Participants: Charissa Fong
Series Code: FGW
Program Code: FGW000017
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00:26 OK, our subject this evening: What Happens When You Die?
00:31 A very important subject. So before we begin 00:33 I invite you to bow your heads with me for an added word 00:36 of prayer. Loving Father in heaven, 00:39 as we contemplate a question which all of us must contemplate 00:43 as we live in a world which is filled with death, 00:47 we pray, Lord, that You will help us to find the answer 00:50 in Holy Scripture. May You bring to us comfort tonight 00:53 because You are the God of all comfort. 00:55 And send Your Spirit to us now we pray in Jesus' name, Amen. 01:01 Are you afraid to die? 01:04 Statistics tell us that every hour 01:08 5,417 people die. 01:12 Which means by the time we leave the church tonight 01:15 there will be 5,417 families 01:19 now contemplating the painful task of having to bury 01:23 a loved one. And of course, living in a world 01:25 where we have so many natural disasters and wars 01:29 I'm pretty sure that that number is probably quite conservative. 01:33 Cemeteries are filled with lonely markers that read 01:36 "Gone too young too soon. " 01:39 But what does it feel like to die? 01:41 And, of course, when death comes well what next? 01:45 Every religion on the face of this planet 01:48 has struggled to find the answer to this very question 01:51 and surprisingly nearly all of them have stumbled short 01:55 of the truth. And friends, without the truth 01:59 then fear is our default. 02:01 And nothing buries faith faster than fear. 02:05 Life is hard, let's face it, 02:07 because nobody makes it out alive. 02:10 To be or not to be? I think it's a trick question. 02:13 Because it doesn't matter who you are, where you are, 02:17 what you do in this world. You could be the world's 02:19 greatest athlete or the world's greatest musician, 02:22 the end to the road that we travel in this life 02:26 always has a dead end. 02:29 And truly if life were a novel 02:31 then dead would mark the end of the first chapter. 02:35 And so tonight we want to answer the question 02:38 what happens in chapter 2? 02:41 And once upon a long time ago, Jesus told us the answer 02:45 and I think you will find it very exciting. 02:48 I know that's surprising, but I do think you will. 02:50 So we go to the story... our story tonight... 02:54 in John chapter 11 verses 1 to 3. 02:57 And actually if you do have your Bibles, you're very welcome 03:00 to follow along in them because it's a story tonight. 03:03 We can step through it as we go along. 03:06 The Bible says: 03:30 Now friends, while Jesus was on this earth 03:33 it is true that there were many people who loved Him 03:36 and followed Him, but it is also true 03:38 that there were many people who hated Him 03:41 and despised His very shadow. 03:44 And surprisingly, most of those people were religious. 03:48 But there was one family on the face of this planet 03:51 in whom Jesus found true friendship and companionship... 03:55 and it was this family right here in Bethany. 03:58 Whenever He was passing through Bethany 04:01 He never got on the Internet and looked up a motel 04:04 because there was always a room waiting for Him 04:07 in the home of these three. 04:10 But friends, one day a cloud came over that home. 04:14 A cloud with which too many of us are all too familiar with. 04:18 Because Lazarus - whose name means "without help" - 04:22 one day he grew very sick 04:24 and when he did, Jesus was not in town. 04:28 Things did not look good. But Mary and Martha... they 04:31 tried their best to nurse their brother back to full health 04:35 and strength... but nothing seemed to work. 04:38 And so they thought: "Well, we'll just send word to Jesus" 04:41 because they knew that it was no problem for Jesus to heal 04:45 anybody. I mean, He had given sight to a blind man. 04:49 He could heal a crippled woman. 04:52 Um, they had even heard the story of how Jesus 04:56 had healed the Centurion's servant... 04:58 and He had done that long distance. 05:01 And so they knew that it would be no problem for Jesus 05:05 to help them in their time of need. 05:07 And friends, if they had had mobile phones back then 05:11 then this was the message - the SMS text message - 05:15 they would have sent to the Lord. They would have said: 05:22 There was no need to put a name to that message 05:25 because they knew that Jesus would know who they were 05:28 talking about. How do I know that? 05:30 Because notice verse 5 it says: 05:38 And friends, I wish you would just ponder those words 05:41 for just a moment 05:43 because this means that those who love Jesus - 05:46 those whom He loves - they do get sick and they do die. 05:51 And that means that should the day come where 05:54 either... any one of us here in this room... should the day 05:57 come when we would be found in an examination room 06:00 and the doctor comes in and says: "Listen, I have bad news 06:03 for you... you have some terminal disease or illness, " 06:06 it doesn't matter what it is. You're sick and you're dying. 06:10 But friends, when that time comes, remember the words 06:14 of Jesus. Remember the message that they sent to Jesus. 06:18 Remember that Jesus loves you just as much 06:22 as He loved Lazarus. 06:25 Verse 6... the Bible says: 06:37 Now this is absolutely remarkable to me, 06:40 because what does Jesus do when He hears that His best friend 06:45 is sick and dying? 