Jesus and Lazarus

John 11:38-46

Praise and prayer

If you brought your bibles turn with me over to the gospel of John chapter eleven, the gospel of John chapter eleven and in a moment we are going to read verses 38-46 of the gospel of John chapter eleven.

Is there anything to difficult for God? Then why do we worry whenever we face trials in life?

We question whether God cares enough about us to help. Our faith is limited and we struggle to rest and leave our situation in God’s hands.

What we learn from this passage is nothing is impossible for God and we as believers can rest knowing God is in control.

Romans 8:28 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”

As believers we can come to a place in our faith that rests in the glory of God.

John 11:38–46 NASB95

So Jesus, again being deeply moved within, came to the tomb. Now it was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. Jesus said, “Remove the stone.” Martha, the sister of the deceased, said to Him, “Lord, by this time there will be a stench, for he has been dead four days.” Jesus said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” So they removed the stone. Then Jesus raised His eyes, and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. “I knew that You always hear Me; but because of the people standing around I said it, so that they may believe that You sent Me.” When He had said these things, He cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth.” The man who had died came forth, bound hand and foot with wrappings, and his face was wrapped around with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.” Therefore many of the Jews who came to Mary, and saw what He had done, believed in Him. But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them the things which Jesus had done.

Who are the characters in this story? (Jesus, Martha, Lazarus, and some Jews who came with Mary)

Where are they? (Bethany the tomb of Lazarus)

What are they doing? (Jesus is praying and raising Lazarus from the dead, Martha is trying to prevent Him from moving the stone, Lazarus is bound with wrappings and coming from the tomb, The Jews are believing and others are turning Jesus in to the Pharisees)

Why are they doing it? (It’s all for the glory of God)

In this passage Jesus confronts death and demonstrates His power over it. In confronting and conquering the tomb of Lazarus Jesus teaches us that our hope is not in vain, and as believers we can rest in the glory of God knowing that we too will be raised from the dead by the power of God and the same great shout of the Lord Jesus Christ.

I. The Great Confrontation of Jesus with the Dead Vs. 38-39

Notice two striking points here

a. He was deeply moved. Vs. 38 Jesus groaned within Himself as He stood at the grave.

Why do you think Jesus was deeply moved? He knew what He intended to do.

I believe He saw the pain of Martha and Mary and sensed the terrible dread that death has over the entire human race.

Also He was completely aware of His own death that was just days away.

He felt all the emotions of compassion, anger, sympathy and indignation. He groaned within Himself for all who suffer and fear death.

b. He was confronted by objection Vs. 39

Why does Martha object to the stone being removed?

There are two things worth noting here.

There is an emphasis put on the fact that Lazarus was actually dead. We are told; he is in a tomb, there has been a stone placed over the tomb, and again, we are told he has been there for four days. Why? Because an unbeliever might question if Lazarus was truly dead. Maybe he recovered on his own. Maybe this was all just a coincidence.

But four days without air, food, or water would have killed him. And then Martha’s response to Jesus speaks of the fact that he was truly dead. “By this time there will be a stench” This means He has already began to decompose.

2. Notice it was a believer who was objecting and confronting Jesus. Martha didn’t trust that Jesus was doing the right thing. She was satisfied with the way things were. She didn’t want Jesus to disturb the situation.

Are you a believer that wants to be left alone by Christ? You want enough of Christ to make you happy and comfort you but you don’t want Him to make demands of your life. Are you a believer that doesn’t allow Christ to challenge your sin with conviction?? But you ignore the prompting of the Holy Spirit? Luke 9:23.

There is no such thing as a follower of Christ who does not confront their sin. The people of Jesus day knew what it meant to bear your cross.

They watched scores of people carry their cross to the place they would be executed. They saw scores of people crucified, many by the side of the road that led in and out of the cities.

To bear your cross does not merely mean bearing ones burdens in life. Bearing your cross is not about suffering through poor health, unemployment, rebellious children. The cross is an instrument of death, not just an object we carry.

For a Christian to bare his cross is; to die daily by denying yourself of sin, and allow the mind of Christ to rule over your thoughts. The mind of Christ that humbled itself to the point of death.

Phil. 2:5-8

To take up your cross and deny yourself means putting the will of God above your own will and actively pursuing what God would have you to do every day.

It is important to understand this is not negative, or passive behavior. It takes positive, active behavior to will, to deny self, to take up one’s cross, to follow Christ. A person has to act, work, get to it, be diligent, consistent, and enduring in order to die to self.

There are several ways a believer does this but, Romans 6:11-13 spells out the ways as clearly as they can be seen..

So, to deny yourself and take up your cross is to die to your sin by coming alive to Christ.

So, the first thing we see is Jesus at the tomb. We see this great confrontation with the dead. He was deeply moved and He was confronted by a believer who was satisfied with the status quo.

II. The great promise of unlimited faith Vs 40

What does Jesus say we will see if we believe?

