John 11:38-44

Well amen and good morning. It's good to see each of you today. Please take your copy of God's Word this morning and turn with me once again to John chapter 11,

John 11 · chapter mention

where we'll conclude our consideration of the raising of Lazarus from the dead. Because we have spent the last two weeks working our way carefully through this chapter, and because some of you may have not been with us for every part of the study,

I want to begin by reminding us of the road that John has taken us in bringing us to this moment.

Because what happens at the tomb in verses 38 through 44 cannot really be understood apart from everything Jesus has already said and done throughout the chapter.

John 11 began with a problem that from the perspective of Mary and Martha seemed simple enough.

Their brother Lazarus was sick.

Jesus loved Lazarus and therefore the sisters sent word to Jesus with what was almost certainly the expectation that the one who had healed so many strangers would surely come quickly to help someone whom he personally loved.

Yet from the very beginning, Jesus interpreted Lazarus' illness differently than everyone else did.

Because whereas Mary and Martha saw an emergency that needed immediate intervention, Jesus saw an occasion through which the glory of God would be displayed.

He says in verse 4,

And that statement governs the entire chapter.

Before Lazarus dies, before Jesus ever arrives in Bethany, before Martha comes running to meet him, before Mary falls weeping at his feet, and before Jesus stands outside the tomb,

He has already told us what all of this is ultimately about.

It is about the glory of God being revealed through the Son of God.

And then as we saw when we began this chapter, John tells us something that initially seems almost impossible to reconcile with the love of Christ.

John explicitly says that Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, and then, rather than saying that because he loved them, he immediately left for Bethany,

John says that because he loved them, he remained where he was for two additional days.

In other words, the delay of Christ was not a contradiction of his love, it was an expression of his love.

Because Jesus intended to give this family something far greater than the immediate relief that they were asking him to provide.

They wanted Jesus to prevent Lazarus from dying.

Jesus intended to reveal himself as the one who possesses authority over death itself.

That distinction matters because it reminds us the love of God cannot always be measured by how quickly he delivers us from difficulty,

nor can the goodness of God be assessed simply by comparing his providence with the outcome we would have preferred.

There are times when the love of Christ leads him to give us precisely what we ask for.

And there are other times when that same love, operating according to wisdom infinitely greater than our own,

leads him to delay, to withhold, or even to take us through circumstances we would never have chosen for ourselves.

The sisters prayed in effect, Lord, come and heal Lazarus.

Jesus loved them too much merely to answer that prayer in the way they expected.

As the chapter continues, Jesus eventually tells his disciples plainly that Lazarus has died,

and then he adds something which, apart from everything else we know about him, might almost sound cruel.

For your sake, I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe.

Jesus is not glad that Lazarus suffered, nor is he delighted in the grief of these sisters.

Rather, he is glad because he knows that what he is about to reveal concerning himself will strengthen the faith of his disciples

in a way that merely preventing the sickness from ending in death never could.

And so the themes emerge clearly.

Glory, faith, resurrection life.

By the time Jesus arrives in Bethany, Lazarus has already been in the tomb for days.

And Martha, upon hearing that Jesus is approaching the village,

goes out to meet him and says what has surely passed through the hearts of countless believers in moments of suffering.

Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.

There is faith in that statement, but also confusion.

Martha believes Jesus possesses extraordinary power,

but she cannot yet understand why he did not exercise that power when she wanted him to exercise it.

And it is into that confusion that Jesus speaks perhaps the most important words in the entire chapter.

I am the resurrection and the life.

Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live.

Jesus does not merely tell Martha that he is capable of performing a resurrection.

He tells her that resurrection is inseparably bound up with his own identity.

I am the resurrection and the life.

He is not merely one who possesses life.

He is the life.

He is not simply someone through whom resurrection may occur.

He is the resurrection.

Then he turns this great theological declaration toward Martha personally and asks,

Do you believe this?

Martha responds with that remarkable confession.

Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.

Then Mary comes and when she arrives, she falls at Jesus' feet and repeats the same words Martha had spoken.

Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.

