Death, Where is your Sting

The Gospel of John   •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented
0 ratings
· 1 view
Notes
Transcript

Welcome / Introduction

Good morning church!
Good morning if you are watching online!
What a blessed day to be in the house of the Lord
Please open your bibles to the Gospel of John 11:38-44
The title of this mornings message is
Death, Where is your Sting!
As this morning we are going to witness a man brought back to life
Amen
So let’s go ahead and read our passage for the morning
John 11:38–44 CSB
Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. “Remove the stone,” Jesus said. Martha, the dead man’s sister, told him, “Lord, there is already a stench because he has been dead four days.” Jesus said to her, “Didn’t I tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” So they removed the stone. Then Jesus raised his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you heard me. I know that you always hear me, but because of the crowd standing here I said this, so that they may believe you sent me.” After he said this, he shouted with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out bound hand and foot with linen strips and with his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unwrap him and let him go.”
Let us Pray

Illustration

The definition of a Miracle -
is an extraordinary event caused by the power of God
It is an event that cannot be explained using the natural laws of men
but instead it transcends the natural laws that we
as humans are bound to
we can think of the parting of the Red Sea
or even better
God creating something from Nothing
Ex Nihilo - is the word or phrase for that
And what miracles do is
Reveal
His presence
His Power
and His Purpose
So what does that mean for us as we read the Gospel of John
Well
What John has done for us so far throughout his gospel is give us a series of miracles or signs
as John calls them
So that what?
so that we may believe right
But what is interesting is that John calls these miracles
signs
instead of miracles
why is that?
So lets answer the question by asking
what does a sign do?
it points to something right?
I mean a sign isn’t the thing in and of itself
it is simply an object that is
pointing to something else
When you drive to restaurant
You don’t pull up to Texas Roadhouse
and sit under the sign and order your steak do you?
No, the sign points you to where the steaks really are..
When you go get groceries
You don't shop under the sign out front do you?
no, of course not
because the sign is there to point you towards the thing you want or need
And that was exactly what each of these signs did
they points us towards the one in which they proclaim
Now, we know that Jesus performed many signs
so many that all of the books in the world could not contain them
but, John did record 7 specific miracles for us
All for the purpose to point us towards Jesus
In chapter 2 we saw Jesus turn water into wine
pointing us to his power to bring joy, new life, and transformation
In chapter 4 we saw Jesus heal the officials son from several miles away
pointing us to his power over distance and sickness
In chapter 5 we saw Jesus heal the paralyzed man at the pool
pointing us to his power over sin
and His authority over the Sabbath
In chapter 6 we saw Jesus feed 5000 plus with just 5 loaves and 2 fish
pointing us to his power to provide for us not only physically, but spiritually as well.
as the bread of life
That was followed up in the same chapter by Jesus walking on water and calming a storm
which pointed to his Power over nature and our fears
then we fast forward to chapter 9 and after Jesus declared that he was the light of the world
he restored the vision of a man born blind
demonstrating not only his ability to heal
but his ability to bring us from spiritual blindness
to spiritual light
to bring us in fact
from darkness to light
Which brings us again to chapter 11
where we find the last Miracle or sign recorded by John
technically speaking I should say
We will see a pretty big miracle occur in John 19 and chapter 20
Now as to what this sign points to
well, you will have to wait until the end
Out text this morning is broken down to 3 points
as we unravel this last and most important miracle of Jesus
It is as if John was escalating the miracles with this being the pinnacle
with this being the mountain top
So, without further adou
Our first point of the morning
The Obedience of Jesus (V38-40)
The Communication with the Father (V41 & 42)
and finally the Command of Christ to Lazarus
“Come Out!” in (V43 & 44)

