The Shepherd-King Cries Out

Starting at verse 38, we read, Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb.

Deeply moved again. So we have to go look back at verse 33. Look at verse 33.

When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping,

Jesus was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled.

And that's the first observation I want to point out to you.

The shepherd king who cries out with power, he is deeply moved.

And he is greatly troubled. Deeply moved, strong feeling.

Moved and stirred to anger. It can also be used to say a stern admonishment.

Now this is in Greek, and I want you to picture Alexander the Great,

spreading the Greek culture across the known world.

And his famous horse was Bucephalus.

So in the Greek, this word greatly, I'm sorry, the word deeply moved.

It's also used to describe the snort of a war horse.

Can you picture Alexander the Great on his great war horse?

That word to describe his horse getting ready to charge into battle.

That's the same word used here to describe Jesus facing his enemy.

And he was greatly troubled, verse 33 says.

Now in Daniel chapter 11, verse 30, we told that the Messiah will be greatly troubled.

Daniel 11:30

He will be troubled over the suffering of his people at the hands of their enemy.

And Daniel chapter 11 says he will return and become indignant at the Holy Covenant and take action.

Daniel 11 · chapter mention

And what will be the great Messiah's action?

He will come back and show regard.

He will show favor for those who forsake his Holy Covenant.

The very ones who forsook his covenant, broke his law, were banished and exiled to Babylon.

He will come back indignant to show them favor and fulfill his Holy Covenant to them.

Brian Voss, a pastor, pointed out that with this language, John is pushing us to see Jesus not as some weak, helpless, sobbing man.

But instead, it's language of war.

Jesus here is the all-powerful, almighty, death-defeating, Satan-conquering, sin-crushing champion of God.

1 Corinthians 15 says in verse 26, the last enemy to be destroyed is death.

Jesus has set his sights on death, looking at the grave, the tomb where Lazarus was buried.

This is his father's world, and he's coming back to claim his own.

Jesus sees the wages of sin, which is death, and the death of his good friend Lazarus.

And he has mounted his war horse.

He will bring the free gift of eternal life.

You know, when Jesus cleansed the temple, he was filled with a righteous, holy zeal.

And that same zeal for the holiness of God consumes him here again, his heart, soul, and mind,

to the point that he's deeply moved, greatly troubled, and going on the offensive.

In the context of John chapter 10, we could say that the shepherd king, he sees one of his beloved lambs

John 10 · chapter mention

in the fangs of the wolf, and it's war.

Before we move on, I want to encourage you, because this very moment, we just sang the song.

Our Lord Jesus, he pleads for you.

He lives to intercede for his people.

And he is deeply moved.

The wrath of God consumes our living Lord.

When we're offended, or when someone hurts our loved ones, our family,

we see the injustice, and we feel that.

That wrath against sin, it burns.

That's who God is.

He will make all things right.

We have this promise in Isaiah 5.16.

The Lord will be exalted.

How?

In judgment.

God will show himself holy in righteousness.

So Christ is not passive.

He watches the world as Lord over all.

His sword is unsheathed, and by his holy covenant, he will save his own.

Behold him.

Second thing I want to point out to you is that our shepherd king, he keeps his promise.

Look at verse 38.

We read that it was a cave, and a stone lay against it.

I want to read a cross-reference that I would have not made this connection,

but a pastor named Sam Ranahan pointed this out.

I would just want you to hear this.

You can turn there, if you like, to Nahum,

and I want you to listen to the similarity in language,

and see if there's a biblical theology here.

See what you think.

Turn to Nahum, chapter 2, verse 9, if you like.

Nahum 2:9

The context of this prophet is that Nineveh, the great capital of Assyria,

taking all the northern tribes into exile.

They broke their covenant with the Lord.

He's banishing them from the land.

And in Nahum, chapter 2, verse 9,

Nahum 2:9

he says, Nineveh is like a pool.

In verse 8, all the waters are running away.

That great capital city has become nothing.

