Jesus The meaning of live
Jesse Bennett
Bible Baptist Church
Shawnee Oklahoma
John 11:1-26
I want to tell you:
Jesus is the only reason we live. Jesus came so that we might have life.
John 10:10 10The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
I. Most people today don’t have life, they have existence:
a. They are fighting to live and living to fight.
b. They are drawing their breath and drawing a salary… one day is turning into another.
C. they have existence but they don’t have life.
(Answer) they got it all backwards.
II. Lets take life for a minute and look at it life L.I.F.E. / life is the way we live L.I.V.E.
a. If you take live and spell it backward what is it E.V.I.L. (live backwards)
b. After you’ve lived and if you haven’t lived for JESUS, if you’ve lived for some other reason.
. When your life is over and you’ve lived without Jesus..
. Just spell lived backwards D.E.V.I.L.
(Answer)Folks-Jesus has come so that you might have life/
Satin wants to rob you of that life.
The devil comes to still kill and destroy.
We are not fools for following Jesus Christ.
Jesus wants you to have life to the full.
Many people don’t have life they don’t even know what life is/ They don’t understand life they live there lives very pessimistically: Riley said “youth is a blunder, manhood a struggle, old age a regret” . This might be true if you don’t know the LORD JESUS.
Shakespeare said “ life is a tale told by an idiot full of sound a furry signifying nothing”
Some college students were asked to give the definitions of life for the school news paper: here is what some students wrote who won honorable mention:
“Life is a joke, that isn’t even funny”
Another said “life is a disease and death is the cure”
One said “life is a jail sentence that we get for the crime of being born”
Think about Dr. Jack Kevorkian Dr. Death I wander what makes that man tick.
He said about faith and life Dr Death” Some people base there whole life on mythology (he thinks what we believe is a myth) Religion is an internal spiritual world, I have my own god Johan Sebastian Bach (that’s his god, he goes on to say) at least my god is real (yes and his god is dead)”
Let’s read what the LORD JESUS says about life:
John 11:25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: 26And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?
I’d rather go with what Jesus said than what those Shakespeare or Kevorkian or those collage students said or any person that doesn’t understand the meaning of life.
This is the greatest truth. This is the truth we need to learn.
We have been studying 7 miracles in the gospel of John
(Review) We’ve been looking a how miracles and they have a message.
Miracles of glory that have in them a message of grace.
The miracles happened to teach us great spiritual truths.
1. Jesus turned water into wine, why? (Jesus is the answer to man’s disappointment.)
2. Jesus healed the nobleman’s son he had difficulty believing (Jesus answer to man’s doubt)
3. Jesus healed the man at the pool, why? (Jesus is the answer to man’s disability)
4. Jesus fed the 5000, why? (Jesus is the answer to mans desire) He is the bread of life.
5. Jesus walked on water, why?(Jesus is Gods answer to man’s despair)
6. Jesus opened the eyes of the blind man, why? (Jesus is the answer to man’s darkness.)
Today we are looking at the miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead.
Now did Jesus raise Lazarus from the grave so that he might live, no Lazarus died again.
JESUS IS THE ANSWER TO MAN’S DEATH.
I am the resurrection and the life.
Miracles of glory that speak of greater miracles of grace.
Believe in miracles but trust in Jesus Christ.
If you want full life abundant life.
I. Step one: I must experience life in Jesus
John 11:14 Jesus says Lazarus is dead. Lazarus has a king sized problem.
You probably could say a lot of nice things about Lazarus but overwhelmingly he was dead.
You might say Lazarus is surrounded by friends but he is dead.
You could probably tell me a lot of wonderful things about you today but if you don’t’ know the Lord Jesus what does it matter if your dead.
There are a lot of people in this world you could say wonderful things about but if they don’t have the Lord Jesus, they are dead! Dead in trespasses and sin.
1Tim 5:6 But she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth
You know of any people who are dead, there are people all around Shawnee and Oklahoma and all over the world.
