Conquering Death – Pt. 4

If God’s people would take their
Bibles and turn back once again to John chapter 11. John chapter 11, where we had
been for a number of weeks, but providentially we are here again
for what has been called one of the most astounding miracles
that Jesus ever performed, that of raising Lazarus from the dead. This passage, as we have seen,
deals with the great enemy, the great and most feared enemy of
mankind, that of death. Cruel, sudden, inevitable, indiscriminate
death, death that comes to all, affects all. Jesus deals with
and conquers death here in this very passage. If God’s people
would go back to John chapter 11 and to verse 1. Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus
of Bethany, in the village of Mary and her sister Martha. It
was the Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped
his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick. So
the sister sent word to him saying, Lord, behold, he whom you love
is sick. But when Jesus heard this, he
said, This sickness is not into death, but for the glory of God,
so that the son of God may be glorified by it. Now Jesus loved
Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when he heard that he was
sick, he then stayed two days longer in the place where he
was. Then after this, he said to the
disciples, let us go to Judea again The disciples said to him,
Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone you. And are
you going there again? Jesus answered, are there not
12 hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he
does not stumble because he sees the light of this world. But
if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles because the light
is not in him. This he said, and after that,
He said to them, our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go so
that I may awaken him out of sleep. The disciples then said
to him, Lord, if he’s fallen asleep, he will recover. Now
Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he was
speaking of literal sleep. So Jesus then said to them plainly,
Lazarus is dead. And I am glad for your sakes
that I was not there so that you may believe. But let us go
to him. Therefore, Thomas, who is called
Didymus, said to his fellow disciples, let us also go that we may die
with him. So when Jesus came, he found
that he had already been in the tomb four days. Now, Bethany,
was near Jerusalem, about two miles off. And many of the Jews
had come to Mary and Martha to console them concerning their
brother. Martha, therefore, when she heard that Jesus was coming,
went to meet him. But Mary stayed at the house.
Martha then said to Jesus, Lord, if you had been here, my brother
would not have died. Even now I know that whatever
you ask of God, God will give you. Jesus said to her, your
brother will rise again. Martha said to him, I know that
he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day. Jesus said to
her, I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in
me will live even if he dies. And everyone who lives and believes
in me will never die. Do you believe this? She said
to him, Yes, Lord, I have believed that you are the Christ, the
son of God, even he who comes into the world. When she said
this, she went away and called Mary, her sister, saying secretly,
the teacher is here and is calling for you. And when she heard it,
she got up quickly and was coming to him. Now, Jesus had not yet
come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha
had met him. Then the Jews, who were with
her in the house and consoling her, when they saw that Mary
got up quickly and went out, they followed her, supposing
that she was going to the tomb, to weep there. Therefore, when
Mary came where Jesus was, she saw him and fell at his feet,
saying to him, Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not
have died. When Jesus therefore saw her
weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, He was
deeply moved in spirit and was troubled and said, where have
you laid him? They said to him, Lord, come
and see. Jesus wept. So the Jews were saying, see
how he loved him. But some of them said, could
not this man who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this
man also from dying? So Jesus, again being deeply
moved within, came to the tomb. Now it was a cave, and a stone
was lying against it. Jesus said, remove the stone. Martha, the sister of the deceased,
said to him, Lord, by this time there will be a stench, for he
has been dead four days. Jesus said to her, did I not
say to you If you believe, you will see the glory of God. So
they removed the stone. Then Jesus raised his eyes and
said, Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that
you always hear me, but because of the people standing around
it, I said, so that they may believe that you sent me. When he had said these things,
he cried out with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. The man who had died came forth,
bound hand and foot with wrappings, and his face was wrapped around
with a cloth. Jesus said to them, unbind him
and let him go. Therefore, many of the Jews who
came to Mary and saw what he had done, believed in him. But some of them went to the
Pharisees and told them the things that Jesus had done. These verses
record one of the greatest miracles in all of scripture. Certainly
one of the most powerful miracles that Jesus himself ever worked. And it provides for us a glimpse
into not only Jesus’ humanity throughout this amazing account, but it also gives us
a very strong view of his deity. In the opening section of this
chapter, verses one through 16, we saw that the focus was on
Lazarus and specifically his condition, his physical condition,
Lazarus was dying. The sisters may not have known
it. The bystanders may not have known it. Jesus knew it. Jesus knew that Lazarus was not
only dying, but even as the messengers left the house, Lazarus was literally
breathing his last. In the second section, verses
17 through 27, We are reintroduced to an individual in scripture.
