Participants: Don Pate
Series Code: FC
Program Code: FC000028
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00:29 Hello, friend and welcome to a visit--
00:32 visit where we going spend a few minutes with Jesus. 00:35 I am Don Pate for "Between the Lines" 00:37 and it's my distinct privilege to spend time with you. 00:42 Looking at some of the Gospel events 00:44 where we can come to know Jesus better 00:47 than may be we have before. 00:49 And start to get even better taste 00:52 what would be to be with Him forever. 00:55 What a joy? What a hope? What a blessed hope we have. 00:59 And so as we begin to look at a very famous Gospel event. 01:03 I would invite you to the pray with me 01:05 that may be the Holy Spirit will find a way to peel back 01:09 a page that we've not seen before. 01:11 To bring it into a fresh reality for us today. 01:14 Let's pray, Lord, thank you so much today 01:18 for our precious privilege of having the word 01:22 and having the opportunity to spend time in the word. 01:25 We would ask you to teach us to grow us, 01:29 to mature us more toward the stature of Jesus. 01:34 This is our prayer in Christ name, Amen. 01:39 Id' like first to spend time looking at an event 01:43 that is so well known within Christianity 01:46 that some has would become just casual with it, 01:51 that it would become a somewhat content 01:54 with the fact they well. 01:56 I know that story and as result, 01:58 you remember the old phrase in English 02:00 familiarity breeds contempt. 02:03 And we--we get to know as so well 02:05 that it loses it's power, it loses it's bite. 02:09 I'd like first to spend time 02:10 with an event recorded in the Gospel of John. 02:13 John Chapter 11, now soon as I say John Chapter 11 02:16 you're probably way ahead and you say okay John-- 02:18 John 11:35 Jesus wept. There you have it, okay. 02:21 We're going to spend time with Lazarus story. It's true. 02:25 And yet I have a feeling my friend that there is something 02:30 that we yet had to discover in this passage. 02:33 That will make a difference in, 02:35 how I live my life this afternoon. 02:38 Tomorrow morning, middle of next week, 02:41 if I allow the Holy Spirit to teach me, 02:44 and so I do invite you to take your Bible 02:45 and turn to the fourth Gospel of New Testament. 02:48 To the Gospel of John we're gonna spend 02:50 a few minutes with Jesus. 02:51 And I have a feeling that you're not gonna invest 02:54 yourself in anything better in the next few minutes 02:56 then spend a time with Jesus. 02:58 So I invite you turn to John Chapter 11, 03:01 now you remember how the story starts, 03:03 It says that, "there was certain man" verse one. 03:07 "There is a certain man who was sick, 03:08 named Lazarus, of Bethany, 03:11 the town of Mary and her sister Martha." 03:14 Now it was that same Mary who anointed the Lord 03:18 with ointment and wipe His feet with her hair, 03:22 whose brother Lazarus was sick. 03:23 Now that's very important that this definition of focusing down 03:28 on the fact that would this is the Mary we're talking about. 03:32 We're not talking about any of the other three 03:33 or four, five Mary's available in the New Testament. 03:36 By the way just little Bible trivia here, 03:39 Mary is not the most common name of the Bible. 03:41 There are more women named something else 03:44 then Mary and that may surprise you. 03:46 And when I tell you unless you're a real Bible student 03:48 you will know this. When I tell what it is, 03:50 you'll go, "Oh, really". 03:51 I never would have guessed it's the name Makkah. 03:53 There are more women name Makkah 03:55 in the bible than Mary" but certainly 03:57 when you get in the New Testament 03:59 they're seems to be this competition 04:01 of the dueling Mary's-- Mary this, Mary that 04:03 and sometimes we tend to get confuse 04:06 what's wonderful about those first two verses 04:08 is the john is doing something. 04:11 That probably caused some of the early Christians to go 04:15 "Excuse me, John did you just say what I thought you said?" 04:18 You see John was the last Gospel written. 