But there are people who we refer to as dead but they not dead at all: why? Because they died knowing Jesus Christ!
You want to know a man that can not die: I can not die…Jesus said “he that believe in me shall not die.” To be absent from the body is to be present with the lord.
Sometimes we look around and we think we are better than other people. Jesus raised three people in scripture a little girl whose body was still warm..the funeral with the young man who died, rigamortis had set in but not decay…Lazarus was dead for day… which one of these were more dead.
We see the prostitute and the drunkard covered in vomit and flies and say look at that.
You maybe setting there all dressed up and don’t know Jesus then you are just as dead!!!
You can be the sweetest teenager pure as the driven snow sexually never touched a bad substance in your life but don’t know Jesus and your DEAD!!!
There is no such thing as being a little pregnant and a little dead!!!! Dead is dead!!!
I hope you understand this today.
You must experience life in Christ
Suppose we have a dead man lying before us today, and we are gonna raise the dead.
What do the social engineers and physiologist say we need today 4 E’s I’m gonna give’em to you.
Example/encouragement/environment/education.
Suppose we have a dead man up here today and want to raise him from the dead.
Example: show him what it looks like to be alive (think that’s gonna raise him)
Encouragement: come on man get up you can do it, that a boy!!!
Environment: put him in a room with a bunch of live people and hopes he catches on. Put him in the right environment and he’ll come to life, not the answer.
(Adam and eve had the perfect environment they failed)
Education: Get a medical book and educate this man, give him 20 lessons on life. No.
We don’t get salvation from learning lesson about the life of Christ, but receiving life from the death and resurrection of Christ!!!
The dead man needs life from JESUS. That’s what he needs Jesus. That’s what the world needs, Jesus that what you need Jesus.
How did Jesus do it (pleading-no) (begging-NO) Jesus cried with a loud voice Lazarus come forth that’s how Jesus did it….
How do we raise a dead man spiritually by his word?
Jesus said: John 6:63It is the spirit that quickeneth (gives life); the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.
The words are spirit and powerful and shaper than any two edged sword. And bring life!!!
How do you raise a dead man? The word of God.
Step 2. I must exercise liberty through Christ>
VS. 44 The dead man came out (Hollywood ain’t got it all) Jesus says lose him and let him go.
He bound he is gagged and tied up.
You need life and you need liberty Christ needs to free you!!!
Jesus came to give you life and abundant life. He doesn’t want you to ware the stinking of the old grave clothes on; we believe but are still in our old thinking.
The ministry of the church is to raise the dead and unwrap the saints.
Step 3. Enjoy love for Jesus
John 12:1-3 (read) he’s gone from the tomb to the table. They made him a supper. Life-liberty and now fellowship with Jesus.
Rev: 3:20 behold I stand at the door and knock if any man open the door I will come in and eat with him and he with me.
Wouldn’t you love to have a meal with Jesus? That’s what we do every time we come to the Lord’s Table.
Often Jesus invited his disciples to dine with Him.
It is our legacy to fellowship with one another and our legacy to fellowship with Jesus.
I would be a Christian even if there were not a heaven “Just to love the Lord Jesus and have Him love me back that would be enough”.
Step 4. I must express loyalty to Jesus.
Look in 12:9
Do you think Lazarus was afraid? Lazarus is no longer afraid of death, they might destroy his body but it will just hasten his way on to be with God! Lazarus has the Lord of life.
Satin is the sinister minister of fear…
How often does the Devil keep people in bondage because they are afraid to die?
No man is ready live until he is no longer afraid to die!
When we live our lives for Jesus and fellowship we have life more abundantly.
You may ask, what is the answer to my problem (not a what but a who)
I don’t care what your problem is if Jesus can raise the dead he can fix anything
Jesus didn’t come to perform miracles. JESUS CAME TO SAVE SOULS …PRAY WITH ME…
