I Am The Resurrection

I am the resurrection

John Chapter 11

Mark Aarssen New St. Andrews Dover March 3, 2013

Week 3. We travel with Jesus from safety to danger

The Holy Land was split in four sections ruled by four brothers

As long as Jesus did not cross the line He would be safe from Herod

As long as you and I don’t cross the line we’ll be O.K. too (keep your beliefs to yourself don’t talk about God or your faith in Him)

Jesus knew that Lazarus would die but He did not go to him immediately (why?)

Jesus waited and Mary and Martha waited (sometimes everyone waits on God)

They all waited in order that the Glory of God might be displayed when Jesus arrives

John 11:4

4 When he heard this, Jesus said, This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God's glory so that God's Son may be glorified through it.

So Lazarus death was necessary so that Gods glory could be shown to work through Jesus – God’s son

We know that when Jesus arrives; when He shows up things change for the better

Jesus arrives at the home of His dead friend Lazarus and the accusation is put to Jesus –

IF only you’d been here! – (The healer, the miracle man)

Many of us have lost loved ones even though we have cried out to God

But God does not set His clock by our time

Our Heavenly Father has marked out time by His watch for each and every one of us

We have all wondered why our loved ones had to die when and how they did.

The timing of death seems often abrupt and unfair and we try to make sense of it all

And some of us like Mary and Martha have put the same accusation before Jesus

IF you’d only been here! God this is your fault! You could have stopped this!

We make God the author of death but in reality we are.

Death is the price of our sins. That was established in the Garden of Eden when we sinned.

But Jesus is the Lamb of God – the sacrifice for our sins. Through Him we escape death.

God has provided the lamb. God has made a way for us to escape death.

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 6:23

Death demands its price. But praise God – there is held out to us the gift of God who is Jesus Christ.

And what does Jesus say?

25 Jesus said to her, I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; 26 and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?

John 11:25-26

Jesus will back up His claim by bringing back the dead

Jesus wanted to see where Lazarus had been buried.

Jesus wants us to know that all hope is not gone as long as we believe.

When Jesus arrives in a person’s life not even death can keep them separated from Him.

Romans 8:38-39

38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Some of you are on your death beds. Not physically but spiritually. You feel all hope is gone. I’m living with this woman or this man and he has not yet changed and I have cried to God to change him. Well maybe God wants to change you first.

Maybe God wants to bring you back to a spiritual life that is alive and kicking.

First Jesus says take away the stone.

Friend what cold dark place do you find your hope buried in at this time?

What stones have you put between you and God that have separated you from Jesus?

Jesus then prayed and gave God the Father the Glory for what was about to happen.

Jesus offered thanks to the Father for allowing His power to be displayed through the Son so that the crowd would know that Jesus was sent by the Father. That Jesus was the promised one – the Messiah

The evidence of who Jesus was would be made known by the miracle of life that only comes from the Father.

Jesus is that life.

Jesus said:

40 For my Father's will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. John 6:40

Some of us here are living as if we were in a dark cold tomb where no light could enter. We are wrapped in the clothing of our religion which is a ceremonial outer covering that makes us appear prim and proper. We are dressed in our Sunday best and some of us will probably be buried looking very much like we are today. But friend what is on the inside – in your heart?