The Obedience

In V38 John says this John 11:38 “38 Then Jesus, deeply moved again,
If we remember from last week
Jesus was deeply moved by the emotions of his friends
and was in fact angry at the sin and death in the world
so much so that we saw that Jesus Wept
Now, its possible that as Jesus moved from where we left off last week to
the tomb of Lazarus
perhaps his emotions had settled some
but as he approached the tomb
as the place where his friend lay
comes into view
we can see these emotions come back
Kind of like we feel when we leave the funeral
and drive to the grave site
things even out a little on the drive
just before the hurting starts again when you arrive there
It is like this that Jesus “came to the tomb.
And this tomb
V 38 continues tells us “It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it.
The way these tombs would look back then
would be similar to this picture
as this is the picture of the garden tomb
we took this when we visited Israel
And what they would do is they would carve the tombs into the rock, into the hills and mountains
unless it was of course a cave
then they would simply alter the interior
by flattening the floor
and carve out “shelves” or benches in the walls to hold the bodies
and the more rich you were perhaps the more privacy you got
but for the most part they were shared
Now, I show you this tomb
because this tomb of Lazarus
would have looked very similar to the tomb
Jesus would be lay in
in just a few short days
And I firmly believe that Jesus knew that
And with this we begin to see the obedience of Christ
See part of the emotions we see of Jesus in V38
are tied to the emotions from last week
but they also tied to the fact that
He knew he was about to
lay down his life for those around Him
and frankly for us here today
And while Jesus did go to that cross and tomb willingly
He also went in obedience to His father
and by putting his eyes on this tomb
he was placing His eyes on His destiny
By placing His eyes on this tomb
The Lord of Life
was now directly confronting his opponent
death
as symbolized by
the very cave like tomb in front of Him
So He tells Martha in V39 to “remove the stone
and this stone would have been there so that access could be made
but also so that things could be kept out
such as grave robbers and animal
She replies with “Lord, there is already a stench because he has been dead four days
Now we discussed this 4 days thing in some detail last week
when we stated they thought the the soul hovered over the body for 3 days
and on the 4th day
it would leave as decomposition would begin
and that was in fact their custom
on day 3 or day 4 depending on how you count
they would come back
roll away the stone
smell the body
and know that they were really dead
And this is what this is saying
John wants us to know Lazarus is really dead
by recording Martha’s reaction to this command
he solidifies that Lazarus was already decaying
and
John added the little detail of reminding us that Martha was the dead mans sister
to show us Lazarus is dead
he isn’t sleeping
he isn’t in a coma
he cannot be resuscitated
outside of a miracle from God right
And knowing
this Jesus tells Martha
loud enough for everyone around Him to hear it as well
John 11:40 “40 Jesus said to her, “Didn’t I tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?””
See Martha
although she believed
although she had faith
had given up hope
her brother was dead
he had already been in the tomb 4 days
What else could Jesus do
other than morn and console her until the last day
But remember, Gods perspective is not
always seen by us
So what is now this hopeless situations
according to Mary and Martha
Will instead be used to
Glorify God
Now we dont see where Jesus
specifically said this to Martha
it could have been a discussion they had that was not recorded
or it could have been Him putting together a few verses
Either way, Jesus is going to use this situation
to bring His Father Glory
Now there is so much for us to unpack here that I wont even start
Instead
What I would like for us to pull out of this first point
is how Jesus’ obedience
Led to the fathers Glory
Despite all that he was feeling
all that he was seeing
Jesus never took His eyes off of His father
even as He was looking his fate
in the eyes
In fact everything Jesus did
His entire Jesus' life and ministry
was entirely focused on revealing the Father to the world.
He lived in perfect alignment with God's will
so that we,
so that people
could see the Father Glorified through Him.
In John 14:9-10, Jesus said, "Whoever has seen me has seen the Father... The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does His works."
Through Jesus’ obedient life,
His teachings, and miracles,
the world
can now see God's love,
holiness, justice, and mercy
in a tangible way.
But perhaps, Jesus’ ultimate act of obedience isn’t found here as he stares death in the face
No, the ultimate act of Jesus' obedience
was His sacrificial death on the cross.
In John 12:27-28, as He prepared for His crucifixion, Jesus prayed, "Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. Father, glorify Your name.”
Jesus knew that through His death,
God’s glory would be revealed in the most profound way.
He knew that by submitting to the Father’s will,
He would display God’s perfect justice (punishing sin)
and His perfect love (providing a way of salvation).
This act of obedience glorified the Father by fulfilling His plan,
What This faking salvation possible for all who believe.f
But obedience doesn't stop with Jesus
It means Our Obedience Reflects God’s Glory:
See we get to help display the Glory of God as well
through our obedience
did you notice Jesus asked
Martha and those around Him to roll back the stone
Do you think Jesus needed help with this
he created the stone
he could have blinked and it would have moved
But instead, he let them participate in the glorification of his father
similar to how he multiplied the fish and bread to feed the 5000
but the disciples are the ones that passed it out
See
Just as Jesus’ obedience revealed the Father,
our obedience as His followers
allows us to reflect God’s glory to the world.
Matthew 5:16 says, "Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven."
When we live in obedience to God’s Word—
loving others,
showing mercy,
living righteously—
we become living examples of God's character.
we can become living examples of Gods glory
Our obedience serves as a witness,
drawing people to God
and showing them who He is
through our lives.
Through our obedience,
we get to participate in the mission of spreading the Gospel and making disciples.
See Jesus' obedience paved the way for our salvation,
and now we are called
to share that message with others,
bringing glory to God by leading people to Him.
But let us understand
obeying Jesus’ teachings is not just about rules or regulations
but about reflecting His life, His love, and His character to the world.
In John 15:8, Jesus says, "By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples."
Now with all of that said, there is no way we can glorify God
There is no way Jesus could even glorify God
if He or we
Are not in constant communication with Him
with the Father
So as we move to our 2nd point we will see that
no miracle can be performed
without talking to God first

