Jesus is Life Part 2

John 11 part 2

Pictionary Game:

Disappointment can come at you fast.

When was a time in your life you felt disappointed?

I know growing up there were times I tried out and I didn’t make the team.

Now days, I’m constantly sad and disappointed by myself constantly.

When I see how my boys treat others and treat one another, I feel like a failure at times.

Because honestly as a parent, when you see your kids doing things that are opposite of what you teach them, it stinks.

It feels like an indictment on myself.

They are doing the wrong things because I haven’t taught them, I haven’t communicated clearly, I haven’t lead well as their dad.

And honestly, a lot of times, that’s true!

There’s always room to improve with my sons. They need me as their dad to lock in and teach them.

As a parent when I think of God too, I think about how often I must disappoint God.

And yet, at the same time, God is patient. He gets down on our level.

Philippians 2:5–8 “5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; 7 rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross!”

One of my favorite passages in all of Scripture.

The mindset we should have in disappointment is this…

As I disappoint others, remember to humble yourself, put yourself in their shoes, find common ground, and find grace.

When when others disappoint you, God meets us there.

He didn’t call us out of our sin to figure it out and find our way to God.

No, God came down to us and rescued us out of our sin. He calls us away from sin and into his tender arms.

This is why Jesus is life.

There is no call, no other source of life, than Jesus who came to us.

He is life.

Knowing that, open your Bibles back to John 11 this morning and we are going to read verses 17-37.

John 11:17–27 “17 On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. 18 Now Bethany was less than two miles from Jerusalem, 19 and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother. 20 When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed at home. 21 “Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22 But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.” 23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” 24 Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” 25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; 26 and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?” 27 “Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.””

John 11:28–37 “28 After she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary aside. “The Teacher is here,” she said, “and is asking for you.” 29 When Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him. 30 Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. 31 When the Jews who had been with Mary in the house, comforting her, noticed how quickly she got up and went out, they followed her, supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn there. 32 When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” 33 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. 34 “Where have you laid him?” he asked. “Come and see, Lord,” they replied. 35 Jesus wept. 36 Then 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 have kept this man from dying?”

Remember last week, Jesus waited 2 days before going to Lazarus.

So Jesus shows up after Lazarus has already been in the tomb 4 days!

There was a superstition in the middle east during this time among Jews and other cultures that if someone died, their spirit would hover around the Body for 2-3 days, but on the 3rd day, the Spirit would leave.

The idea then was that someone might come back to life 2 days after death, but on the 3rd day, they were truly dead.

Now there is no truth to this superstition, yet isn’t it interesting?

Lazarus has been dead 4 days, there is no doubt about his condition.

He gone.

Now as another small side note, Jesus could have died and risen from the grace the very next day and the truth of the Gospel would still be the same.

Jesus died, was buried, and rose again.

Yet, Jesus met that worldview of the day head on… He left no doubt.

And he Himself rose…

He humbled Himself by taking on the form of a man and by being obedient even to the point of the cross.

What a good God we have.

Back to the story though, as Jesus arrives in Bethany, Martha runs out to meet him.

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

What do you emotion do you hear in Martha’s voice here?

Disappointment

Jesus could heal the sick, He had done it many times.

But now that window has closed and death has won the battle.

However, it’s one thing to go from being healer to Life-giver.

Often times when I’m ministering to older folks in our church who have sicknesses or pain in their joints, they may get a Knee replacement, Hip replacement, etc…

I never hear them say, “I’m going to take whatever doctor I can get for this procedure and hope for the best...”

What do you think they say?

They say, “This pain stinks, but I’m going to wait for the best doctor I can get.”

They want the best. I don’t blame them.

Mary and Martha here seem to be saying this to Jesus.

We know you’re the best healer, we waited for you and you never came…

But Jesus has a greater message to teach here.

Jesus promises Lazarus will rise from the dead.

Martha thinks Jesus is speaking of a future time, but listen to Jesus’ words in vs. 25

John 11:25 “25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die;”

John 11:26 “26 and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?””

“DO you believe this?”

What if God uses disappointment in our lives to remind us of the direction in which we should aim our faith?

What if God uses disappointment to increase our faith in Him?

John 16:33 “33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.””

God desires us to follow Him in Faith.

Not a blind faith that is a leap into the dark.

But a trusting faith that is based on what God has done, is doing, and will do.

Faith in God is a leap into the light, into clarity.

As we have faith in Jesus, we learn more about who He is and we grow in our relationship with him.

We get to the last verse we will look at today and read this.

John 11:37 “37 But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?””

Yes, he could have kept this man from dying.

But what is Jesus teaching here?

What did people learn about Jesus as a result of Him waiting to show up after Lazarus had died?

2. Why would Jesus cry over Lazarus’s death if He knew He would soon be bringing Him back to life?

What does this say about how Jesus feels about the pain and disappointment you go through?

3. Has God ever taught you something about Himself through disappointment? If so, would you like to share?

What do you think God is teaching you about Himself right now?

4. What could you say to a Christian friend who is disappointed in God or in a particular situation in their life right now?

5. What would you say to a non-Christian friend if they told you they didn’t believe in God because their life was filled with too many disappointments to believe that an all-powerful God exits?