Sermon Tone Analysis

! Introduction:

*Purpose 1*: to glorify God and to proclaim that Jesus is the Son of God (v.4).

*Purpose 2*: to show Jesus’ great love (v.5).

*Purpose 3*: to show the necessity for /waiting upon God/ in great crises (v.6).

Twelve Reasons Why We Experience A Delay

·                     Disobedience (Ps.81:10-12,16);

Doubt (James 1:5-8); Wrong motivation (James 4:3)

·                     Our attempt at manipulation (1 Sam.13:8-14);

Our lack of responsibility (Prov.6:6-11)

·                     An illegitimate need; God’s Redirection (Gen.37,

39-50); God’s desire to teach us (Phil.3:13)

·                     God’s desire to bring us to repentance (Luke 15:11-31)

*Purpose 4*: to teach the need to grasp opportunity (v.7-10).

!!! 1.                  Spiritual Laziness—Sleeping Spiritually (Romans 13:11-14)

!!!! a)                  It Is Time To Awaken Out Of Sleep.

!!!!! (1)                 Too many believers are /slumbering/ and paying no attention to what is going on in the world.

!!!!! (2)                 Too many are /satisfied and slothful/, lazily passing through life with /little commitment/ to serving Christ.

!!!!! (3)                 Not many are meeting the needs of the suffering and dying massses of the world.

!!!!! (4)                 It is time “to awake” (egerthenai) out of sleep: time to wake up, to be aroused and stirred.

The exhortation is strong, and there are two reasons for its forcefulness.

!!!!! (1)                 *Our Salvation Is Nearer Than When We Believed (v.11).*

!!!!!! (a)                 The word “salvation” is being used in a future sense, referring to the glorious day when we shall be fully saved.

!!!!!! (b)                The Word */Salvation/ *is used in Scripture 3 different ways:

(i)                   *The /once-for-all experience/ *of salvation (Luke 7:50 cf.

Eph.2:8; 2Tim1:9).

Saved from the condemnation of /sin, death, & hell/.

(ii)                 *The /continuous /experience* of salvation (1Cor.1:18).

Being saved from the dominion of sin and is being sanctified (Heb.7:25)

(iii)                *The /redemptive experience/* in the future (Rom.13:11)

Will be saved from the very presence of sin in heaven forever (Rom.5:9-10)

The point is dramatic: the day is /nearer/ than when we believed.

Awaken out of sleep—arouse yourself—get up—pay attention:

 

!!!!! (2)                 *Judgment Is At Hand (v.12).*

!!!!!! (a)                 The night is far spent; the day is at hand.

What day?

The day when we will meet God face to face, either through death or through the return of the Lord Jesus.

Time is fleeting, passing ever so rapidly—so prepare.

"/Prepare to meet your God”/" (Amos 4:12, NKJV)

"/Prepare the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight.’

”/" (Matthew 3:3, NKJV)

""/Awake to righteousness, and do not sin; for some do not have the knowledge of God”/ (1 Corinthians 15:34, NKJV)

"/Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober./"

(1 Thessalonians 5:6, NKJV)

*Purpose 5*: to show Jesus’ great power over death (v.11-14).

*Purpose 6*: to help strengthen the disciples’ belief (v.15).

*Purpose 7*: to stir the disciples’ courage and loyalty (v.16).

!!! 2.                  The Fifth Purpose of Lazarus’ Sickness: To Jesus’ Power Over Death (v.11-14) 

Jesus stated very plainly what He was going to do.

Lazarus was asleep; therefore, He would go and awaken Lazarus out of his sleep.

However, the disciples misunderstood what Jesus was saying.

/By sleep/ Jesus meant that Lazarus was dead, but the disciples thought He meant that Lazarus was resting in sleep.

Note that Jesus gave His meaning of sleep: “Lazarus is dead” (v.14).

*Note Four Significant Things.*

!!!! a)                  Jesus called Lazarus “our friend.”

He was dead, but he was still “our friend” (v.11b).

!!!!! (1)                 This is a hint that Lazarus is still a friend despite being dead, that he is still living, still alive in another world.

Note the strong feelings Jesus had for this believer, Lazarus.

!!!!! (2)                 Jesus’ love reaches out for every believer just as much as it did for Lazarus.

!!!!!! (a)                 Jesus calls every believer His friend (John 15:15).

!!!!!! (b)                James 2:23 says that “Abraham was a friend of God”, & “God’s friend forever” (2Chron.20:7;

Is.48:1).

!!!!!! (c)                 Exodus 33:11 “the Lord spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend.”

!!!!! (3)                 And note the words “/our/ friend.”

Every believer is to be the friend of all other believers.

There is to be a sweet fellowship between all believers.

!!!! b)                  Jesus Predicted That He Would Raise Lazarus From The Dead (v.11c).

!!!!! (1)                 Jesus said He would “wake him” and “resurrect him”.

!!!!!! (a)                 This Is A Picture Of The Resurrection Of Believers (John 11:23-26).

“Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation” (John 5:28-29).

!!!! c)                  The Disciples Misunderstood The Meaning Of Death & Resurrection (v.12-14).

!!!!! (1)                 Jesus Said That Death Is As “Sleep” (John 11:13).

Death is sometimes spoken of as sleep when referring to believers (2 Peter 3:4.)

!!!!!! (a)                 Jesus said that Jairus’ daughter was asleep (Luke 8:49-56).

!!!!!! (b)                When Jesus died, tombs were opened of those who had fallen asleep (Matt.27:51-53).

!!!!!! (c)                 When Stephen was martyred, he is said to have fallen asleep (Acts 7:54-60).

!!!!!! (d)                Some of the five hundred witnesses to Jesus’ ascension are said to have “fallen asleep” (1 Cor.

15:6,18,20.51).

!!!!!! (e)                 Believers already in heaven are said to be asleep in Jesus (1 Thes.

4:13).

!!!!! (2)                 Death is called “sleep” in order to picture the idea that the believer is...

!!!!!! (a)                 resting in the presence and comfort of God.

!!!!!! (b)                resting from the labor of his service on earth.

!!!!!! (c)                 resting and refreshing himself for a greater service for God.

!!!!! (3)                 Many Within The World Picture Death As *Annihilation*, As Ceasing To Exist.

!!!!!! */Annihilation     /*/“to destroy completely; to reduce to nonexistence”/

!!!!!! (a)                 When the Bible speaks of death, it does not refer to annihilation.

Nowhere does the Scripture teach the annihilation of the soul.

/Everyone/ will live forever, somewhere.

Death means separation, specifically, separation from God.

!!!!!! (b)                God *is able* both *to save* those who place their faith in Christ and to destroy unrepentant sinners; that is how He applies His law (cf.

Deut.

32:39; 1 Cor.

1:18).

The angel told Joseph that Jesus would “save His people from their sins” (Matt.

1:21), while Jesus Himself described His mission as “to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10).

Paul wrote that the gospel “is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” (Rom.

1:16).

The writer of Hebrews declares of the Lord Jesus Christ, “He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them” (Heb.

7:25).

!!!!!! (c)                 Those who refuse to repent, however, God will *destroy.*

*Destroy* is from /apollumi,/ and *does not refer to annihilation, *but to eternal destruction in hell (cf.

Matt.

10:28; 25:46; 2 Thess.

1:9).

!!!!! (4)                 All people continue to exist.

Believers continue to exist, resting in the life and comfort of God.