We are reintroduced to Lazarus’s grieving, but more stayed, more
practical, more matter of fact, sister, Martha. In the third
section, verses 28 and following, we’re reintroduced to Lazarus’s
other sister, Mary, the more emotional, the softer sister. But Mary there in those verses
that we considered last Lord’s Day serves there as a delicate
backdrop to her morning house guests, the Jews from Jerusalem. And it is their willful blindness,
which we considered last week, their willful blindness that
serves really as an introduction to the point of focus in this
fourth section. The point of focus in this fourth
section, beginning in verse 38, is that of faith or belief. The matter of faith, the subject
of faith, has been artfully woven throughout this incredible account.
To the messengers who first brought Jesus news of Lazarus’ sickness,
and in the disciples’ hearing, Jesus hints at the subject of
faith. When Jesus heard this, verse
four, he said, this sickness is not unto death, but is for
the glory of God, so that the son of man may be glorified by
it. And Jesus certainly would be
glorified by nothing greater than the faith of those watching
on. Jesus issues another veiled reference
to the cultivation of faith. Even his own disciples need to
grow in their faith. Look at verses 14 and 15. Jesus
said to them plainly, Lazarus is dead and I am glad for your
sakes that I was not there. We were just as shocked at that
statement in its incomplete state at the present We were just as
shocked at that as likely the disciples were. Lazarus is dead
and I am glad that I wasn’t there. I’m glad for your sakes that
I wasn’t there, Jesus says, so that you may believe. This was
an opportunity for Christ. Faith is being cultivated. And in the most direct manner
yet in this chapter, Jesus challenges Martha’s faith. He questions
her on it. He calls her to faith, if you
will. Look at verses 25 and 26. Jesus
said to her, I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes
in me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes
in me will never die. Do you believe this? And Martha wholeheartedly affirms
her faith in Jesus. Yes, Lord, I have believed. that
you are the Christ, the Son of God, even he who comes into the
world. And then in that third section,
last Lord’s Day that we considered, in which Mary serves as that
pleasant backdrop, the Jews and their lack of faith is brought
into stark contrast with Mary’s own. We looked last week and
we saw the Jews’ willful blindness to the divine lordship of Jesus
Christ. Here is Mary falling on her feet,
falling at Jesus’ feet rather, in worship of Christ, calling
on him as the Christ, as Lord incarnate. Not only were they
willfully blind to the divine lordship of Jesus Christ, they
were willfully blind to the divine mercy of Jesus Christ. They thought
that Jesus was weeping merely for his friend Lazarus. Jesus was weeping out of an abundant
heart of mercy for all mankind who had brought death upon themselves
through their sin. not only willful blindness to
the divine lordship of Christ and the divine mercy of Christ,
but a willful blindness to the divine ability of Christ, they
absolutely mocked him. They might have done it under
their breath, but they’re criticizing Christ for not being there, not
doing enough, not being there when these sisters really needed
him, Lazarus as well, And so what more reasonable shift as
we come into this fourth section than to focus on the subject
of faith itself. If God’s people would go back
to verse 38. Verse 38 is where we begin to
draw near to the actual miracle itself. Everything up to this
point is buildup. Verse 38 says, so Jesus again
being deeply moved within came to the tomb All of that skepticism,
all of that hatred, all of that caustic criticism brought his
indignation back to the surface. And his agitation was noticeable
at least to John. One commentator just characterized
it in these simple terms. Jesus came sighing to the tomb. Jesus came to the tomb. but he
came with a visible and audible groan. Jesus came as one coming to conquer
death, as we have seen. That is his role in this passage.