04:22 And he by his own confession 04:24 especially at the end of the book. 04:26 He by his own confession as look my intention in-- 04:29 in giving you the stories is to fill in the blanks. 04:32 That you had for a long time, 04:33 some sense of Jesus did this and he also did this 04:37 and oh! Yes, he did this 04:38 but he said there are stories in between the gaps there. 04:40 You never heard because he said, 04:42 "I--I saw when Matthew said, and I saw when Mark said, 04:45 and I saw and reported and I saw Luke when reported. 04:47 And they're good. It's great but it's not enough. 04:51 I need to give you more, 04:52 of course when you come to the end of the book. 04:54 Jesus, I give up, I quit. 04:56 You know, if I feel the whole sky with the stories of Jesus. 04:59 You know, we can just 05:00 keep going and going that'll have to be enough. 05:02 That's obviously still more of modern paraphrase 05:04 of how John describes it. 05:06 But He is very clearly shares that his intention 05:09 is going to be that he is going to give stories 05:11 and insights that you wouldn't have discovered 05:13 if you only read Matthew, Mark and Luke. 05:15 Now one of the few Gospel stories 05:19 that is told in all four of the Gospels, 05:22 one of the few is the story of a woman, 05:25 a fallen woman who washes the feet of Jesus. 05:28 And--and wipes that up with her hair. 05:32 It's very interesting that the first three gospels 05:35 the ones that written Matthew, Mark and Luke. 05:37 They didn't say who the woman was? 05:39 And they just said, "you know, this woman a notoriously, 05:42 you know woman of ill repute refuge, you know. 05:45 And that she did this act and it was embarrassing and-- 05:48 You know, but Jesus said, it's a great sweet Gospel story. 05:51 And that we are to tell the story 05:53 where of the gospel goes forward 05:55 Jesus commanded the story to--to go on. 05:57 He wanted the story of this anointing 06:00 perpetuated to the end of time. 06:03 John must have nearly strip the gears 06:07 of some of the early Christian 06:08 because John written may be 15, 18 or 20 years 06:12 after the other three Gospels were already finished 06:15 and being disseminated around among the followers. 06:18 John suddenly starts write the stories 06:20 and this is all by the way, 06:21 this is all tell you the story about the reason of Lazarus 06:24 and about his sister, whose name was Martha 06:26 and her sister whose name was Mary. 06:28 And but he says, oh, we remember Mary, 06:29 Martha sweet wonderful saints. 06:31 Oh, just grate ladies of the Lord. 06:33 And John says, oh, by the way Mary was also the fallen woman. 06:38 He was the one who revealed the identity of the woman, 06:44 who was the women of ill repute at the feet of Jesus. 06:47 Now how could he get away with that why would He do it, 06:50 that--it's very simple most people believe it 06:52 because Mary probably was not alive anymore. 06:55 That this Gospel was written 15, 18, 20 years 06:58 after the others and when Mark reported it 07:01 as he heard from Peter, he probably said, 07:03 ah, this is great story and Jesus said, 07:05 we got a tell a story but I can't tell you who it was? 07:07 And I would just the names irrelevant 07:09 because Mary was still alive 07:11 and you know why should we embarrass her, 07:13 but when she is dead, what harms are going to do? 07:15 And how it must of just shaken 07:18 the foundations of the early church 07:19 when they read this and they said, 07:21 "Mary fallen woman, it saintly Mary what your kidding? 07:25 When He reveals the identity of the woman in this passage, 07:29 it just--just a wonderful insight, 07:33 Lazarus is very sick and the sisters 07:36 verse three, they sent a messenger up to find Jesus. 07:39 But Jesus was not right there and the Bethany 07:41 is just a half skip on a jump over the mount of olives. 07:44 Now the mount of olives, is not much, 07:47 it is in even the biggest mountain 07:48 around Jerusalem by the way. 07:50 It's just a decent hill at best. 07:53 I live in the Phoenix, Arizona area and you know, 07:56 we've got some mountains in the middle of the town 07:57 that a whole lot more of the mountain. 