Resurrection

Peter Fitch, St. Croix VineyardSunday, March 22, 2015

http://www.christianpost.com/buzzvine/this-boy-fell-into-an-icy-lake-and-was-dead-for-45-minutes-until-god-made-a-miracle-happen-1338

John 11

17 So when Jesus came, He found that he had already been in the tomb four days. 18 Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off; 19 and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary, to console them concerning their brother. 20 Martha therefore, when she heard that Jesus was coming, went to meet Him, but Mary stayed at the house. 21 Martha then said to Jesus, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died. 

John 11

22 Even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give You.” 23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” 24 Martha said to Him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” 25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?” 27 She said to Him, “Yes, Lord; I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God, even He who comes into the world.”

John 11

28 When she had said this, she went away and called Mary her sister, saying secretly, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.”29 And when she heard it, she got up quickly and was coming to Him. 30 Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha met Him. 31 Then the Jews who were with her in the house, and consoling her, when they saw that Mary got up quickly and went out, they followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there.

John 11

32 Therefore, when Mary came where Jesus was, she saw Him, and fell at His feet, saying to Him, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.” 33 When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, He was deeply moved in spirit and was troubled, 34 and said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to Him, “Lord, come and see.” 35 Jesus wept. 36 So the Jews were saying, “See how He loved him!”

John 11

37 But some of them said, “Could not this man, who opened the eyes of the blind man, have kept this man also from dying?” 38 So Jesus, again being deeply moved within, came to the tomb. Now it was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. 39 Jesus said, “Remove the stone.” Martha, the sister of the deceased, said to Him, “Lord, by this time there will be a stench, for he has been dead four days.” 40 Jesus said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”

John 11

41 So they removed the stone. Then Jesus raised His eyes, and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. 42 I knew that You always hear Me; but because of the people standing around I said it, so that they may believe that You sent Me.” 43 When He had said these things, He cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth.”  44 The man who had died came forth, bound hand and foot with wrappings, and his face was wrapped around with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

John 11

45 Therefore many of the Jews who came to Mary, and saw what He had done, believed in Him. 46 But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them the things which Jesus had done.

John 11:4 is similar to John 9:3

• But when Jesus heard this, He said, “This sickness is not to end in death, but for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by it” (John 11:4)

• “It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him” (John 9:3)

In every situation?

• Jesus is not limited to normal human understandings

• Where others despair, He sees possibilities• This seems true even in the face of

insurmountable odds• Is it the same for us?• Should it be?

Mary and Martha

• Each says the same things but each gets a different response

• Is this because Jesus knows that their different personalities need different treatment?

• Or is He a closer friend to Mary than to Martha?

• Or are His tears from the cumulative effect?

Deeply Moved . . .

The Greek word implies a form of anger, like the snorting of a war horse going into battle

Unbind him . . .

• Perhaps this is the role that the community gets to play in each life

• As people get close enough to trust others they share their deepest hurts and bring them into the light

• There is a profoundly therapeutic effect in this

Matthew 2746 About the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” 47 And some of those who were standing there, when they heard it, began saying, “This man is calling for Elijah.” 48 Immediately one of them ran, and taking a sponge, he filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and gave Him a drink. 49 But the rest of them said, “Let us see whether Elijah will come to save Him.”

Daily Diet or Signpost?

There were 3 great periods of miraculous activity in the whole Biblical narrative:– Exodus (13th c. BC)– Elijah and Elisha (9th c. BC)– Jesus and the early church (1st c. AD)

Light confronting darkness

• Exodus: slavery• Elijah and Elisha: idolatry• Jesus: sin and death• Pope Francis this week—in Naples (home of

organized crime)

Jesus raised 3 from the dead

• Widow’s son at Nain (Luke 7)• Jairus’ daughter (Matthew 9, Mark 5, Luke 8)• Lazarus (John 11)• Probably there were others that died around

Him during 3 ½ years of work . . .

God is willing to get involved

• Sometimes it seems immediate• Sometimes it’s the whole lengthy process of

facing death and walking through it• Sometimes it’s Elijah and sometimes it’s “My

God, My God . . .”• Either way it’s a miracle

Apostles’ CreedI believe in God the Father, Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, And in Jesus Christ, his only begotten Son, our Lord Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, Suffered under Pontius Pilate; was crucified, dead and buried: He descended into hell; The third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost. I believe in the holy catholic church: the communion of saints, The forgiveness of sins, The resurrection of the body, And the life everlasting. Amen.

Where do you need a resurrection?