That is his role in this chapter. He is the great conqueror of
death. John Calvin writing said that
Christ approaches the tomb as a champion preparing for a contest. And we need not wonder that he
groans as the violent tyranny of death, which he had to conquer,
is placed before his eyes. Jesus was tasked with conquering
death, death, a feature that God himself had inflicted as
punishment upon humanity, and Jesus is just about to conquer
that punishment. Here in this passage, that deep
groan welling up within Christ and ultimately manifesting on
His physical person was just another sign of many in this
gospel of His humanity. In chapter 4, verse 6, we saw
His weariness as He sat down by the well. Likewise, His thirst. We’ve seen his love for his disciples
repeatedly show itself, an affection for them, human emotions. But we also see in this very
passage the deity of Christ, God’s godness, if you will. We cannot overlook the drama
of this scene. Just the procession alone to
the tomb, quiet talking perhaps, some people respectfully speaking
only in hushed whispers, some in a murmuring grumbling about
Christ and His inability, His unwillingness to show up when
He’s most needed, this continuing bewilderment at Jesus’ delay,
this continued criticism, still others in a grief stricken silence,
fading hope of two grieving sisters, all walking together toward the
tomb. And now Jesus’ curious interest
in seeing, visiting Lazarus’s grave. They want to witness what
Christ is going to see. And so it’s in, an intensely
solemn moment. The crowd blended with not only
the faithful, but heartbroken unbelievers, heartbroken believers,
skeptical unbelievers, all plodding along together, and now they
arrive. And John just tells us in verse
38, now the tomb, it was a cave. and a stone was lying against
it. Just this indication alone is an indication that this family
was likely well-to-do. The fact that they had a private
burial place, the fact that they had this large contingent of
mourners, the fact that Mary had this expensive perfume over which she anointed the Lord’s
feet. and took criticism. We don’t
know how long this trek took as the crowd slowly arrived.
Certainly there were some who arrived sooner with a quicker
pace. Some arrived moments later at a slower pace, but now the
crowd is all gathered and this is what they wanted to see. Jesus
at Lazarus’s final resting place. Had he come here just to mourn,
just to pay respects to his dear friend? The scene is incredible. And all eyes are on Christ. Look
at verse 39. Jesus just abruptly says, remove
the stone. This astounding request would
have sent shockwaves through the crowd. Jesus, you can’t be
serious. Remove the stone? Remove the
stone that covers a tomb with a freshly laid body? It would have been a mixture of
not only surprise and astonishment, perhaps some even doubted what
they were hearing. You can’t possibly be serious.
Others, and especially Jesus’ critics, were likely disgusted
at the very idea, the very thought of disturbing a grave. In a very
real sense, doing this required an act of faith. Not unlike Jesus’
command to the blind man, remember, to go and to wash his eyes, he
had to stand up and begin to move towards the pool to wash
his eyes. This too was an act of faith
at the four-day mark. This would have been considered
the desecration of a grave. To move the stone would have
been not merely a polite honoring of a significant request, It
was an act of obedience to an order that bore the urgency and
the authority of a divine command. Remove the stone. Who would dare
challenge the mere suggestion of disturbing Lazarus’s tomb,
let alone a command to do so? Martha would. We know Martha. Martha, the practical sister,
Martha, the one busy in the kitchen, usually Martha, the one to go
and greet Jesus as the emissary of the family. Martha is the
practical one. And Martha could not bear the
thought of disturbing her brother’s grade, to have it opened. And so Martha reacts. As only
a practical sister could look at the passage, Martha, the sister
of the deceased, said to him, Lord, by this time there will
be a stench for he has been dead for four days. This is desecration and Martha
was utterly horrified to think of the exposure of what would
now be considered just a corpse. John records this objection of
Martha. because he wants to emphasize,
he wants to point up, he wants us to realize the significance
of this miracle. He wanted everyone around that
day to realize the significance. Four days, even the Jews, in their creative consideration
of the afterlife, considered that the soul hovered, as we
saw, near the body for three days, but on the fourth day,
On the fourth day, the soul took off, gave up hope of the body
reviving itself. And so Martha cannot bear to
see this happen and tries to intervene. And she says, by this
time there will be a stench. Fascinating word. In fact, the
only time that word is ever used again is in the Septuagint, the
Greek Translation of the Hebrew scriptures in Exodus chapter
eight. Just listen in your mind’s eye.
Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh. Moses cried to the Lord
concerning the frogs. Remember the frogs, one of the
greatest understatements in all of scripture, the frogs, which
he had inflicted upon Pharaoh. They were everywhere. The Lord did according to the
word of Moses, and the frogs died out of the houses, the courts,
and the fields. So at least there are no more
frogs jumping about. But now the real problem begins.