This is a great promise that goes beyond this passage. This is a promise to us, If we believe we will see the glory of God!! as well.

This is Jesus challenging Martha to take a leap of faith. To put her trust in Him. He wanted her to let go of her fears, her doubts and objections and to quit questioning Him about what He was doing.

He wanted her to take a chance and follow His instructions and He wants us to do the same today.

Let me ask you this, what are you not trusting God with right now in your life? What is it that you need to take a leap of faith and believe God is in control?

There is a rest that a believer can have when they have unlimited faith. It is having the kind of faith that God wants all of us to have. It is called a believers rest or God’s rest.

It is when you are resting in your faith and believing that you are truly saved and delivered from sin and shame, hell and death. It is when we are set free from a guilty conscience, and we believe we have open access to the presence of God through prayer.

It is important we understand the rest of a believer has nothing to do with inactivity. It doesn’t mean we are not doing anything in the world. But it means we are rest from the pressures of the world because we are committed to God’s call and purpose for our life.

It is a rest that is committed to sharing Christ with the lost. It is a rest that is surrendered to God’s service. It is a rest that is filled with God’s Spirit. It is a rest that is equipped with God’s gifts and using them in your life. It is a place we come to when we are complete, fulfilled, satisfied and unashamed in life. Matt. 11:29

I’ll. Yoke and ox

So, the second thing we see in this passage is a great promise of unlimited faith. If we believe we will see the glory of God. And as believers we can rest in the glory of God from the pressures of the world.

III. The great prayer of purpose Vs. 41-42

Jesus shows us a four fold purpose for prayer

1. Addressed to the Father Vs. 41 We always want to honor and worship God as our Father.

So, when we pray we call on God as our Father and we approach Him as a child, respectfully and reverently.

2. A prayer of thanks-giving Vs. 41 He says, “I thank you that you have heard me.”

We want to always thank God in prayer for what He has done for us. But also praise Him for the privilege of coming to Him. Thank Him for allowing us access to His presence and that He hears us and answers us.

3. A prayer of confidence Vs. 42 “I knew that thou hearest me always”

There is no hesitancy, doubt, or questioning by Jesus. He knew His prayers were heard always. 1 John 5:14-15.

As believers we can have confidence that God not only hears our prayers but He answers them.

4. A prayer with a purpose Vs 42, “so that they may believe that you sent Me”

He was praying specifically for those around Him to believe that He was sent by God. That means He was praying they would have faith in Him as the Messiah.

The point is when we pray with purpose we can have confidence like Jesus that our prayers are heard and answered and they have an effect on the world around us.

So, the third thing we see in this passage is a great prayer with purpose from Jesus and He teaches us a five-fold method of prayer.

IV. The great shout of power over death Vs. 43-44

First, it is important we understand the resurrection of Lazarus is a picture of the resurrection of every believer. We will all be resurrected one day. There will be a resurrection of believers and unbelievers. The former to life in the presence of the Lord for all eternity and the latter to the lake of fire.

There are two things that stand out to me about this shout of Jesus that called Lazarus from the tomb.

a. It was within Christ Vs. 43 “He cried out with a loud voice.”

The power over death comes from Jesus alone. Notice He simply spoke three words, “Lazarus come forth” But He shouted them. Why? To emphasize His power. No one had ever seen power like this before and that power resided in Jesus.

There is no one else with this power and authority. He didn’t use any created material or call out for anyone’s help. Jesus alone has the power over life and death.

b. It was personal (called Lazarus by name) Vs. 43

Can you imagine if Jesus just called out “come forth.” I think every person who had ever died would have woke up in that moment. But He calls Lazarus by name and that speaks of the day He will shout and those who know Him personally will rise again.

c. The result Vs. 44 The dead are raised Lazarus comes forth still wrapped in grave clothes.

Notice there were two pieces of grave clothes. His body was wrapped from head to toe, and his face was wrapped with a cloth.

That is important because if you remember Jesus was wrapped the same way when He was buried. And when the disciples came to the tomb they found it folded up and laid aside. The folded linens were the thing that convinced John of the resurrection. John 20:7-8.

So, the fourth thing we see in this passage is the great shout of power over death. This is the same power and shout that will call all men from the grave. The question is; will you be called to heaven to the presence of God forever.

V. The reaction to Jesus great power. Vs. 45-46

Notice many who came with Mary believed while others remained in their unbelief. Even those who witnessed the power of God in Christ Jesus raise a man from the dead they refused to believe. This speaks of the obstinate heart of man. Jeremiah 17:9 ““The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it?”

These people who ignored the evidence right in front of them, lost their opportunity to see the glory of God!!

What we learn from this passage is nothing is impossible for God and we as believers can rest knowing God is in control.

We can come to a place in our faith where God’s glory is what we want rather than our own way. It is about having a faith that rests in the glory of God.