The Communication of Christ

After all of this transpires
they remove the stone as as he commanded
Jesus,
with the full attention of the crowd around him
says in V41
John 11:41–42“41 So they removed the stone. Then Jesus raised his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you heard me. 42 I know that you always hear me, but because of the crowd standing here I said this, so that they may believe you sent me.””
This is an interesting and yet amazing prayer
First, the way he prays implies
that He has already been talking to God about this
This prayer implies that Jesus had already prayed for Lazarus
this prayer tells us that Jesus
had already prepared for what was about to take place
This wasn’t a last minute request
this wasn’t an
impulse or a reactionary request
This wasn’t some sort of hail Mary prayer
There had already been some time spent on his knees praying about this specific thing
And get this when he prayed
and He did it with hands raised
I guess he wasn’t raised Baptist
i kidding
But none the less as he prays this prayer
His is thanking the father for hearing Him
He has his hands raised
this was a common thing posture
they would raise their hands and look to the heavens
and audible prayers with hands raised was common as well
In fact talking to God out loud was more prominent then
then now
and it is something we should probably get back to
Now, we must understand by
raising His hands and speaking out loud
he wasn’t trying to impress anyone
Instead He was teaching others
through His prayers
when a teacher of the Jews would
Pray like this
his disciples would listen
and learn from what He was praying
Now, Jesus referred to God as His Father
showing his submission
and His obedience to Him
as we just discussed
And again, he knows the decision to raise Lazarus has already been made
Then he thanks Him
for hearing Him
Thats interesting
until we see that the OT
teaches that God hears the righteous
Psalm 34:15 and Psalm 145:19 attest to this
So therefore he is telling all of them around Him
and is telling us
that He is completely righteous
knowing that God heads his every word
And it is within this righteous relationship he has with his father
that He will be able to raise Lazarus from the dead
And by hearing this prayer
and by seeing this relationship
He wants them and us to know
that we can have this type of relationship
with Him
and with the Father
not a relationship that says we can do miracles no
there is plenty of that nonsense today
But a relationship that ensures that we know
He hears us
and that He is indeed the one sent from Heaven
And that is exactly what we get
when we believe
which as the end of V42 tells us
is exactly why He is doing these things
So what does all of this mean?
what are we to learn from this
very pivotal moment just before this great miracle is performed?
Well, it tells us that Jesus is in continuous and ongoing
prayer or communication with the father
Jesus had already been praying about Lazarus’ situation
before He stood at the tomb.
and His prayer revealed that He was
preparing for this moment long before it happened.
And doesn’t this
show us the importance of
being spiritually prepared
while seeking God’s will
ahead of time,
rather than waiting until a crisis occurs.
which I am afraid we are all too guilty of
See Because Jesus had been praying beforehand,
He knew that His actions were aligned with God’s will.
His prayer at the tomb was an expression
of confidence
that the Father had already heard Him.
And this again shows the deep trust Jesus had in the Father’s plan and timing,
even when faced with human grief and loss.
he was in constant communication with the Father
See just like Jesus, we should be in constant communication with God,
not just when problems arise.
But at all times
so that we are aligned with God’s will
and ready for whatever challenges
or opportunities come our way
See as believers, we should be praying for God’s guidance and strength
before opportunities arise,
and before trials come our way
so we can respond in faith when the moment comes.
knowing that because we have already prayed about this
that He will see us through it
Jesus didn’t stand at that tomb and try to figure out how he was going to raise Lazarus
scratching His head and formulating a plan
no, that plan was launched well before
with deep prayer and communication
This is what Jesus did