Jesus sees Mary weeping.

He sees the mourners around her weeping.

He sees everything that sin and death have done to this family, their hopeless grief.

And John tells us that he is deeply moved and greatly troubled.

Then comes that simple sentence, Jesus wept.

We saw last week that this is not merely the emotional response of a sympathetic friend,

although it is certainly that.

Rather, there is something deeper happening in Jesus.

Because the language John uses conveys not only sorrow, but indignation.

Jesus stands in the presence of death and is moved with holy anger.

Jesus grieves because death and unbelief is an enemy.

But he does not grieve as one who is powerless before that enemy.

He is about to confront it.

Christian hope does not eliminate grief.

It gives grief something to hold on to.

So with that, we come to John chapter 11, verses 38 through 44.

John 11:38–44

Let me pray for us before I read it.

Father God, we thank you this morning for your word.

We thank you that you have not left us to invent our own ideas about your son,

but have given us this inspired testimony

so that seeing who he is and understanding what he has done,

we might believe that Jesus is the Christ.

And that by believing, we might have life in his name.

Guard us, we pray, from the kind of familiarity

that allows us to read of a dead man walking out of a tomb

without being astonished by the glory of Christ.

Give us eyes to see him, ears to hear his word,

faith to trust him, and hearts that delight in his glory.

And Father, if there are those among us who remain spiritually dead in their sins,

would you, through the gospel this morning,

cause them to hear the voice of your son and live?

We ask this in Jesus' name and for the glory of that name.

Amen.

John 11, I'll begin reading in verse 38.

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 for days.

Jesus said to her,

did I not tell you that if you believe 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.

If you'll allow,

I'd like to draw your attention to our text

in four alliterated points.

You know, I've heard the argument made at times

that alliteration is meant to help us remember the points of a sermon,

but I'm fully aware that too much is said in these sermons

for you to really remember the points.

I'm hoping that you might take notes

or go back and listen to the recording later.

So I want you to know that I alliterate just for fun.

I spend a lot of time staring at words on a page,

and so I just enjoy doing it.

So there we are.

The Baptist joke often seems appropriate.

I don't do it for that reason.

I do it because it's fun.

So, number one,

Jesus confronts death.

We see these in these first two verses,

and I've mentioned it already.

John's description is almost startling in its simplicity.

There's no attempt to dramatize the scene artificially

because the facts themselves possess more than enough weight.

There's a cave.

There's a stone covering its entrance.

There's a dead man inside,

and standing outside is Jesus Christ,

the one who has just declared himself

to be the resurrection and the life.

John tells us that Jesus is deeply moved again

using the same strong language we encountered earlier in the chapter,

which means that as Jesus approaches the tomb,

he is not merely experiencing the sadness of a friend who has lost someone he loves.

He is confronting with holy indignation the dreadful reality of death and unbelief itself.

The Bible never treats death and unbelief as though it belonged to the original goodness of God's creation.

When God created the world,

he looked upon all that he had made and declared it very good.

But death,

doubt,

entered through

sin.

So what now seems

universal and unavoidable

is nevertheless an intruder

into the world

that God made.

Paul writing in 1 Corinthians chapter 15

1 Corinthians 15 · chapter mention

does not call death our friend.

He calls it the last enemy.

That distinction is important

because Christians

sometimes speak about death so casually

that we unintentionally say more

than Scripture itself says.

It is true that

for the believer,

death has lost its condemning power.

It is true that

to be absent from the body

is to be present with the Lord.

It is true that

death cannot separate us

from the love of God

in Christ Jesus.

But none of that means

death itself

has somehow

become good.

We were created for

life with God

and therefore

when the eternal Son of God

through whom all things were created

comes face to face

with the devastation

death has brought

into His creation.

He is deeply moved.

And He says in verse 39,

take away the stone.

Notice the authority

with which Jesus speaks.

He doesn't ask

whether everyone is comfortable

with the opening of the grave

nor does He offer

a lengthy explanation

of what He intends to do.

He simply commands

that the stone be removed.