So they piled them in heaps, and the land became foul. That’s the only other place in
scripture where this is, unbelievable odor. I had a turtle once. And I loved the little turtle. For about a week. And then when
I had to clean the cage, and the smell. People, this is an
entire land full of dead frogs. This is a remarkable sentence. It points to the reality of Lazarus’s
death. As one said, it proves beyond
a reasonable doubt that there was no deception. Here’s Martha
herself waving her arms and pleading, don’t open that tomb. We sealed
it up four days ago. And it also teaches us what a great lack of Faith there
is even in his closest followers’ hearts. Remember I said that
this whole passage is designed to teach us about faith. The
section is all about faith and the cultivation of faith. And
what better way to cultivate faith than by an utterly shocking
request that opens into an astounding miracle. I want to look at three
characteristics of saving faith. Three characteristics of saving
faith. The first of which is that the
exercise of faith will be overwhelmingly blessed. Look at verse 40. Jesus said
to her, did I not say to you that if you believe you will
see the glory of God, Now that is quite an honoring of faith. To exercise faith is to see the
glory of God, to witness God’s glory on display. The only question
is, when did Jesus say this? When did he say this to Martha? Because those words aren’t recorded,
at least not recorded as having been said to Martha. Some people
suggested that maybe Jesus uttered this on an occasion where John
wasn’t present and therefore it wasn’t recorded. Some people
said that it’s what Jesus is talking about Lazarus’ sickness
being for the glory of God, recorded in verse four. Ultimately, that
report could have and very likely would have been reported back
to Martha. Don’t worry. Jesus said, don’t
worry. This sickness is not unto death,
but for the glory of God. Now, when Lazarus actually died,
and we believe that Lazarus was probably already dead by the
time the emissaries left, no doubt by the time they returned,
this would have had a kind of hollow effect on Martha. Don’t
worry. This sickness is not unto death,
Please stop. Please stop. Martha couldn’t
bear to hear the rest. It could have referred to Martha’s
previous conversation with Christ and kind of a veiled presentation
of God’s glory. Back in verse four, Jesus wanted
to strengthen her faith. He wanted to build up her faith. Jesus ultimately challenges her
faith directly when he deals with her face to
face. But when he says that her faith would be blessed, that
if Martha would just stop thinking about Lazarus as a dead body,
if she would just Put her faith completely in Christ. She would
see the glory of God And we don’t know exactly What Mary or Martha rather would
have thought Jesus was referencing here we know now That it meant
the resurrection of Lazarus it meant a mighty outpouring of
God’s power and It meant a miracle the likes of which had never
been witnessed by a crowd of this size. Only three resurrections
from the dead recorded in scripture as we saw several weeks ago. This was the glory of God on
display, really and truly. As one said, his words are a
challenge to faith, a reminder of Jesus’ unfailing aim as the
glory of God. What was going to happen would
be a spectacular miracle. It would be a display of the
power of God. The real meaning of what He would
do would be accessible only to faith. And we’ll see that. We’ll see that quite plainly.
That there were those that beheld the miracle and came, as almost
seems natural, to faith. They believed in Christ. The
very purpose of the miracle is now realized. that Jesus Christ
is exactly who he said he was. He is the Messiah. He is the
one sent from God. The crowd would see the miracle
and some would see it and place their faith wholeheartedly in
the Lord Jesus Christ, but not all. We have a similar thought, don’t
we, in Psalm 19. The heavens are telling of the
glory of God and all the psalm points to is walk outside and
you can see God’s handiwork. and the trees that are blooming
and the weather patterns and in life, you can see God’s handiwork. You can see the glory of God.
