Good evening. It's again my privilege to be with you this evening and share from God's word. I'll ask us to turn again to John and chapter 11. We'll continue reading that portion of scripture from verse 12. Then his disciples said, Lord, if he sleeps, He will get well. However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought he was speaking about taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus said to them plainly, Lazarus is dead. And I'm glad for your sakes that I wasn't there, that you may believe. Nevertheless, let us go to him. Then Thomas, who is called the twin, said to the fellow disciples, let us also go, that we may die with him. So when Jesus came, he found that he had already been in the tomb four days. Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles away, and many of the Jews had joined the women around Martha and Mary. to comfort them concerning their brother. Then Martha, as soon as she heard that Jesus was coming, went and met him, but Mary was sitting in the house. Now Martha said to Jesus, Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you. Jesus said to her, your brother will rise again. Martha said to him, I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day. Jesus said to her, I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this? She said to him, yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Christ, the son of God, who is to come into the world. Mother Lord, bless the reading of his word to our hearts, as well as the preaching of the son to bring about salvation, encouragement, and edification to the body of God's people. For the sake of Christ, we pray, amen. we come to what I consider to be one of the most intriguing chapters in the whole Bible. We have a family very close and well known by Jesus. In that family, there is a man called Lazarus. He's a friend of Jesus, just like Martha. and Mary, sisters of Lazarus. Lazarus falls ill and Jesus is called upon. He does not heal him by the word of his power as he did to the centurion's servant who was miles away. I can refer to Matthew 8 and verse 8 for that account. He does not immediately abandon what he was doing to go and see his friend. He waits a little longer. He knows the time that Lazarus dies, and so he says, our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep. By the time he gets to the funeral house, burial had already taken place. Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead and he continues his mission. And in between the sickness and the resurrection of Lazarus, there are many conversations which are insightful for our understanding of Jesus as the resurrection and the life. As it says in verse 25, which is our focus, I am the resurrection and the life. This passage, just like the rest of the scriptures, is about Jesus Christ, our Lord, Savior, and King. Now there are some verses which are key to understanding what is happening here. Let's start with the fourth verse of John chapter 11. There he says, this sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be glorified through it." He says that this is for the glory of God, and so that the Son of God may be glorified through it. In so saying, he's uncovering the plots, as it were. He reveals the intention behind the death of Lazarus. On the surface, it seems he is saying that Lazarus is not going to die. Because he says this sickness will not lead to death. No, he is saying the outcome of this illness is the glory of God. So as far as you are concerned, you are looking at this from a human standpoint. Your conclusion is this. This man is ill. Now he has died. It's hopeless. If Jesus was here, this man would have lived. If Jesus was here, this man could have been healed. We are done. That's human logic. That's how we are looking at it. But there is a greater purpose, Jesus says. This illness will result in the glory of God and the glorification of the Son. In other words, there is a greater purpose which reduces death to nothing. It pales in comparison to the glory of God and Christ. You fast forward to verse 39. Jesus said, take away the stone. Martha, the sister of him who was dead, said to him, Lord, By this time, there is a stench, for he has been dead four days. And Jesus says in verse 40, did I not say to you that if you would believe, you would see the glory of God? Martha stumbles again after making that great confession of faith in verse 27. Friends, that simply tells us the reality of the sting of death, which is sin. It highlights how we easily get afraid in situations that we perceive hopeless, helpless. When all is ruined, a death has occurred in the family. for some reason, even after reading Romans 8, 28, for some reason, even after hearing John 11, verse 25, we say, Lord, by this time, there is a stench. He has been dead for days. Don't bother yourself. The glory of God and the glorification of Jesus consists in the following. First of all, it's believing that He is the resurrection and the life, as it is written in verse 25. But also, secondly, it is acknowledging that God the Father sent God the Son to redeem us from our sin. Verse 42. In fact, if you start from verse 41, then they took away the stone from the place where the dead man was lying and Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, Father, I thank you that you have heard me. Take note of verse 42. And I know that you always hear me. But because of the people who are standing by, I said this, that they may believe that you sent me. You must acknowledge the triune God that is God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. You must acknowledge that in God's design, in God's plan, He sent Jesus Christ. You must believe in Jesus Christ as the sent one of God to redeem us from our sin. As Matthew 1, 21 clearly says, you will call his name Jesus because he will serve his people from their sin. But thirdly, glorifying God and the glorification of Jesus is believing in Christ, living for him, and loving him, and not like the others who hated