07:59 I mean right in the middle a town, 08:00 we've got mounts are whole a lot more of the mountain 08:02 the mount of olives. 08:04 And just over that little ridge was the village of Bethany, 08:08 it was suburb of Jerusalem. 08:11 Whenever Jesus came down into Jerusalem as we see in the story 08:14 he would make himself at home in Lazarus's dwelling. 08:19 And you know, that's like, 08:21 there are certain people let you just know, 08:24 you go to their house, you can just crash. 08:26 You can just relax, you can kick off your shoes. 08:29 You can help yourself to their food. 08:31 You can turn on their music, you didn't pet their dog 08:35 or you can ignore their dog. 08:37 There are certain places where you can just feel at home 08:39 because there people have this wonderful gift hospitality. 08:42 The place where you know, 08:43 in our vernacular we say you can let your hair down. 08:45 You don't have to always been impressing them 08:48 and be correct, you can be yourself. 08:50 It's a wonderful thing to have people, 08:52 they've friends like that. 08:54 And certainly we see in the text here. 08:56 That apparently was the-- the safety zone, 08:59 that apparently was the area of retreat for Jesus 09:02 when he went to Jerusalem because anytime 09:04 you got near the city, thanks got explosive. 09:06 That extremely controversial keeps always guarding himself 09:11 and waiting for the next attack, 09:13 how are they gonna come to get me this time when, 09:15 what are they gonna accuse me up this time. 09:16 What are we going to you know, 09:18 find is--is the trick where they gonna trick us up? 09:21 And Jesus always sensing this around Jerusalem. 09:24 But if you just got across the Kidron valley 09:27 and one up the little slope of the mount of olives 09:29 just over the ridge there and went to Bethany 09:31 when he got there to safe. 09:34 It was place of sanctuary form of place of refuge. 09:37 As result when Lazarus goes ill Mary 09:42 and Martha immediately it says, 09:44 verse they send a messenger why-- why not. 09:46 I mean Jesus has gone up and down the cost of Israel 09:49 resolving the problems of sick people and hurting people 09:52 and here Lazarus, their brother, 09:54 who was a good man number one, 09:56 number two, he doesn't deserve this. 09:57 Number three more than that Jesus owes him 10:00 and we think about it. 10:02 Jesus had taken advantage 10:05 of the hospitality of Lazarus many times. 10:08 And doesn't you know, Jesus kind a owe Lazarus. 10:11 If I was one of the sisters that probably 10:13 would have gone through my mind. 10:15 As soon as Jesus hears the Lazarus sick, 10:17 he is going be here right now. 10:19 He isn't gonna delay a moment to get here 10:21 because this is His Friend, more than that. 10:23 He owes Lazarus and how incredible 10:27 at must have been when Jesus heard, 10:30 he looked at his disciple's verse 4, 10:32 He heard about the--the sickness, 10:34 the illnes of Lazarus? 10:35 And He says, it's not unto to death. 10:37 Oh, it isn't. I think it is, isn't Jesus. 10:42 I mean doesn't he die? 10:44 Jesus is obviously dealing with bigger picture here. 10:48 He's obviously dealing with something larger 10:50 than just falling a sleep for a brief amount of time. 10:55 When he's taken about the issue of really dying, 11:00 the separation from God. 11:03 That Jesus is not taken about just this time out of death 11:09 which is resolve with resurrection this rest. 11:14 As Jesus said, "look we're not talking about a problem 11:18 there is un-resolvable here. 11:20 This story, it's not gonna end in death. 11:24 A granted there will be a little bit of death hear so what? 11:27 Death's noting. 11:31 I have many senior citizen members just few months ago, 11:36 I had 12, 11, 11 memorial funeral services in 13 weeks. 11:42 It's been a whole new world for me to deal with people 11:46 as they are coming to be end of life. 11:48 To help people die well 11:50 and it's not a bad ministry actually. 