The
Dead Raised to Life - John 11:38-45
Basil Howlett -
Mary, Martha and Lazarus were all followers
and friends of the Lord Jesus Christ. One day Lazarus became sick and died. At
that time of grief, Jesus, came to comfort Martha and Mary and spoke those
amazing words, ‘I am the Resurrection and the Life, he who believes in me
will live even though he dies.’ Now we come to the actual miracle when
Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead: an astounding miracle which clearly proves
that Jesus is the all-powerful Son of God and also reminds us that one day, the
Lord Jesus Christ will raise our bodies from the dead. This miracle is also
meant to teach us some important truths about the spiritual condition of the
human race.
A. Just as Lazarus was physically dead in that tomb so men and women are
spiritually dead. (Ephesians 2:1)
To be spiritually dead means that you can’t see spiritual truths.
Lazarus, dead in the tomb, could not see anything.
Those who are spiritually dead cannot understand the truth of God Lazarus, dead there in the tomb could not understand a
thing. In the same way, a spiritually dead person has no spiritual
understanding.
They have no desire for God or anything to do with God, just as Lazarus in the
tomb had no desires or feeling. On the contrary, they dislike the God of the
Bible.
They have no power to turn from sin and turn to God just as Lazarus here in the
tomb had no power or ability to move his limbs.
The person who is spiritually dead knows nothing about fellowship with God.
Lazarus in the grave was totally unaware of the presence of any physical being.
Those who are not Christians need to be told these facts that they may know the
seriousness of their condition.
Those who are Christians need to be told to remind us what we have been saved
from and to make us more compassionate. Mary wept (verse 33) because her
brother was physically dead and some of the Jews wept because their neighbour
was physically dead. How much more should we weep that some of our relatives
and neighbours are spiritually dead? More importantly, Jesus wept (verse 35) -
an entirely different word upon which many pages have been written! Jesus wept
more profoundly than Mary and the Jews. Like them, he wept because his friend
had died and because Mary and Martha were so upset (verse 33). But in addition,
he wept because of this dreadful thing called death which sin had brought into
the world. And he also wept because he knew that the physically dead body of
Lazarus was a picture of millions of spiritually dead men and women the world
over. We should be like our Lord: filled with compassion: weeping for those who
are dead in sin (see Luke 19:41).
B. Is there any hope for spiritually dead people?
The same Lord who imparted life to
Lazarus’ dead body can put life into dead souls (verses 25-26). is able to do because:
He is divine. He has a unique relationship with the Father (verse 41)
The Father sent him into this world to deal with our sin (verse 41, see also
John 10:10).
But how exactly does Jesus impart spiritual life to us? He raised
Lazarus from the dead by a miracle. Jesus stood in front of the tomb and called
out in a loud voice, ‘Lazarus come out’ and Lazarus came out alive.
Jesus is God and there is power in his word. He spoke and it happened (see
Genesis 1:3, Hebrews 1:3). And it’s like that with spiritual life. Jesus
speaks his word to someone who is dead in sin and a miracle happens. That is
what has happened to Christians. One day Jesus drew near to the spiritual grave
where we were and through his word he spoke with such power to our souls that
we were made alive.
We should pray for that to happen today. When Jesus was first confronted with
dead Lazarus, he had prayed (verse 41) and he thanks his father for hearing
that prayer. How much more ought we to pray when we are confronted by so many
spiritually dead people all around us?
C. Has he given us this new life? How can we tell?
Have we begun to see the truth about ourselves, our sin and about Christ?
Have we begun to understand the truth of God?
Have we come to Christ in faith? The first thing Lazarus did was to walk toward
Jesus (V 43).
Do we love God?
Do we have a love for God’s people (1 John 3:14) ?
We are not talking about perfection. When Lazarus first came out of the tomb he
didn’t walk perfectly. His feet were wrapped in grave clothes. He must
also have had a bit of difficulty expressing his new found life - there was a
cloth around his face. But he was alive.
D. Some may have to admit ‘I am still spiritually dead. Dead to God. If I were to die tonight I wouldn’t make
it to heaven’. There is only one thing for you to do and that is to
beg the Lord to work a miracle in you and give you life. That’s your only
hope. You can’t earn it. You are totally dependent on Christ. He draws
near to dead sinners in a service like this just as he drew near to the tomb
where Lazarus was. May he do a miracle in you and give you this life of pardon
and peace, purpose and hope. Eternal life. There is
nothing more wonderful than to have life in your soul.
You may feel ‘My life is in a mess. I really am dead in sin. Like
Lazarus, I am so spiritually dead that my way of life stinks. There’s no
hope of me having a new life.’ That’s what Martha thought about
Lazarus. But Jesus is concerned about you. He weeps over you as he wept over
Lazarus. Turn to him and trust in him. There is nothing that so demonstrates
the glory of God’s grace and power, as when dead sinners come to life! If
you believe, you and others will see God’s glory in your life.