A HAPPY FUNERAL

INTRO

As a pastor, I have ministered in several funerals, but there was a time when we were performing a play for the youth group in my church in Brazil where I had to enter a real casket…(share the experience)… that was the closest I have been to death, I believe...

In the Bible, most of the 11th chapter of the Gospel of John is dedicated to the resurrection of a man called Lazarus.

Today, we will study the highlights of this story, one of the most preached and well known narratives of the New Testament, and because we don’t have time for an exposition of the whole chapter, we will navigate through some verses, while we explore this that is one of the most fantastic miracles performed by the Lord Jesus.

Let’s understand the context first:

The place where the miracle happened was the village of Bethany. We can say that Bethany was one of Jesus’ home away from home. Remember that He lived the first 2 years of His life in Egypt, and then most of His infant and adult life in Nazareth, then after the beginning of His public ministry around 30 years of age, He most likely would stay in Peter’s house in Capernaum, in Galilee, but when He was in Judea, He would lodge in the house of Lazarus, Martha and Mary, in Bethany, 2 miles away from Jerusalem, on the other side of the Mount of Olives, close to the Dead Sea;

(PLEASE SHOW THE MAP ON THIS PART OF THE SERMON FOR ABOUT 10 SECONDS)

2. It’s important to keep in mind that Lazarus, Mary and Martha were not only casual acquaintances, they were close friends with Jesus, to the point that the Lord would lodge in their home several times in Bethany. Jesus loved them deeply;

3. This was the final public miracle of Jesus, done close to the Passover, on the Road to Jericho, where hundreds of people were coming to Jerusalem for the Passover, and it would be a sign to strengthen the faith of His disciples, preparing them for His own resurrection;

4. Somehow, we do not have much details, Lazarus got sick, and his sisters Mary and Martha sent a message to Jesus to come, but the Lord decided NOT to go immediately.

In light of these facts, and based upon the whole story we will study today, the theme for our sermon is:

A HAPPY FUNERAL

(Please keep your Bible open on the Gospel of John, Chapter 11)

The first lesson we learn in this chapter is:

1. JESUS ALWAYS HAS AN AGENDA

Throughout the Bible, you will never see Jesus doing something without a purpose, just for the sake of doing it, or for the pleasure of men. He always had a plan, He was always on time, and His routines were always perfect and in accordance with the will of His Father. (A little note here: Be careful if you boast on not valuing organization and agendas… Jesus always had time for everything in His busy schedule)

Nevertheless, several times in Scriptures you see Jesus saying “my time has not come yet...”, His calendar was not synced with the ones of the multitudes who followed Him, and this is one of those times where this happened.

But the Scriptures give us a clue that everything Jesus does has a purpose. Observe the verses 5 and 6: (“therefore”)

John 11:5–6 KJV 1900

Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. When he had heard therefore that he was sick, he abode two days still in the same place where he was.

John 11:5–6 RVR60

Y amaba Jesús a Marta, a su hermana y a Lázaro. Cuando oyó, pues, que estaba enfermo, se quedó dos días más en el lugar donde estaba.

Jesus delayed Himself out of LOVE! He went later so the glory of God could be revealed among men. For us, delay means denial, but not for JESUS! LOVE DETAINED JESUS!! He had a PLAN!

That is why after knowing about Lazarus being sick, Jesus still stayed two more days!

(We can sort of imagine Martha having a conversation with his brother Lazarus):

“Don’t you worry, He’s coming, we have been good friends, we are His disciples”;

“Don’t you worry, He’s coming, we have always been nice to Him”;

“Don’t you worry, He’s coming, our house is always open to Him”; we are tithers, we always help His ministry financially”;

“Don’t you worry, He’s coming, He knows it’s an emergency, He would never do that to us!

BUT THE DAYS PASSED, AND LAZARUS... DIED!