06:47 He does absolutely nothing for two whole days. 06:52 And in fact, times keeps going on. 06:55 And how Mary and Martha must have waited... 06:59 and still Jesus didn't come and Lazarus grew worse. 07:04 And so they waited some more and they prayed some more... 07:08 and still Jesus didn't come. 07:11 So they prayed some more, they waited some more, 07:14 and perhaps they even fasted some more... 07:17 but still there was no sign of Jesus. 07:20 And then the unthinkable happened: Lazarus died. 07:25 Still no sign of Jesus. 07:28 Mary and Martha were crushed. 07:31 Because a million deaths is always a statistic 07:34 but a single death is always a tragedy. 07:37 They thought they could count on Jesus. 07:39 They thought they knew Jesus. 07:42 They thought He could do anything! 07:45 He had never let them down before, and yet 07:49 here He was... He hadn't come to help them. 07:51 Hadn't... hadn't even lifted a finger to help them. 07:54 Even the disciples were puzzled by Jesus' delay. 07:57 Why didn't He go and help the ones whom He loved? 08:01 And so the Bible goes on and notice what happens 08:03 in verses 11 to 15. The Bible says: 08:39 And I wish you would hit the pause button right here 08:43 because Jesus has just said something absolutely remarkable. 08:47 Did you catch what Jesus calls death? 08:50 He calls it a sleep. 08:54 Friends, you read the Bible from cover to cover 08:58 and you will not find a single instance of Jesus saying 09:01 that when you die you go straight to heaven 09:04 or when you die you go straight to hell or purgatory 09:07 or some other hot place. 09:08 You just don't find it in scripture. 09:10 Jesus always taught that when we die we go to sleep. 09:16 And believe it or not, but the Bible compares death 09:19 to a sleep over 50 times. 09:23 Why would the Bible do something like that? 09:26 Well, to answer this question you and I need to go back 09:29 to the very beginning of time. 09:31 You see, when God created this world 09:34 and the Bible documents its creation... 09:37 The Bible doesn't just say "In the beginning God created 09:40 the heavens and the earth" and then just stop right there 09:44 and just keep going with - you know - the story of Noah. 09:46 No, the Bible actually goes step by step 09:49 through the details of how God did it. 09:53 And we are told through the Genesis account 09:56 that God spoke and it happened. 09:59 And David backs this up in Psalm chapter 33 verse 9. 10:03 The Bible says: 10:12 In other words, He said: "Let there be light" 10:14 and there was light. 10:16 He said: "Let dry land appear, " and it did. 10:19 He did not speak and then wait for millions of eons 10:24 for dust particles to start conglomerating together 10:27 in a single location in order for a mountain to suddenly, 10:31 miraculously appear billions of years later. 10:34 No, it was instant creation. 10:36 God speaks and worlds come into being. 10:39 But the Bible tells us that when it came to the creation 10:43 of mankind it was something different. 10:47 Now I used to babysit my little 3-year-old neighbor... 10:51 nextdoor neighbor. 10:53 Her name was Chloe and she was very adorable. 10:56 And I remember when she first started going to preschool 11:00 all I heard about when I went to see her 11:02 and look after her was her day at preschool. 11:05 And it just so happened that she was going to the same 11:08 preschool that I went to when I was her age. 11:11 And so I said to her... I said to her: "Chloe, you know what? 11:14 I used to go to your preschool, too. " 11:17 And she looked at me and she said: 11:19 "Well where was I? Was I there when you were at my preschool? " 11:23 And I said: "No, Chloe. You weren't even born yet. 11:27 You weren't around. " 11:28 She couldn't understand it. She says: "Well where was I? " 11:31 And I said: "Chloe, you weren't born yet. " 11:34 And she was puzzled, and she thought for a moment 11:37 and then looked up at me and she said: 11:38 "Was I all mixed up in the ingredients, Charissa? " 11:43 And I had to laugh. And friends, in the same way 11:46 as we look here in the book of Genesis the Bible actually 11:49 tells us the ingredients that God used to make life... 11:53 to make human beings. Notice what the Bible says 11:56 in Genesis chapter 2 and verse 7: 12:12 Now according to the verse we just read 12:15 there are two ingredients that God used to make human beings: 12:19 the dust of the ground plus the breath of life. 12:23 And of course if we express these two ingredients 12:26 in a mathematical formula 12:28 we could put them in an equation that looks like this: 12:36 We could also express it this way: 12:44 In other words, life cannot exist without the breath of life 12:49 and consciousness depends entirely upon the union of 12:54 body and breath. 12:56 And I'll have you notice, too, that here in the verse 12:59 Genesis 2 and verse 7 the Bible doesn't say: "And God 13:03 gave Adam a soul... " The Bible says that 13:07 Adam became a soul. In other words, you and I ARE souls. 