You can walk outside and witness it. Jesus says here that to place
your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is to have your eyes opened
to witnessing and observing and taking in the glory of God. begin to see things that you
hadn’t seen before and see them in a whole new light and see
God as he is. It’s interesting that Paul, in
writing to the Roman believers, said this of Christ’s own resurrection. In Romans 6, 4, he said, therefore,
we have been buried with him through baptism into death in
order that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory
of the Father. This was a glorious outpouring
of God’s might and power. And the first remarkable characteristic
of saving faith is that the exercise of faith will be overwhelmingly
blessed. It’s not that we need proof in
order to have faith, it’s that as we exercise faith, the proof
becomes overwhelmingly plain and abundant. There’s a second
remarkable characteristic of saving faith. Not only will the
exercise of faith be overwhelmingly blessed, secondly, the foundations
of faith will be abundantly provided. Martha’s interruption here, said
one, seems to have caused a little pause in the proceedings. You
know, Martha issues this protest and everybody around her says,
oh, thank goodness, you know. Thank you, Martha, for having
the courage to step in and step in the way and stop this silly
idea of opening the tomb. And Martha, of all people, would
have been one they likely listened to. He goes on to say that this is
the nearest relative of Lazarus, probably arranged everything,
ceremonial burial, providing his tomb. We may well believe
that her speech made the bystanders hesitate to move the stone. They didn’t want to move the
stone. They wanted to obey the Lord, but if Martha was willing
to step in, they were all too willing to allow her. But Jesus argues, did I not say
to you that if you believe you will see the glory of God? And
they cannot argue with those words. And so verse 41 records
that they removed the stone and then Jesus raised his eyes and
said, Father, I thank you that you have heard me. The elevation
of the eyes throughout the Psalms, throughout Scripture, really,
recorded in the Gospels on many different occasions, John 17,
Mark 6, that was Jesus’ natural posture for prayer. Ours, possibly
culturally, is to bow our heads, fold our hands, but Jesus’ posture
was to look up to the heavens where his father was and to call
out to him. Jesus just says, Father, I thank
you that you heard me. This caused a lot of people a
lot of difficulty as they wonder, when did he pray? And some people
thought that it’s referring to a prayer that isn’t even recorded
in scripture, because this seems to be the thanksgiving for the
prayer having already been uttered. Father, I thank you that you
have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but because of
the people standing around, I said it so that you might believe
that you sent me. And so many people thought that
Jesus uttered a prayer on another occasion or maybe on the way
to the tomb. Maybe he even said it silently,
but John doesn’t record it. And so here Jesus is thanking
God for the fact that he heard the prayer that had already been
uttered. I don’t think that’s the case at all. This is the
prayer. This is the prayer. And it’s simple. And it’s profound
in its simplicity. And it’s sincere as Jesus looks
up to His heavenly Father, and He calls out to Him and thanks
Him for already having provided what He really hasn’t even asked
for yet. That’s how much Jesus and His
Father were on the same page. There probably was a constant
communication between the two, And while it’s certainly possible
that Jesus uttered a private prayer, a quiet prayer in his
heart, this is the prayer. And Jesus’ confidence, Jesus’
gratitude for something that hasn’t even
happened yet is absolutely amazing. Father, I thank you that you’ve
heard me. Not just that he’s heard me, I knew that you always
hear me, but because of the people. He already is thanking God for
the miracle that he is about to work. He absolutely trusts
his Father and he expresses rich gratitude for it. Look at verse
42, I knew that you always hear me. They were in constant communion. They were having been face to
face throughout eternity, they still were one. in the most significant and intimate
union. I knew that you always hear me,
but because of the people, because of the people standing around,
I said it. He wanted them to know how much
in union he and the father were, that he wasn’t doing anything
that the father hadn’t already ordained. Who were the people? Well, we’ve
met them along the way. Certainly, we know the Jews were
there because remember, they were all too happy to lead Jesus
to the tomb. Like tour guides, right? They
piped up. It would have been only natural
for Mary to accompany Jesus to the tomb. They were there sitting
and talking. When Jesus asked, where have
you laid him? They said, to him, Lord, come
and see. It’s only natural to assume that
Mary rose with him and went also. We also know that Martha was
there. Perhaps she followed along from a distance when Mary ran
out of the house, remember. Perhaps she only recently arrived
at the tomb, but we know she’s there because she’s just objected
to opening the tomb. The Jewish crowd of mourners
is there. Martha is there. Mary is there. And we can also be sure that
Jesus’ disciples are there, though only John records the scene.
