Transformational Question 3: How deep is my desire to follow Jesus?
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Scripture: John 11: 38-44 & John 20: 24-29
Scripture: John 11: 38-44 & John 20: 24-29
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.”
Now Thomas, one of the twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.”
Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
John 11: 11 Lazarus is asleep let’s go wake him up
After saying these things, he said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.”
Review the three transformational questions;
Am I growing?
Do I want to change?
How deep is my desire to follow Jesus? - Jesus is transforming me and not me changing me.
The desire to follow, like the disciples who had been doing and following Christ ever since their first calling after the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan. They have been following Jesus.
So sacrificial that they left their professions.
So controversial that they don’t care what others say but to Go!
So awakened that they were empowered by the Spirit to declare the goodness, and deity of Jesus to the nations.
So powerful that they themselves were healing and preaching about the kingdom and the Gospel that is good news.
Jesus is here to awakened us!
Wake up! Luke 9:32 “Now Peter and those with him were very sleepy, but when they became fully awake, they saw his glory..”
Following Jesus has a ripple effect on the society we live in. Both positive as in it brings life, and also can bring death to someone’s life. For instance; David Martyn a Welsh Methodist theologian said this about awakenings;
There is no doubt at all but that the great evangelical awakening of two hundred years ago was the means of bringing untold blessings to millions of people who died impenitent and unbelieving. As the result of that awakening in the eighteenth century, not only were thousands of people converted, but the whole level of life in this country was raised. As the result of that revival, the Factory Acts were passed and many other beneficial things came about.
Great Doctrines of the Bible (1), 363
David Martyn Lloyd-Jones (Welsh Preacher and Writer)
iii. On the flip side of this, here is what the Apostle Paul said about awakening; 2 Timothy 3:12
Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,
When Paul said, “all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted”, he probably didn’t mean if we desire to live lives true to what we believe, we are to expect persecution. It may, or may not, happen to us. Rather, he probably meant we shouldn’t be surprised if we are persecuted. We shouldn’t feel as if something strange is happening. Paul warned us this would happen. Not if but when it happens.
Again, I ask you this morning, How deep is your desire to follow Jesus?
2. The Question of All questions: Whom do you say that I am?
I have an illustration for you; In 1859, a French tightrope walker named Charles Blondin stunned the world by crossing Niagara Falls on a tightrope—over 1,000 feet long and 160 feet above the raging waters below. Crowds gathered in amazement as Blondin didn’t just cross once—he crossed multiple times. Blindfolded. On stilts. Even carrying a man on his back. But one of the most famous moments came when he pushed a wheelbarrow across the rope. After successfully crossing, Blondin turned to the crowd and asked: “Do you believe I can carry a man across in this wheelbarrow?” The crowd erupted—“Yes! We believe! You can do it!” Then Blondin asked a follow-up question: “Who will get in?” Suddenly… silence. The same crowd that believed in his ability did not trust him enough to put their life in his hands.
That’s the Difference:
= believing HeTrusting God can
= stepping into the wheelbarrowTrusting in God
One is intellectual.
The other is surrender.
Because many people:
believe Jesus can save
believe Jesus is Lord
believe Jesus is powerful
But they’re still standing safely on the sidelines.
Friends, how deep is your desire to follow Jesus, let us take it up a notch, how deep is your desire to trust Jesus enough to surrender?
You can say you trust God all day long…
but until you step in—you’re still standing on the edge.
Lent was a season to ask; leads to the revelation of how deep Jesus’ desire is for us, that is, how deep, how high, and to know this love that surpasses all knowledge, Who do you say that I am? (Who is Jesus to you?)
Our text this morning; John 11:25-26
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?”
Jesus is asking, do you believe this?
The other night I was watching baseball at home and learned about a rule called the dropped third strike. A batter can strike out—and still end up on base. What should have been the end… turns into another chance. And sometimes, because of errors and chaos on the field, that one moment can lead to runs being scored.
It may not be scored as a home run—but the result still changes the game.
This actually makes me think of lent;
The cross don’t look like victory
It wasn’t flashy like a home run
It looked messy… chaotic… misunderstood
But it still changed everything
What should have ended the game… ended up changing the score.
Batter up!
3. Jesus called out Lazarus to come out, John 11:44
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.”
The man was awakened
he heard about the calling
he came out so he had to be walking but he was still stuck
Jesus said, unbind him and let him go, loosen him.
Here is a picture of some of us here today.
We heard Jesus calling us,
We start to do something about it and tries to move but then we just falls and
there are still hinderances that
are stopping us from living into our full potential
hinderances that are stopping us into living our the uniqueness and likeness of being made into God’s image.
Here is a call to us the church;
to us that had rolled back the stones
opinions into the smell, our human senses tries to factor in everything we believe that is just not a compromise.
stand in awe
now Jesus is asking, can you unbind Lazarus, lossen him. Give him another chance, let him live out to the calling that God has out in their lives, support him/her.
4. Beholding and becoming
Finally in John 20, Jesus showed up to the disciples and Thomas didn’t get the memo and now had to be asked that question, Who is Jesus to you?
My Lord, and my God
We are sometimes like Thomas, until we see it then we will believe, or we want to see it for ourselves.
When it comes to God’s kingdom, to behold and to become, Jesus said, blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed
Jesus had shown us how deep his desire to save us
He came and died for us
He rose again to show us that he has defeated death
Again, how deep is your desire to follow