this is what Jesus teaches us,
and this is what we are to do
Could you imagine what the church could do
if we stayed in constant communication with the Lord,
if we talked to Him like He was sitting next to us all hours of the day?
What if every confessing and believing Christian
fell to their knees every day and night in prayer—
how much stronger would our faith be,
how much clearer would we hear His voice,
and how much more powerfully
would His Spirit move among us
Wow, if that happened
then we would see revival like never before.
The church would walk in unity,
lives would be transformed,
miracles would unfold,
and the world would witness the
unstoppable power of God
working through His people
All of this based upon the relationship we have
with the Father
through prayer
Because we cannot
have obedience
we cannot see God’s Glory
unless we have a relationship with Him
and that relationship is revealed
in our communication with him
and with other believers around us
So that when the time comes
we can hear the Command of God
which is our 3rd and final point of the morning

The Command

John 11:4343 After he said this, (after this prayer) he shouted with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!””
Notice this wasn’t a gentle plea
this wasn’t a faint whisper
this wasn’t a request
this wasn’t even an invitation
It was a shout with a loud voice!
this was a shout of raw
unadulterated
power
and authority
The Greek here is literally
Lazarus! Here! Outside!
you can even taste the authority here
It's a voice of authority like the one shouted
at our children to stop
just before they run into traffic—
a voice filled with urgency and love,
It's a voice authority like the one shouted
by Elijah when he called down fire from heaven—
a voice of divine power and authority,
demonstrating God’s might before the world.
Its the shout of authority like the
one of the Israelites
just before the walls of Jericho came crashing down
Is the shout of Gideons Battle Cry
For the Lord and for Gideon
It is the voce of Jesus on the cross
saying “It is finished”
and it is like the should of the angels
when they announce the return of Jesus
on the last day
It's the same voice that
that Jesus called to Lazarus,
"Come out!"—
a voice that commanded
life to break forth
from the tomb,
a voice that caused the dead to arise
a voice that brings life from death
showing that not even death
can stand in the way of God's glory.
I read that Jesus command here was so deep
so authoritative
that if he had not specifically
said Lazarus
all of the dead would have come alive
from every grave in the world!
as will happen on day in the future
Now with this command
John 11:44 “44 The dead man came out bound hand and foot with linen strips and with his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unwrap him and let him go.””
What an amazing sight to see right
Do we see now why Jesus delayed his travels
Do we now see how God can work great things for good
even in the face of tragedy
Now this dead man, now alive
came out
we can almost see him shuffling around
making his way to the door of the cave
now remember he wasn’t wrapped like a mummy
he could still move
but we was wrapped up
and we can see him
shuffling his feet
wobbling like a penguin
his newly restored eyes blinded by
the light as he exits the tomb
and that reminds me that this isn’t just one miracle
no, in that grave God did so much more
as He repaired his muscles so that he could stand
and he reversed the decay of his lungs and heart
so that his blood would flow again
God restored his balance so that he could walk
God restored his sight so that he could see his way out
God restored his hands so that he could feel his way out
God restored everything about him
when he raised him from death to life
And that is so amazing isn’t it
Because that is precisely how Jesus restores us
spiritually
when he brings us from
death, to life
Now we don’t get to see the end of this story
it kind of just stops there with Jesus
commanding the crowd to help unwrap him
So we don’t get to see the love
restored between Mary, Martha, and Lazarus
We don’t get to see the embrace of Lazarus and Jesus
as he gets to see his friend again
We don’t get to see the tears Mary and Martha wiped away
But let us remember
That Jesus entered into their grief
he felt their pain
Knowing that he would be able to fully take it all away
at the proper time