And Martha immediately

raises what

from every ordinary

human perspective

is a perfectly reasonable

objection.

Lord,

by this time

there will be an odor

for He has been

dead for

days.

Fun fact,

the King James

renders this statement

by Martha.

Lord,

by this time

He stinketh.

death.

It's remarkably

direct.

But it communicates

exactly what Martha

understands about

the situation.

Jesus has told them

to open a grave

containing a body

that has been dead

for days.

Martha is not denying

Jesus' power

in some abstract sense.

She has already confessed

that He is the Christ,

the Son of God.

What she is struggling with

is the collision

between what she believes

about Jesus

and what she knows

about the body

lying behind that stone.

Lazarus is dead.

Not recently.

Not apparently.

Not unconscious.

Not hovering

somewhere near death.

Lazarus

is dead

and her faith

is faltering.

John is taking

great care

to remove

every possible

natural explanation

for what is about

to happen.

Because Lazarus

has been in the tomb

long enough

that decomposition

has begun.

And Martha knows it

well.

Lord,

he stinketh.

Now,

a tomb allows us

to place

a boundary

around death.

We know what is inside

but the stone

prevents the side of it,

sterilizes

its reality.

There's something

merciful about burial

for that very reason

because we commit

the bodies

of those

who we love

to the ground

rather than watching

the process of decay

unfold

before us.

But Jesus orders

the boundary removed.

He is about to

confront death

in all its

ugliness.

And this is where

we need to remember

that Christianity

is not fundamentally

a program

designed to help

basically healthy people

become somewhat

better versions

of themselves.

If our problem

were merely

ignorance,

Jesus would have

come

as a teacher.

If our problem

were merely

bad habits,

Jesus would have

come as a

moral instructor.

If our problem

were merely

political disorder,

Jesus could have

come as a statesman.

If our problem

were merely

emotional instability,

Jesus could have

come

as a counselor.

And it comes

as many of those

things.

But our problem

fundamentally

goes far deeper

than any of

those things

because we are

sinners

standing under

the sentence

of death.

Alienated from

the God

who made us

and incapable

of resurrecting

and rescuing

ourselves.

Jesus did not

come merely

to improve

our lives.

He came

to give

life

to the dead.

And so,

although His

Lordship certainly

transforms marriages

and families,

affects the way

we work,

teaches us how

to forgive,

changes how

we handle money,

and reshapes

every dimension

of human life,

we must never

reduce Christianity

to just

those

things.

The gospel

is not fundamentally

about becoming

a nicer person.

the gospel

is about

reconciliation

with God

through the

death and

resurrection

of Jesus

Christ.

It is about

resurrection.

I have no doubt

that Paul has

this miracle

in mind

as he writes

in Ephesians

Ephesians 2 · chapter mention

chapter 2.

And you were

dead

in the trespasses

and sins

in which you

once walked,

following the

course of this

world,

following the

prince of the

power of the

air,

the spirit

that is now

in work

and the

sons of

disobedience,

among whom

we all once

lived in the

passions of

our flesh,

carrying out

the desires

of the flesh

and the mind,

and were by

nature children

of wrath

like the

rest of

mankind.

But God,

being rich

in mercy,

because of the

great love

with which he

loved us,

even when we

were dead

in our

trespasses,

made us

alive together

with Christ.

By grace

you have been

saved,

and raised us

up with him

and seated us

with him in

the heavenly

places in

Christ Jesus,

so that in

the coming

ages he

might show

the immeasurable

riches of his

grace and

kindness toward

us in

Christ Jesus.

Jesus we

see first

confront

death.

Second,

Jesus calls

us to see

his glory.

Verse 40,

Jesus responds

to Martha,

did I not

tell you that

if you

believed you

would see

the glory

of God?

Now the

great theme

has governed

this entire

chapter returns.

Jesus began

by saying that

Lazarus'

sickness was

for the glory

of God so

that the

Son of God

might be

glorified through

it, and

now standing

outside the

tomb with

Martha

understandably

concerned about

what will

happen when

the stone

is removed,

Jesus calls

her back to

what he

has already

said.

