Death & Resurrection of Lazarus
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Introduction
In 1980 the American Medical Association defined death as: "An individual who has sustained either (1) irreversible cessation of circulatory and respiratory functions, or (2) irreversible cessation of all functions of the entire brain, including the brain stem is dead. A determination of death must be made in accordance with accepted medical standards."
Today we are going to look at the death and resurrection of Lazarus.
When Lazarus died, he was dead for four days.
He was put in a tomb.
Today we are going to look at the death and resurrection of Lazarus.
Even his own sisters believed that his body had started to decompose.
There should be no questions in our minds that Lazarus was dead, not just sick, not in a coma. Dead.
Even Jesus will flat out say, “He is dead.”
Stand if you are able.
The National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws in 1980 formulated the Uniform Determination of Death Act. It states that: "An individual who has sustained either (1) irreversible cessation of circulatory and respiratory functions, or (2) irreversible cessation of all functions of the entire brain, including the brain stem is dead. A determination of death must be made in accordance with accepted medical standards." This definition was approved by the American Medical Association in 1980 and by the American Bar Association in 1981.
1 Now a man was sick, Lazarus from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha.
2 Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair, and it was her brother Lazarus who was sick.
3 So the sisters sent a message to him: “Lord, the one you love is sick.”
4 When Jesus heard it, he said, “This sickness will not end in death but is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”
5 Now Jesus loved Martha, her sister, and Lazarus.
6 So when he heard that he was sick, he stayed two more days in the place where he was.
7 Then after that, he said to the disciples, “Let’s go to Judea again.”
8 “Rabbi,” the disciples told him, “just now the Jews tried to stone you, and you’re going there again?”
9 “Aren’t there twelve hours in a day?” Jesus answered. “If anyone walks during the day, he doesn’t stumble, because he sees the light of this world.
10 But if anyone walks during the night, he does stumble, because the light is not in him.”
11 He said this, and then he told them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I’m on my way to wake him up.”
12 Then the disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will get well.”
13 Jesus, however, was speaking about his death, but they thought he was speaking about natural sleep.
14 So Jesus then told them plainly, “Lazarus has died.
15 I’m glad for you that I wasn’t there so that you may believe. But let’s go to him.”
16 Then Thomas (called “Twin”) said to his fellow disciples, “Let’s go too so that we may die with him.”
17 When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days.
18 Bethany was near Jerusalem (less than two miles away).
19 Many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them about their brother.
20 As soon as Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him, but Mary remained seated in the house.
21 Then Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother wouldn’t have died.
22 Yet even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.”
23 “Your brother will rise again,” Jesus told her.
24 Martha said to him, “I know that 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, even if he dies, will live.
26 Everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
27 “Yes, Lord,” she told him, “I believe you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who comes into the world.”
28 Having said this, she went back and called her sister Mary, saying in private, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.”
29 As soon as Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him.
30 Jesus had not yet come into the village but was still in the place where Martha had met him.
31 The Jews who were with her in the house consoling her saw that Mary got up quickly and went out. They followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to cry there.
32 As soon as Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and told him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died!”
33 When Jesus saw her crying, and the Jews who had come with her crying, he was deeply moved in his spirit and troubled.
34 “Where have you put him?” he asked. “Lord,” they told him, “come and see.”
35 Jesus wept.
36 So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!”
37 But some of them said, “Couldn’t he who opened the blind man’s eyes also have kept this man from dying?”
38 Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it.
39 “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.”
40 Jesus said to her, “Didn’t I tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?”
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.”
43 After he said this, he shouted with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!”
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.”
45 Therefore, many of the Jews who came to Mary and saw what he did believed in him.
46 But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.
1 Now a man was sick, Lazarus from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair, and it was her brother Lazarus who was sick. 3 So the sisters sent a message to him: “Lord, the one you love is sick.”
4 When Jesus heard it, he said, “This sickness will not end in death but is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” 5 Now Jesus loved Martha, her sister, and Lazarus. 6 So when he heard that he was sick, he stayed two more days in the place where he was. 7 Then after that, he said to the disciples, “Let’s go to Judea again.”