Remember? Remember after hearing of the
news of Lazarus’ illness? At the end of the extra two-day
stay, Jesus told them, let us go to Judea again. Can we even
imagine that Jesus would have them make the trek and then leave
them aside for this incredible miracle. It wasn’t because the Father
needed to hear an audible prayer. It’s not that Jesus needed to
pray audibly. It’s that he wanted them to hear. He wanted them to hear his prayer
to the Father, a prayer of thanksgiving, a prayer of union with the Father,
oneness, so that these might come to faith. J.C. Ryle said of this scene,
it is impossible to imagine a more thorough and open challenge to
the attention of the Jews than the language which preceding
the raising of Lazarus before doing this stupendous work The
Lord proclaims that He is doing and speaking as He does to supply
proof that the Father had commissioned and sent Him. He basically says
to the Jews, I and the Father are one. Watch this. Verse 43, when He had said these
things, He cried out with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. Can we imagine the focus on the
grave and the tomb now open? The crowd watching this whole
scene unfold, regardless of whether they were in the faith or not,
riveted on this tomb, sealed for four days. When Jesus cried out, It’s interesting
that that word isn’t used anywhere else of Christ. It was a loud
cry, a passionate cry, emotional. And it was absurd to read some
people think that Jesus had to cry out loudly in order to waken
Lazarus from the dead. Lazarus didn’t need this. Loud voice wasn’t needed to wake
the dead. The loud voice was for the crowd. The loud voice was to be a demonstrative
effect for the crowd that they might hear exactly what Jesus
was asking for Lazarus to come forth out of the tomb. Jesus could have done this with
a silent prayer. Jesus could have done this with
a whisper. And Lazarus, even though dead, would have had to
obey him as almighty God, just as at creation, all it would
have taken was a word. It didn’t need the loud voice,
but think of what had to happen. I mean, just think logically
what would have had to happen instantly in Lazarus. His heart would have needed to
start beating, right? And it would have taken a second
or two for that blood, you know, we assume, to get to the extremities. His brain would have needed to
begin functioning immediately in order to obey the command.
His lungs had to be filled with air. Muscles, now four days atrophied,
had to be regenerated instantly in order for Lazarus even to
be able to obey the command. let alone process it in his mind. And yet, the man, verse 44, who
had died, came forth, bound hand and foot with wrappings, and
his face was wrapped around with a cloth. This is an absolutely
astounding scene. And I don’t think we need to
embellish it one bit. The glory of God is on display.
God’s revelation of this amazing scene is there for everyone to
see. One pastor said, a more plain,
distinct, unmistakable miracle, it would be impossible for man
to imagine. Four days dead, raised instantly. That a dead man should hear a
voice, obey it, rise up, move forth from his grave alive, is
utterly contrary to nature. God alone could cause such a
thing. We don’t need to embellish this
scene and yet some suggested a kind of enhanced miracle here
that since Lazarus’s legs would have had to be wound and bound
together mummy fashion, that he just suddenly floated as it
were out of the tomb and appeared at the door. I don’t think there’s
any need to do that. It isn’t described here. I don’t
think it’s necessary to embellish the passage in that form. When
it says bound in hand and foot, his legs could have been wrapped,
individually even. But I love the picture that one
painted. There’s no certain proof that his legs were tied together
so tightly that he could not move out of the grave, though
slowly and with difficulty, like one encumbered on his own feet. The tardy shuffling action of
such a figure would strike all. You see, if he came flying out
of the tomb, You know, they’d run away in fear, right? But
if Lazarus comes shuffling forward, bound hand and foot, completely
wrapped in cloth, they would be struck with utter astonishment. No wonder Jesus says to them,
unbind him and let them go. He wanted them to touch him.
He wanted them to see that Lazarus was real. And having been really
dead, that he was really alive. He didn’t want a repeat of the
scene where, when he healed the blind man, some people came and
said, well, I’m not sure if that’s the same guy. They would know
Lazarus. Because likely some of these
same people wrapped Lazarus and buried him. Jesus wanted them to deal with
it. You wanted them to see and experience
the miracle in its fullness. Do you know what’s remarkable? Scripture does not record one
word from Lazarus about this experience. Can you imagine if
this happened today? You know, you got CNN and Fox
and all these other, you know, everybody with a microphone. I was sharing with one brother
before the service that Paul had some kind of experience similar
to this. We don’t know exactly what it
was like because Paul even is intentionally reticent to give
any kind of detail. The occasion where he speaks
of it is in 2 Corinthians 12, and he just says this briefly.
He says, I know a man, he doesn’t even name himself. I know a man
in Christ who 14 years ago, Almost to the day, he knows exactly
when it happened. Whether in the body or out of
the body, I do not know. He can’t even really pinpoint,
was this just a dream? Is this, you know, he knows that
it’s real, but it was so fantastic that he can’t even really provide
much in the way of detail. He says, God knows. Such a man
was caught up to the third heaven. And I know such a man, whether
in the body or apart from the body, I do not know. God knows.