On verses 11-14, we see the Omniscience of Jesus, already knowing about Lazarus death, while the disciples didn’t. (It’s amazing how so many times we as disciples don’t grasp what Jesus really wants us to understand), so He had to be very clear with the disciples. Let’s read:

John 11:12–14 NKJV

Then His disciples said, “Lord, if he sleeps he will get well.” However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus said to them plainly, “Lazarus is dead.

John 11:12–14 NTV

—Señor —dijeron los discípulos—, si se ha dormido, ¡pronto se pondrá mejor! Ellos pensaron que Jesús había querido decir que Lázaro sólo estaba dormido, pero Jesús se refería a que Lázaro había muerto. Por eso les dijo claramente: —Lázaro está muerto.

See, Jesus was at about 27 miles away, in the Region of Perea, and NOW HE WAS READY, NOW IT WAS HIS TIME, and He then heads to Judea.

On the fourth day now, Jesus and His disciples finally arrive in Bethany;

And the second lesson we learn in this chapter is:

2. WORSHIPPERS DO NOT DEPEND ON CIRCUMSTANCES

First Martha comes to meet Jesus, still distant from their home, and then her sister Mary. They both say almost the same thing, but their attitude was very different; (remember her attitude was also of rebuking of Jesus in Luke 10: “Lord ask Mary to help me…”)

Martha said on verse 21 the same thing her sister said on verse 32: “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died”.

And then on verse 25 Jesus says to Martha one of the most solemn verses of the chapter, one more title in His collection of "I AM”, and of the whole Bible itself:

John 11:25 NKJV

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.

John 11:25 RVR95BTO

Le dijo Jesús: —Yo soy la resurrección y la vida; el que cree en mí, aunque esté muerto, vivirá.

After talking to Martha, now, something similar to what happened in Mark 10:49 (when the disciples said to the blind Bartimaeus: “be of good cheer, the Master is calling you!”), happens also here: Martha calls her sister Mary with one of the most glorious messages someone can receive:

John 11:28 NKJV

And when she had said these things, she went her way and secretly called Mary her sister, saying, “The Teacher has come and is calling for you.”

John 11:28 NTV

Luego Marta regresó adonde estaba María y los que se lamentaban. La llamó aparte y le dijo: «El Maestro está aquí y quiere verte».

Oh, what a magnificent message!! The King of kings is calling, the Creator of the Universe requests you! Mary leaves the mourners, hurries to meet Jesus and the first thing she does is... to fall at His feet! Yes, out of her lips comes the same phrase as her sister Martha, but out of her heart worship sprouts!

We learn here that the true worshipper do not focus on circumstances; notice that on the 3 times we read about Mary of Bethany in Scriptures until here, all the 3 times she was at the feet of Jesus:

When Jesus came to His house on Luke Chapter 10:38;

Here in this passage;

When she anointed Him before His death.

Mary was a true worshipper!! Worship was not an act for her, it was a lifestyle! And her behavior should be our attitude as well!

Seeing Mary weeping, Jesus now decides to go with Mary and Martha to the tomb of Lazarus, and we go then to our third and main lesson:

3. WITH JESUS, FUNERALS BECOME CELEBRATIONS

Notice that 3 interesting things happen now, as the multitudes are already surrounding the tomb:

1. Jesus asks where the body was laid

John 11:34 NKJV

And He said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to Him, “Lord, come and see.”

John 11:34 NTV

—¿Dónde lo pusieron? —les preguntó. Ellos le dijeron: —Señor, ven a verlo.

(I think we can paraphrase the Lord asking you today: “Show me “where” you laid your hope, show me where you laid your dreams, take me to where you buried your first love for me, show me where is the disappointment that made you to give up, show me, where is it???

And coming to the tomb...