13:12 And so this is the formula that we have for life. 13:16 Then it follows that the formula for death is just simply 13:21 the reverse of this one. So we would have: 13:28 We can express the same thing differently: 13:37 Does the Bible support what we deduced here 13:41 from Genesis chapter 2 and verse 7? Yes it does. 13:44 Notice what Ecclesiastes 12 and verse 7 says: 13:56 Now according to this text when one dies 14:00 the body just decomposes. We turn back to the ground 14:03 and the breath returns back to God. 14:06 And this happens to individuals whether they are righteous 14:10 or wicked, saved or lost. 14:12 This is why Ezekiel says: 14:22 OK, the Bible just says that souls do die. 14:26 Now many people in our world today live under the impression 14:30 that when they die there is this soul that's in their 14:35 innermost being and it just continues to keep on living 14:39 and living. And perhaps, you know, it may... 14:42 it leads to reincarnation and things like this. 14:45 But friends, according to the Bible souls do die. 14:50 And in fact, never is the word immortality mentioned 14:54 in conjunction with a human soul. 14:57 The Bible mentions immortality 14:59 but listen to who it ascribes it. It says: 15:11 God, according to the Bible, is the only One 15:15 who has immortality. 15:17 So then does this mean that good people don't go straight 15:21 to heaven when they die and bad people don't go straight 15:25 to hell? Well keep reading what the Bible says. 15:28 In the book of Acts chapter 2 verse 29 we go to the sermon 15:33 that Peter preached on the Day of Pentecost. And he said: 15:47 He didn't say anything about David going to heaven 15:51 right there. Again, Ecclesiastes chapter 9 15:54 verses 5 and 6: 16:15 Friends, the Bible is very clear. 16:23 You remember Hogan's Heroes and Schultz? He always says: 16:27 "I know nothing... I know nothing? " 16:29 He's behaving like a dead man. 16:31 Friends, the Bible says we don't know anything 16:33 when we die. Why? Because we're asleep. 16:37 That's why. That's what the Bible teaches right the way 16:41 through. That's what Jesus teaches and friends, 16:44 that's what Peter taught as well. 16:45 Again, back to his sermon: 16:52 That seems pretty clear to me. 16:55 And that has been one of the most Spirit-filled sermons 16:58 in all of human history. 17:00 Now it has been said that if you want your spouse to 17:03 listen to every single word that you say 17:06 then you should talk in your sleep. Because when you do 17:11 talk in your sleep you're not actually aware of what you are 17:13 saying. None of us are aware really of what's going on 17:16 when we're asleep. And I confess to you 17:19 that when I was growing up there was this time in my life 17:22 where I was afraid of the dark. 17:25 I became afraid that maybe in the night 17:28 some bandit would come and take me away. 17:31 And so it got so bad that I just couldn't sleep. 17:34 And so my dad said to me... He said to me one night: 17:37 "Charissa, " he said, "listen. I'm here in this house. 17:40 If anybody steps foot in this house 17:43 look, I'll sort them out. " Now my dad's a big man, 17:46 you know. He's a strong man. 17:48 And I knew when he said "sort them out" it involved 17:51 some sort of physical contact. 17:52 And so I thought to myself: 17:56 "Well, if dad's going to look out for me, then it's OK. " 17:58 So for years I slept. 18:01 I trusted in my dad to protect me. 18:04 Then one night I had to get up in the middle of the night 18:07 to go to the bathroom. And on my way to the bathroom 18:10 I tripped over something in the hallway 18:13 and this loud noise rang throughout the house. 18:16 And I became scared. I thought to myself: 18:19 "Oh no. Dad's going to think that I'm someone intruding 18:23 in the house and he's going to wake up. 18:25 And he might 'sort me out! ' " 18:27 And so I was very afraid. I just froze and stood there 18:31 in the hallway. And you know what? 18:33 Nothing happened because he was asleep. 18:36 And I've since talked to him about it, 18:38 and he said: "That's because I knew that you weren't making 18:41 the sounds an intruder would make. " 18:42 But really I know he was sleeping. 18:45 And friends, when you're asleep you miss everything! 18:48 You have no idea what's going on. 18:50 That's what the Bible is saying. 18:52 I used to have a little puppy dog. That's my puppy dog. 18:55 His name is Texas. And Texas... he loved attacking 18:59 big dogs from behind the fence. 19:01 And whenever a German shepherd walked up the side of our house 19:05 my little dog would be tearing up and down the side of the 19:09 fence growling at them and barking at them. 19:12 And I was so proud of him. You know, I'd say: 19:14 "Easy boy; don't bite them. " 19:16 Because he just made me feel very proud of him; 19:19 he was so brave. 19:20 But towards the end of his life he started to sleep a lot more, 19:24 and he loved to sleep on our back porch in the sun. 19:28 And I remember one day I looked out the window 19:30 and I saw this Doberman walking by. And I thought: "Ah, 19:33 what's Texas doing? He would love this. " 19:35 And so I went and I saw him and of course he missed it 19:38 because he was sound asleep. And I said: "Texas, wake up. 19:41 Go get 'em... " and so off he went. 19:43 But he was asleep, and he missed everything in his sleep. 19:46 That's why in English we have this saying: 19:49 "You're dead to the world... " 19:51 because you don't know what's going on. 19:52 And so, friends, the Bible says you don't go straight 19:56 to heaven when you die. 19:57 You don't go straight to hell... you go to sleep. 20:01 And friends, there is nothing to fear in that because 20:04 when you sleep, according to the Bible, 20:07 when we enter death's peaceful slumber we feel no pain, 20:11 no suffering. All of our consciousness ceases. 