Nahum, chapter 2, verse 9,

Nahum 2:9

Plunder the silver.

Plunder the gold.

There is no end of the treasure or the wealth of all the precious things.

Now, the other verse will make it more clear,

but even with this imagery of plundering,

these treasures that are put away.

In the ancient world, when you collect plunder from attacking another kingdom,

where would you hide that plunder?

You would put it in caves.

You'd bury it, or maybe both.

And now look at what he says in verse 12.

Nahum, chapter 2, verse 12.

Nahum 2:12

The lion tore enough for his cubs and strangled prey for his lionesses.

He filled his caves with prey and his dens with torn flesh.

What the lion, the enemy of God's people,

has stored away in caves as his loot, as his treasure,

it's in these dark caves buried.

The enemy is destroyed.

Jesus Christ and his kingdom advances.

He will plunder that cave.

He will take out of it the precious treasures

that the enemy has hidden.

They belong to him.

Now look back at John 11 and verse 39.

Jesus said,

Take away the stone.

In verse 40, Jesus said to her,

I told you that if you believed,

you would see the glory of God.

Jesus keeps his promise.

He's referring to what he had told her back in verse 15.

For your sake, he said,

I am glad that I was not there so that you may believe.

See, it was for love that Jesus delayed.

It was for love that he stayed two more days.

And that when he would raise Lazarus from the dead,

he would be in there four days.

It was out of love.

He never for one moment,

one moment would he ever consider not keeping his promise.

Now look at verse 23.

John chapter 11, verse 23.

John 11:23

Jesus said to her,

Your brother will rise again.

In verse 24,

Martha said to him,

I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.

And Jesus said to her,

I am the resurrection and the life.

Jesus told her plainly,

Lazarus is dead.

You know God's promises.

We know many of them.

And maybe you need that simple truth

that the shepherd king keeps his promises.

But he does so on his own divine timetable.

And he does that so that he will be glorified.

And so that you will believe.

And your belief is tied to his glory.

The more your belief and your faith grows,

the more God is glorified.

So yes, he could have been there before Lazarus died.

Or he could have been there on the first day,

the second day,

the third day.

But his time was perfect

to maximize their belief and his glory.

He is the resurrection.

Look at verse 40.

For you see the glory of God.

It's for you to see the glory of God

that he will do this.

Now in John's gospel,

he works with the number seven,

a sign of completeness.

He also says at the end,

the Lord did many more signs.

There aren't even enough books to capture all of them.

But the number seven represents completeness.

And this is the seventh sign.

However, as important as this is,

even for our faith

and our hope in the resurrection one day,

this is not Christ's greatest display of his own glory.

Look to John chapter 17.

John 17 · chapter mention

Turn just a few pages forward.

He promises here that they will see his glory.

And in John 17,

John 17:1

verse 1,

our Lord Jesus Christ lifted up his eyes to heaven

and he said,

Father,

the hour has come.

Glorify your son that your son may glorify you.

John 17,

he's praying moments before he's carried off

to lay down his life for his sheep.

It will be through the death,

the burial,

the descent to hell,

the resurrection,

and the ascension of Christ

that he will be glorified.

He will be lifted up.

So Jesus was showing them with Lazarus,

one soul.

He was showing them his power over death,

the death of one of his precious lambs on earth.

But he was doing it to prepare his disciples then

and to prepare you and me now as his disciples

to see the power of the lamb of heaven over death.

Mary,

Martha,

Lazarus,

and over 500 other eyewitnesses

saw the glory of Christ on full display

in his glorified body

as he ascended to the right hand of his father.

From there he will come to judge the living and the dead.

So our shepherd king,

he keeps his promise.

And he promises that when you too,

when you walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

he will be with you.

He will keep you.

And he will comfort you.

Trust him.

The third observation is that our shepherd king,

when he prays,

his prayers are heard.

They happen.

Look at verse 39.

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.

There's a scientist at the U.S. National Lab

that helped me with this.