I can’t even really tell you about it. He was caught up into
paradise and heard inexpressible words which a man is not permitted
to speak. That’s pretty clear, isn’t it?
For some reason, for Lazarus’ own sake, lest he become a freak
show at the circus, or because, you know, lest other people begin
to make out of him and something that God never designed. Very
similar to Paul’s experience, Lazarus doesn’t say a single
word. Nothing is recorded. And yet, as one Commentator put
it man loves sensation and excitement and likes to make God’s work
on his fellow creatures a Gazing stock in a show to their great
damage God almost always seems to read withdraw them from public
both for their own good in his glory Here’s the point If there
was ever an interview to be had wouldn’t Lazarus have been it
Wouldn’t Lazarus have been top of the Jews list to interview?
So what was it like? Where did you go? Who did you
see? Was Noah there? It’s totally
the opposite of our own day and age. When it says that man likes
this excitement and this, these things are a dime a dozen nowadays,
right? These stories of those who died and went to heaven And
then they came back to tell us more about what heaven is like.
Paul, the apostle Paul in his own experience, did not dare
speak about it. Heaven is for real. A little
boy’s astounding story of his trip to heaven and back, written
by Kevin and Alex Malarkey. Now, I don’t know about your
neighborhood, but when I was a kid, Malarkey, I’m kidding. Here’s the point. This was revealed
as false just several years after it came out. Big buzz, everybody’s
got to read the book, buy the book, watch the movie. Oh, by
the way, it was all made up. There’s another one. Appointments
with Heaven, the true story of a country doctor’s healing encounters
with the hereafter. Well, and if that doesn’t strike
you, if country doctors don’t have quite, you know, the credibility,
another doctor comes onto the scene, to heaven and back, a
doctor’s extraordinary account of her death, heaven, angels,
life again, a true story. Of course, who can argue with
it? Another one, visit to heaven,
what I learned on the other side, as if God’s word and the Holy
Spirit resident within us isn’t enough, It’s fascinating that the church has embellished
this story throughout history. One story gives the age of Lazarus
at his death at 30 years and that by God’s grace, he was allowed
to live another 30 years, 60 years total. After his resurrection
from the dead, he lived another 30 years. I love the way one said it. The
traditions about him have no historical value. And then they
go on to provide all these traditions. And I would agree with that.
They have no historical value other than to emphasize and underscore
the fact that they have no historical value. One of these traditions, and
I have a point in doing this, One of these traditions said
that the first question which Lazarus asked after being restored
to life was whether he must die again. And when he was told that
he must die again, it is said that he was never seen to smile
again. Now that is proof that it is
a bunch of baloney. It shows a gross misunderstanding
for the blessed truth of this passage. Jesus here conquers
death. Jesus’ resurrection is our resurrection. You know this common Easter recitation. He is risen. He is risen indeed. A more accurate or a more complete
rendition of that Easter tradition is, He is risen, we are risen
indeed. Christ’s resurrection is our
resurrection. So to go back to that tradition,
that Lazarus never smiled, I would suggest to you that Lazarus likely
never stopped smiling after that day because he knew. He knew
that there was glory. He knew that there was resurrection
in Christ. He knew that the next time that
he died, and he would die, the next time he died, he would be
raised to eternal glory with Christ. What a glorious truth. The foundations of faith are
abundantly provided for us. And here in this miracle, it
was an astounding presentation of the facts. But there was a third remarkable
characteristic of saving faith in this passage. Not only will
the exercise of faith be overwhelmingly blessed and the foundations of
faith abundantly provided, the reception of faith will be astonishingly
unpredictable. Look at verse 45. Therefore many
of the Jews who came to Mary saw what he had done and believed
in him. And the only word in that sentence
that is astonishing to us is the word many. Why not all? Why didn’t everybody that morning,
when they saw this amazing thing happen, why didn’t everybody
fall on their face in faith before the Lord Jesus Christ? They had just witnessed arguably
the most remarkable miracle ever performed. One pastor said this verse describes
the good effect which the raising of Lazarus had on many of the
Jews who came from Jerusalem. Their remaining prejudices gave
way. They were unable to resist the
extraordinary evidence of the miracle they had just seen. And
from that day, they no longer denied that Jesus was the Christ.
