Come Forth

Well, if you're ready, I'm ready. Let's dig into God's Word some more. The main message today is titled, Come Forth. Come Forth. And if you have your Bibles, I invite you to open them up. And let's turn to John's Gospel, John chapter 11. And we're going to read in just a moment verses 1 through 16. It is John chapter 11 in which we find those words come forth, and they are shouted as a command.

And the resurrection of Jesus's dear friend Lazarus occurs. And we want to come to this moment in John 11, because in gathering together here today, here at the Feast of Tabernacles, we are driven by essentially one belief in particular. And it is the belief of a future resurrection, not just a resurrection of those to whom God is calling at this time, but is a belief in a second resurrection of all those who have ever died. That one day, everyone will have the opportunity to come forth to the one to whom has the power over death. And the one everyone will come to is Jesus Christ himself, Jesus who is the resurrection and the life. And ultimately, those who believe in him, although they may die, yet they shall live again. Do you believe that? That's going to be the question that Jesus poses to us today. Do you believe that there is a day coming? And all who are in the graves will hear his voice and rise again, some to a first resurrection to immediate glory, others to a second resurrection with their hope of a future glorification. Do you believe these things? Well, I hope from this wonderful story, the raising of Lazarus back to life, that this might serve as a moment to renew your belief. How is it that Lazarus could be dead and come back to life? How could that be?

Well, it is by hearing those words, come forth that Lazarus would rise from the dead, and there is only one who can give such a command. We're going to get to that dramatic command in just a moment. Let's begin, though, by reading at the beginning here of this incredible account that John records for us. John 11, and let's begin in verse 1 here. John 11 verse 1, John records the following. Now, a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. It was that Mary who anointed, that same Mary who anointed, looked the Lord with the fragrant oil and wiped his feet with her hair. It was her whose brother Lazarus was sick. Therefore, the sisters Mary and Martha sent to him, that's Jesus, saying, Lord, behold, he whom you love is sick. Then Jesus heard that, and he said, this sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it. Now, Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, so when he heard he was sick, he stayed two more days in the place where he was. Then after this, he, Jesus, said to his disciples, let us go to Judea again. Verse 8, the disciples said to Jesus, Rabbi, lately the Jews sought to stone you, and are you going to go there again? And Jesus answered, Are there not twelve 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. These things he said, and after that he said to them, Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up. Then his disciples said, Lord, if he sleeps, he will get well. However, Jesus spoke of his death, and they thought he was speaking about taking a rest in sleep. But Jesus said to them plainly, Lazarus is dead, and I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, that you may believe. Nevertheless, let us go to him. Then Thomas, who is called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, Well, let us also go, that we may die with him. Let's stop there. So, what a story! What a beginning to a story! What do we know? Well, we know immediately to whom this story revolves. It's Lazarus. He is described as Lazarus from Bethany. We're also told that it is in the town where his sisters, Mary and Martha, also lived. But almost immediately, John moves to the fact that Lazarus is sick. He's very sick. Therefore, verse 3 again, the sisters sent to him a message, and here's what they wrote. Lord, verse 3, behold, he whom you love is sick.

This message is sent immediately, and it really reveals to us, the reader, that of the love that existed between Jesus and Lazarus and the two sisters, right? The closeness that they had, just for the fact that they can send a message and not even mention to Jesus who they're talking about. The message is said, the one to whom you love is sick. That indicates a closeness there. And again, it may point to the fact of just how much love there was between these four and how much Jesus cared for these three.

It was a deep relationship here. And you also maybe had noticed that the sisters didn't even put an appeal. You know, they didn't even say, would you come and heal him? And that may also point to the closeness that they had, you know, just by sending word, the one to whom you love is sick, grounded upon the understanding of how much he loved Lazarus. Of course, he would respond. Jesus loved him. And as a side note, this is the confidence. This gives us the confidence in us sending our messages to the Father through the Son. Our messages, our prayers are sent with this same understanding of the love that they have for us.

Where's our confidence that he will respond? Well, he loves us. Loves us deeply. Now, notice in verse 4 how Jesus responds. Pretty interesting. Verse 4, when Jesus heard that, he said, this sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God and the Son of God may be glorified through it. Okay, very interesting there. This immediately, this sickness is not unto death. But anyone who knows this story knows that it is actually unto death, right?