And you can talk to him afterwards.

Most of you know Brandon.

If you don't,

you need to meet him.

I'm going to read what a scientist wrote here.

In the first 24 to 72 hours

after a person's body dies,

medically is dead.

That's the first day,

the second day,

the third day.

Here's what happens.

And just beware,

this is going to be very gross.

Excess carbon dioxide

creates an acidic environment

causing membranes and cells to rupture.

The membranes release enzymes

that begin eating the cells

from the inside out.

On a cellular level,

that's what's going on.

On days three and four,

those leaked enzymes

from the first stage

begin producing many gases.

Due to the gases,

the human body can double in size,

giving it that bloated look.

It gets worse.

Sulfur-containing compounds

that the bacteria release

also cause skin discoloration.

The microorganisms and bacteria

produce extremely unpleasant

odors called putrefaction.

By day four,

the bacteria inside the stomach

eats up the intestines

and then it begins eating

all the internal organs.

So on the fourth day,

the internal organs

are all decomposed

and the blood-containing foam

leaks from the mouth

and the nose.

And that's why Martha said

in words that only

the new King James

could get just right,

he stinketh.

Every sister has thought

that of her brother

after a sports game,

but she said it

with more good reason.

You see,

what's the problem here?

So a Jewish funeral

lasted seven days

of mourning and grieving.

This procession,

every time they go to the tomb,

they're singing

the saddest dirge

you could write

in Hebrew and minor keys

and they're barefoot,

they're wearing sackcloth,

they have ashes on their head,

they're fasting,

they're wailing and weeping.

And Jesus

is going to recreate life.

Remember how John

introduced our Lord Jesus

in John chapter one?

This is the word of God.

This is God

who was with God

and who is God

and through whom

all things were made

that were made.

This is our Lord Jesus Christ,

the living word of God.

Now look at verse 41.

So they took away the stone.

Jesus lifted up his eyes

and said,

Father,

I thank you

that you have heard me.

See,

Jesus doesn't even ask the Father.

He just thanks him

because he knows,

he knows.

Look at verse 42.

I knew

that you always hear me,

but I said it

that they may believe

that you sent me.

Before the throne of God above,

I have a strong

and perfect plea.

A great high priest

whose name is love,

whoever stands

and pleads for me,

my name,

just like Lazarus

is called by name,

your name.

The shepherd calls his sheep

by name,

and your name

is written

on his hands

and it's written

on his heart.

What a great comfort

we have,

as J.I. Packard put it,

no matter how impossible

the odds seem

like Lazarus'

decaying body,

you and I

will lack

nothing

in this life

that will detract

you

from any

eternal

joy

that we have

promised to us

in sharing

in Christ's

resurrection.

He prays,

he pleads for you,

and his father

always

hears him

because his word

recreates

life.

So believe him.

The fourth thing

I want you to see

starting in verse 43

is that our shepherd

king loudly

cries out.

Verse 43,

when he had said

these things,

he cried out

with a loud voice,

Lazarus,

come out.

John Calvin

makes that connection

that as God's

great champion,

Jesus is storming

the final citadel.

He is confronting

the last great enemy

by the power

of his word.

he cries out.

It's the strongest

verb you could use.

It's used only

eight times

in all of the

New Testament,

six of those

by the same

author here,

John,

and four of those

times

where we're in

the crowd

of sinners

are crying out,

crucify him.

The same word.

While the sinners

were about to cry out,

crucify him,

our Lord Jesus,

the only sinless

one,

he cries out

to bring the dead

to life.

Listen to how

Ezekiel 37

Ezekiel 37:24

verse 24

describes this

Messiah.

My servant

shall be their

king,

their one shepherd,

their prince forever.

I will make

an everlasting

covenant of peace

with them.

They shall walk

in my rules

and obey me.

They will dwell

in my kingdom

and I will set

my sanctuary

in their midst

forever.

Do you hear that?

My king

will be their shepherd,

their one prince.

