John 11:3-43

Sickness, Death, and Resurrection

John 11:3

INTRODUCTORY WORDS

The resurrection of Christ is the usual message of Easter. However, we must remember that indissolubly linked with the resurrection of our Lord is the resurrection of all of His saints.

It is also well for us to remember that sickness and death are also linked with the resurrection. Sickness and the collapse of the physical man leads to death, and the resurrection is the glorious conquest over the reign of death.

1. The story of death. We are now personifying death. We will imagine "death" as standing with his scythe in his hand, ready to mow down the lives of men.

Whenever some plague rules the hour, or when famine reigns the daily papers picture death as a skeleton specter, gathering in his harvest of falling victims.

Whatever may be said of death it is man's recognized foe. It is spoken of in the Word of God as "the last enemy."

Men live, they build their palaces of hope, they flourish for a season unmindful that they are soon to be cut down, and then, one day, they open their eyes and lo, standing hard by is "death" ready to spoil their dreams of human power and glory; ready to cut them asunder from everything they love and hold as dear.

How solemn is the Word of God. "He lived" and "he died." Yet these words have been written over every man who ever has been born, with the exception of Enoch and Elijah.

The earth is one great grave yard. Its soil has ever been enriched by the decaying bodies of the dead.

The greatest dreams of men have never dared to entertain the hope of staying the hand of death. Man has tamed all manner of beasts and of birds, man has builded up great enterprises; man has wrought great deeds of valor, man has invented wonderful machinisms, man has conquered earth and sea and air, but man has never vanquished death. "In Adam all die," is still the accepted code of the living.

2. The vision of Christ and His victory over death. Where man has never dared to make battle, the Son of Man, alone, entered, and grappled with the monster who is man's greatest and last enemy. Stealthily the deathless Son of God pressed on His way to Calvary. He voluntarily gave up His life, He purposely yielded up His spirit, bowed His head and died, that He might conquer death.

Jesus Christ not only died, but they laid His body in a sealed tomb. He Himself descended in hell. He went down where death reigned and where it holds its ghoul-like sway. He entered without fear, met sin on the Cross, broke its reign; met death and hell in its own realm, and vanquished them both.

Here is the graphic way in which the Book of books describes the Risen Christ. John, on the Isle called Patmos, received visions of coming events. The Lord said to John, "Fear not; I am the First and the Last: I am He that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive forevermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death."

Bless God. Christ went down to hell, and came back with its keys in His hand. Now we can cry, "O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is Thy victory?"

I. NEW IDEAS OF SICKNESS (John 11:1)

1. A good man was sick. Are the good ever sick? The Bible carefully states that a certain man was sick. God would not leave us in doubt as to who he was. It was none other than Lazarus. That Lazarus was a good man, none of us doubt. He was a believer, a disciple of our Lord, and a follower who delighted in having the Master in his home.

What is our conclusion? Even this, that sickness is no sign of God's displeasure.

2. A man beloved of God was sick. Twice we read that Christ loved Lazarus. In John 11:3, "He whom Thou lovest is sick." In John 11:5, "Now Jesus loved * * Lazarus."

We press our point further. Not only the good, but the, "beloved of the Lord" may be sick. Sickness then, is not always, and, probably, is seldom a matter of Divine chastisement. The Scriptures do speak of some who failed to discern the Lord's body in "the breaking of bread," and says, "For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep."

However, sickness is usually caused by natural sequences. In the last analysis sickness is from sin, but not necessarily from the sin of the one who is sick. We are living in a world under the curse. The ravages of sin are everywhere. And the best of saints are partakers of that curse in its present effects.

3. A man sick to the glory of God. In John 11:4 Christ said, "This sickness is * * for the glory of God." We stand on the circumference of a marvelous thought. God can cause the wreckage of sin, and even the reign of death to praise Him.

Would that we might be able to see in many of our own sorrows the Lord working out for Himself, and incidentally for us, a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. Had Martha and Mary known that God was working for His glory and for theirs, they might have sung where they wept.

II. THE DEATH OF A SAINT (John 11:14)

1. Left to die alone. John 11:6 is, at first sight, a verse of mystery. It reads, "When He had heard * * that he (Lazarus) was sick, He abode two days still in the same place where He was."

We shudder! Christ knowing the need of Martha and Mary, and the approaching death of Lazarus, purposefully delayed going to the rescue. In this act, He left Lazarus to die alone, and Martha and Mary to weep alone.

Have we ever felt that we were forsaken? The disciples so felt when they found themselves in the midst of the sea, tossed helplessly and madly about by the storm.

2. Christ to the rescue. They thought the Master had come too late, for Lazarus was four days dead. However, the Lord is never too late. Too late for our circumscribed vision, it may be, but never too late for our best good.