20:14 We know nothing. And that's why Psalm 15 verse 17 says: 20:24 And certainly if one did go to heaven when they died 20:29 well you'd think that they would be praising God up there, 20:32 wouldn't you? But this text says they don't praise the Lord 20:36 and so that seems to be a pretty good indication 20:39 that they don't go to heaven. 20:57 So friends, the Bible is absolutely clear. 21:01 We know nothing; we just... We are unconscious. 21:04 We are in an unconscious sleep. 21:06 You say: "It doesn't make sense; we've got to go somewhere. " 21:09 Well let me illustrate. If... supposing I had a pile 21:12 of wood and a pile of nails 21:15 and miraculously I made a box... I built a box. 21:19 Well supposing I took the nails out and I put them back here 21:23 and I put the wood back here, where did the box go? 21:27 Did it go to heaven? Did it go to hell? 21:30 Did it go to Germany? No, it just ceases to exist. 21:35 And that is what the Bible is saying. 21:37 And friends, for the Creator of the universe, death is a sleep. 21:41 And I recognize that this truth is something that many people 21:45 just fail to miss... or they fail to see 21:49 in our society today. 21:50 Many people... they turn to psychics and spiritualists 21:54 because they believe or at least they want to believe 21:57 that it is still possible to communicate with the dead 22:01 when they die. But friends, if the Bible says that 22:05 when we die we go to sleep 22:08 and there are so many people in our world today 22:10 who think that they are communicating with the dead, 22:13 well then who are they really talking to? 22:16 Well according to the Bible - Revelation 16 and verse 14: 22:28 And friends, if the devil can change himself into an angel 22:32 of light... If he could hide himself and speak to Eve 22:37 through a serpent, then it is possible for him and his demonic 22:41 hosts to play a masquerade as loved ones who have died 22:46 as well. In fact, they can do it so well 22:49 that they may even be able to say things to the living 22:52 that was only known between the living person 22:56 and their dead relative. 22:58 The Bible tells us that Satan will work many deceptions 23:01 in the last days. And this verse isn't on your screen 23:05 but we looked at it last night: Matthew 24:24. 23:08 It says: "For false Christs and false prophets 23:12 will rise and show great signs and wonders 23:15 to deceive if possible even the elect. " 23:19 So this is what we know Satan is doing and will do, 23:23 but where did all the confusion start? 23:25 Again, a lot we can learn from going back to the very beginning 23:29 because it was actually Satan... 23:32 He was the very first one who preached the very first sermon 23:36 on the immortality of the soul. 23:39 And he preached it to Adam and Eve right back there in the 23:42 Garden of Eden. He said to them in Genesis chapter 3 and verse 4 23:53 This was the very first lie ever told to mankind. 23:58 And friends, the word soul... it appears in the Bible 24:01 858 times but never once is it linked with the word 24:06 immortal. The teaching of the immortal soul is not 24:11 according to God, it is accord- ing to Satan: the arch deceiver. 24:15 You say: "Charissa, OK. You are making some pretty good 24:18 statements; you're making some pretty good arguments 24:21 but I think you have overlooked one very important detail 24:25 which will just upset your apple cart. 24:27 You see, you have forgotten to tell us 24:29 about the rich man and Lazarus. Because, ah, there you go... 24:34 there's a problem for you there. " 24:35 And I'm so glad you reminded me of that 24:37 because we need to ask the question: 24:44 It's in Luke chapter 16. And yes, it is a story that 24:47 Jesus told about a rich man who died and went to hell 24:52 and a beggar named Lazarus who died and went to the bosom 24:56 of Abraham. And yes, Jesus told this story... 25:00 But friends, He told it to illustrate to His listeners 25:04 that their "chosenness" and "religiousness" 25:07 did not secure them a ticket to heaven... 25:10 because that's what they were trying to do. 25:12 Because they were Jews they were enabled to go straight 25:15 to heaven. But Jesus was saying: "No, that's not how it is. " 25:18 And yet there are many religious people - good many people - 25:22 who read this parable and say: "Well, there you have it! 25:26 There's your evidence. When you die you go to heaven 25:30 to the bosom of Abraham or you go to hell. 25:32 But listen: if heaven is in the bosom of Abraham 25:37 well that doesn't really sound like heaven to me 25:40 because it sounds a lot better in Revelation 21. 25:43 And if the people in heaven can see the suffering 25:48 of those in hell, well that doesn't really sound like 25:51 heaven to me either. 25:53 And so friends, the logical conclusion that one can draw 25:57 from this is simply that Jesus was telling a parable... 26:00 a folk story. And friends, a parable is just an earthly 26:04 story with a heavenly meaning. 26:06 You say: "OK, well, OK. You can talk that one away, Charissa, 26:10 but you've forgotten someone else. 26:13 What about the thief on the cross? 26:15 Ah, you can't run away from this one! " 26:17 I know you're going too fast for me, but I have an answer 26:21 for that as well. Let's go to the Bible... 26:23 what the Bible says in Luke chapter 23 verses 39-43. 27:11 Ah-hah! See, there it is right there. There's your proof. 