It will be his

kingdom where they

rest at peace

and I will set

my sanctuary

where they will

worship me

within his kingdom.

Our shepherd king

cries out

still today.

Turn to Isaiah

with me.

Isaiah chapter 49.

Isaiah 49 · chapter mention

This is one of our

great servant passages.

Isaiah 49.

The context of Isaiah

is a prophecy

about the servant

of God.

The father

promises a

people and a

reward to this

servant.

He will be the

light of the nations

we're told.

His salvation

will extend

to the very

ends of the

earth.

That's who

this servant

is.

Isaiah 49

Isaiah 49:8

verses 8

and 9.

Thus says

the Lord,

I will keep

you and give

you as a

covenant to

the people

to establish

the land,

to apportion

the desolate

heritage.

Now listen

to verse 9.

Saying to

the prisoners,

what are the

next two words?

Come out

to those

who are

in darkness

appear.

Now listen,

what happens

when he calls

them out

of darkness

and says,

come out.

They shall

feed along

the ways

and on all

the bare

heights

shall be

their pasture.

The powerful

king attacks

the enemy.

He calls

them out

and then he

feeds them

on green

pastures.

He is the

shepherd king.

Now,

when Lazarus

dies,

his soul

left his

body.

And this

was before

Christ himself

had died

and descended

to hell.

And the

scriptures are

not as clear

as regarding

the believers

in the old

covenant,

the old

testament.

We do know

his soul

would have

been in a

place of

care and

comfort.

The focus

though on

John,

you notice

it's not

on Lazarus

at all.

Other accounts

say like

when God

did a

miracle,

here's what

this person

did next.

There's

nothing about

Lazarus.

The focus

is on

the Lord

Jesus

Christ.

Out of

that dark

cave

appeared,

look at

verse 44

back in

John 11,

appeared the

man who

had died.

He came

out.

Why did

he come

out?

Because

Jesus is

the good

shepherd and

his sheep

hear his

voice and

follow him.

Matthew

Henry pointed

out it's

a good

thing that

Jesus

commanded

Lazarus

by name

to come

out because

otherwise all

the dead

would have

come out

from the

grave.

All the

dead would

have come

forth because

there is

such power

in the

voice of

Jesus,

the great

shepherd king

who is

Jesus to

you.

To

Lazarus,

he was

the shepherd

king that

he could

not deny.

How could

he not

obey?

He's the

one,

the one who

calls,

the one

who recreates

and when

he calls

you obey,

you follow

his voice.

Hear him.

well, the

fifth observation,

our last

verses here is

that our

shepherd king,

he unbinds,

he unbinds and

calls you to

life when he

raises you from

the dead.

Look at verse

44.

Lazarus came

out, but

his hands and

feet were

bound with

linen strips

and his

face was

wrapped with

a cloth and

Jesus said,

unbind him.

Now notice the

next words,

these are

familiar,

let him

go.

The enemy

of our soul

is not a

man, it's

not a

nation, it's

not an

ideology or a

political party,

the enemy of

your soul is

what leads you

to death,

it's sin,

it's Satan,

it's worldliness

that tempts

your flesh,

and it's wolves

that want to

peel away God's

lambs to

devour.

And to God's

enemy, he

says, let

him go.

In Exodus

Exodus 8:1

chapter 8,

verse 1,

thus says the

Lord to

Pharaoh, let

my people go.

Why?

That they may

serve me.

When Jesus

summons

Lazarus

commanding

death to

unbind one

of his

sheep and

let it

go, he's

saying sin

that leads

to death

has no

longer a

claim on

those who

belong to

the good

shepherd.

Brian Voss

again pointed

out Jesus

summons death

to come

forth and

bind him,

tie him

up in

order to

unbind

his sheep.

There's no

other way for

his sheep to

be spiritually

unbound from

the curse

of sin

unless Christ

himself be

bound in

their place.

Jesus summons

death to

bind him so

that you and

I will forever

be unbound.

We've been let

go.

