Sermon Tone Analysis

INTRO: Ramsey and stealing my egg salad

I. Request

Problem, Person, Pleading

1.

The Problem in the Case (John 11:1) "Now a certain man was sick" (John 11:1).

The problem in this case was sickness.

The sickness was severe enough to cause death.

With Lazarus being devoted to Christ, it reminds us that godliness is no exemption from trials.

Godliness does not prevent trials, but it provides comfort and help in trials that ungodliness does not provide.

2. The Person in the Case (John 11:1, 2, 5) "A certain man was sick, named Lazarus, of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha.

It was that Mary which anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.

Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus" (11:1, 2, 5).

These verses give us some pertinent information about the person in the case.

• The name of the person.

The person in the case of this miracle was named Lazarus.

There are two men named Lazarus in the Bible.

The other Lazarus is found in Luke 16 in the story of the rich man and Lazarus in which Christ gave a detailed and horrifying glimpse of what the unredeemed sinner will experience in eternity.

• The sisters of the person.

Lazarus was a "brother" (John 11:2) of Mary and Martha.

These two woman were greatly devoted to Christ.

Scripture specifically mentions that "it was that Mary which anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick" (John 11:2; see Matthew 26, Mark 14, and John 12).

This notation about Mary not only shows her great devotion to Christ but distinguishes her from the other Marys in the New Testament.

• The affection for the person.

"Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick... Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus" (John 11:3, 5).

Twice our text tells us that Christ loved Lazarus.

Later, Christ refers to Lazarus as "Our friend" (John 11:11) which also shows Christ's affection for Lazarus.

"Our" in the "Our friend" emphasizes that Lazarus was not only a friend of Christ but also a friend of the disciples as well.

Lazarus had good friends!

This speaks highly of his character.

3. The Place in the Case (John 11:1, 18) "Bethany" (John 11:1).

Lazarus was from the small town of Bethany which is located "about fifteen furlongs [approximately two miles]" (John 11:18) east of Jerusalem on the hillside of Mount Olivet.

Though small, Bethany was a famous town in the Bible because of its good reception of Christ, especially the reception given Christ by Mary and Martha and Lazarus.

Scripture records Christ visiting in the home of Mary and Martha there (Luke 10:38-42), raising Lazarus there (John 11:44), being feted at a supper there (John 12:1, 2), being anointed by Mary there (John 12:3-8), lodging there instead of Jerusalem when ministering in Jerusalem during the day (Matthew 21:17), and ascending from near there (Luke 24:50, 51).

It was not its size that brought Bethany fame, but its attitude towards Christ and His Word. 4. The Pleading in the Case (John 11:3) "His sisters sent unto him, saying, Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick" (John 11:3).

The sisters pleading to Christ for their brother Lazarus gives us some good lessons on prayer.

• The alternative of prayer.

Prayer does not seem to be an alternative to many folk in time of trouble.

When trouble comes, they do everything but pray.

However, the Word of God says, "Is any among you afflicted?

let him pray" (James 5:13).

Most of us grumble, complain, and tell a host of others about our troubles before we pray and tell God about our troubles.

• The ardor in prayer.

"His sisters sent unto him" (John 11:3).

The ardor of the sisters' prayer is especially seen in their sending a messenger a day's journey to see Christ.

They lived in a village which was about a day's journey from where Christ was at the time (John 10:39, 40; cp.

John 1:28).

If we are not earnest when we pray, we cannot expect God to be earnest about our praying and our needs.

• The abasement in prayer.

"Lord" (John 11:3).

"Lord" says Mary and Martha knew their humble place before Christ.

Humility is a must for acceptable praying.

The great prayers in the Bible are filled with humility.

As an example, when Abraham pleaded with God about sparing Sodom, Abraham said he was but "dust and ashes" (Genesis 18:27).

Always keep a humble posture before God when praying.

• The acquiescence in prayer.

It is most significant that in their plea to Christ for help, the sisters did not request Christ to do some specific action.

It is not necessarily evil to request God to do something specific.

In fact, this needs to be done on most occasions.

However, here they simply told Christ that Lazarus was sick and then let Christ decide what to do.

There was a spiritual acquiescence here that is most commendable.

Sometimes we do not know exactly how to pray about a problem (Romans 8:26).

However, that should not stop our praying to the Lord.

Simply tell the Lord the problem and ask for help.

Let Him decide how best to help you.

• The adoration in the prayer.

"He whom thou lovest" (John 11:3).

In pleading with Christ about Lazarus, the two sisters did not emphasize their or Lazarus' virtues.

These three certainly had the virtues to plead in contrast to most others.

Instead of emphasizing their virtues, they emphasized the virtues of Christ.

They emphasized Christ's love.

It was so commendable to emphasize His love here, for when trial comes, we have a tendency to think God does not love us.

Good praying involves adoration for God.

II.

Relationship

Purpose, Prolonging, Pursuing, Path

The Purpose of the Case (John 11:4) "When Jesus heard that, he said, This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby" (John 11:4).

Stating the purpose of the sickness was directed not only to the messenger of the sisters but also to Christ's disciples who were with Him at the time.

They needed to know the purpose as well as Mary and Martha.

• The negative in the purpose.

"This sickness is not unto death."

This is not a contradiction to what happened.

It is true that Lazarus died, but that was not the end result.

Sometimes we say an injury will not cripple when it has at the time crippled.

What we mean is that it will not cripple permanently.

This is the meaning of the statement here.

It gives perspective of our trials.

While our trials at the moment seem to be destroying us, they ultimately are for our good and will build us up, not destroy us.

• The positive in the purpose.

"For the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified thereby."

Both God the Father and God the Son would be glorified as a result of this sickness of Lazarus.

It is like what Christ told the disciples in John 9:3 about why the blind man was blind.

6.

The Prolonging of the Case (John 11:6) "When he had heard therefore that he was sick, he abode two days still in the same place where he was" (John 11:6).

The work of Christ was delayed until the sick person had died.

The delay this time was caused by the decision of Christ to not go immediately to Lazarus' help.

This action by Christ seemed to show a lack of interest.

But that was not the case at all.

Furthermore, it certainly cannot be said to show a lack of love either, for just before this verse about the delay of Christ, is a verse that plainly states His love for Lazarus.

The delay was, in fact, a result of love.

Christ in love wanted to give them greater help for their faith than just healing the sick.

His delay made that possible.

There are times when only prolonged suffering can give us the best blessings.