27:15 But friends, we have forgotten about Mary. 27:19 Because do you remember what happened 27:21 on the resurrection day? 27:23 We have to remember that. Let's go and see what happened. 27:26 John chapter 20 verse 17 Jesus said to Mary 27:30 who met Him at the tomb... He said: 27:47 Now we have a problem because somebody... 27:51 or Jesus is lying to somebody. He's either lying 27:54 to Mary or He is lying to the thief. 27:57 And I personally don't think that Jesus is a liar, do you? 28:02 No. So we need to sort this out. And thankfully 28:05 a history lesson does. Because you see, 28:08 when Luke was writing his manuscript 28:11 the original Greek manuscript had no commas 28:16 or word divisions. It was just one long line 28:19 of words. And those word divisions weren't added 28:22 until 1490 AD. And when they were added by the translators 28:27 well they then had the problem of deciding where 28:30 they were going to put the comma. 28:32 And you say: "Really? And that makes a big difference? " 28:35 Yes it does, because let me illustrate. 28:38 Supposing we take this line right here. 28:44 There is no punctuation. 28:45 Let's add some punctuation. 28:50 Let's move it around just a little bit. 28:56 OK. Can you see how the placement of a comma 28:59 can make all the difference in determining the meaning 29:02 from something. OK? 29:04 So where are we going to put the comma here in this story? 29:08 Well friends, I think we should put it where the Bible really 29:11 ought to put it... where Jesus would have put it. 29:13 He says... He says here: 29:21 He has told Mary: "I have not yet ascended into heaven" 29:24 and so this really is the way the text ought to read. 29:27 "Assuredly I say to you today, 29:30 you will be with Me in paradise. " 29:34 "Today when all seems lost; 29:36 today when My hands are nailed to the cross... " 29:39 Jesus said to that thief: 29:41 He said: "I can still save you. " 29:44 And friends, at first glance tonight it may seem 29:48 a little disappointing to think that our loved ones 29:51 who we thought were up in heaven 29:53 are not really there and that they are really in the grave 29:56 sleeping, awaiting the resurrec- tion when Jesus comes back. 30:00 But friends, when you think about it, it's really 30:03 kind of God to do it that way 30:05 because if they were in heaven they would be having to watch 30:09 their families go through hell on this earth. 30:12 And so friends, the good news about death 30:15 is not really so much that it's a sleep 30:18 but that it is a sleep from which Jesus will come 30:20 and wake us up from. Amen? 30:23 And we talked about this just the other night, 30:25 but again a little refresher. Daniel chapter 12 verse 2: 30:34 Again in I Thessalonians chapter 4 verses 13, 16-18: 31:14 And one more text before we go back to our story: 31:40 Amen? Amen. The hope of the friends of Jesus 31:43 is not the immortality of the soul... 31:45 it is the resurrection of the body. 31:48 Friends, Lazarus is asleep but his story is not yet 31:53 complete. Let's go back to the book of John. 32:10 Not only did Jesus not get there in time 32:13 to prevent the death of Lazarus 32:16 but now He's so late He's even missed the funeral. 32:19 For four long days Lazarus had been lying in a cold tomb. 32:24 And the Bible goes on. Notice verses 20 to 22: 32:48 With grief surging in her heart and hoping that even now 32:54 Jesus could do something to comfort her 32:56 Martha comes to Jesus and she says what she and Mary 33:00 have been thinking all alone: "Oh, Lord, if only You had 33:05 been here things could have been different. " 33:07 And as those words leave her lips 33:11 the memories flood her mind. 33:14 The horror film of the last few days plays itself over 33:18 again in her heart and the tears begin to flow. 33:22 I know exactly how she feels because my little puppy dog - 33:27 that one right there, Texas - last year he fell sick. 33:32 And when he did we rushed him to the vet. 33:36 We tried to make him feel better first, 33:38 but it didn't seem to work. 33:39 So we took him to the vet one morning, 33:41 and he had been my best friend for 11 years. 33:45 He was so faithful, so loyal, so loving. 33:49 Every time my family and I went out and we came home 33:52 there he would be at the side gate. 33:55 And he'd be wagging his tail and squealing with joy. 33:59 He made me feel like I was the most important person 34:02 in the world. But friends, without warning 34:07 on the 12th of March last year Texas died. 34:10 And when he did my world just felt like it came crashing in. 34:15 I couldn't go in the back yard and get his bowl because 34:18 that's where he had left it. 34:20 I couldn't walk up and down the street because it didn't 34:22 feel right because he was supposed to be with me. 34:25 I couldn't go to the side gate 34:27 because he was supposed to be there. 34:29 And the finality of it all... that's what really upset me. 34:34 And friends, when I was going through that grief at that time 34:38 these... this question... this sentence: "If only... " 34:42 I said that to myself so many times. 34:44 If only we had taken him to the vet sooner. 34:47 If only I had spent more time with him the other day 34:52 maybe things could have been different. 34:55 And friends, that question: "If only... " 34:58 is the cry of the human heart. 35:00 There is not a single funeral that you will go to 35:03 where you will not hear that cry because friends 35:07 death is an enemy. It grabs us unexpectedly. 