2. Jesus weeps

Jesus really loved Lazarus, but He groans (anger), not because of people there, and not also because of Lazarus, (because He knew that in few minutes he would be resurrected), Jesus wept and groaned because of His disappointment and anger against death itself;

Jesus then asks to remove the stone, and prays to the Father;

Let’s not forget that this was NOT the first time the Lord Jesus resurrected people, he raised the daughter of Jairus from the dead (few witnesses), and also the son of a widow in the city of Nain, (even more witnesses), the difference is that in those cases they had JUST died; here Jesus also wanted to demystify the popular belief that the soul would be “around” for 3 days before leaving the body. Because it was already the 4th day, there would be no doubts, at all! He was dead, dead!!

It’s very interesting that Martha and Mary, when first called for Jesus, they expected the resuscitation of a sick person, but what Jesus wanted was the resurrection of a dead body! What a difference!!

Jesus then says: “Lazarus, come forth!”

If Jesus had not been specific saying the name “Lazarus”, hundreds of cadavers would come to life, under the command of the Maker of the Universe

(Now, I keep thinking the situation in Heaven, where Lazarus was rejoicing for 4 days - “God calls Lazarus and says: Lazarus, you are very welcome, but we have a situation, my Son is calling you back!!)

We must remember that after the first 72 hours the bacterias are already eating everything away, gases are released, the body is no longer stiff, the tissues are being consumed and there is an unbearable stinking. But JESUS is THE RESURRECTION AND THE LIFE, and death cannot defeat Him!!

Once again, God is glorified in Jesus, and Lazarus comes out of the tomb, ALIVE!!

(there are people screaming, running, bumping into each other, but there is also joy, praises to God and the Name of the Lord glorified through Jesus)

Everything ends as A HAPPY FUNERAL, after all!!

FINAL APPLICATIONS

As pointed by Martha, there was a big concern with the stench of the body in the tomb, because of the heat in Judea and the state of advanced decaying of the body of Lazarus, but Jesus would soon solve that problem. HOWEVER, there is a stench that only the blood of Jesus can remove: the stench of SIN in every soul that still doesn’t know THE FORGIVENESS OF JESUS.

2 Corinthians 2:15–16 NKJV

For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. To the one we are the aroma of death leading to death, and to the other the aroma of life leading to life. And who is sufficient for these things?

2 Corinthians 2:15–16 NTV

Nuestras vidas son la fragancia de Cristo que sube hasta Dios, pero esta fragancia se percibe de una manera diferente por los que se salvan y los que se pierden. Para los que se pierden, somos un espantoso olor de muerte y condenación, pero para aquellos que se salvan, somos un perfume que da vida. ¿Y quién es la persona adecuada para semejante tarea?

I would like to call your attention to a particular part of what Martha said to Jesus in verse 22:

John 11:22 NKJV

But even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give You.”

John 11:22 NTV

pero aun ahora, yo sé que Dios te dará todo lo que pidas.

IS IT DIFFICULT? “EVEN NOW”!! DOES IT STINK? “EVEN NOW”!! SOUNDS IMPOSSIBLE? “EVEN NOW”!! ARE YOU PASSING THROUGH SOMETHING ABSOLUTELY PAINFUL? “EVEN NOW!!” THERE IS NO IMPOSSIBLE FOR JESUS, EVEN NOW!!!

Let’s remember Jesus’ words, right before going to Bethany, He had said prophetically:

John 11:4 NKJV

When Jesus heard that, He said, “This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

John 11:4 RVR95BTO

Jesús, al oírlo, dijo: —Esta enfermedad no es para muerte, sino para la gloria de Dios, para que el Hijo de Dios sea glorificado por ella.

Today, I want to affirm with all the conviction: the COVID 19 does not have the final word, your sickness does not have the final word, your unemployment does not have the final word, your addiction does not have the final word, your marriage crisis does not have the final word, but all of this, it’s for the glory of God to be manifested in your life!

Brothers and sisters, dear friends, the question that Jesus asked Martha over 2000 years ago, continues echoing today: “I am the resurrection and the life, DO YOU BELIEVE”? Because if you do, there is no impossible for those who believe”!

What Jesus did for Lazarus, he will do with you one day!

You and I will live forever, and not only that, in a resurrected body! Do you believe that?

Let’s pray.