Death: the permanent cessation of vital physical functions
In John 11 Lazarus dies. He didn’t pass out or go into a coma. He was not misdiagnosed. He DIED!
If you don’t believe that Lazarus died, then you will miss God’s truths in John 11.
John 11:4
But when Jesus heard it He said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”
Truth #1: It is about trusting Jesus.
Lazarus did die, but Jesus knew and trusted the plan that the Father had.
The ultimate result of Lazarus’ illness, death, and resurrection was for Jesus to be glorified. The Father’s plan was for Jesus to be glorified by Lazarus experience of all three: sickness, death, and resurrection.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is trusting Jesus and His plan.
John 11:5-6
Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when He heard that Lazarus was ill, He stayed two days longer in the place where He was.
Truth #2: Jesus’ timing is always perfect.
Many times in our desire to do for God, we try to help Him out and we want to rush things.
In the book of Psalms we are told thirteen times to wait on God.
God never tells us to do for Him. He tells us to do with Him. When I do with God, I let Him lead and set the pace and the timing.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is letting God set the time for everything.
John 11:16
So Thomas called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us go, that we may die with Him.”
Truth #3: We are to follow Jesus.
It is one thing to follow Jesus when we think that everything is going to successful, fun, and comfortable. It is another level of faith when by following Jesus you think you will die.
According to Luke 9:23 following Jesus means exactly that - You Will Die.
We are to take up our cross daily. The cross is not a piece of jewelry or a decoration for the wall. The cross is a place to die.
Following Jesus means we are to die to self daily.
John 11:21
Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.”
John 11:32
Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw Him, she fell at His feet, saying to Him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”
Truth #4: Jesus gives us the unexpected.
Martha and Mary were not necessarily blaming Jesus. They were actually expressing great faith in Jesus and His power to heal.
But Jesus had a much greater plan that He tells Martha about in John 11:23. Jesus says, “Your brother will rise again.”
According to Ephesians 3:20 Jesus can do far more than we can ask or think.
Jesus gives us unexpected blessings.
Martha and Mary didn’t know that Jesus could bring people back to life. They had never experienced that from Jesus.
Jesus is willing to do more than we can even imagine.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is having faith in Jesus to do the unexpected.
John 11:25-26
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?”
Truth #5: Jesus is life, physical and eternal.
Death for us as human beings is inevitable. We can prolong life but we can not defeat death.
Jesus has overcome death. He died on the cross and three days later He was alive.
The reality is that without Jesus we have no life. So, if you want to really live, yield your life to Jesus as your source of life.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is living with Jesus as your life.
John 11:38-39
Then Jesus deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to Him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.”
Truth #6: Jesus will lead us into uncomfortable situations.
Many people believe that to follow Jesus means:
An easy life
Comfortable situations
No difficult circumstances
Following Jesus means going into the heart of the enemy’s camp.
Following Jesus means going against the cultural values of the day.
Following Jesus means risking everything.
Following Jesus means we are going to be uncomfortable at times.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is allowing Jesus to move us out of our comfort zone.
John 11:41-42
So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. I knew that You always hear Me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that You sent Me.”
Truth #7: Following Jesus means acknowledging the power of God before we see or experience it.
Jesus prays to the Father and He already knows that the Father has heard Him. And He already knows that the Father is going to answer. And He already knows what He is going to do and the results. In spite of knowing all these already, Jesus out loud thanks the Father.
Jesus wanted the crowd to know that He was depending on and honoring God the Father.
Following Jesus is about giving honor to the Father on a continual basis. It is not talking about luck or fate. It is talking about faith in God to do the impossible. It is about living not based on what we can do but on what the Father can and will do.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is out loud, in front of everyone acknowledging the greatness of God.
John 11:43-44
When He had said these things, He cried, out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”
Truth #8: Jesus calls us to be partners with Him in life and ministry.
Jesus could have gone over and removed the wrappings from Lazarus. He chose to involve other people in unbinding Lazarus and giving him complete freedom.
Jesus has chosen human being to be His partners in sharing the Good News with all the world. Just as Jesus chose the twelve, He has chosen you and me to testify to the gospel of God’s grace to the world.
Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is being Jesus’ partner in telling people the Good News of God’s grace.
Just as in other things, the people who experience the work of Jesus had a choice about how they responded.
John 11:45
Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what He did, believed in Him.
Some believed and surrendered their lives to Jesus.
John 11:46
But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.
Others rejected Jesus even after the awesome miracle and went and tattled on Him to the Pharisees.
We must choose to believe and surrender to Jesus or to not believe and reject Jesus. There is no middle ground.
Following Jesus to Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls
Joe
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