We are not

prisoners of

sin and

Satan.

He commanded

death to

claim him,

take my life

so that my

sheep can live

and have life

forever.

Unbind him

and let him

go.

Release my

prisoner.

Psalm 107

Psalms 107:16

verse 16

says that he

shatters the

doors of

bronze and

cuts into the

bars of

iron.

It could be

that God has

brought you

here in his

providence to

hear this

truth that if

you are

entangled in

sins of the

flesh but you

have heard your

shepherd's voice

just as powerful

as his word is

to recreate

Lazarus'

physical body,

it's just that

powerful to

recreate your

life in

Christ.

You are not

bound to

sin.

He says,

let them go,

they belong to

me and in

me they have

life and it's

a life that

is abundant.

Romans 8

21, we have

this promise that

there will be a

great day when

the creation

itself will be

set free from

its bondage to

corruption and

obtain the

freedom of the

glory of the

children of God.

What will that

day be like?

How can we

even picture our

risen Lord and

his glorified

body?

Well, listen to

the description of

this same author,

John, in

Revelation chapter

Revelation 1:10

1, verse 10.

He's bearing

witness as an

eyewitness again.

I, John, was in

the spirit on the

Lord's day and I

heard behind me a

loud voice like a

trumpet.

In Revelation 1,

Revelation 1:15

verse 15, he

says, his voice was

like the roar of

many waters.

When I saw him, I

fell at his feet as

though dead.

But he laid his

right hand on me

saying, fear not, I

am the first and

the last and the

living one.

I died and behold, I

am alive forevermore.

And I have the keys

to death in Hades.

When a soldier hears the

bugle sound at the

crack of dawn, he

gets up early, falls in

line, and is prepared

for war.

When Christ's own, hear

his powerful voice of

the shepherd king, we

obey.

I want to wrap this

up by simply letting

you know that this

same shepherd king

from John 11, he

cries out loudly to

you.

And he says, I came

to seek and save the

lost.

Luke 19, whoever

believes in me has

eternal life.

Whoever does not

obey me will not

see life, but the

wrath of God remains

on him.

John 3, I am the

shepherd king, my

sheep, hear my good

voice and follow me.

So if you hear him

today, he's crying out

your name, follow him.

Obey his call on your

life.

We believe that there

are still some trapped

inside the gates of

hell right here where

God has planted our

congregations.

And when they hear the

gospel, they will

believe.

They will go to King

Jesus and they will

follow him.

And his promise is

that my blood cleanses

you from all sin.

First John 1, Jesus

said, look unto me and

be saved.

Who?

All the ends of the

earth for I am God

and there is none

else.

Isaiah 45, 22.

Because Christ lives,

the promise to you

and to me is this,

that Isaiah 26, 19.

Each one of us here has

probably lost a loved

one, but listen to this

promise.

Just like Lazarus, your

dead shall live.

Their bodies shall rise.

You who dwell in the

dust, praise and sing for

joy for your due is a

due of light and the

earth will give birth to

the dead.

God, the good shepherd

does not leave a single

one of his lambs lost.

He goes and finds you

and he brings you back

to him and no one can

snatch you out of his

hands because he has

destroyed death by his

own death and resurrection

and he has conquered the

grave.

He has risen.

And our King Jesus, our

great shepherd King, he

lives.

Behold him, trust him,

believe him, hear him,

obey him.

Let's pray.

From Isaiah 25, verse 8.

Isaiah 25:8

O Lord, you swallowed up

death forever.

You, O Lord, you promised

that you will wipe away the

tears from all the faces of

your people.

Cause us to trust in you, our

everlasting rock, our Lord,

our God, today and forever

more.

May you be glorified in all

the earth for Christ's sake.

Thank you for Jesus.

Thank you for how he rules

over his church by his

spirit.

And may the spirit bear the

fruit of your eternal kingdom

in our lives more and more

each day until you come back.

And please come quickly,

Lord Jesus, we ask.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.