In Matthew 28:19-20 Jesus gave His disciples and all believers the Great Commission, in which He said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things I have commanded you.” The word “commission” is defined as a “charge,” “order,” or “mandate.”(1) In other words, a “commission” is a “commandment.” Jesus expects us to bring people to saving faith in Him, and then to teach them and to grow them through discipleship. It is not called the “Great Suggestion,” but the “Great Commission.”
In our passage today Jesus challenges us to take an active role in helping the lost come to a lifesaving faith in Christ. In the verses just prior to the ones we will be examining, we read that a man named Lazarus fell ill and died. Everyone around Jesus begged and petitioned Him to bring Lazarus back to life, but Jesus didn’t immediately answer their prayers. We are going to see that He made those who prayed to Him take an active role in assisting Lazarus. Many times Christians will pray for those who are lost and dying in sin, but they do nothing more than pray because they are either afraid, or they don’t want to make an effort. We will see that we are supposed to do a whole lot more than just pray for the lost. We are to actively participate in helping Jesus bring them to eternal life.
Many People Are in Spiritual Darkness (v. 38)
38 Then Jesus, again groaning in Himself, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it.
In verse 38 we read that Jesus came to a tomb which was a cave hewn from the rock. The cave here represents spiritual darkness, or spiritual death. Why is darkness usually equated with evil and death, and light usually associated with goodness and life? Light is life to many creatures on earth. Without light plants would not grow; and without light human beings and animals would be blind and walk off the edge of a cliff somewhere and perish. Also, if we did not have light we would be deficient in certain vitamins necessary for our bodies to function properly. Light is associated with goodness because it is a vital element to life. When a person walks in spiritual darkness he or she has strayed from the light of Jesus Christ which will provide eternal life.
We read in John 1:4 that in Jesus “was life, and the life was the light of men.” 1 John 2:11 says that a person who is full of hate and spiritual bondage “walks in darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.” If we are walking through life without Jesus Christ in our hearts then we are as blind men and women, and the darkness causes us to stumble and fall over every obstacle along our path. These obstacles are temptations and trials, and if we are walking in total darkness we will trip and fall to our deaths. However, we don’t have to worry about spiritual death if we have accepted Jesus as Lord and Savior, for in John 8:12 Jesus stated, “I am the light of the world. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”
Christians Must Remove the Gravestone (v. 39a)
39 Jesus said, “Take away the stone.”
In verse 39a we see how Jesus told the bystanders to take away the stone. There are two spiritual insights we need to observe here. First, there is a stone that prohibits people from leaving death and darkness to enter the light of Christ; and secondly, Christians must be the ones to help remove that stone.
[NOTE: Have simulated boulders set up on stage in advance. Call forward two volunteers. Have one volunteer stand on one side of the boulders, and the other volunteer stand on the opposite side. Share the following insights; and then have one volunteer starting clearing the boulders to make a path for the other volunteer to walk through.]
Let’s look at the stone for a moment. Why did it need to be removed anyway? Because it stood in the way of Lazarus responding to the life-giving voice of Christ. After the stone was removed - Jesus spoke to Lazarus and said “come out” - come out of the grave, come out from . . . the darkness of death. And [then] there was nothing that stood in the way of Lazarus responding to the voice of Christ . . . What might have happened had they not removed the stone? Would Lazarus still have heard the voice of Christ? And if he did still somehow, rather faintly hear the voice of Christ, could he have responded? . . . I believe Jesus had them remove the stone, in order to clear the path for Lazarus to respond to His calling.
Those who are not in Christ Jesus are spiritually dead. They may be walking around in a physical sense, but spiritually speaking, the Bible says they are “dead in their trespasses and sins” . . . and the voice of the Holy Spirit, just like the voice of Christ did for Lazarus on that day, is calling each of them to come out of their spiritual grave and find new life in Christ. The problem is, again just like Lazarus, there are often grave stones which stand in the way of them responding to Christ. Graves stones that He wants you and me as His followers to remove.(2)
There can be any number of gravestones or stumbling stones that hinder people from responding to the voice of Jesus Christ; and believers need to be sensitive and attentive when befriending lost persons, listening closely to identify any stones, for we are called to help remove those stones.