Did I

not tell

you?

That question

is more

important than

we might

initially realize,

because Jesus

does not answer

Martha primarily

by giving her

new information,

he answers her

by reminding

her of the

word she

has already

received.

And very

often, that

is precisely

what struggling

faith needs.

There are

seasons in the

Christian life

when what we

most desperately

require is not

some new

revelation from

God, but a

renewed grasp

of what God

has already

revealed.

We are slow

learners and

quick to

forget,

particularly

when suffering

narrows our

vision.

We know

that God

is sovereign,

but the

circumstances

begin to

unravel and

we find

ourselves

behaving as

though he

has lost

control.

We know

that Christ

loves his

people, but

then he

delays in

answering a

prayer and

we begin to

interpret

silence as

indifference.

We know

that the

promises of

God are

certain,

but then

death,

sickness,

disappointment,

fear,

occupies the

whole field

of vision and

suddenly the

things we

confessed yesterday

seemed much

more difficult

to believe

today.

At that

point, the

written word

comes to us

as Jesus

comes to

Martha and

asks,

did I not

tell you?

Did I not

tell you that

I am the

resurrection and

the life?

Did I not

tell you that

whoever believes

in me,

though he

die,

yet shall

he live?

Did I not

tell you that

no one can

snatch my

sheep from

my hand?

Did I not

tell you that

all things

work together

for good for

those who

love God

and are

called according

to his

purpose?

Did I not

tell you that

nothing in all

creation can

separate you from

the love of

God in

Christ

Jesus?

faith does

not require

us to

know

everything

God

is doing.

Faith

requires us

to trust

what God

has said.

And Jesus

tells Martha

that through

believing she

will see

the glory

of God.

And Jesus

tells Martha

that if she

will grasp

hold of this

reality,

she will

be enthralled.

Now we need

to be careful

with these

words because

this verse

has sometimes

been interpreted

as though

Martha's faith

itself were

the force

that would

make the

miracle possible.

As though

Jesus was

saying that

if she

could summon

enough

confidence,

her faith

would unlock

divine power.

That cannot

possibly be

the point.

The power

of this

passage does

not belong

to Martha's

faith.

The power

belongs to

Jesus Christ.

Lazarus

will not

walk out

of the

tomb

because

Martha

has

finally

achieved

the

proper

psychological

condition.

He will

walk out

of the

tomb

because

the

Son of

God

possesses

authority

to give

life

to the

dead.

Faith

does not

create

the glory

of Christ.

Faith

beholds

the glory

that already

belongs

to Christ.

That is

an enormously

important

distinction,

particularly

in an age

when faith

is so often

treated as

though it

were a

force

within us

by which

we manipulate

outcomes.

Biblical

faith is

not confidence

in

confidence.

It is not

believing

strongly

enough that

something

desirable

will happen.

Biblical

faith

has an

object.

It

rests upon

the character,

promises,

and person

of God

supremely

revealed

in Jesus

Christ.

And that

brings us

to the

question,

what exactly

is the

glory Martha

is about

to see?

Certainly

she is going

to witness

something

spectacular

because her

brother is

about to

walk out

of his

tomb.

But in

John's

gospel,

the glory

of God

is never

merely

spectacle.

John told

us at the

very beginning

of the

gospel that

the eternal

word became

flesh and

dwelt among

us, and

that in

him the

disciples

beheld

the glory

of the

only Son

from the

Father.

In other

words, the

glory of God

is being

revealed in

the person

of Jesus

Christ.

If you

want to

know what

God is

like,

look at

the Son.

This

morning as

we consider

Christ standing

outside the

tomb, behold

your God.

This

morning as

we look

and read

testimony of

the resurrection

of Lazarus,

behold your

God.

Faith

beholds the

glory of

Christ.

So when

Jesus tells

Martha that

she will see

the glory of

God, he

is not merely

promising her

an extraordinary

moment.

He is

inviting her

to see

more clearly

who he

is.

And

Christian

faith still

does exactly

that.

Faith looks

through the

providence.