35:11 But friends, Jesus has good news for Martha. He says to her: 35:22 Now friends, Jesus did not say: "Your brother will come back 35:26 from heaven today. " 35:27 He did not say: "I will bring your brother back from hell. " 35:30 Because, you know, if Jesus was going to say that - 35:33 if that's where he was, in either of those two places - 35:36 then saying something like that would have been appropriate. 35:40 And Martha says to Him: 35:49 Friends, Martha's faith is fragile but it is still alive. 35:55 And so for her Jesus speaks these wonderful words 35:58 which have become immortal because they're in the Bible: 36:20 Now when Jesus said: "I am the resurrection and the life" 36:23 He was not making idle conversation. 36:26 He did not say: "I am going to be 36:29 the resurrection and the life. " 36:30 "I will think about being the resurrection and the life. " 36:33 "I'm going to try and be the resurrection and the life. " 36:36 He said: "I AM the resurrection and the life. " 36:39 And that's good news, Amen? Amen. And by the way, 36:42 if Jesus says He is the resurrection and the life 36:45 then friends, your eternal destiny and mine... 36:50 it all depends upon our relationship to Jesus Christ. 36:54 Everything hinges on whether or not you and I 36:57 believe Jesus to be the Son of God 37:00 and the Savior of the world and our own personal Savior as well. 37:05 The story is told of Mrs. Einstein. 37:08 Someone once asked her one day if she understood 37:12 the theory of relativity. And she said: "Of course not! " 37:15 And so the interviewer asked: "Well, how do you know 37:19 it's true then? " 37:21 She said: "Because I know Mr. Einstein. " 37:23 And friends, we can know. 37:25 Jesus says: "I am the resurrection and the life. " 37:27 And if you truly know Him 37:29 then it is really true for you as well. 37:32 Notice verse 27: 37:41 Martha looked into the eyes of Jesus 37:44 and she chose to believe in what He said. 37:48 She did not know why things had happened this way. 37:51 She didn't fully understand what Jesus was calling her 37:54 to believe. But friend, Martha's faith was not in something... 37:59 it was in someone. 38:01 And so Jesus... Notice what happens next... 38:15 The grief of these two sisters is absolutely raw. 38:19 And she comes... She comes to Jesus and she asks 38:23 exactly the same question that Martha had just asked. 38:27 But does Jesus say: "Listen, just talk to your sister... 38:29 I've already answered that? " 38:31 No, friend. Notice what happens next. 38:33 He doesn't rebuke her at all. 38:35 The Bible tells us in verses 33 to 35: 38:58 Sighing heavily like a teacher who has been trying to make 39:02 the point to his students so many times 39:05 and they just don't get it, 39:07 they lead Jesus to the burial site. And then 39:10 the Bible records almost the sweetest words that I know: 39:14 "Jesus wept. " 39:17 Because friends, sometimes we say it best 39:19 when we say nothing at all. 39:22 Do you think that the grief and the sadness 39:25 and insanity of death makes God happy? 39:28 No, the Bible says Jesus weeps 39:32 because there are no words, there is no logic... 39:36 There are no Bible verses, no pious clichés 39:40 that can take away the pain of a grieving person. 39:43 When you are grieving, when you are suffering grief, 39:46 you hurt. And friends, you can't talk a person out of that, 39:49 and Jesus doesn't try. 39:52 He didn't apologize for the delay. 39:55 He didn't make an excuse for the delay. 39:58 He didn't try and explain it away. 40:00 He did not try and give a theological lecture 40:04 on suffering to explain the reason why He delayed. 40:07 Friends, the Bible tells us He weeps with them in their loss. 40:13 He weeps with us in our grief. 40:15 And notice verse 36: 40:22 Oh yes, see how Jesus loved Lazarus 40:25 but see how He loves us as well. 40:29 Notice verses 38 and 39. The Bible says: 40:54 Friends, Martha's impulsive reaction reflects our universal 40:59 approach to problems, doesn't it? 41:01 "Oh, Lord, it's too late. " 41:02 "Oh, You can't change it. It's too hard to change now. " 41:05 Friends, even though she had faith her doubts were emerging 41:09 on the top. Her thoughts were still on the corpse 41:13 and so she didn't want to see the stone rolled away. 41:17 She wanted to remember Lazarus as he was. 41:20 Martha believed that it was too late for Jesus 41:25 to help her now. 41:27 But friends, she had just totally misunderstood 41:30 what Jesus was trying to do. 41:32 Because it's a bit like this little boy. 41:34 He got to church one morning and he was standing in the foyer 41:39 and he was reading this plaque just quietly. 41:42 And so the pastor saw him. He was seven years old... 41:44 his name was John. And he came over to Johnny 41:47 and he said: "Good morning Johnny. How are you today? " 41:49 Said: "I'm well. " He said: "I'm just reading this plaque. " 41:53 He said: "Yes, I can see that. What's on your mind? " 41:55 He said: "Well, what is this? What does it mean? 41:58 What are all these names on the plaque? " 42:00 And the pastor said: "Ah, those are all the names 42:03 of the men who have died in the service. " 42:06 There was silence as Johnny pondered this. 42:09 Then he asked the question in almost a whisper: 42:12 "Which one? The 8:30 or the 11 o'clock? " 42:16 He had misunderstood what the pastor had said 42:19 and he thought they were dying in the church service 42:22 when they were dying in the military. 