Lazarus would die. So Jesus is not saying Lazarus would not die. We clearly know that he did die, right? So what Jesus is establishing here in verse 4 is quite profound. It is that Lazarus's death, the death would not ultimately be the significance of this account, okay? Of all that's about to happen, the death of Lazarus would not bring the significance to this event. In other words, the significance of this event will not be that Lazarus was sick and died.

Rather, Jesus is saying, in the final conclusion, the ultimate significance of all that's about to occur in this narrative will be that God's glory is on full display and the Son of God will be glorified through it. That is very important to consider and to remind ourselves of.

And this might actually remind you of a similar teaching that Christ gave just a few chapters back when he was speaking of the blind man who was blind since birth that he was going to heal. Let me just show you that just for a moment. If you want to keep your marker here and turn back to just a few chapters to John chapter 9 verses 1 through 3, John 9 verses 1 through 3, we see that Jesus is going to give this same understanding of God's glory.

His works revealed is the ultimate significance of all things. Look at John 9 and let's read verses 1 through 3. John records here of this occurrence. Now as Jesus passed by, he saw a man who was blind from birth and his disciples asked him, saying, Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind? And Jesus answered, neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.

Let's stop there. So Jesus says to his disciples, you understand the ultimate significance, the ultimate significance in the blind man's blindness is not that the blind man would see again. The ultimate significance in the blindness is that the works of God would be revealed through him, you see.

And likewise Lazarus, Lazarus's death, the ultimate significance of Lazarus's death is not whether Lazarus lives or dies in this moment, the ultimate significance, the conclusion of it all is that God's glory would be on full display for all to see, and that the Son of God would be glorified through it. And by the way, by the way, likewise, this gives us the ultimate significance in our life. All of it, all that we experience in this life, blind, sickness, whatever, the significance of everything that happens in our life and even in our death, is that it is all to reveal the glory of God and that his Son would be glorified through it.

So it is that God, we give God's glory now. Everything we do in this life is to give God glory, no matter what we experience, until one day he glorifies us beyond measure for eternity. So we glorify him in our life, in our sickness, and even in our death. That's the significance of our life. That's where our life gets significance. If you get a hold of that, oh man, it'll change your whole perspective.

It'll just re-establish your purpose here on earth and allows you to see and make sense of all that we go through. It's in relation to his works being seen through us, through us, just as it was true in Lazarus' life and death. So let's go back to Lazarus here, back to chapter 11 and verse 4.

Chapter 11 and verse 4 again. Again, this sickness, Jesus says, is not unto death, but for the glory of God and the Son of God may be glorified through it. Now that is super important to establish at this point. If you do not have that understanding, verses 5, 6, and 7 will make no sense whatsoever. It will be contradictory to everything that we know about Jesus Christ without that understanding because look at verse 5 through 7. Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister Lazarus, so when he heard he was sick, he went right away.

No, no, he stayed. He loved Lazarus and therefore he stayed two more days in the place he was. Okay, and then after that he told the disciples, let's go to Judea. You see, when he heard Lazarus, the one he loved was sick, you might expect immediately he would run off, but it says he stays two more days. How do we understand this delay? It is in knowing the ultimate conclusion of all this to be achieved. That is the great lesson for us this afternoon. So when you've prayed, when you've sent your message to the Father through the Son, and you've put forth your desires, when you've sent in your message, come, deliver me, rescue me, heal me. Once you've laid that on God the Father through Jesus Christ, we must not judge God's response in light of how we think he should respond. You see, the ways of God are mysterious. His delays are mysterious. Judge not the Lord on your own understanding. Whatever may be his delay, he never forgets his loved ones. And it may be in those times of delay that he is working it out to reveal his works through you, if we would be so honored.