11:52 I have skin my knees a few times 11:54 and I've had some lessons to learn 11:56 but for me to face having the memorial services not uncommon, 12:00 I have another one in two days. 12:02 That I'll be the privilege to minister to a family that way. 12:07 And those of us who believe in the resurrection, 12:10 those of us who know that Jesus 12:12 had the problem of death resolved, 12:14 it's not big deal to his followers. 12:17 It's a little inconvenience. 12:19 It's a little separation time from with the loved ones 12:23 where we grieve not as those who have no hope 12:25 Paul says, in I Thessalonians. 12:28 We grieve because we're gonna missed their presence, 12:32 we're gonna missed their friendship 12:33 but it's not un-resolvable 12:35 we don't grieve is those who have no hope, 12:37 this things isn't gonna end in death. 12:40 But that God and the son of God might be glorified 12:45 that Jesus response and He so delays. 12:48 And the messenger that was sent back to Bethany empty-handed 12:53 Jesus was not in tow. Jesus wasn't come along. 12:57 Imagine Mary and Martha looking down the path, 13:00 just waiting for Jesus. 13:02 Boy soon as gets here this all of our fear and our-- 13:05 the lost that were going to experience here, 13:06 our brother, I mean you know we're woman 13:08 how we gonna make in the world without him 13:10 and he is been our protector and defender and on and on. 13:12 All of the in security could be gone just like that. 13:15 When Jesus shows up they looked out 13:18 and Jesus didn't return with the messenger. 13:21 Can you put yourself back in those days, 13:23 can you put yourself into the sandals in Mary and Martha 13:25 standing and looking at this messenger coming back. 13:28 Did you find Jesus? Oh, yes, I did. 13:31 Oh, he did and you told him, what was we said, yes. 13:33 Told him the Lazarus-- this isn't messing around, 13:35 this is serious sick. 13:36 Yeah I told him, he is very-very ill, 13:38 I mean this is a great situation. 13:40 And is he coming? 13:41 The messenger probably shrugs his shoulders that I don't know. 13:45 I tried, imagine what they did those two sisters. 13:51 What a frustration that must have been to them. 13:55 Jesus in verse 5 before we get away from 13:58 and it says, Now Jesus loved Martha, 14:01 and her sister and Lazarus." 14:06 I feel loved him so much 14:08 then why is he putting them through this? 14:11 He obviously has a much larger agenda in the story 14:16 and obviously we're going see how it plays out. 14:19 But I tell you when you're on this edge 14:21 of it looking into the unknown, 14:24 it's hard to see the love of God behind back. 14:27 It's hard to see the love of Christ 14:29 when you staying right at the edge of the cliff 14:30 and everything is unknown and need to step forward. 14:33 It's hard to see that. 14:35 Jesus stayed where He was verse 6, 14:38 is He stayed for two more days after that. 14:41 And then finally, he said to His follower, 14:43 let's head on down to Judaea. 14:45 And the disciples said, verse 8 because there-- 14:48 you know they kind of forgotten 14:49 about this Lazarus thing may be, I don't know. 14:51 May be not, may be they're just scratching their head 14:54 they don't understand Jesus. 14:55 But the disciple said, but master 14:57 whenever we get around Jerusalem anymore, 14:59 I mean things gets serious. 15:01 Things get really-really intense. 15:02 Master you can't us to go down to Jerusalem easily. 15:04 You know, may be we ought not to. 15:06 And Jesus said, "come on, there is a time for this 15:09 and the time for that, verse 9 he says, 15:10 Are there not twelve hours in the day? 15:13 If any man walk in the day, he stumbleth not, 15:15 when you walk in the timing of heaven 15:17 everything is gonna be fine. 15:19 If you walk in the time mean of heaven" 15:22 and he said, verse 11, "Our friend Lazarus sleeps. 15:27 And I am going, that I may awake him out of sleep." 15:31 The Granath, you know, he's out, he's unconscious. 15:34 He is oblivious, he is gone, 15:35 you know, but it's not unsolvable. 15:37 And of course, they heard sleep, oh--oh, no big deal, 15:39 the fever is gonna break. 