him. Even after this wonderful miracle, raising Lazarus from the dead, we are told the rulers of people, the chief priests and the Pharisees, were angry. They wanted to kill him because on account of Lazarus, many people believed. When people get saved, when people believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, Christ is glorified. There is no better work than preaching the gospel than being a herald for the Lord Jesus Christ. The illness, death, and subsequent resurrection of Lazarus was for the glory of Christ. Of course we know, don't we, that Lazarus died at some point. But Jesus did something which can be crystallized by explaining that phrase, I am the resurrection and the life. What do we glean from verse 25? I am the resurrection and the life. I want you to take notes. Firstly, there is a declaration of authority. a declaration of authority. Jesus says, I am. In response to what Martha says in verse 22, Martha says, but even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give to you. Jesus tells her and tells us that he has authority in himself. I am the resurrection. Yes, I am one with the Father. One with the Spirit, co-eco, co-eternal, co-existent. But I say unto you, I am the resurrection. I can raise Lazarus expressly because the Father and I are one. Jesus is God. I am. And this I am is one of the seven I am's in the gospel according to John. But still under this heading of declaration of authority, We see in this verse that he has authority, not only in himself, but he has authority over death. He has authority over death. Martha says in verse 24, I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day. In response, Jesus says, I am the resurrection. He's saying he's the essence, so to speak, of the resurrection. He knew of the death of Lazarus. He knew of the resurrection of Lazarus. But as we shall see shortly, there is something more beyond this picture of Lazarus dying and being resurrected. Jesus has authority over death. But sadly, has authority over life. He says I'm the resurrection and the life. He is the essence of life as it were. He gives life. He defines what life is. And in John chapter 17 and the third verse This is what he says. In fact, if I start from verse one, to give a bit of context to it, Jesus spoke these words, lifted up his eyes to heaven and said, Father, the hour has come. glorify your son that your son also may glorify you as you have given him authority over all flesh that he should give eternal life to as many as you have given and this is eternal life that they may know you the only true God and Jesus Christ whom you have sent There you are, dear friend. True life is knowing God. True life is believing the Lord Jesus Christ. Living for Him. Abiding in Him. Serving Him. Becoming like Him. all your life, being conformed to his image. But Jesus has authority over life because he sustains life. And the book of Hebrews tells us that he upholds everything by the power of his words. He has authority. Jesus does. I am the resurrection and the life. And take note there that he says, I am the resurrection and the life. He separates those two, though they complement each other. Jesus has authority over death, because he has authority over life. I am the resurrection. I am the life. This is a declaration of authority. But I want you to notice in the second place that this is a declaration of assurance. A declaration of assurance. And this assurance is made to those who believe in him, those who are born again. They believe his divinity. They believe he is God. They believe in his saving power. They call on him. They have received him, as it were. They have received his forgiveness, his pardon. They have experienced the change of life. They have experienced a change of heart. They rely on him. They are in this covenant relationship with him. They are in this covenant relationship with the church. Yes, they look forward to his return. And he declares this to them. He who believes in me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. Upon that assurance, we can say this, dear friends, that Christians are safe in death pangs. Why? Because Jesus has already died on their behalf. He takes away the sting of death. And the Bible says in 1 Corinthians that the sting of death is sin. And the strength of sin is the law. How do we understand that? Perhaps an illustration would do. When I was very young, my brothers took me to a mountain called Mpangwe, somewhere in Katete, up the hill. I didn't know they were up to mischief. So there were like three or four of them. And they took me to this place where there was a beehive. And I saw this thing hanging there. And one of my older brothers said, yeah, we need to stone it. Okay, and I was just wondering, what are these guys doing? And then they were arguing among themselves. No, no, no, no. They start with a big stone and so on and so forth. Now, those of you who know bees, you know, from that day, I know what bees are. Okay, so you have the bee, and then the bee has a stinger. When they threw that stone, which now when I look back, I thank God for that experience because it explains quite a lot. That thing just came rumbling down and covered all of us. And we started running down the hill. I don't know what happened. When I opened my eyes, I had difficulties opening them. In fact, I wasn't opening them, but I was told I was at St. Francis Hospital. And the doctor said, you guys, you are going to die. You are dead, and two weeks in hospital. Now, the thing is this, that the bee can be looked at as death. It's a symbol of death. That stinger is sin. And that sin gets its power from disobedience, taking the stone and throwing and trespassing. That's where the strength of sin comes from. And death is a result. But Jesus Christ has died. He's taken away the sting of death. He has conquered death and sin on the cross that we may have life. We leave because when we die, we go to the bosom of Abraham. You only have to read Luke and chapter 16. There's