And therefore glorify his Son. And I'll tell you, Martha and Mary, we're about to discover that very thing. Here, let us go to Judea, he says. Verse 8. Let's pick it up here at verse 8. Jesus, didn't they try to stone you last time? Right. I don't know if this was an exact full concern for Jesus because they knew if he goes, we're gone. Right? So if he gets stoned, we're getting stoned. Right? They might have been protecting themselves a little bit. I think that comes out if you allow your eyes just to go down briefly to verse 16. Allow your eyes to go down to verse 16. And we have Thomas, whom I love. I love Thomas. Yeah. Well, let's all go and I guess we'll all die with him, he says there. But in hearing this, going back up to verse 9 and 10, verse 9 and 10, so in hearing their questioning, verse 9, Jesus answered and said, are there not 12 hours in the day? Now think broader in his answer here. If anyone walks in the day, symbolically perhaps, he does not stumble because he sees the light of the world. But if anyone symbolically walks in the night, he stumbles because the light is not enough, you see. So he's not merely speaking about how difficult it is to travel at night, right? This is, he is concerned about the darkness of the disciples' minds and hearts at this point.

He's concerned, Jesus is concerned about the darkness of doubt, the darkness of doubt, the darkness of somehow thinking that Jesus is not in control.

And it's that darkness that he sees in the disciples. So continuing, verse 11 through 15, these things he said, verse 11, and after he said this to them, our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go to wake him up. And again, the disciples angling it a little bit here. Well, if he sleeps, he'll get well. Surely we don't have to go. He'll be fine.

However, verse 13, Jesus spoke of his death, but he thought, but they thought he was speaking about taking a rest and sleep. I think they do. I think they do. Verse 14, Jesus said to them, plainly, Lazarus is dead. And here it is. I'm glad for your sakes. I was not there that you may believe. That's the whole point of this whole occurrence that's happening. Nevertheless, let's go to him. So they did. Verse 17 through 19. Then Jesus came and he found that he, Lazarus, verse 17, had been in the tomb for four days. Now, Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles away. Many of the Jews had joined the women around Martha and Mary to comfort them concerning their brother. Let's stop there. They even had professional mourners at that time. These professional mourners would come in situations like this and provide comfort. Some maybe had a true heart. So it had been four days when Jesus approaches the tomb of Lazarus here. So this is kind of a time reference here that John gives us. Even though the distance was only about a couple of miles, John records, perhaps it took a day for the message to get to Jesus. Jesus delayed for two more days, perhaps another day to get to the tomb. And then you have the four days here. I only say that just to make the point, perhaps Lazarus, even if Jesus would have left immediately, Lazarus probably would have already been dead. You see? So maybe we can just figure that that he would have already been deceased even by the time the message received to him.

He waits two days, makes the travels there, and it has now been four days there in the tomb. An interesting side note. I love interesting side notes. There was an odd and peculiar and wrong belief that the Jews had at that time. Some of the Jews believed that after someone died, the soul hovered over the grave for three days. Odd, weird, wrong, you know, it was incorrect belief there. That after death, the soul that after death, the soul just kind of hovered for three days before it moved on to its resting place.

I say that because it was always on the fourth day that the the Jewish grief reached its apex. You see? So we would have been at this time after four days that many there would have said, oh there's no way that Lazarus is coming back to life. You know, it's been four days there. So let's first notice now in this moment, Martha's response, and you're going to see the darkness of doubt in Martha. Continuing here, verse 20 through 27. Verse 20 through 27. Now, Martha, as soon as she heard that Jesus was coming, went and met him. If you know Martha from other narratives, you'll know that makes sense. She was always the go, go right ahead. But Mary was sitting in the house. Now, Martha said to Jesus, Lord, if you had been here, my brother would have not died. Verse 22. But even now, I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you. Jesus said to her, your brother will rise again. And Martha said to him, I know he will rise again in the resurrection of the last day.

But Jesus said to her, I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?

And she said to him, yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming to the world. So let's stop there. So what do we see? She heard Jesus was coming. She she makes a quick exit to meet him. And then it's almost like a rebuke. Right? Verse 21. Lord, if you had been here, my brother would have been it would have not died.

Pretty harsh, direct words. You know, rebuking Jesus. Or perhaps, perhaps we can read it in such a this way, where it's a declaration of faith with sorrow. Lord, if you'd only been here, my brother would not be dead. I know he wouldn't be dead. Oh, if you could have only been here before he died, I know you loved him.

Lazarus would still be living.