8 “Rabbi,” the disciples told him, “just now the Jews tried to stone you, and you’re going there again?”
9 “Aren’t there twelve hours in a day?” Jesus answered. “If anyone walks during the day, he doesn’t stumble, because he sees the light of this world. 10 But if anyone walks during the night, he does stumble, because the light is not in him.”
11 He said this, and then he told them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I’m on my way to wake him up.”
12 Then the disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will get well.”
13 Jesus, however, was speaking about his death, but they thought he was speaking about natural sleep. 14 So Jesus then told them plainly, “Lazarus has died. 15 I’m glad for you that I wasn’t there so that you may believe. But let’s go to him.”
16 Then Thomas (called “Twin”) said to his fellow disciples, “Let’s go too so that we may die with him.”
17 When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. 18 Bethany was near Jerusalem (less than two miles away). 19 Many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them about their brother. 20 As soon as Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him, but Mary remained seated in the house.
21 Then Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother wouldn’t have died. 22 Yet even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.”
23 “Your brother will rise again,” Jesus told her.
24 Martha said to him, “I know that 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, even if he dies, will live. 26 Everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
27 “Yes, Lord,” she told him, “I believe you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who comes into the world.”
28 Having said this, she went back and called her sister Mary, saying in private, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.”
29 As soon as Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him. 30 Jesus had not yet come into the village but was still in the place where Martha had met him. 31 The Jews who were with her in the house consoling her saw that Mary got up quickly and went out. They followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to cry there.
32 As soon as Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and told him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died!”
33 When Jesus saw her crying, and the Jews who had come with her crying, he was deeply moved in his spirit and troubled. 34 “Where have you put him?” he asked.
“Lord,” they told him, “come and see.”
35 Jesus wept.
36 So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” 37 But some of them said, “Couldn’t he who opened the blind man’s eyes also have kept this man from dying?”
38 Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. 39 “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.”
40 Jesus said to her, “Didn’t I tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?”
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.” 43 After he said this, he shouted with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” 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.”
1 Now a man was sick, Lazarus from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha.
2 Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair, and it was her brother Lazarus who was sick.
3 So the sisters sent a message to him: “Lord, the one you love is sick.”
4 When Jesus heard it, he said, “This sickness will not end in death but is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”
5 Now Jesus loved Martha, her sister, and Lazarus.
6 So when he heard that he was sick, he stayed two more days in the place where he was.
7 Then after that, he said to the disciples, “Let’s go to Judea again.”
8 “Rabbi,” the disciples told him, “just now the Jews tried to stone you, and you’re going there again?”
9 “Aren’t there twelve hours in a day?” Jesus answered. “If anyone walks during the day, he doesn’t stumble, because he sees the light of this world.
10 But if anyone walks during the night, he does stumble, because the light is not in him.”
11 He said this, and then he told them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I’m on my way to wake him up.”
12 Then the disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will get well.”
13 Jesus, however, was speaking about his death, but they thought he was speaking about natural sleep.
14 So Jesus then told them plainly, “Lazarus has died.
15 I’m glad for you that I wasn’t there so that you may believe. But let’s go to him.”
16 Then Thomas (called “Twin”) said to his fellow disciples, “Let’s go too so that we may die with him.”
17 When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days.
18 Bethany was near Jerusalem (less than two miles away).
19 Many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them about their brother.
20 As soon as Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him, but Mary remained seated in the house.
21 Then Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother wouldn’t have died.
22 Yet even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.”
23 “Your brother will rise again,” Jesus told her.
24 Martha said to him, “I know that 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, even if he dies, will live.
26 Everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
27 “Yes, Lord,” she told him, “I believe you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who comes into the world.”
28 Having said this, she went back and called her sister Mary, saying in private, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.”
29 As soon as Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him.
30 Jesus had not yet come into the village but was still in the place where Martha had met him.
31 The Jews who were with her in the house consoling her saw that Mary got up quickly and went out. They followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to cry there.
32 As soon as Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and told him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died!”
33 When Jesus saw her crying, and the Jews who had come with her crying, he was deeply moved in his spirit and troubled.
34 “Where have you put him?” he asked. “Lord,” they told him, “come and see.”