It was the fourth watch of the night when Christ came to the storm-tossed boat; it was the fourth day dead when He came to the sepulcher of Lazarus. In either case had the Lord come sooner He could not have manifested His glory, and revealed His power and purposes as He desired so to do. There is, in each of the mentioned events, a far-reaching revelation of God's will toward us, neither of which could have been made potent had the Lord followed natural instincts and come earlier.

3. What is death? Concerning Lazarus it was thus described: "Lazarus sleepeth." The Bible speaks of the dead as "those who sleep in Jesus." Sleep does not mean cessation of being, or of sense; it means "they do rest from their labors."

To die is to "be with Christ" which is far better. To die is to be taken away from the strife and the sighs which mark our earth life. To die is to be "at Home" with the Lord.

III. THE QUICKENING OF FAITH (John 11:15)

1. Faith quickened in the disciples (John 11:15). When Jesus said, "Lazarus is dead," He told the disciples that He was glad for their sakes, that He was not there, "To the intent," said He, "that ye may believe."

Thus the raising of Lazarus, while bringing, for the while, great sorrow to the home of Martha and Mary; brought also a lasting, strengthening of faith to the Twelve. As Lazarus came forth from the tomb they knew that Christ was, indeed, the very Son of God.

2. Faith quickened in Martha, and Mary (John 11:40). To the two sisters, and to Martha, in particular, Christ spoke saying, "Said I not unto thee, that, if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God?" Already Mary had often sat at Jesus' feet and had heard His word. Now she was to see in Him more, perhaps, than she had ever seen. With Lazarus raised, her faith would take on a far wider sweep, both as to Christ's Person and power.

3. Faith was quickened in many of the watching Jews (John 11:45). The Jews who had come to weep with Martha and Mary, were, in part, unbelievers. Some of them, no doubt, had never stood with the sisters of Lazarus in their faith in Christ. Now, as they saw Christ raise Lazarus, we read, "Then many of the Jews which came to Mary, and had seen the things which Jesus did, believed on Him."

We begin to see the far-reaching benefaction of the death of Lazarus. This threefold quickening of faith could not have come in any other way.

Time and again, no doubt, the Lord permits this and that to happen in the lives of saints, that they, too, may have their faith strengthened. Of one thing we are certain, for every test and trial which the Lord permits us to enter, there may be found, somewhere, a blessing from above.

IV. THE INSTRUCTING CHRIST (John 11:23)

Christ used the resurrection of Lazarus as an opportunity, not only of quickening the faith, but also of enlightening the mind. Let us observe three things that He taught as a result of this sad bereavement in the home at Bethany.

1. He taught concerning the resurrection (John 11:23). Perhaps the three in Bethany were in such seeming health and in such vigor of youth, that they had seldom thought much of the future. They knew something of the resurrection in a general way, for Martha had said, "I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day." The resurrection had a place, but not a vital place with Martha. It was a doctrine which was accepted by the Pharisees, as well as by Mary and Martha, but there was something about the resurrection that they knew not.

2. He taught that He was, Himself, the resurrection (John 11:25). Christ brought the resurrection much nearer home than a far-off happening of which they knew but little. He said, "I am the Resurrection, and the Life."

Little did Martha know that the "Resurrection" was actually standing at her side. Little did Martha know that, at Christ's voice all of the dead would some day come forth.

As we stand at the grave of some dear one, do we realize that Christ is the Resurrection? The truth is that in the New Man Christ is all in all. Christianity remains forever not a theory, or a system of fables, that would survive the One who taught them. Christianity is Christ. It is not a religion, but a Person. With Christ dead, all would be gone.

3. He taught that He was the Rapture of saints (John 11:26). We all believe that the Lord will descend from Heaven and that the dead in Christ shall rise, and, together with the living, be caught up to meet the Lord in the air. However, do we believe that Christ is this Rapture, just as He is the Resurrection? What He taught was that there is no Rapture apart from Him. It is His voice that shall call out the dead, and that shall cause those who are living not to die. Thus Christ said, "Whosoever liveth and believeth in Me shall never die."

V. THE SYMPATHETIC CHRIST (John 11:35)

We now come to the shortest verse in the Bible: "Jesus wept." There is much hid away in the depths of these two simple words. Many have wept during the ages. In fact all of the human race have wept again and again. Why, then, do these words have so much import? It is because they speak of the One who is inherently all joy. It is because, to Christ and to the realms from which Christ came to earth and to which we yet shall go, there is no such thing as weeping. Let us then weigh deeply the words, "Jesus wept."

