Here is a sermon I preached a few weeks ago. Our small church had just heard of the death of a longtime member. And I thought this would be an appropriate message.
We don’t like to talk about death very often…and we really don’t like to think about death very often, if we can help it.
Yet, as you all know today, we are face to face with it once again. Obviously, we need to keep Don in our prayers, as well as their children and family and friends in these tough days.
Death is hard for us to deal with sometimes, because we are the ones who have to. What I mean is…we have a sister in Christ who dies. She is gone and healed…yet, we remain. We are left to process and think and wrestle with death.
Benjamin Franklin made a famous statement once when he said that there are only two certainties in this life: death and taxes. Every year we have to pay our taxes and there is no getting around it. But, just as certain…if not more so, is the certainty of death.
Ben Franklin had a fairly humorous outlook on death. He was not, as far as I know, a Christian…yet, he seemed to believe in some Christian teachings, specifically that of the resurrection of the dead.
In one of his lighter moments, he penned his own epitaph. It said:
The Body of B. Franklin,
Printer
Like the Cover of an old Book
Its contents torn out,
And stript of its Lettering and Guilding,
Lies here
Food for Worms
But the Work shall not be wholly lost:
For it will, as he believ’d,
Appear once more
In a new & more perfect Edition
Corrected and amended by the Author.
We are going to begin today talking a little bit about statements that Jesus makes of himself in the Gospel of John…
7 times in the Gospel does Jesus make what we call an “I Am” statement about himself. For example:
In John 6:35, he says, “I am the bread of life.”
8:12 & 9:5—the light of the world.
10:7 & 9—the gate.
10:11 & 14—the good shepherd.
14:6—the way, truth, and life.
15:1 & 5—the vine or the true vine.
And today, the passage we are going to look at, is 11:25, where Jesus says, fittingly enough for us, “I am the resurrection and the life.”
Before we get to that, though…there are a few bits of groundwork I think are worth laying.
First, Jesus makes 7 of these I AM statements in the book of John. 7 represents the number of perfection…it can’t be divided by anything…and throughout the Scriptures, the number 7 represents wholeness or perfection.
Secondly, Jesus starts each of these statements with the words “I AM.”
The original Greek makes this statement very emphatic…not just “I am” but “I am.” As in, nobody else can claim to be the way, truth, life, gate, bread, shepherd, resurrection. I am those things…just me.
And when Jesus says “I am _____________,” the good Jews listening on would hear something very familiar. They would have heard Jesus claiming “I am” and that is a name of God.
Remember when Moses encounters God at the burning bush? Let’s read it:
Exodus 3:13-14 (TNIV)
13 Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?” 14 God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ “
God’s name is I AM. And that is different from saying I WAS or I WILL BE or I MIGHT BE. It’s saying I AM.
Jesus then states, “I am _________________.” What he is stating is very similar and echoes what is already known to be the name of God.
And so, if you have your Bible with you (or use the one in the pew in front of you), turn to John 11.
While you are doing that, I want to share a quote with you from Tertullian, a 3rd century church father. He said these words:
“It is a poor thing to fear that which is inevitable.” He was referring to death…
How much energy do we waste worrying about things that we cannot change? I have never really feared death like some have…I have had experiences with death since a very young age. But one person has shaped my view of death very significantly. His name is Marty…and Marty is the preacher that I worked with when I was doing youth ministry in Missouri.
When I first got to know Marty, he spoke about death very candidly. And not in a morbid way…but in a real, honest way. He spoke about it personally. He talked about his death as if it could happen any day, and he wouldn’t mind it when it did. Which, now that I am a bit older, I understand better. That’s true…
You see, Marty’s family has a wicked history of cancer. He used to say, “In my family, it’s not a matter of if you get cancer, but when.” His father died at age 40…his mom had multiple struggled with breast cancer. His uncles and grandparents and aunts all had had cancer. His wife, Paula…her family had struggled with cancer.
And so Marty knew, at the age of 40-something, that he had already lived longer than his father. He knew that cancer was likely…and he knew that death would ultimately happen.
And whether or not you have a family history of cancer or heart disease or anything else…you DO have a family history of death. We all do.
What was significant to me, in my young faith, was Marty’s attitude towards death, but also his faith in and his love for Christ…it affected how Marty viewed death. And what I want to look at today are some of Jesus’ words regarding death.
I am going to summarize much of John 11, but we are going to read together some significant verses.
Lazarus is a main character in this passage…and he and Jesus are good friends. Lazarus’ sisters were Mary and Martha…also good friends with Jesus. The sisters sent word to Jesus that Lazarus was sick. In verse 3, they say to Jesus, “the one you love is sick.”
Jesus’ reply? Verse 4: “This sickness will not end in death.”
But it does…Lazarus does end up dying. And to compound matters just a little bit, Jesus takes his time in getting to Lazarus. He gets word of Lazarus’ illness, yet the passage says, in verse 6, that Jesus stayed where he was at for 2 more days.
Jesus had said that Lazarus’ illness wouldn’t end in death…and it did. But Jesus also made this statement:
John 11:4 (TNIV)
“This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.”
