Removing The Hindrances

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.