Going from Grave Clothes and Delayed Promises to Freedom in a Resurrected Life

tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4832939444439438575.post-81891692323957289722008-04-13T10:30:00.001-06:002008-04-18T10:22:30.434-06:002008-04-18T10:22:30.434-06:00Going from Grave Clothes and Delayed Promises to Freedom in a Resurrected Life - Cheri Osberg<a href="http://www.newlifecotr.com/media/Audio/April%202008/Going%20From%20Grave%20Clothes%20and%20Delayed%20Promises%20Cheri%20Osberg%204-6-07.mp3">Download MP3 audio </a> Going from Grave Clothes and Delayed Promises to Freedom in a Resurrected Life Have you ever found yourself wrapped up in something or battling something, where you almost felt dead, immovable, and incapable of worship, freedom or maybe even living? If not, maybe you have found yourself waiting, waiting and waiting on a promise that God has given you that seems like it will never happen. You know God is capable but you question why He delays…as you wait, you feel your hope, faith and trust is dying. If so, then God has a word for you today. He wants to show you how you can go from Grave Clothes and Delayed Promises to Freedom in a Resurrected Life!!! Today we are going to chat a little bit about a story in the Bible you have probably heard of. It is my prayer today to open up the Word of God to you in such a way that you will embrace Christ and live in His FREEDOM!!! Turn in your Bibles to John 11:1-44. Instead of reading 44 scriptures to you today, let me just give you a brief synopsis of the story. Story Summary: v. 1 - Lazarus and his two sisters, Mary and Martha, were friends of Jesus. v. 3 - When Lazarus fell ill, his sisters sent a message to Jesus, "Lord, the one you love is sick." v. 4 - When Jesus heard the news, he waited two more days before going to Lazarus' hometown of Bethany. Jesus knew that he would do a great miracle for God's glory and, therefore, he was not in a hurry. v. 17 - When Jesus arrived in Bethany, Lazarus had already been dead and in the tomb for four days. v. 20 - When Martha discovered that Jesus was on his way, she went out to meet him. v. 21 - "Lord," she said, "if you had been here, my brother would not have died." v. 23 - Jesus told Martha, "Your brother will rise again." v. 24 - But Martha thought he was talking about the final resurrection of the dead. v. 25/26 - Then Jesus said these important words: "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die." v. 28 - Martha then went and told Mary that Jesus wanted to see her. v. 30 - Jesus had not yet entered the village, most likely to avoid stirring up the crowd and calling attention to himself. The town of Bethany was not far from Jerusalem where the Jewish leaders were plotting against Jesus. v. 32 - When Mary met Jesus she was grieving with strong emotion over her brother's death. The Jews with her were also weeping and mourning. v. 35 - Deeply moved by their grief, Jesus wept with them. v. 38 - Jesus then went to the tomb of Lazarus with Mary, Martha and the rest of the mourners. There he asked them to remove the stone that covered the hillside burial place. v. 41-43 - Jesus looked up to heaven and prayed to his Father, closing with these words: "Lazarus, come out!" v. 44 - When Lazarus came out of the tomb, Jesus told the people to remove his grave clothes. There are three points in this story that I want to point out to you today that I feel each one of us relate to in some shape, form or fashion. • Don’t you wish you could instantly solve all your personal problems? • If you are a believer and still have problems, is something wrong? • Are all of our ‘issues’ resolved instantly when we are saved or baptized? • Are there issues that could be hanging on that we need to deal with after we have been born-again? Read v.43 – 44 (NASB) – “43When He had said these things, He cried out with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come forth." 44The 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." I. ‘Take off the grave clothes…’ A. When we are born-again and accept Jesus, we become clean in the Father’s sight. When the Father sees us, He sees Jesus! B. However, all of us still have some grave clothes on. 1. There is still evidence that we once lived a ‘dead life’ – a life that was part of the world, rather than the kingdom of God. 2. What do you and I need to lay down? 3. What grave clothes do we continue to wear? a. Religion, Failure, Depression, Debt, Fear, Low Self-Esteem, Regret, Sexual Sin, Disobedience, etc. C. We wonder why we struggle at times, why we don’t worship freely, why we aren’t blessed and trust God without limit… How can I freely worship Him and love Him without limits, if I am bound and struggle to move? 1. We cannot share these spiritual privileges, if we retain the love of sin in our hearts and keep wearing our Grave Clothes. D. It is time to rip off those Grave Clothes. Nothing from our dead lives is worth keeping us from living in our Resurrected Life! Some of you may say – ‘Well, I’m not struggling in the bondage of my grave clothes’ but you dwell in disappointment because you have not received the promises that you’ve hoped for. II. You ‘see’ Delayed Promises: A. You have waited and waited for that new job, that son to come to Christ, healing, ministry opportunity or even a new church building…so you live in that prayer doubting stage – where you pray, but your mind is swarmed with ‘if onlys’. 