When the resurrected Jesus told Mary not to cling to Him, he was gently correcting Mary’s hope that Jesus, like Lazarus, had been returned to her and the disciples and life could now “get back to normal.” As humans our perspective of life and death is limited. We always assume that life as we know it is preferable to the life to come. What Mary couldn’t understand, was that Lazarus had been raised to life only to die again. Jesus, however, would never again die. Mary wanted to hold on to Jesus, but He wanted her to understand that there is something better than resuscitation: RESURRECTION. How often we long for the return of our dead loved ones, wanting to hold on to them for just a little while longer. Jesus’ invitation to “let go” is an invitation to believe that resurrection is better than resuscitation; that life after life after death is the ultimate victory.

We often forget that God frequently uses the bad guys in the Bible to speak truth and accomplish His purposed. In His divine sovereignty, God has complete control over everything, even those who would oppose Him. When the Jewish High Priest and the Roman governor sentenced Jesus to death, the demons shrieked with delight. Little did they know that this death sentence was really their own.

When Jesus commanded that stone on his friend Lazarus’s tomb be removed, there were real concerns. Concerns about what was about to happen, concerns about Jesus’ claims becoming more and more extreme, but most of all, people were concerned about the smell! Decaying corpses stink! The Bible says that Christ has come to raise the dead to life, but too often Christians live with the stink of death on them, bound by grave cloths that they are unwilling to shed. In part three of Raised to Life, we will consider what it means to be called from death to life and how this new life requires that we shed our grave clothes.

RAISED TO LIFE - Part Two: Doubting God

(John 11:17-37)

What do you do when God is late? How do you understand a God who claims to love us, yet fails to respond to our pain? A person who has never questioned God is a person who has yet to face suffering. In this message we explore how Jesus convinces us to trust Him enough to follow Him through a death that leads to life.

RAISED TO LIFE - Part One: The Mission to LIve and the Call to Die

John 11:1-16

Many people in America today would describe life as anything but “abundant.” And yet, that is exactly what Jesus promises. So if all of our wealth, health and technology isn’t giving us what Jesus has been offering for two millennia, why aren't more people responding to His offer? The answer may be one of the life’s great paradoxes: without death there can be no life. Jesus has come to raise us to life, but first we must be willing to die.

The Characters in John 10:

1.The Sheep

The Nature of Sheep

Sheep are VulnerableSheep are Valuable

The Response of Sheep

They know the voice of their shepherd (10:4)They follow the shepherd (10:4)

2.The Thief (10:1,5,8,10)

His Mission: To steal, kill, and destroy

3.The Hired Hand (10:12-13)

Isn’t willing to put the sheep above himselfFlees at the first sign of danger

4.The Good Shepherd (10:11 & 14)

He gives abundant and eternal life (10:10, 28)He lays down His life (10:11, 15, 17 & 18)He knows His own (10:14)He unifies the flock (10:16)He will never let go (10:28-29)

Four Truths from John 10:

1. You are vulnerable and valuable

2. There is an enemy seeking to devour you (1 Peter 5:8 & Matthew 26:41)

3. Lesser shepherds will fail you (Psalm 146:3-5 & 118:8-9)

4. Jesus is the Good Shepherd sent to rescue and bring you home. (Psalm 23)

Passage: John 9

A lie believed as truth will affect you as if it were true.

LIE: If I could know all the facts and have answers to all my questions, then I could believe in Jesus Christ.

TRUTH: Faith is not built on answers to questions, but through an encounter with Jesus.

Who’s blind?

1.The Disciples were blinded by his condition.

2.The neighbors were blinded by an opportunity.

3.The Pharisees were blinded by their traditions.

4.The religious leaders were blinded by their preconceived notions.

5.His parents were blinded by fear.

Who’s not?

1.Jesus sees value in the blind man.

2.The blind man experiences the miracle and sees Jesus.

What do you see?

John 9:1-5

A lie believed as truth will affect you as if it were true.

The Lies We Believe About Pain and Suffering:

- Human suffering is evidence that God’s love is limited.

- Human suffering is proof that God either doesn’t exist or else has limited power.

- Human suffering is the result of specific sins on the part of those suffering.

- Suffering has no value and should always be avoided.

The Truth About Pain and Suffering

Three Practical Purposes for Pain:

- Pain protects

- Pain unites

- Pain corrects

Suffering exists to reveal God’s glory and grace.

Our suffering is an opportunity to join Jesus in displaying the glory and grace of God.

John 8:47-59

A lie believed as truth will affect you as if it were true.

Two Religious Lies We Tell Ourselves:

- I am right with God because of my religious and/or ethnic heritage.

- I am right with God based on my moral standards.

One Central Truth:

- My relationship with God is justified through a right relationship with Jesus Christ.

John 8:30-47

A lie believed as truth will affect you as if it were true.

Two Lies We Believe About Freedom:

Lie: Freedom is having no master

Truth: “Freedom is having the right master,” Tim Keller

Lie: Freedom is doing what you most want to do

Truth: Freedom is doing what you’re meant to do.