lazarus, and ultimately a few months later when Jesus himself walked out of a tomb, he defeated death once and for all, so that whoever believes in him, though he die, yet he shall live.

Jesus conquered death, by paying the penalty for our sin. He died for the death we deserved.

And yet, he is the resurrection and the life, and when we walked out of the grave, he offers life we do not deserve.

And that life is available, for everyone who believes in Him.

Conclusion

Friends and Family, mawmaw believed.

And just as Lazarus walked out of that tomb healed, whole, and healthy. When mawmaw breathed her last at 2:10am Monday morning, she walked out of death healed, whole, and healthy into the presence of the Lord Jesus.

Jesus accomplisehd it. He is the Ressurrection and the Life, but Mawmaw believed it.

Death is hard, but I can tell you from my conversations with her over the last month that the last thing she wanted for any of you was for her death to produce in you confusion, blame and doubt.

Instead her greatest prayer was that through her death, you may all believe.

Believe that her death, like Lazarus’ isn’t final.

To believe in Jesus, the resurrection and the Life

So I’m going to close by just posing to you the question, Christ posed to Martha?

Do you believe this? Do you believe?

Let me pray.