It cannot

explain to

the Christ

whose

character

it knows.

And

consider how

remarkable

the revelation

is here.

Jesus

firstly

confronts

death.

Secondly

calls us

to see

his glory.

Thirdly

Jesus

communes

with the

Father.

Verses

41

and 42

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.

For those

keeping score

this is

I argue

the chiastic

center

of the

text.

Although we

have not

arrived at

the middle

of the

sermon.

verse 41

begins

so they

took away

the stone.

There's a

quiet beauty

in the

simplicity

of that

obedience.

Jesus has

spoken

Martha has

expressed her

concern

Jesus is a

reminder her

of his

promise

and now

the stone

is removed.

Then John

tells us

and Jesus

lifted up

his eyes

and said

father I

thank you

that you

have heard

me.

Before

Jesus speaks

to Lazarus

he speaks

to his

father and

for a

moment

John allows

us to

overhear

something of

the communion

that exists

eternally

between the

father and

the son.

This

relationship

has been

one of the

dominant themes

of John's

gospel from

the beginning.

The son is

from the

father.

The son is

sent by the

father.

The son

speaks the

words of

the father.

The son

performs the

works of

the father.

The father

loves the

son.

The son

perfectly

delights in

the will

of the

father.

There is

no competition

within the

Godhead.

No disagreement

of purpose.

No reluctant

father whom

the compassionate

son must

somehow persuade

to be

merciful.

Father and

son act in

perfect

unity.

me.

And so

Jesus lifts

his eyes

and says

father I

thank you

that you

have heard

me.

Notice the

tense.

Jesus does

not say

father I

hope you

will hear

me nor

does he

say father

please decide

now whether

you will

grant my

request.

He thanks

the father

that he

has heard

him.

Whatever

communion has

already passed

between father

and son

concerning

Lazarus is

not recorded

for us.

But Jesus

thanksgiving

makes clear

that the

miracle about

to occur

is the

outworking

of their

perfect

agreement.

Then he

says in

verse 42

I knew

that you

always

hear me.

There has

never been

nor could

there ever

be a

defect in

the communion

between the

father and

the son.

Every prayer

of Jesus

arises from

perfect

righteousness

perfect

wisdom

perfect

submission

and perfect

fellowship

with his

father.

And that

matters

because

Lazarus'

resurrection

is not

intended

merely to

demonstrate

that Jesus

is a

powerful

miracle

worker.

It reveals

his identity

who he

is.

Back in

John 5

which in a

broader

chiastic

structure

corresponds

with this

chapter

after Jesus

healed the

man at

the pool

of Bethesda

and the

religious

leaders

became

enraged

because he

was making

himself

equal with

God

Jesus

explained

that the

son does

what he

sees the

father

doing.

And among

the divine

works

Jesus

explicitly

claimed for

himself

was

the giving

of life.

He said

for as the

father raises

the dead

and gives

them life

so also

the son

gives life

to whom

he will.

Now

several

chapters

later

the truth

of that

claim

stands

before us

in visible

form.

The father

gives life

the son

gives life

the father

and son

are not

competing

agents

but act

together

in the

work of

God.

And

therefore

when Jesus

stands in

front of

Lazarus

grave

and prepares

to call

him out

we are

seeing

more than

a prophet

through whom

God

happens

to perform

an

extraordinary

miracle.

We are

seeing

the divine

son

exercising

the life

giving

authority

he shares

with the

father.

Jesus

then

explains

why

he has

prayed

aloud.

I said

this

on account

of the

people

standing

around.

In other

words

the prayer

is not

necessary

because

the father

needs

information

or

persuasion

Jesus

prays

audibly

for the

benefit

of the

crowd

and why

to what

end

to what

benefit

that they

may

believe

that you

sent

me.