15:41 Is gonna feel but Jesus said, you're not listening verse 14, 15:44 "Lazarus is dead." 15:46 You know, I called it sleep and I meant sleep 15:49 but normally you would use the term "dead." 15:52 There is no messing around with this. 15:54 And in verse 15, this is so powerful, 15:56 "I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, 15:59 "I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, 16:01 to the intent that you might believe." 16:03 If I would been there with Lazarus 16:07 this would not have happened. 16:09 And I am grateful that I wasn't there, wow! Lord. 16:13 And I love the next verse. This is so great. 16:16 Thomas, Thomas steps forward, you know, doubting Thomas. 16:21 I mean, if he is doubting Thomas 16:23 and never doesn't anything right, right? 16:24 Wrong, doubting Thomas. 16:27 It is so sweet, he is first one to step up and he says, 16:30 wait a minute Jesus, if you're going to Jerusalem to die, 16:33 I am going with you to die. 16:34 That doesn't sound like doubting Thomas to me, 16:38 that sounds like a man who is God, 16:40 an incredible passion and faith in Jesus. 16:43 Let's go that we die with him, that's one Thomas. 16:48 At verse 16, "So after four days of being dead" 16:53 verse 17, Jesus finally gets to Bethany. 16:56 Noticed what happens in the story verse 20 and onward. 17:01 Then Martha, as soon as she hears 17:05 that Jesus was coming over the brow the hill, 17:08 Martha went out meet him, 17:11 but not Mary and sits Mary stayed in the house. 17:16 Oh, you've to know why? 17:17 Martha, you remember in the story 17:19 that often she was proper one. 17:21 Ahe was the one who had always do things correctly. 17:24 She would take care of the kitchen. 17:26 She do the right thing even if it killed her, even if hurt. 17:29 She do the right thing. 17:31 And the right thing was to come out to Jesus 17:33 and be gracious as much as she probably 17:35 wanted to scream at Him. 17:37 It was the right thing to do and Martha 17:40 that she was the appropriate one. 17:41 But Mary you're not gonna confused Mary and Martha ever. 17:45 Mary is not gonna play that game. 17:47 Mary is not gonna be appropriate. 17:48 She is just gonna let her emotions hang out there. 17:51 I can imagine that Martha may have gone 17:53 and then said, you know, Jesus is coming over the hill 17:55 there we better go greet Him because 17:56 and that's the right thing to do and almost here, 17:59 Mary looking at her sister and saying, you go if you want to, 18:02 I am not getting anywhere near Him. 18:04 When we needed Him, he didn't come. 18:06 Here my brother is our brother our is given Him so much 18:08 and he didn't show up. I don't need a man like that. 18:14 I--I thought he was different. 18:16 I thought that he would be the kind of man, 18:19 who would be there, you know, 18:21 exactly the way, I think I need Him. 18:23 And--and I knew how I needed him now. 18:25 And He doesn't show up what kind a man is this? 18:28 I am not going out and like a petulant child, 18:31 you get the sense that, 18:32 It's almost like Mary just storms a little feet 18:35 and she sticks out her little leg and she-- 18:37 I am not gonna do it. She is hurting so badly. 18:40 And she doesn't have the appropriate 18:44 self control of her correct sister. 18:50 Martha came out verse 21, it is so sweet 18:55 Lord if you'd been here, this wouldn't happen, 19:01 my brother would not died. 19:06 By the way when you get to verse 32, 19:08 when Mary finally breaks and approaches and come to Jesus, 19:14 she says exactly the same thing. 19:17 Lord if you'd been here, this wouldn't happen. 19:21 I've already confess to you that 19:23 I have more funerals more memorial services 19:27 than the average pastor. 19:31 Wow! I don't think I've had a service that 19:34 I haven't thought for a moment somewhere in the service. 19:38 Jesus if you'd been here, 19:39 we wouldn't having this funeral today. 19:43 Jesus, if would have already come, 19:45 we wouldn't having this memorial service. 19:46 Jesus if you'd been here, 19:48 I won't be standing here looking 19:49 that this widow going through her loss. 19:51 Jesus if you'd been here, I think that often, 19:55 which is exactly what the two sisters say, 19:57 they both say the same thing Him. 19:59 Lord if you'd been here, this wouldn't happen. 