42:24 And friends, like that Martha had just totally misunderstood 42:28 what Jesus was trying to say. 42:30 Notice what happens in verse 40: 42:39 Friends, Martha had been fighting a battle of faith 42:42 and doubt, focusing her thoughts on the corpse 42:45 rather than on Christ. But praise God 42:48 that when you and I are at our very worst 42:51 in our faith Jesus is at His very best. Amen? 42:55 Notice verses 41 and 42: 43:19 The stone was rolled away 43:22 and as it was, the cries of the mourners ceased. 43:26 All who had gathered there outside the tomb 43:30 were given the opportunity to gaze in and know that 43:33 no sorcery or deception was being practiced 43:36 Because there in the cold tomb lay the still, cold body 43:41 of Lazarus. And outside that tomb 43:43 Jesus stands calmly. And notice what happens in verse 43: 43:57 The weeping Savior, His voice the sound of many waters. 44:02 Penetrating and strong and clear 44:05 it pierces the ear of the dead one 44:08 and as He speaks "Lazarus, come forth" 44:12 divinity flashes through humanity. 44:15 The crowd stand frozen outside the tomb 44:19 staring at the entrance to that tomb. 44:22 Every eye is fixed on the entrance of that cave. 44:26 Every ear is bent to catch the slightest sound 44:30 of movement because this was a critical moment 44:33 in the ministry of Jesus if there ever was one. 44:37 Because if Lazarus didn't come out 44:40 well Jesus' credibility was on the line. 44:44 He had called the shots and it had to happen. 44:48 The whole universe watched on with wonder at this moment. 44:53 And friends, Jesus did not say: 44:56 "Lazarus, come down from heaven; you'll have to come back. " 44:59 He did not say: "Come up from hell. " 45:02 He says: "Lazarus, come forth. " 45:05 And notice what happens verse 44: 45:20 There is a stir in the silent tomb 45:24 and as everybody watches, a man - a figure 45:28 wrapped in grave clothes - slowly steps into the sunlight 45:32 outside the tomb. Friends, Lazarus was alive! 45:37 On that bright afternoon as Lazarus stepped into the sun 45:42 blinking into the sun, what a moment that must have been 45:45 for him. He comes out. 45:47 He looks up and there in front of him 45:49 is the smiling happy face of his best friend Jesus Christ. 45:55 One of my favorite authors, a lady by the name of 45:58 Ellen G. White... she writes in her commentary - 46:02 wonderful commentary on the life of Christ, 46:04 a book called The Desire of Ages - 46:06 she says this: 46:15 Why could she say that? 46:16 Because friends, no one had ever been able to raise anybody 46:21 from the dead and bring them back to life after 4 long days. 46:27 And so friends tonight the raising of Lazarus 46:30 shouted to all those people back then 46:33 as it shouts to all of us today 46:35 that Jesus Christ truly was the Son of God. 46:39 With three words... "Lazarus, come forth... " 46:44 Jesus changed everything. 46:47 Because when Jesus speaks things happen. 46:51 When He speaks worlds come into being. 46:53 When He speaks the wind and the waves are completely still. 46:57 When Jesus speaks the dead come forth. 47:02 It is said that D. L. Moody... he once said 47:06 that had Jesus not said "Lazarus, come forth" 47:10 and if He had just said "come forth, " 47:12 every grave on the face of the planet would have split open 47:16 as the sleeping saints heard the call of their Creator. 47:20 Friends, Jesus is all about life. 47:23 We can rejoice tonight that death is just a sleep 47:27 for the friends of Jesus. 47:29 The raising of Lazarus demonstrates to you and I 47:32 tonight God's ability to give us life. 47:36 And when we encounter Jesus 47:38 we encounter a God who is the resurrection and the life 47:42 who has the power over the grave. 47:46 Revelation 1 and verse 18 Jesus says: 48:03 And friends, when Jesus comes back 48:06 we're going to be reunited with our loved ones 48:09 who have died believing in Jesus Christ. 48:11 And what a wonderful day that will be. 48:15 But friends, should the Lord tarry, 48:18 should He not come as soon as we are expecting Him to come 48:22 because He continues to wait for more people to come to Him, 48:25 then friends we too may have to pass through the valley 48:29 of the shadow of death. But if we have encountered 48:32 Jesus now. If we have encountered Him and believed 48:36 in Him as the result of that encounter - 48:39 then friends, I believe the experience of Lazarus 48:42 will be ours as well. 48:45 For this reason Paul writes... He says: 48:52 Ah, yes, death is a decided fact but it is also 48:56 a defeated foe. Amen? 48:59 It may buzz around and frighten us and scare us 49:03 but Jesus bears its sting. 49:05 He has taken the sting out of death. 49:08 And He offers to you and I tonight hope and life 49:11 everlasting. Oh yes, 49:13 the Bible says that the wages of sin is death. 49:17 But Jesus died and He was not a sinner. 49:20 And yet He willingly, vicariously, voluntarily 49:24 laid down His life for you and I. 49:28 When He did, Satan thought he had the victory. 49:31 Old king death laid his icy cold bony hand on Jesus 49:36 Christ and shackled Him in a cold tomb. 49:40 But he couldn't hold Him there 49:42 because three days later defying all the odds 49:46 Jesus rose from His resting place. 49:48 And when He did, He defeated and decimated death 49:53 in that tomb. Amen? 49:54 He got up from that stone slab 49:57 and the Bible actually tells us He turned around 49:59 and He folded the napkin that covered His face. 50:02 He was in complete control... there was no hurry. 