1. Christ groaned (John 11:32). As the Lord approached the grave of Lazarus He groaned in spirit. He groaned because the people groaned. Their grief was His grief. In this we see how perfectly Christ entered into every sorrow that was ours. He was indeed the Son of Man because He so perfectly aligned Himself with the things which concerned man. No matter what befell others, it befell Him. As it is written: "The reproaches of them that reproached Thee are fallen upon Me."

2. Christ was troubled (John 11:33). He who, afterward, said unto us, "Let not your heart be troubled," was Himself troubled. Some one may attempt to say, "Physician, heal Thyself." However, that would be shallow indeed. Had He healed Himself, we could not have been healed. In the words, "Let not your heart be troubled," is hid away all the marvelous depths of the atonement. He was troubled that we might not be troubled. Our cares He takes, He bears, that we may forevermore be trouble free.

3. Christ wept (John 11:35). This is climactic. Tears are troubles and groanings in their surge and overflow. Why did Jesus weep? He knew that Lazarus would soon be restored to his own. He knew that Martha, and Mary, and the Jews who wept would soon be overjoyed. Why did He weep? It was because He stood face to face with the ravages of sin and death. In their tears He saw ours. He saw the whole of sin's agony both now, and hereafter no marvel that He wept. As we see those tears let us assure ourselves that our God is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

VI. THE ALL-POWERFUL CHRIST (John 11:43)

1. An unheard of request (John 11:39). When the Lord Jesus said, "Take ye away the stone," Martha quickly asserted herself, saying, "By this time he stinketh." Martha sought to stay the Lord thinking, perhaps, that He merely wanted to look upon him whom He loved.

There is another unheard of request in the Bible. The Jews went to Pilate and asked him to appoint a guard to watch over the sepulcher of our Lord. Whoever heard of a dead man rising; or of a dead man having a guard to keep him dead. Of how little avail were Pilate's soldiers; of how little avail was Martha's fear, or the fact that Lazarus had been dead four days. Christ is an all-powerful Christ, and He has power over death and hell.

2. An assuring assertion (John 11:40). The Lord Jesus calmed Martha's fear by reminding her of His words: "Said I not unto thee, that, if thou wouldest believe, thou shouldest see the glory of God?"

How often do we miss God's best by our lack of faith! We read of Nazareth that Christ could do no mighty works there because of their unbelief. So it always is.

Has not the Lord said, "According to your faith be it unto you?" What we believe, He does. It was by faith that the ancients of old wrought miracles, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, etc.

3. An authoritative command (John 11:43). We delight to picture Christ as He stood before the tomb and cried with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come forth." The Lord spoke with assurance. He had already talked to the Father about this very thing, and He said before the crowd, "Father, I thank Thee that Thou hast heard Me."

He spoke without hesitancy. He knew that Lazarus would come forth. There were no question marks in His faith.

VII. THE RESURRECTION (John 11:44)

1. The dead came forth. Lazarus couldn't come forth, even though he had been alive. No live man can walk out of a tomb bound hand and foot with grave clothes, be he a gladiator, those bands would hold him fast.

However, with God all things are possible. The man with a withered hand could not stretch it forth, but he did stretch forth his hand. The sick of the palsy could neither take up his bed nor walk, but he did both. The Children of Israel could not walk over the Jordan on dry land, but they did. Lazarus could not come forth, bound hand and foot, however, he came forth.

The difficulty with men is that they want to humanize God, and place His activities in the realm of man's power. "When we realize that Jesus Christ is God and that God was in Christ, we do not need to put forth any endeavor to do away with the miraculous. It needs no explaining; it needs only to be believed.

2. The loosing. As Lazarus stood before Christ, bound hand and foot, the Lord said, "Loose him." In the resurrection there will be no stench of the tomb and no marks of death left upon raised saints. They will come forth loosed from the bands of death.

In regeneration, which is a resurrection out of the old life, there is no stench of the tomb left. The Lord Jesus commands every believer to put off the old life, which is corrupt according to deceitful lusts and to go forth robed in the new life, which, after God, is created in righteousness and true holiness.

3. Let him go. The saints, in resurrection, having been loosed from the chains of death will go forth to serve the Lord.

The saints who are born again and who have been loosed from sin's power and dominion should also go forth to serve the Lord. We are saved to serve.

AN ILLUSTRATION

RESURRECTION, FAITH IN

"Jesus is not dead." These words were inscribed on a banner displayed at a heathen funeral in China on Easter Sunday. The funeral was that of Sung Chisojen, a prominent Chinese gentleman, whose assassination shocked all China. The great procession filled many streets, and numerous and gorgeous banners were displayed. The most remarkable of all, however, was the one that declared belief in the risen Jesus of Nazareth. It may be that these heathen mourners were not wholly conscious of all the words implied, but it is a significant fact that they bore this testimony to their faith, or at least to their hope, that death does not end all, and that Jesus is "the Way, the Truth, and the Life."

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