You Live Series

You Live

John 11:1-45

Intro: What do you want out of life?

Apparently everyone is looking for something more out of life, because all you have to do is watch a half hour TV show to be bombarded with anything and everything that will help you get the most out of life.

• Have more money to have more out of life…

• Have better health to have more out of life…

• Eat this or drink this…

• Wear this or don’t wear that…

Basically what it comes down to is the life you think you are living is not the life you really ought to be living and someone whose life is probably spiraling out of control is trying to tell you how to have the life they are living when in fact they need to get a life themselves!

But the fact is you only have one life to live, the one you have now…but the question of whether or not you are living it to the fullest is actually very relevant.

And when it’s all said and done nothing you put on it and nothing you purchase to put into it will give you life to the fullest anymore than anything you put around it…be it friends, a home, a car or whatever…where is the hope? How about in the numbers 3:16.

Jesus said in John 3:16, “For God so loved…have everlasting life.”

That word “life” that Jesus uses is an interesting word, and I do believe an intentional word used by Him.

Thayer’s Greek definitions defines the word “life” used here as “zoe”, meaning:

1) life

1a) the state of one who is possessed of vitality or is animate

1b) every living soul

and…this is where it gets good.

2) life

2a) of the absolute fulness of life, both essential and ethical, which belongs to God, and through him both to the hypostatic “logos” and to Christ in whom the “logos” put on human nature

2b) life real and genuine, a life active and vigorous, devoted to God, blessed, in the portion even in this world of those who put their trust in Christ, but after the resurrection to be consummated by new accessions (among them a more perfect body), and to last for ever.

God intends for us to have life and life more abundantly according to John 10:10.

This morning I want us to consider what this means by looking at a passage of scripture that not only deals with life, but deals with it’s polar opposite…death.

Read John 11:1-45 and pray.

Transition:

Life doesn’t always go the way we planned it.

I envisioned my first car being a ’65 candy apple red Mustang Convertible…instead it was an 81 Datsun 210 with maroon paint highlighted by rust spots.

And for some of you, this really is nothing.

You hoped to have happily ever after…and then the honey moon ended.

You hoped for a long healthy life…and now you are not sure how much longer you want it go on.

Maybe you hoped for happiness…but now a good night’s rest would be a dream come true.

That is what we find in our passage today.

The best friends of Jesus, outside the 12 Apostles thought it couldn’t be any better.

If Jesus needed a place to stay…he chose the home of Mary, Martha and Lazarus.

When he needed a place to relax and a good meal, He knew that Mary, Martha and Lazarus could provide both.

They were the personal friends of the Messiah…how cool was that!?!?

This was the life…so they thought.

In verse 1 it tells us the Lazarus became sick…the best friend of the man who healed the sick was now sick; how?

In verse 3 we are told that Mary and Martha sent word to Jesus knowing that He would put everything else on the back burner for Lazarus….but did he?

In verse 6 it says he stayed two days longer where He was.

He did what!?!?!

Didn’t he know Lazarus was sick?

Yes He did.

Didn’t he know Lazarus could die from being sick?

Yes He did…look at verses 11-14.

Transition:

For the last 4 weeks we have been looking at the meaning of John 3:16…and our passage this morning not only sums it all up, but also re-emphasizes everything we have considered.

We see the love of God, we see the gift of God, we see belief in God and then we see the life given by God.

So this morning, let’s consider the 4th truth of John 3:16, You Live, by looking at 3 truths from our passage.

First of all…

1. Death is Guaranteed (vs. 14)

This is a something that we hate to think about, but it is also one that we must consider because it is a reality.