Jesus had something in mind…some greater purpose. And that purpose would bring him glory.
So, after 2 days of stalling, Jesus and his disciples head to Judea, where Lazarus and Mary and Martha are at. The disciples ask Jesus why he wants to go back there, since the people of Judea tried to stone him a little bit earlier. He tells them they have to go there because his sick friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, and Jesus must go there to wake him up.
I love the disciples…they can be so goofy sometimes.
Verse 12, TNIV:
12 His disciples replied, “Lord, if he sleeps, he will get better.”
The passage goes onto say:
John 11:13-14 (TNIV)
13 Jesus had been speaking of his death, but his disciples thought he meant natural sleep. 14 So then he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead, 15 and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.”
And so they go…
Let’s read:
John 11:17-21 (TNIV)
17 On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. 18 Now Bethany was less than two miles from Jerusalem, 19 and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother. 20 When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed at home. 21 “Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died.
Have you ever felt that way?
If only…
Usually, when death or tragedy strikes, we focus our “if onlys” on two places:
- ourselves
- God
If only I had been around more…if only I had paid more attention…if only I had seized those last days…if only I had done this or done that…
Or…if only God would have answered my prayers…if only He would have done something…if only God would have been there…
And that is what Martha says…if only you had been there, Jesus.
It seems as though he isn’t there, doesn’t it sometimes? It seems as though he doesn’t really care or doesn’t hear us when we pray or doesn’t want to answer us.
John 11:21-25 (TNIV)
21 “Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22 But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.” 23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” 24 Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” 25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even though they die; 26 and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
Martha’s statement is “only if” Jesus had been there…
But Jesus’ reply is, “You’re brother will rise again.”
And Martha and her family held to the common belief of a resurrection in the last day—“I know he will rise again…at the last day.”
And Jesus simply says: “I am the resurrection and the life.”
I am the resurrection and the life.
But, remember earlier…Jesus stated that earlier Lazarus wouldn’t die. But he did…and now Jesus stands and states that he is resurrection…and he is life.
The word for death that Jesus earlier uses, in its original language, meant permanent death. And he stated that Lazarus shall not taste permanent death. Why? Because Jesus is the resurrection. And Jesus is the life.
“I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die.”
Anyone who believes in me will live…even though they may fall asleep for a little while, they will live. We have a sister who has fallen asleep…but she lives. Why? Because she, and countless others before her, believed in Christ.
And whoever believes in Christ will never die.
And Jesus then asks Martha a question…and he asks the same question of us today:
Do you believe this?
Do you believe in Christ?
Do you believe that he is life?
Do you believe that even though we die…we live?
Do you believe that Jesus can…and WILL…bring us to resurrection?
Do you believe this?
Martha’s response…and I hope ours too…
John 11:27 (TNIV)
27 “Yes, Lord,” she told him, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who was to come into the world.”
Jesus goes on into town and finds Mary…and Mary says the same thing—“if only you had been here.”
And you know what…I’ve touched on this already…but he IS here.
Jesus, it says in verse 33 was “deeply moved in spirit and troubled.” And he asks to see Lazarus’ tomb. They lead him there and the shortest verse in the Bible, John 11:35 says that “Jesus wept.”
It’s OK to cry…death is emotional…it’s hard.
John 11:40-44 (TNIV)
40 Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” 41 So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. 42 I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.” 43 When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” 44 The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.”
And Jesus shows that he truly is the resurrection and the life. Jesus alone has the power to restore, impart and sustain life. He is the ONLY one.
And remember what I said at the very beginning of this story…Jesus had something else in mind.
Let me refresh your memory:
John 11:4 (TNIV)
“This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.”
John 11:40 (TNIV)
40 Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”
Jesus had something greater in mind…God’s glory.
The resurrection is only to the glory of God.
And when Jesus states that he is the resurrection…he has something greater in mind as well about himself…another way God will receive glory. And that obviously is through Jesus’ own resurrection.
Because remember, Jesus alone has the power to restore, give and sustain life.
The Bible records a number of resurrections for us…Jesus raised at least three people himself. In the OT we see that Elijah raised a widow’s son. Elisha raises one person himself and even another when the dead body touched his own bones after he had died.
And of course, the entire Christian faith hinges on Jesus’ resurrection.
I Corinthians 15:3-8 (TNIV)
3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance [a]: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, [b] and then to the Twelve. 6 After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8 and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.
Jesus predicted his own resurrection…
The OT prophesied about his resurrection…
People saw the resurrected Christ…
The lives of his followers then and the lives of his followers now are changed because of his resurrection…
Jesus claimed to be the resurrection…and he was resurrected.
But what makes Jesus different from Lazarus, who was also resurrected? Or the 2 other people that Jesus resurrected?
What’s different?
Jesus didn’t die again.
Jesus defeated demons, Pharisees, diseases, everything…but his greatest defeat was the defeat of death. Lazarus died again. So did the others in the NT who were raised. And the people who were raised in the OT, they also died again.
But Jesus didn’t die again…he lives on to this very day.
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