Let me say it is a privilege and honor for not just me, but for this church. For Susan and Janice and Calvin and I to minister this service in fond remembrance of Judy Rogers. Some of you all have known her a while. My wife and I moved to the area about the same time Judy did. So we have the joy of knowing Judy for about six years. Some of y'all here have known her the same amount of time perhaps, but some of you here have known her almost all their lives together. And you know that it's a joy to remember Judy and to realize her faith, her courage. She was one of those ladies that would not let things overwhelm her. She would attack them and work on them and do what she could. And she has now found the victory in Christ Jesus. I would go to the Gospel of John in a story that speaks very eloquently about this situation that we find ourselves in today of grieving for our sweet departed sister. You know, the scriptures minister to you in lots of ways. Calvin read a portion of a psalm that I think is true, that you can cry out to God. Psalm 34, Calvin read verses four through seven, it says, I sought the Lord and he answered me and he delivered me from all my fears. They looked to him and were radiant and their faces will never be ashamed. This poor man cried and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all of his trouble. The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him and rescues them. Is it okay to cry out to God in pain and in questions and in difficulties? Is it okay to struggle in faith with the death of a loved one? Well, I have a word of hope for you today. And in your grief, know that God loves His own. and hears their cries. You'll see at the bottom of your order of worship two of the children's favorite verses. The reason they're their favorite verses is because they're easy to memorize. Two of the shortest verses in the Bible, one from John 11 and the other one from 1 Thessalonians chapter 5. We come to understand the resurrection of Jesus Christ and those that would follow after Christ most in death. This is the most vivid time for you to deal with this question of life and death. This is a subject in John chapter 11 that is the greatest of subjects and that is when we die. So I'm going to turn to John chapter 11. This is a long story, this chapter 11. And John, and I'm not going to take time to read the whole chapter, but I'm going to pick it up at verse 30. Now, if you're familiar with this story, Jesus had some dear friends, Mary, Martha, her sister, and Lazarus, her brother. Now, they lived in Bethany, which was fairly close to Jerusalem. And the word was sent to Jesus that Lazarus was terribly sick, that Jesus should come and heal him. And Jesus purposefully said, no, I'm going to wait until he dies. In fact, it was the fourth day before he came. There was no doubt that he was dead. And first Martha went running to Jesus when she heard he was coming and said, if you'd have been here, he wouldn't have died. Now let's go here to see that God does care in the midst of this grief. Verse 30 says, Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha met Him. 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. 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. When Jesus therefore saw her weeping and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and was troubled and said, where have you laid him? And they said to him, Lord, come and see. Jesus wept. So the Jews were saying, see how he loved him. But some of them said, could not this man who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man also from dying? Jesus wept, it says. See here that God does care for the lost and the brokenhearted. We see here a Savior who cares enough to be emotional. Twice in this section, of John 11, it talks about Jesus' emotions. Verse 33 said, He was deeply moved in spirit and was troubled. And then later, I didn't read it, but verse 38 says, again, Jesus being deeply moved within came to the tomb. What do you do with a God that is emotional? Jesus was deeply moved. Almost, you could translate this, indignant. As he felt and saw in his dear beloved friends this grief, that it is appointed for man to die because of the sin of the fall of Adam, carried on to every one of you and I because of the condemnation on man, death came to creation. And Jesus sees this grief on these two sisters that he loves so dearly, and he is indignant, it says. In Mark 6, 34, it's recorded that Jesus felt compassion for them. In Mark 7, 34, it speaks about Jesus with a deep sigh. In John 12, 27, Jesus tells His disciples, my soul has become troubled. And of course, this simple verse 35 says Jesus wept. What does this mean that Jesus cared enough to get emotional, to shed actual tears? Is this weakness by the Son of God? Is He flawed? Is there something wrong with God that He could get emotional? We know that's not true. If there ever was the reality of the incarnation expressed, it's here in this story of this relationship of Jesus to Mary and Martha. God became man, fully man, fully God. And He cares enough to be deeply troubled. He cares enough to cry. as he saw Mary and Martha's grief. Now, it's interesting, John chooses to use two different words for tears or crying here. Now the crying by the others, Mary, Martha and the crowd, is like the moaning and the wailing that you hear often in funeral processionals where people will moan and groan and cry out. No, the word used for Jesus here, Jesus wept, is simply a quiet shedding of tears. Because Jesus knew that Lazarus was coming out of the grave alive. But he wept. and sorrow for his beloved. Of course, he cared enough even to die. Not only to die a death, a hard death on a cross, but he died a death of separation where he would cry out from the cross, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Tis mystery all. that our God could shed tears and be the blood-stained sacrifice for sinners, mere creatures' sin. God cares for you. Are you lost? There is hope, for God cares. The evidence is before you, even on the cross. I encourage you to do what Mary does here in verse 32. When Mary came where Jesus was, she saw Him and fell at His feet. She fell at His feet. Is it okay to be emotional? Of course it is. Your Savior was emotional in His sorrow. for these two loved ones. Of course you can be emotional. Of course you can grieve. It's okay to grieve. But is it okay to turn bitter and your anger turn to hate? No. Is it okay to question God? Of course it is. As long as you're asking God and not complaining to others. And that's what happened in this passage. Did you notice that? First, Martha, in the previous section, makes this statement which really is a question. If you had been here, Jesus, He wouldn't have died. And then Mary repeats the same question in verse 32. Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. It's okay to ask God. Does God know everything? He knows your hearts, and if you're harboring those bitter questions, raise them up to His throne of grace, and He will give you solace. Notice in verse 37, this bitter question by cynics. Notice they're not addressing their question to Jesus, they're addressing them like the world does. in almost sarcasm and criticism of Christ, where they say in verse 37, could not this man who opened the eyes of the blind have kept this man also from dying? Jesus didn't want to keep him from dying. He waited three days to make sure that they would know for sure that he was dead, because God was going to be glorified. And the raising of Lazarus from that tomb when Jesus had come out and he came out stumbling along in his grave clothes. So Jesus allowed the death. And it was not an easy thing for him. We see it in his grief for Mary and Martha, but he declares in this chapter, I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live even if he dies. And everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this? Was this a defeat for Judy Rogers? Did cancer win? Was this a victory for the forces of horrid darkness? We all have friends like this who die of cancer. And they go through the burning and the slashing and the cutting and the chemotherapy and all the horrid things. Your hair falls out and you get really, really sick. And you say, what good is this? How is God glorified in this? How can this be? God, where is your victory in this? It's like Lazarus. In order for Judy to realize the bounty of full blessings, Jesus allowed her to die. because she's ascended under the Father's presence. Now you say, I don't want her to die. I'm not ready for that. How can you hurt your children this way? God knows best. He knows best. And He allows sometimes very deepened difficult pain and sorrow to enter our lives because he has a higher purpose. Now, here's the second little verse you'll see there at the bottom of your outline, and it comes from First Thessalonians chapter five, verse 16. Also, just two words rejoice always. Now, I'm a big one when I preach the Bible on looking at the original language here and see what the nuances here. Well, I would tell you, and you know enough English to know what a present tense verb is, don't you? This is not future tense. You will rejoice always. This is a command in the present tense. Rejoice now in today's reality. Now, can I say something to you? God does not ask his children to do what cannot be done. You say, this is impossible. I cannot rejoice in this. Is God cruel to command something of his children that is impossible for them to do? Of course not. We can find a victory and rejoice to have joy today. If it is commanded in Scripture for His children, then it certainly is possible. You understand, of course, that our gift of salvation is joy. Joy is a theme of the New Testament story of Jesus. What did the angels say when they went to the shepherds? What did they say? Behold, I bring you good news of a great sadness which shall be for all the people. Of course not. I bring you good news of a great joy which shall be for all people. For born to you today in the city of David is a Savior. Saving us from the wrecks of cancer and accidents and difficulty and sin. I'm going to read again from John and then I'll be through. From John chapter 16, Jesus makes a promise to his followers that I think is a promise for you and me today as we grieve and have this sorrow. From John chapter 16, I'm going to read a couple of verses, starting at verse 22. Therefore you too have grief now. But I will see you again and your heart will rejoice and no one will take your joy away from you. In that day, you will not question me about anything. Truly, truly, I say to you, if you ask the Father for anything in my name, he will give it to you. Until now, you have asked for nothing in my name. Ask and you will receive so that what? Your joy will be made full. Understand that there is a close relationship between the grace of God, the love of God, while you are yet sinners, Christ died for your sins. There's a great relationship between grace and joy. I'm not talking about happiness. That's as fickle as this dry grass that we've been walking around on lately. I'm not talking about happiness. I'm talking about joy. Joy with the tears running down your face. Joy to say, I don't care. I don't care what the world says. God loves me and he promised to take me to a better place. I want to persevere. Grace and joy, they have a great relationship. I'd remind you again that God does not ask you to do what you cannot do. Rejoice always. Yes. You can weep and grieve into joy. And by your tears, His grace flows, and by your brokenness comes your growth in Christ. Jesus said on the Sermon on the Mount, Blessed are those who mourn. What? For they, they shall be comforted. How? How can this be? From grace to joy, from forgiving to rejoicing by prayer and through the work of the Holy Spirit. Two simple verses. Two simple verses, two bright promises of hope. One declaring the reality of our Savior, Jesus wept. And the other one, this sweet command to rejoice always. In Christ, you know two things. If you're a Christian, I'll tell you two things. It's going to be okay. It's going to be okay. And the second thing I can tell you, if you're a Christian, is that you're going to be okay. Thanks being to God, it gives us the victory. Again, going back to thinking about John 11, the mystery, the astonishment of a weeping Savior, and how sweet it talks to our grief that we are loved so. And in the mystery of all difficulties and trials, as James would say, count it all joy when you endure various trials. Let the tears of Christ in your tears of sorrow and repentance and brokenness bring you to his gift of life and hope and resolution, even joy. Your Father does know best. And out of the tears and brokenness comes strength and power and hope and glory to God. And in our weakness is His strength. Yes, you can. Yes, you will. For we have a bright future. Can you cry out unto the Lord? Will He deliver you? Of course He will. And so this day, let us rejoice and be glad in it. Heavenly Father, Your people assembled here has sorrow and fear and wonder that, Lord, we also find this bright hope of a Savior who weeps out of His love for the brokenhearted. And a Savior that would go to the point of His death and suffering. A Savior who was resurrected on the third day and showed us His life-giving power by the resurrection from the tomb. of this dead man, Lazarus. And so, O Lord, I pray for your people that you would bind up their hearts in Christ Jesus. Father, we know that we have to grieve. It's okay to grieve, but our grief, Lord, is a clean one that will heal because we know that this is simply a separation. It's a separation, sure. It's a pretty clear separation, but it is only a separation for a period of time. Thank you, O Lord, for the Lord Jesus Christ, our victory. We pray in His name, Amen. Paul repeats a similar passage that you're probably also familiar with, and I will use it as our benediction from Philippians 4. So if you will stand with me, I'm going to read Philippians 4, 4-7. May this be God's benediction to His people. Rejoice in the Lord always, Again, I will say, rejoice. Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving. Let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Go in the richest, fullest blessings of Almighty God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.