20:01 And the truth is Jesus confesses, I know. 20:04 He know, he already told His disciples that, 20:05 I am decidedly not going for a purpose. 20:08 It's for a greater glory, if I was there, 20:12 this would never happen. 20:15 It shows you why it so good the Jesus is? 20:18 You know, Lord, I am not. 20:20 I don't run in this foot prints of heaven very well 20:26 often tend to run ahead of God, 20:27 and that's personality some people tend to line behind God. 20:30 I tend to gonna run ahead of God to learn the footsteps 20:34 in the time of heaven it's so important. 20:36 I did a series on "Between The Lines" 20:38 while I go call the Methodical Messiah. 20:42 Is it ever crushed your mind Jesus was never in a hurry. 20:46 He had a world to save and He was never in a hurry. 20:52 He never ran anywhere. 20:55 Because he walking the perfect timing of His father. 20:59 Some of us that's a lesson we need to learn. 21:03 I certainly I --I don't run in been in Bethany you know, 21:07 right, I'd solved that out 21:08 and fixed at all that would have been me, 21:10 that been my personality. 21:11 Jesus had a bigger picture. 21:13 Lord, if you had been here, this wouldn't happen. 21:15 I know, do you believe that your brother will rise again 21:19 Jesus asked to Martha in verse 23 21:22 and she is oh! Yeah, 21:23 at the end of time it's all gone get resolved 21:24 and Jesus said, "You don't understand verse 25, 21:27 "I am the resurrection, and the life, 21:30 whoever believes on me even if he died, 21:33 it's irrelevant death is a not a permanent problem 21:37 to those who believe in Jesus Christ. 21:41 Yet shall he live, verse 27, 21:43 oh! I believe that thou art the Christ, 21:46 the Son of God, who should come into the world." 21:50 That I do believe, I know that. 21:51 I don't understand all the rests 21:53 of what happened in the last week here. 21:54 Jesus, but I do know that. Go get your sister Mary 21:59 verse 28, and of course, 22:00 Mary comes out heart broken. 22:03 And Jesus interacts with her verse 33, 22:06 it said, "He groaned in His Spirit. 22:09 Something happen inside of Jesus and when I was young. 22:14 One day it struck me. What is Jesus doing, 22:19 weeping John 11:35, Jesus wept. 22:22 Why does he do cry. He's already told his disciples 22:26 I am going to resolve this thing. 22:28 He has already we have affirm to Mary and Martha, 22:31 this is no big deal you know, 22:32 I know you hurting that is so big deal. 22:34 Jesus, he-- he is already there, 22:36 knowing what he's going to do? 22:38 So what's He crying about? 22:39 One day that bother me so much, 22:41 I've decided I was gonna spent sometime think 22:43 it about and I actually turn to "Desire of Ages" 22:46 to Ellen White to see if she had any insights of it 22:48 and when you know what, in "Desire of Ages" 22:50 there was a wonderful reference to this 22:52 and explanation and it's so good. 22:54 It's so logical. I think why didn't I-- 22:56 why didn't I think of this. 22:58 You know, and the Lord, this is so good. 22:59 Number one Jesus wept because he was sorry 23:06 for the pain of Mary and Martha, 23:08 for what they gone through. 23:09 I mean this has been anguishing for them 23:11 and it hurt him that this children had been hurt. 23:15 Number two and this is simple logic, Jesus wept. 23:21 Because, he looked down the span of time 23:25 and he saw all the sisters at the grave's of their brothers. 23:30 He saw all the parents of the grave's of their children. 23:33 He saw, yes, eventually Jesus is gonna resolve this 23:36 all with resurrection in second coming. 23:37 He's gonna resolved with all but until then 23:39 we're going to have moment where we grieve. 23:43 0Not as those who have no hope, 23:44 but we will grieve and that hurt Him. 23:46 Because he had a reason to allow it to happen 23:50 but he doesn't enjoyed. And the third reason 23:52 that Jesus wept is, 23:53 I am sure he stood in front of that grave 23:55 and thought you know there are going to be graves 23:56 that I am not going to be open. 23:58 Not opening with--with joy. 24:02 I am not going to be able to call him forth with joy. 24:07 And there must been painful to him. 24:10 He groaned in himself in his spirit. 