35 Jesus wept.
36 So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!”
Let’s Pray
Let’s Pray
- Introduction
1 Now a man was sick, Lazarus from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha.
2 Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair, and it was her brother Lazarus who was sick.
3 So the sisters sent a message to him: “Lord, the one you love is sick.”
4 When Jesus heard it, he said, “This sickness will not end in death but is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”
Two points of interest
Mary and Martha ent word to Jesus saying, “Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick.”
They didn’t say come quick!
They didn’t say heal my brother
They said, “the one whom you love is sick.”
Jesus said from the very beginning that - “This sickness is not to end in death, but for the glory of God.”
Jesus already knew what was going to happen.
Lazarus was going to die, but it wasn’t going to end in death
In verses 5-16 we have a glimpse into the conversation between Jesus and His disciples.
- Jesus talks to the disciples
5 Now Jesus loved Martha, her sister, and Lazarus.
6 So when he heard that he was sick, he stayed two more days in the place where he was.
7 Then after that, he said to the disciples, “Let’s go to Judea again.”
8 “Rabbi,” the disciples told him, “just now the Jews tried to stone you, and you’re going there again?”
9 “Aren’t there twelve hours in a day?” Jesus answered. “If anyone walks during the day, he doesn’t stumble, because he sees the light of this world.
10 But if anyone walks during the night, he does stumble, because the light is not in him.”
11 He said this, and then he told them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I’m on my way to wake him up.”
12 Then the disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will get well.”
13 Jesus, however, was speaking about his death, but they thought he was speaking about natural sleep.
14 So Jesus then told them plainly, “Lazarus has died.
15 I’m glad for you that I wasn’t there so that you may believe. But let’s go to him.”
16 Then Thomas (called “Twin”) said to his fellow disciples, “Let’s go too so that we may die with him.”
Conversation with the disciples:
Let’s go back to Judea -
We just saw last week that the Jews wanted to kill Jesus by stoning but Jesus eluded them and went to Jordan.
Now Lazarus is dead just outside of Jerusalem, and Jesus wants to go see His friends.
Thomas says, “Let’s go with Him so that we may die with Him.”
Jesus was already under attack - the Jews wanted to stone Him.
Thomas says, “Alright let’s go and die with Him.”
Talk about a friend of faith!
Jesus also talks about getting your work done
All of us have the same amount of time in a day.
The sun is up - get your work done
The sun is down - nothing you can do
We are all responsible for our own time
What we choose to do with our 24 hours is up to us
How do you want to spend your time?
Jesus told the disciples, “Lazarus has died.”
The Bible has a lot to say about death -
8 Biblical Truths About Death
The penalty of sin is death -
Man is destined to die once -
From dust we were made, and dust we will return -
Our spirit returns to God when we die -
If you don’t love, you abide in death -
Death is greedy -
Jesus beat death -
The last enemy to be abolished is death -
Jesus and Martha
17 When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days.
18 Bethany was near Jerusalem (less than two miles away).
19 Many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them about their brother.
20 As soon as Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him, but Mary remained seated in the house.
21 Then Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother wouldn’t have died.
22 Yet even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.”
23 “Your brother will rise again,” Jesus told her.
24 Martha said to him, “I know that 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, even if he dies, will live.
26 Everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
27 “Yes, Lord,” she told him, “I believe you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who comes into the world.”
Martha gets a lot of grief in Christian circles for being a worker - but we see a glimpse into her theology
When Jesus said, “your brother will rise again.” She responded with -
John 11:24
24 Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.”
John 11:
For the Christian Believer there is hope after death
Martha recognized this - that she would see her brother again in the resurrection on the last day
That is true for all of us
But Jesus wasn’t talking about the end times - He was talking about the present
25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies,
26 and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?”
25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me, even if he dies, will live. 26 Everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies,
;25-26
Hear Jesus’ words - “I am the resurrection and the life, he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?”
Do you believe this?
Do you believe that Jesus is the resurrection and the life?
Do you believe that you will live even if you die?
Do you believe that you will never die the second death?
All of us have an appointment with death
Our days are numbered - but if we believe in Jesus while we die a physical death, we will not die a spiritual death
While Martha understood the end times - let’s take a look at the conversation that Jesus had with Mary.