In 2 Corinthians 3:7 we read about one stone in particular; stone that represents the Old Testament ministry in which God gave the Ten Commandments which were written on stone tablets. This Old Testament ministry was said to be a ministry of death because people thought that keeping the Law would gain them entrance into heaven. However, no one could make it to heaven by keeping the Law, for no one individual could obey every single precept of the law perfectly. This attempt at keeping the Law is called a “works-based” faith, and it only leads to eternal death.
There are people today who go to church, do community service, and treat people with kindness thinking that this will gain them entrance to heaven. Paul said that the only way to be saved is through faith in Christ alone, not through works, for he stated in Ephesians 2:8-9, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” In Matthew 7:22-23 we see that Jesus stated, concerning those trying to make it to heaven through works, that, “Many will say to me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name, cast out demons in your name, and done many wonders in your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me you who practice lawlessness!’”
We have just seen that one of the stones that keep the lost trapped in a dark tomb is the belief that they can work their way into heaven by doing good deeds. As Christian, we need to counsel the lost according to Romans 10:9-10 which tells us that it is our confession of faith in Christ that saves us, not works. These verses state, “If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”
Trying to work one’s way into heaven is one of the stones that hinder non-Christians from gaining eternal life, but there are countless other stones. In the next few verses Jesus reveals yet another gravestone that can block the lost from the path to eternal life.
Christians Must Remove the Stone of Doubt (vv. 39b-42)
Martha, the sister of him who was dead, said to Him, “Lord, by this time there is a stench, for he has been dead four days.” 40 Jesus said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?” 41 Then they took away the stone from the place where the dead man was lying. And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. 42 And I know that You always hear Me, but because of the people who are standing by I said this, that they may believe that You sent Me.”
The stone that we see mentioned here is the stone of doubt and unbelief. Doubt can be both on the part of the believer and the unbeliever alike. In these verses we see that one of Jesus’ followers, Martha, doubted His power to raise Lazarus from the dead. Back in verse 22 Martha said to Jesus, “I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you,” and in verse 27 Martha confessed Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God. Martha claimed to have great faith in Jesus, but when it came time to respond to His command to remove the gravestone she had a crisis of belief.
Many Christians claim to have great faith in Christ, but when God asks them to do something difficult or when they face hardships in their life and “smell the stench of death,” so to speak, their true faith, or lack of it, is revealed. If we claim to have faith in Jesus Christ and then we fail to exhibit that faith in times of difficulty then how can we expect non-Christians, who are watching us, to see any real value in following Christ? They will reason that if faith in Jesus isn’t doing us any good, then how can it benefit them. As believers, we need to be careful that “we” are not the stone that causes a lost person to stumble in the darkness and turn away from the light.
Doubt and unbelief can be on the part of the unbeliever. In verse 40 Jesus said, “Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?” Many of the lost are unable to break free from the chains of death and gain eternal life because they won’t put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ. They cannot see the glory of God because they refuse to believe. In 1 Peter 2:8 we read that for those who fail to believe in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior that He becomes “a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.” Whenever a lost person fails to believe in Jesus, then he or she trips and plunges to eternal death. If we want to rise up out of our rotting tombs into eternal life, then we must believe that Jesus is able to save us. If we will only just believe we will behold God’s glory as we are changed into a new creation.
In verse 41 we see that after the people were obedient to Jesus’ command to remove the stone, and also to remove their doubt, only then did He speak to the Father on behalf of the spiritually dead. Only through Jesus Christ are we able to experience the healing power of God, for He is the only one who is able to ask God to save us and intercede on our behalf. No human being, and no religious saint or idol can persuade God to save us. We read in 1 Timothy 2:5-6, “For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all.” In order for Jesus to ask the Father to grant us eternal life then we must put away our doubt and respond to Him in faith. Christians, you can help the lost put away their unbelief by showing them that you have no doubt in your own heart.