Absolutely, exactly what Jesus designed. He wanted them to come
to faith from the very first moment. And many of the Jews
that had observed what Christ did, not only observed this miracle,
took it in, witnessed it, but they began to mull it over and
they realized this is the Messiah. This is the sent one. And the second most astonishing
word in this whole little section is the word but of verse 46. But some of them. But some of
them went to the Pharisees and told them the things which Jesus
had done. Remember, this creates a firestorm.
We can’t let him go on like this. These are tattletales, right?
They can’t wait to run to the Pharisees, wait till you hear
what he did today. And as they conclude, he must be
stopped. See, Christ is the dividing point. Christ inevitably divides, divides
families, divides nations. Some people witness this miracle,
and when they saw, they took it in for what it was, a testimony,
a divine testimony of who Christ was But others, instead of yielding
to what God was doing in their hearts and lives, they hardened,
they became hardened in their hearts, angry with God for doing
this thing. As one said, vexed to see these
unanswerable proofs. And in the end, they were, without
excuse, God had provided them more than enough information One pastor said the amazing wickedness
of human nature is strikingly illustrated in this verse. There
is no greater mistake than to suppose that seeing miracles
will necessarily convert souls. It doesn’t. Some people run the
globe looking for Noah’s Ark or this or that, looking for
some proof. The Jews wanted more proof, always
more proof. People in our day, always more
proof. And there are plenty of charlatans
to provide alleged proof. The proof doesn’t always equate
to conversions. There were plenty of those that
just went their own way. They were content to be enemies
of Christ. They were content to harden their
hearts and dig in their heels. and take care of Jesus once and
for all. And so they run off to report to the Pharisees in
this kind of sinister fashion in order to tell them what Jesus
had done. And we’ll take up that part next
time, but I want you to observe something. Here we are looking at the remarkable
characteristics of saving faith, that saving faith will be overwhelmingly
blessed to see the glory of God Are you kidding me? What a great
privilege it is to have our eyes open to see the inner workings
of the divine. That the foundations of our faith
will be abundantly supplied. God can literally look every
person ever born in the eye and say you are without excuse. And then the reception of faith
will be astonishingly unpredictable. How can a crowd of this size,
all having witnessed this incredible miracle, how is it that not every
single one came to faith? I’ll tell you how. One faithful shepherd said, what
a wonderful example here we have of the sovereign grace of God. Choosing some, leading them to
repentance and faith, not choosing others. Here is the same miracle
seen under the same circumstances with the same evidence by a large
crowd of persons. And yet while some believe, others
do not. It is like the case of the two
thieves on the cross, both seeing the same sight, one repenting,
the other impenitent. The same fire which melts wax
hardens clay. You see, the raising of Lazarus
wasn’t just a magic trick. It was a miracle. It was a divine
exercise of power. And for Christ to work this miracle,
was nothing to brush aside, nothing to disregard. That he raised
a dead man from the grave was nothing to be flippant about
or careless about. For those who have placed their
faith in Jesus Christ, Death, physical death is now
a non-issue. It has been conquered. And what
Jesus represents here in this passage, he would one day experience
himself, the resurrection from the dead. And that’s why I say
his resurrection is our resurrection. He is risen. We are risen indeed. Isaac Watts, my hero in the faith,
said this. How divinely full of glory and
pleasure shall be that hour when all the millions of mankind have
been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb, shall meet together
and stand around Him with every tongue and every heart full of
joy and praise. How astonishing will be the glory
and the joy of that day when all the saints shall join together
in one common song of gratitude and everlasting thankfulness
to this Redeemer. Without unknown delight and inexpressible
satisfaction shall all that are saved from the ruins of sin and
hell address the Lamb that was slain and rejoice in His presence. His resurrection is our resurrection. Let’s pray. Our merciful God,
we thank You for including this account, this incredible account
of the raising of Lazarus from the dead. Lord, and in doing
so, you affirmed your nature as not only human and caring
for Lazarus and caring and having mercy for those who were enduring
this horrible part of life called death, but you proved yourself
as God. God in the flesh, Lord God, if
there are any who hover in some kind of fanciful faith of their
own, which is really just doubt and disguise, Lord, bring them
to knees of repentance and to faith in the glorious Lord Jesus
Christ. Open their eyes, we pray. Bring
them to faith, saving faith. It’s in Jesus’ name that we pray,
amen.