Jesus and Mary
John 11:28-
28 Having said this, she went back and called her sister Mary, saying in private, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.”
29 As soon as Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him.
30 Jesus had not yet come into the village but was still in the place where Martha had met him.
31 The Jews who were with her in the house consoling her saw that Mary got up quickly and went out. They followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to cry there.
32 As soon as Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and told him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died!”
33 When Jesus saw her crying, and the Jews who had come with her crying, he was deeply moved in his spirit and troubled.
34 “Where have you put him?” he asked. “Lord,” they told him, “come and see.”
35 Jesus wept.
36 So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!”
37 But some of them said, “Couldn’t he who opened the blind man’s eyes also have kept this man from dying?”
Mary and Martha
Both Mary and Martha said to Jesus, ”Had you been here, my brother would not have died!”
We can feel that way too when we lose someone
Where was God when your friend died?
Where was God when your parent died?
Where was God when your spouse died?
Where was God when your sibling died?
Where was God when you l
Had Jesus just been there, they wouldn’t have died
We are no different than Mary and Martha - if Jesus was just there, then we wouldn’t have lost our loved one
We know people like the Jews in verse 37 - if Jesus could open the blind man’s eyes couldn’t he have stopped Lazarus from dying?
Couldn’t God have stopped the death from happening?
On November 28. 1995 my cousin Dixie Kampf died from brain cancer - she was 35 years old - she was survived by her two daughters, Buffy age 16, and Brassie age 11.
24 days later Buffy, Brassie, and two other girls were in a rollover car accident by Cheyenne Wells
My cousin Brassie and another girl died. Brassie was 11 years old.
My cousin Brassie and her friend both died in the accident she was
My aunt and uncle buried their daughter, and then 24 days later we were burying their 11 year old granddaughter.
Death is ugly.
Burying your child, and your grandchild within a month would make any of us struggle with our faith.
And yet - had Jesus been there - He could have healed Dixie of her brain cancer. Jesus could have healed Brassie’s broken body after being thrown out of the car and rolled over.
The thoughts that Martha and Mary had are the same thoughts that we have when we face death
Had Jesus just answered our prayers - our loved ones would still be alive
Miracle at the Tomb
Miracle at the Tomb
38 So Jesus, again being deeply moved within, came to the tomb. Now it was a cave, and a stone was lying against it.
39 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.”
40 Jesus said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”
41 So they removed the stone. Then Jesus raised His eyes, and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me.
42 “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.”
43 When He had said these things, He cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth.”
44 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.”
John 11:
Death of Lazarus
Martha said, “Lazarus has been dead for four days and He is going to stink!
In the Jewish culture there was a belief that the soul would hover around the body for four days, but on day four the body would be so decayed that the soul could no longer re-inhabit the body
When Jesus asked for the tomb to be open, the complaint was what was the point, he is already dead and decaying
But Jesus says, “Did I not say to you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”
Jesus called out to Lazarus, “Come forth”
There was no doubt in Martha’s mind that Lazarus was dead.
He had been dead for four days
He had already been in tombed and wrapped in linens and oils
And yet - here comes the man Lazarus - resurrected from the dead - Jesus beats death
Jesus shows His power over life and death
Conclusion
Death is never comfortable - being at the side of someone as they pass from this life to the next is not something that many are called to do.
There is honor in being with someone as they die.
Elisabeth Kubler Ross recognized that when we grieve we go through 5 stages of grief.
5 Stages of Grief
Denial - I can’t believe Lazarus is dead.
Bargaining - I would do anything for just one more day with Lazarus.
Anger - Had you been here, He wouldn’t have died
Depression - Jesus Wept
Acceptance - Martha said, I will see him again at the resurrection
But as Christians we also have hope.
Jesus beat death, He is the Resurrection and the Life!
When Jesus died on the cross He paid the penalty of our sin.
Jesus went to the grave for three days
Then beating death, Jesus rose from the grave.
His death and resurrection allows us to have eternal life because Jesus is the resurrection and the life.
If we believe in Him and confess that He is Lord then we will be saved.
Let’s Pray.