For those

of you

who don't

know

I'm a

type 1

diabetic

my phone

is on

silent

but not

when my

blood

sugar is

dropping

so that's

what's

beeping

very loudly

I'm

okay

don't

worry

about

me

my

little

stumbles

over

words

have

been

because

I

think

my

blood

sugar

is

dropping

but

we're

going

to

make

it

through

I'm

going

to

make

it

to

a

glass

of

juice

my

lovely

wife

is

going

to

go

get

me

one

right

now

thank

you

Sam

I

don't

think

I

could

tell

her

no

at

this

point

so

she'll

bring

it

up

here

momentarily

this

is

another

great

theme

of

the

chapter

right

not

only

glory

but

belief

Jesus

said

the

disciples

would

believe

he

asked

Martha

whether

she

believed

now

he

prays

so

that

the

crowd

might

believe

and

eventually

John

will

tell

us

that's

why

he

wrote

the

gospel

itself

John

20

you've

heard

this

many

times

verse

30

and

31

Jesus

did

many

other

signs

in the

presence

of

the

disciples

which

are

not

written

in

this

book

but

these

are

written

so

that

you

may

believe

that

Jesus

is

the

Christ

the

Son

of

God

and

that

by

believing

you

may

have

life

in

his

name

the

signs

are

never

intended

to

terminate

upon

themselves

they're

not

the

point

John

does not

want us

merely to

walk away

saying

what an

astonishing

miracle

he

wants

us

to

ask

what

does

this

miracle

reveal

about

Jesus

and

the

answer

is that

Jesus

is the

Christ

the

Son

sent

by

the

Father

the

one

in

whom

life

is

found

Jesus

confronts

death

number

one

Jesus

calls

us

to

see

his

glory

number

two

Jesus

communes

with

the

Father

number

three

and

lastly

Jesus

commands

the

dead

to

live

we

see

this

in

the

last

two

verses

in

closing

when

he

said

these

things

he

cried

out

with

a

loud

voice

Lazarus

come

out

and

that

was

fun

we

will

forever

remember

that

stain

and

where

it

came

from

now

we

arrive

at

the

moment

toward

which

the

entire

chapter

has

been

moving

when

he

had

said

these

things

Lazarus

come

out

perhaps

the

most

astonishing

feature

of

the

miracle

is

the

complete

absence

of

pomp

there

is

no

ritual

there

is

no

incantation

there

is

no

elaborate

ceremony

jesus

does

not

plead

with

death

negotiate

with

death

or

engage

in

some

cosmic

contest

whose

outcome

remains

uncertain

until

the

final

moment

he

simply

speaks

and

the

dead

man

obeys

that

should

be

astonishing

to

us

we

are

not

dualists

thinking

that

somehow

the

battle

between

light

and

death

is

not

already

settled

jesus

simply

says

lazarus

come

out

i think

our

familiarity

with

the

story

sometimes

prevents

us

from

feeling

the

force

of

what

john

records

imagine

that you

have been

there

you have

watched

lazarus

become

sick

you have

heard

that he

died

perhaps

you

had

helped

wash

and

prepare

the

body

you

have

attended

the

burial

you

watched

as

his

body

was

carried

into

the

doom

and

the

stone

rolled

across

the

opening

four

days

have

now

passed

and

you

have

spent

those

days

sitting

with

the

sisters

bringing

food

speaking

words

of

comfort

and

doing

what

people

have

always

done

in

the

face

of

death

grieving

because

there's

nothing

else

that

you

can

do

then

Jesus

arrives

!

into

the

darkness

of

the

tomb

perhaps

already

recoiling

at

the

spell

that

Martha

had

warned

them

about

and

Jesus

cries

with a

loud

voice

Lazarus

come out

then

from

inside

the

tomb

there

is

movement

the

man

you

buried

walks

out

John

records

it

with

such

understatement

the

man

who

had

died

came

out

this

is

exactly

what

Jesus

said

earlier

in

John's

gospel

would

happen

in

John

5

he

declared

that

the

hour

is

coming

when

the

dead

will

hear

the

voice

of

the

Son

of

God

and

those

who

hear

will

live

what

happens

in

Bethany

is

therefore

not

merely

an

isolated

demonstration

of

miraculous

power

it

is

a

preview

of

the

life

giving

authority

that

belongs

to

the

Son

and

a

sign

pointing

forward

to