Conclusion

So as our morning comes to an end
We can finally answer the question we asked at the beginning
which is
what does this sign
point to?
So within this last and final miracle that John writes for us,
that we see this sign
is pointing to the fact that
Jesus has the power and authority
to bring life from death,
He has the power to face death
look it in the eyes
and produce life
It points to and even foreshadows a future resurrection as well
one that will occur in just a few short days
when Christ himself will beat death
once and for all
now, let us also understand
that this is much more than a physical resurrection with
a foreshadowing of what will come
It is also about spiritual resurrection and life as well
Just as God brought Lazarus back to life,
He offers us spiritual life ,
a new life
based upon His promises
and decrees
See just as Lazarus was physically dead in the tomb,
we to are spiritually dead in our sins.
Just as Lazarus was bound and lifeless in the grave
we, too, are bound and lifeless to the ways of this world
And it is through Christ and Christ alone
that we can be given life
and rescued from this death
Now we must understand that
Lazarus did nothing to bring himself to life;
it was entirely the power and authority of Jesus
that commanded him to rise.
In the same way,
we do nothing to earn or initiate our spiritual rebirth.
It is God who calls us, just as He called Lazarus by name
and what did Lazarus do?
he responded.
He came out of that tomb
Just like when God calls our name,
what are we to do
we are to respond in faith
John 5:24 affirms that when we hear His word and believe,
we pass from death to life.
See it is by God’s grace that we are brought to life,
not our efforts.
we in no form or fashion earn this
See it doesn’t matter who we are or what we did
where we came from
or how long we were there
we don’t have to be good enough
for Christ
because we don’t have to earn our salvation
God gives that to us as a gift
not based on us
but based on His goodness
New life that is secured due to His life and resurrection
not ours
and this life that we find in Christ
is a life that is fulfilling
a life that is abundant
a life that is eternal
It is in fact a promise for all who believe.
Just as Lazarus stepped out of the tomb and into the arms of Christ
we too
are to step into the fullness of life that Christ offers,
Because Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life,
In Him,
death is not the end
but simply the doorway
So let us embrace the truth that in Christ,
we are made new,
we are made alive
we are restored
So if you do not know Christ as your Lord and Savior
Do not ignore his calling
hear his voice
and come out of that grave of
sin and self righteousness
And come into the light and life
that only He provides
Repent,
turn from your ways of this life
and turn to Him
Because it is at
that point
that we may be obedient to Him
it is at that point that we
will be in constant communication with him
so that we may hear His commands
And in that we can boldly declare, “Death, where is your sting?”
For it is in Christ, that we have victory over death,
Let us Pray!
Related Media
See more
Related Sermons
See more