1. If only I had gotten that job and not her, if only this would happen or that would happen now. a. In verse 21 and 32 – Mary and Martha expressed their ‘if onlys’ – if only you were here Jesus, our brother wouldn’t have died. 2. It is interesting to read that in verse 5 & 6 it says that Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. SO when He heard that he was sick, He then stayed two days longer in the place where He was. B. Jesus responds to our ‘if onlys’ by saying that He’s glad (v. 15) it doesn’t always work out the way WE plan, because now He will be glorified in a greater way. 1. When you are believing God for His promises – you must believe that He can do what He says He can do. 2. Believe it or not, Jesus knows what lies ahead for you. He is not surprised by circumstances or your future. a. v. 4 - Jesus knew that He was going to raise Lazarus from the dead. b. Even though it may seem that God delays, that He isn’t listening or responding…trust that He IS and He knows the greater plan that He has for you. 3. It would have been a good miracle for Jesus to have come and healed Lazarus before He died…but He had a greater plan. a. He would raise Him from the dead and show that He has ALL power over life and death. 4. Now, you choose – good or great? a. WE could rush God (like Sarah and Abraham) and create a good plan or we can trust God and wait for His Great Plan. 5. v. 37 - Even when others are saying “could not have Christ answered you by now”…you need remember that what appears as a delay to us is the orchestration of God…for what seems dead to us, is ALIVE IN CHRIST! V. 39 (NASB) – “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." III. The church plays a role. A. Jesus did not remove the stone. He asked the people around the tomb to remove the stone. 1. An important part of our spiritual life and as the church is helping non-believers remove the stone from their grave! a. God calls us to pray for them and love them in ways that will remove the barriers between them and Jesus! 2. We can remove the stone for people but we cannot bring them to life! a. Eph. 2:1, 4-5 (NLT) – “1Once you were dead because of your disobedience and your many sins. 4But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, 5that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved!)” b. Jesus calls us to life through His grace. c. According to 2 Cor. 5:17, this involves a ‘spiritual creation’ therefore can only be accomplished by the Creator! B. John 11:44 (NASB) – “…Jesus said to them, "Unbind him, and let him go." 1. Even when we have the grave clothes removed, we still need to be let go. 2. Sometimes there are things in our life that we need others to help us to be free. a. Church, we need to be there to pray with them and help others to be let go from those past things that bind them. 3. I’m sure Lazarus did not smell too lovely…he had been dead for four days! Sometimes church, you are going to have to reach out and touch the stinky, get out of your comfort zone and be Jesus with skin on to others…help let them go! Closing: • When you have removed your Grave Clothes, when you have embraced God to see what is Alive in Him and not delayed…then you experience Freedom and Christ in such a way that not only do you tell your story but it is just simply known. • The fact that Lazarus was alive spread all over and as a result of this incredible miracle, many people put their faith in Jesus. Psalms 66:19 (NASB) – “But certainly God has heard; He has given heed to the voice of my prayer.” • We should declare what He has done for our souls, and how He has heard and answered our prayers, inviting others to join us in prayer and praise. • Christ alone raises us from our spiritual death and gives us life and life abundantly…which is why we must remove the grave clothes, believe in His promises and help others become ‘let go’. • So, rip off those Grave Clothes, confirm in your heart that what may seem dead to us IS ALIVE in Christ! Live in FREEDOM in the Resurrected Life. Quirinusnoreply@blogger.com