Maybe it is a declaration of faith. We can absolutely say this is a declaration of sorrow for sure. She's feeling in this moment. And I think it's all overlaid, overshadowed with doubt here. Doubt is taking over her experience. But now Jesus is here. Verse 22, she says, but even now, I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you. Do you think she believed that? I mean, truly believed it? Even now, if you asked Lazarus could be brought back from the dead, you're able to do that? I think she felt that. But it was only for a while. Because if you'll just briefly allow your eyes to go down to verse 39, just a moment shortly thereafter, verse 39, they're about to take away the stone. And Martha, sister of him who was dead, said to Jesus, Lord, by this time there's a stench, for he's been dead for four days. So verse 22, I know even now, verse 39, oh don't pull back this, don't roll back the stone, you know, that's worthless to do. So what's happening here? This should feel very familiar to us. This is the struggle. How do you want to put it? This is the struggle between the hearts and the head. When we're going through such trials and sorrow, this is the great human experience of swaying between doubt and faith, isn't it? In these circumstances, wrestling with these emotions.

So Jesus says to her, verse 23, your brother will rise again.

Verse 24, I know he will rise again, but in the resurrection of the last day, right, she knew the truth of the resurrection here. Yeah, I know. Yeah, he'll rise in the last day. But there's kind of a true belief, a confidence, but it's in future tense. And I think we have that sometimes. We're going through a really difficult life and death trial, and we say to ourselves, I know God will, I know all this will be worked out and wrapped up with Christ's returns. But now, now I'm not so sure in the immediate circumstances.

So we can find ourselves like Martha having a strong faith, but it's future tense. I want you to have a strong faith in the now.

The now. He is the life and the resurrection of all our circumstances, all our difficult circumstances that would look to destroy us now. He can bring life now to those circumstances, you see. So there seems to be with Martha, and we get it, a kind of hopelessness here that's just overshadowing the whole thing here. She needed to believe that the resurrection and the life was standing before her, and he loved her. So this speaks to us today. Verse 25 through 26, verse 25 through 27. Let's read this. Verse 25 through 27. Jesus said to her, this is what he wanted her to believe. I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, though he may die, he shall live, and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this? That's the question Jesus is asking of all of us here today, and we need to answer like Martha here. I'm proud of her. Verse 27, yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is who's coming to the world. Maybe you need to recite that in your heart, in your mind, maybe verbally in the circumstances that you're facing today. Yes, Lord, I believe. And notice again, this is one of those concepts we can't even quite grasp. He doesn't say that I am the one who furnishes resurrection and life. No, he says I am. I am the resurrection and the life. In other words, I am the source of life. I am the cause of life. I am the fountain of life. And if you would believe, I'll pour myself over you. Do you believe? Now, we find this same experience in Mary as well, verses 28 through 32 here, verses 28 through 32 John records, and when she, Martha, said these things, she went her way, secretly called Mary her sister, perhaps not wanting the mourners to hear, saying, the teacher has come and is calling for you, Mary. And as soon as Mary heard that, she arose quickly and came to him. Now, Jesus had not come into the town, but he was in the place where Martha met him. Perhaps he was waiting for Mary. Then the Jews, unfortunately, who were with her in the house, and comforting her, when they saw Mary rose up quickly and went out, they followed her, saying, she is going to the tomb to weep there. Let's all go here. Then when Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, Mary fell down at his feet. That was a familiar posture for him. She was very humble, saying to him, really the exact same words Martha did, Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. So here it is in verse 32, then, this same statement noted here. Now Mary finding herself in this mixture of faith and doubts here. And now, Jesus is standing here in this moment. And we're beginning now to come to some of the greatest moments, one after another, in all the Bible here. Such a dramatic, such a deep, such an exciting moment here. Beginning in verse 33, Jesus now stands to confront this moment. Looks out on the group. Verse 33, therefore when Jesus saw her weeping, it's Mary, and the Jews who had come with her weeping, he, Jesus, groaned in the spirit and was troubled. Let's stop there. These words here, one of the words that's used here, this groaning here, it has this context of the snorting of a horse, actually. In the Greek, the word used here is, it has the context of a snorting of a horse. Deep groaning, deep within Jesus, there was this groaning that emerged from him here.

John looks out, he says Jesus looked up on this scene, and he groaned deeply within himself here. And I got to tell you, this troubling of his spirit occurred one other time.