Jesus Calls Each of Us by Our Name (v. 43)
43 Now when He had said these things, He cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth!”
In verse 43 we see that when Jesus commanded Lazarus to come out of the tomb that He called him by name. Matthew Henry said that calling Lazarus by name was a very intimate expression that reveals God’s great love for each of us.(3)
Jesus said in John 10:3 that His “sheep hear His voice; and He calls His own sheep by name and leads them out. And when He brings out His own sheep, He goes before them; and the sheep follow Him, for they know His voice.” If you hear Jesus calling your name this morning then He is telling you that He wants you to become one of His own beloved sheep. He calls you by name because He loves you dearly. He has chosen you, so don’t hesitate to answer His call. Come out of your tomb - come out of eternal death into eternal life!
Christians Must Remove the Grave Clothes (v. 44)
44 And he who had died came out bound hand and foot with graveclothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Loose him, and let him go.”
[NOTE: Call forward two volunteers. Have one volunteer wrap the other in bandages, sheets, or even toilet paper. Share the following insights; and then have the un-bandaged volunteer help to remove the bandages from the one who is all wrapped up.]
In verse 44 we see that Jesus commanded the people to remove Lazarus’ grave clothes.
Why did Jesus instruct the bystanders to remove the grave clothes? Well, imagine for a moment Lazarus being wrapped in a sheet or bandages. Pallbearers didn’t carry Lazarus out of that grave - he walked out, or maybe he hopped out. The point is that his once lifeless body was now alive again. But notice the problems these grave clothes, unless removed, would bring to him. They might cause him to trip and fall or even critically injure himself. They might even choke the new life right out of him. But at minimum that would keep him from freely enjoying the new life he had been given. So like the stone, these clothes had to go! It wasn’t an option; it was a necessity.(4)
Concerning verse 44 Warren Wiersbe says, ‘Lazarus was bound hand and foot and so could not free himself. The believer is not to be bound by the grave clothes of the old life, but should walk in the freedom of the new life . . . the Christian is to put off the ‘grave clothes’ and put on the ‘grace clothes’ of the new life. It is a poor testimony for a Christian to carry with him the things of the old life.”(5)
When a non-Christian comes to accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, he enters a process of becoming Christ-like. He doesn’t automatically become a model Christian, for he still carries some of the grave clothes of his former life of sin. As we have now become that individual’s new brothers and sisters in Christ, we have the responsibility of helping him overcome his former lifestyle of sin. We are to help that person grow through discipleship. Jesus, like any good fisherman, first catches His fish; and then He cleans them. We are expected to help new Christians clean off their grave clothes.
Time of Reflection
Believers, we have seen from this passage that we are commanded to take an active role in winning the lost to Christ by removing any stones that might cause a person to stumble and not come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. We remove the stone of doubt by modeling our faith in Christ in everything we do. Let us not waver, as we could cause someone to stumble and fall. We are also supposed to disciple new Christians by helping them to remove the grave clothes of their former life of sin. We are to help them to strive to put on their “grace clothes,” the garments made white and spotless through the shed blood of the Lamb, Jesus Christ.
For those of you who don’t know Jesus as Lord and Savior, hopefully by now you realize that without Jesus in your heart you are dead in your sins and destined to eternal death and separation from God. You are walking in the darkness of sin, and your life is a disaster waiting to happen. Going to church won’t save you and your good works won’t save you either, but confessing the name of Jesus Christ will. If you feel a stirring within your heart this morning, or a nudge to step out of your pew and walk down the isle, then realize that Jesus is calling you by name. He is calling you by name because He loves you and wants to give you eternal life. Listen to His voice and come out from the grave into new life.
NOTES
(1) Noah Webster, Webster's 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language (San Francisco: Foundation for American Christian Education, 2002).
(2) William Barnes, "Removing Stones Instead of Casting Stones," taken from the Internet March 2003 at http://www.sermoncentral.com.
(3) Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Bible (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1997) taken from Logos 2.1 on CD-ROM.
(4) Barnes.
(5) Warren W. Wiersbe, Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines on the New Testament (Wheaton: Victor Books, 1992), taken from Logos 2.1 on CD-ROM.