what is called the intermediate state. So yes, a child of God to the eye of man has died. As far as Christ is concerned, our friend Lazarus is asleep. I'm going to wake him up. The body is lifeless, yes, but the soul is with Christ. That dear brother, that dear sister, who died years ago, months ago, is in the presence of God Almighty, albeit without a body right now, still waiting the resurrection. But they are in a state of bliss. They live. They live because they will never be thrown in the lake of fire and to be separated from God forever. What is death? Death simply means separation. So when we say this person has died, it means their body is separated from their soul, their spirit. When the Apostle Paul says in Ephesians 2 verse 1, that as for you, you were dead in your sins and trespasses, he simply means you were separated from God, away from the commonwealth of Israel, without God, without hope in the world. It's a state of separation. Jesus says, he who believes in me, though he may die, he shall live. Because he's alive to God. Christians are safe in death, but they are also safe in life. Because verse 26 says, whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. Amazing. They'll never die physically, they will, unless they will be alive at the coming of Christ. Spiritually, they have an inseparable union with the triune God. Who shall separate us from the love of God through Christ? Who? Not even death. Because we are alive to God. We will never die. Physical death is a transition. It is called sleep with respect to the body, but the spirit is alive unto God. Look at how Christ illustrates this point as he quotes the Old Testament. in Exodus 3. Remember when Moses appeared before the Lord in the burning bush experience? Verse 15 says of Exodus 3, Moreover, God said to Moses, Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, The God of your fathers The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob has sent me to you. He says, I am the God of Abraham. I am the God of Isaac. I'm the God of Jacob. Man, these people were already gone. They were dead. How does God described himself as the God of these people. They are dead. Well, Jesus explains that in Luke and chapter 20. He says this. Perhaps we start from verse 36. Discourse on Resurrection. Let me start from verse 35, but those who are counted worthy to attend that age and resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage, nor can they die anymore, for they are equal to the angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection. Now, take note of verse 37, but even Moses showed in the burning bush passage that the dead are raised when he called the Lord the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. For, because, verse 38, he is not the God of the dead, but of the living. For, or live to him. Find the same explanation in Matthew 22, verse 31 to 33. Oh, leave to him. Let us apply these thoughts, dear friends, in the concluding remarks. First of all, the raising of Lazarus later in this passage was a preview of the resurrection to come. And Jesus tells Martha, your brother will rise again. There seems to be a double spin around that. I will raise him up. He's going to die at some point, but I'll raise him again the day of the resurrection. And all this is because of Jesus's resurrection. So the raising of Lazarus was the gospel in a visible form. And how privileged were those who witnessed that, to witness the rising of Lazarus from the grave, to take off the clothes, to give him food. And God performs that miracle. across the globe as he speaks to hearts and reasons with minds, with consciences. And as he, like Lydia, opens the hearts of men and women, boys and girls, as he opens their eyes to see the glory and the majesty of Jesus Christ. They are resurrected from the dead. Without that experience of resurrection, new life, you cannot be, you are not a Christian. This is the gospel. This is what we preach. We preach Christ. We preach his resurrection. Because through his resurrection, on the third day, we are justified. We have life. We are assured of life with him. in eternity. But this also speaks of a greater condemnation. For those who saw this gospel, they saw the rising of Lazarus and yet despised him. They despised Lazarus. They despised Christ. Oh, how great a condemnation will be for you, who in your home, you have seen clearly, without any doubt, the transformation that has taken place in your daughter, in your son. You know, at the bottom of your heart, this can only be by the power, by the finger of God. My son, my daughter has been transformed and yet you still don't believe. The gospel writes in your home. Young man, young woman, boy and girl, you have seen your parents. They were complete wrecks. Riffraffs of society written off, given to all vices under the sun, but through the power of the gospel, through the word of God, through the voice of Christ, come out. Your parents have been transformed. You have seen it. How is it that you don't believe the gospel? How is it that you are still hardened in your heart amidst all this evidence? Our friends, furthermore, we need not fear death, but be steadfast in the work of the gospel. Death, where is your sting? 1 Corinthians 15, verse 56 to 58. Christ has conquered death, so let us be steadfast, immovable in the work of God, because we know that our labors are not in vain. Jesus, in John chapter 11, Jesus in John chapter 11 says something which is very instructive. John chapter 11 verse 26 at the end. Do you believe this? I think for us it's both a challenge and a comfort for those who grieve. We shouldn't grieve as those who are without hope. We must grieve, yes, but we must grieve in such a way that it honors Christ as the resurrection and the life, knowing that this, our brother, this, our sister, is safe in the bosom of Christ. I am the resurrection and the life, Jesus says. May you experience the transforming power of the gospel in this season. In Jesus' name, amen.