This is the same word that was used when Jesus was deeply troubled, when he was with his disciples there in the upper room, and he says, one of you is going to betray me. And it says his spirit was troubled. It's that same type of emotion that he's feeling here at this moment here. This is deep, the same sense, now that Jesus looks out upon this scene here. Now look at this next moment. Verse 34 here, 35. And he, Jesus, says, where have you laid him? And they said to him, Lord, come and see. Verse 35, Jesus wept. Then the Jews said, see how he loved him? And some of them said, could not this man who opened the eyes of the blind also have kept this man from dying? Let's stop here. So those witnessing, they didn't understand the depth of the meaning of the blind man's blindness, you see. And how that relates to this. And the significance of all that was being revealed here. In verse 35, the shortest verse in all of Scripture here. A verse we could say, we can't even reach the depth of it. He wept, Jesus wept. How do you capture this? And trying to explain this?

Maybe the question is, why? Why did Jesus weep?

I believe that in measure, it is the outpouring of the one who is truly affected and truly moved with our infirmities and our troubles. He loved Lazarus. He loves us. He sympathizes with us, truly. It's a measure of that. But perhaps in this moment, Jesus is most deeply affected by looking at the absolute hopelessness of it all. And the doubt, the darkness of doubt in their hearts. He looked out on this scene and all that he saw was hopelessness and doubt. And doubt. Because he knew, that ultimately he knew and wouldn't have weeped for Lazarus' death, he was going to soon call him forth. But now Jesus looked upon this sealed tomb and all the crying and all the wailing was filling his ears. And he is now face to face with death. Death, the last enemy to be destroyed. And he snorts. And he snorts.

Deep. He has deep enmity against death.

And he sees these men and women and they don't know how to deal with death.

Swaying between faith and doubt. Oh, isn't a humanity gripped by death.

So he weeps. Jesus Christ, the one who came to deal with the sting of death, to destroy it once and for all, now sees it in its fullness of darkness and destruction. And he weeps. But in this moment, as he looks out, he does so not as a helpless bystander.

He stands now here in this moment as a death conqueror. That's who he is. His glories now we sing, who died and rose on high, who died eternal life to bring, and lives that death may die.

So here we are at the greatest of conclusions. One of the greatest conclusions, the greatest event of all the Bible. Let's read it in its fullness now, verse 38 through 44. Here we are. Verse 38 through 44. Then Jesus again, groaning in himself, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it, and Jesus said, Take away the stone. Martha, the sister of him who was dead, said to him, Lord, by this time there is a stench, for he has been dead for four days. Jesus said to her, I do not say to you, do I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God, 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, and I know that you always hear me. But because of the people who are standing by, I have said this verbally, that they may believe that you sent me. And when you had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. And he who had died came out, bound hand and foot with grave clothes. And his face was wrapped with a cloth. And Jesus said to them, Loose him and let him go. What a moment! What a moment! Come forth, he said.

How can Jesus give such a command? Well, he is the resurrection and the life.

And Lazarus came forth with his grave clothes still around him. And I love this. He says, Get those grave clothes off of him. Those are no longer his garments. Loose him, let him go. In other words, lose him, death.

Let him go. You can no longer have your grip on him.

How was it that Lazarus could be dead and come back to life?

Will he heard the voice? The voice who makes dead people here? And Jesus speaks, and in listening to his voice, new life, the dead receive.

Brethren, in the same way that Jesus gave physical life back to Lazarus, one day he will speak these same words to you. Come forth! Come forth! Come forth! And those to whom those words go out to, they will rise, not merely to physical life, but to eternal life.

And to the glory of the Father, and to the glory of the Son, do you believe? Believe it! Jesus Christ has come!

The teacher calls for you. Will you hear him today?

No matter the circumstances that you're going through, if you will respond today, he will help you rise up from them.

That has to be our belief. Don't ever doubt. One day he will return, and his command will be come forth, and we will be raised to the fulfillment of these days. And your grave clothes will be removed, and new, white, spotless garments you will receive.

He, with all authority, will say to death, Loose him! Loose her! Let them go! Come forth my sons! Come forth my daughters, and rise, and live with me forever!