50:05 And friends, one day Jesus will come again. 50:08 And when He does we will hear the same call 50:11 that Lazarus heard: "Come forth. " 50:14 And when we hear that, the dead in Christ... they will come 50:18 as they hear the call of their Savior and forever Friend. 50:22 D. L. Moody was once asked at short notice to perform 50:27 a funeral service and to preach the sermon for the service. 50:31 And being young and new to the ministry 50:33 he went home and madly went through his notes 50:36 to try and find something that Jesus said 50:40 at a funeral service. And as he read through the gospels 50:43 looking for Jesus preaching a funeral sermon 50:46 he discovered that there isn't one. 50:48 Because every funeral that Jesus turned up to 50:51 He broke it up, because death could not exist where Jesus was. 50:56 Death could not exist where the King and the Creator of 51:00 life was. Jesus conquered death. 51:04 His grave is empty! 51:06 He is alive and alive forevermore. 51:09 There is no other event as significant in our human history 51:14 as the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ. 51:17 Thanks to Jesus, brighter days are ahead of us. 51:22 Thanks to Jesus, no situation is hopeless. 51:26 Thanks to Jesus, real joy awaits us on the other side 51:31 of sorrow. In closing, this story: 51:35 An elderly man fell sick and when the doctor saw him 51:40 the prognosis was not good. 51:42 He said: "Look, you have a terminal illness 51:44 and you have but a few weeks to live. " 51:46 The man went home, and his daughter came. And she stayed 51:50 with him to look after him during his final few weeks 51:53 of life. And the local pastor in town when he found out 51:56 about it, he made arrangements to come and visit the man. 52:01 When he came to the house the daughter met him at the door 52:04 and she ushered him into her father's room. 52:07 And as he came in, he smiled at the old man in the bed 52:11 and he noticed a chair beside his bed. 52:14 And he said: "Ah, I see you've just had a visitor... 52:16 or were you expecting me? " 52:18 And the old man... he smiled back and he said: "No, 52:20 I wasn't expecting you but come and take a seat 52:23 and I'll tell you what the chair's for. " 52:24 So the pastor sat down and the man began. 52:27 He said: "Pastor, this may seem strange to you 52:30 but there was a time where I just found it really hard 52:33 to pray. I just couldn't pray at all. 52:36 And so I confided in a good friend of mine, and I told him 52:39 about my situation. And my friend said to me: 52:42 "Well why don't you just take a chair into your room 52:45 and pretend that Jesus is sitting in that chair 52:48 and then talk to Him. Pray to Him as though He was 52:51 right there in the room with you. " 52:53 And so pastor, I did that and for years 52:56 ever since I've never had a problem. 52:59 The pastor was deeply touched by the man's story. 53:02 He shared a few Bible verses with him, a few promises, 53:05 and then he said a prayer with him and then left. 53:08 A few days later his mobile phone rang 53:11 and it was the man's daughter letting him know 53:13 that her father had unexpectedly passed away that morning. 53:17 She said: "Oh, I didn't think he would do this. 53:20 I didn't think he would die today because he seemed 53:22 so content. He seemed so well and happy. 53:25 I only left him for an hour or two 53:27 and then when I came back he was gone. " 53:30 And the pastor waited for her as she gathered herself 53:34 together on the other side of the phone. 53:36 And then she continued. She said "But pastor, I have to say 53:39 there was something strange about the way he left 53:43 because when I came back into the room 53:45 his head wasn't on the bed... it was on the chair. " 53:48 And friends, when you and I have Jesus as our forever Friend, 53:53 when we share a relationship with Him 53:56 as that man shared with Jesus, 53:58 then we have nothing to fear in death 54:01 because all we need is Jesus to wake us up. 54:05 Yes, the Lord is coming and when He comes 54:08 those who have died believing in Jesus... they will rise. 54:11 But should the Lord tarry and should Jesus not come 54:15 as soon as we think He will 54:16 well then all of us, too... we may go through the valley 54:20 of the shadow of death. We too may be touched by death. 54:23 But friends, Jesus promises to us tonight life. 54:28 He weeps with us in our grief 54:30 but He does something eternally better: He promises to 54:33 you and I eternal life tonight. 54:35 And friends, I look forward to the day when we meet Jesus. 54:39 Don't you? Whether we are raised to meet Him or we are 54:42 living and we are caught up to meet Him in the air 54:45 with all of those who have died believing in Jesus, 54:48 it will be the world's greatest encounter. 54:50 And so tonight I ask you this question: 54:53 are you ready to meet Jesus? 54:55 Are you ready to meet Him whatever may come? 54:58 Would you bow your heads with me now as we say a word 55:00 of prayer? Father in heaven, 55:03 we thank you, Lord, tonight that death is but a sleep 55:06 for the friends of Jesus... 55:07 for those who have encountered Him. And Lord, 55:10 we pray tonight that You would help us to grow closer to You 55:13 to love You more. To walk with You faithfully and continually 55:17 so that we may be ready to meet You when You come. 55:21 This is our prayer we pray in Jesus' name, Amen. |
Revised 2014-12-17