24:12 His spirit was trouble, Jesus wept. 24:15 And then as there is a Greek idiomatic expressions here, 24:19 actually it's my understanding, 24:20 I aa not a great Greek scholar but I understand that Jesus, 24:23 it's--it's like he was a horse, 24:25 a mustang with His herd His flock and nostrils was flurry. 24:30 That's the description actually here. 24:32 That-- that Jesus was tensed and ready His muscles tensed 24:36 when it because He was ready to take on the devil 24:38 right there and Jesus was gone a win. 24:41 And He knew it. 24:43 And he couldn't wait to spring in the action 24:45 with His nostrils flurrying. 24:49 Could not this man who open the eyes of the blind 24:52 verse 37, couldn't He stop this and Jesus 24:55 verse 38, groaned in Himself 24:57 because there is a big picture here. 24:58 My children eventually you got to begin to catch on. 25:02 He groaned within Himself and He said, verse 39, 25:05 take away the stone, I've got a plan. 25:07 I've got a plan here today. 25:09 Today, I am taking on the host of evil, 25:12 myself again stole of them right here. 25:14 And you all gonna see it today I am going to reveal to you 25:19 just a fraction of the big picture today. 25:23 Take away the stone. Oh! Lord, don't do 25:25 that I don't the last sense of my brother to be, 25:27 you know, what he look like in a casket. 25:29 I don't want to last view my brother to be, 25:31 I don't want the last sense of my brother to be. 25:32 Lord, don't that and Jesus said, "No take it away. 25:36 If you believe, you're see the glory of God, 25:39 that's verse 40, and so they took the stone away 25:42 and verse 43, Jesus stood back and He shouted in 25:46 and dead ear's heard. And can you imagine, 25:50 I can't sense of the Jesus began to laugh. 25:54 I mean, you know, here comes this body 25:57 all wrapped up and round up 26:00 and this kind of thing and people stand going 26:01 and Jesus, you know, starting laughing. 26:03 He says, folks are you live him like that. 26:05 You know, unwind him, let them him free, 26:08 I mean come on, you know, it's not appropriate firm 26:09 to be standing all their bound up very close, 26:11 I mean he is obviously not dead anymore 26:13 and so they unbound him. Loose him 26:16 and let him go and Lazarus came back to life 26:19 probably stood round thought. 26:21 You know this is a very strange event here. 26:24 I missing something, 26:27 I think because he stepped out from death. 26:30 To see his own funeral have you ever speculated 26:33 down the line 12 years later, 26:35 17 years later have you ever speculated 26:37 what a potential second funeral for Lazarus. 26:39 What have been like. 26:41 May be Mary and Martha out live him again 26:43 0may be and they sit around at the second funeral 26:46 the talk about it and they contrast 26:49 the second funeral to the first funeral. 26:51 When you have a true perception of Jesus 26:53 as Lord and that even death itself is not big deal. 26:58 It's--it's just a little inconvenience 26:59 that when you come to understand 27:02 that Jesus is the resurrection 27:04 in the life and there is nothing in your life 27:05 or your experience even your death 27:08 that is going to handcuff him, is going to paralyzed him, 27:11 he's got this whole thing under control. 27:14 And in His good time, 27:16 He is going to bring it all to resolution 27:18 when you and I come to the place with me understand that. 27:21 Then, the big picture takes a hold us 27:26 and we look at the petty inconveniences of life 27:29 and even the painful things we say look, 27:31 "God's in control" and I will let Him be God 27:34 because through the Lord Jesus Christ 27:37 and the power of this resurrected 27:39 Jesus everything is going to be resolved. 27:41 Everything is to be going to be resolved 27:43 and I am just hang on till that day. 27:45 These two sisters learnt that lesson 27:48 and can you contrast the second funeral 27:50 to the first funeral of the day 27:52 when Jesus resolves it forever. Even for you. |
Revised 2014-12-17