Making the Impossible Possible: Sermon John 11:1-44

Dear God, take our minds and think through them; take our hands and feet and work through them; take our lips and speak through them, take our hearts and set them on fire for you. Amen

How many of you have heard the term foreshadowing before? Foreshadowing is a literary move in which the author or storyteller hints at later events within the telling of a story. For example in the Shakespearean play Julius Caesar a soothsayer comes up to the emperor and says “Beware the Ides of March” and then on the Ides of March, March 15, Caesar is murdered. Foreshadowing is much easier to pick out of a story when you know the end, then you can look back and see how the author planted those seeds of foreshadowing earlier in the text.

Our story today is an example of foreshadowing. It is an example of something that will come later in the story, it hints to that later event. We can see hints to the resurrection of Jesus in this story of the resurrection of Lazarus. Each of these stories has similar themes and has similar outcomes. The death of Lazarus was a difficult blow for his family and for the community of Bethany. The death of Jesus was a tremendous blow for his followers. Each was truly and definitely dead, one through disease and the other on a cross. Each seemed like a hopeless, impossible situation. Each seemed like the end to something with no hope of recovery. Lazarus left behind two sisters with no man to care for them and Jesus left behind many disciples with no leader and teacher. However, in both stories Jesus demonstrates the awesome power of God and he shows the people gathered there near Lazarus’ grave that in God there are no impossible situations.

Let’s look back at our story from John. Jesus learns that Lazarus is sick and yet remains where he is another two days. Now Lazarus and Jesus were not just acquaintances, they were good friends. Look at the language that Martha uses “Lord, he whom you love is ill” and Jesus tells the disciples that “Our friend Lazarus is asleep.” Even though he was friends with the man, he knew that the outcome would not be permanent death. Jesus knew that this would be an opportunity for the glory of God to be shown and for a final lesson to be taught to the disciples. However, for the rest of the disciples this was an impossible situation. You see Bethany is only two miles from Jerusalem and the last time Jesus went to Jerusalem he was almost stoned to death, barely escaping with their lives. The disciples were scared. In fact, in an act of desperation not faith Thomas says lets us go with Jesus so that we might die with him.

They travel to Bethany and they find that Lazarus has been dead for four days. There would be no healing today. Lazarus is already dead and buried. Martha and Mary greet Jesus before they reach the house. Martha makes a heartbreaking statement to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” She is saying that “Jesus you healed all these people, gave sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, you healed the lame and the broken. Why could you not get here to heal my brother?” She is upset with Jesus and naturally so. However, even if Jesus had left immediately there is little chance he would have made it before Lazarus died. He received the message, waited two days and then it would have been about a day’s trip down there so Lazarus would have already been dead. This is an impossible situation.

Jesus then goes to the grave of his friend. He sees the people there, including Mary and Martha, weeping and mourning and he is moved to tears. Why is Jesus mourning when he knows that he is going to raise Lazarus? Perhaps, he was moved at the scene, perhaps he is showing his human side. I think that the real reason is that he is experiencing the human pain and anguish of loss. He knows that this is not the only funeral occurring and that may other people are mourning the loss of loved ones. He knows that even though through him death will no longer be permanent, there is still pain when we lose those we love. Jesus is feeling the pain in the world and so he weeps. Jesus then makes a strange request. He asks for the stone to be rolled away. (That sounds familiar doesn’t it?) Martha tries to stop him. “Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead four days.” This is an impossible situation.

Don’t we find ourselves in impossible situations? Millions of people are drowning in debt and poverty. In 2006, 36.5 million people were in poverty in the US. That does not count the 4 billion people around the world who live in constant poverty. We see them on TV, those faces with distended stomachs and flies buzzing on their faces. We see war and violence affecting so many people around the world. We hear about genocide in Darfur, Sudan and other places. On the other hand we see the wealth, with multiple cars and gold plated bathroom fixtures and we think this must be an impossible situation.

There are hundreds of thousands of people in the US living with HIV and AIDS, millions more around the world, especially in Africa. Children are orphaned at an alarming rate because both of their parents have died of AIDS. Millions of people are fighting the battle of cancer and other devastating illnesses. This seems like an impossible situation.

We look around our church this morning. We see empty pews that were once full of people seeking and learning from God’s word. We remember the laughter of children. Things are not like that anymore. Our church, our denomination continues to lose members and we do not seem to know how to get them back and bring new ones in. This seems like an impossible situation.

Most of us have been in Martha and Mary’s shoes. We have stood at the grave of our loved ones mourning and grieving. We have looked death right in the face and at least for the moment, death seems to have won the day. We know their frustration, crying out to Jesus, you have saved so many why not my brother, why not my loved one? We have been in that impossible situation.

What happens when we face those impossible situations? We turn to Christ. Jesus stands at the mouth of Lazarus’ grave, at the very presence of death. The stench of death fills his nostrils. The people are filled with doubt and distress. What is he doing? Then in the clearest voice and without hesitation Jesus cries “LAZARUS COME OUT!” The people cannot believe their ears. Did he really say that? Then they cannot believe their eyes because from the mouth of the grave from the mouth of death itself, a man comes walking for wrapped in grave clothes. Jesus says “Unbind him, and let him go.” The grave is empty. Death has no prize.

Jesus looks at this impossible situation and knows without a shadow of a doubt that through God all things are possible. There is no impossible situation with God. He knows that in a few days it will be him in the grave, with the stone rolled over to seal the deal. Jesus knew then, just as we know now, that the outcome will be the same. He knows that he will die on the old rugged cross, but the love of God, the power of God cannot be stopped by the impossible, even by Death itself.

Through Christ the impossible becomes possible. Nothing can stand in our way because Christ has broken every barrier. Through Christ Death does not hold the final say, it is not the end but the beginning. Though we mourn today we will rejoice tomorrow because we will see our loved ones again. Through Christ nothing in this world can separate us from the love of God. Nothing in this world, in the cosmos, no angel, no demon, not even Satan himself can separate us from God.

Jesus stands at the mouth of the grave and cries “LAZARUS COME OUT!” In that moment he is saying DEATH YOU HAVE NO MORE POWER HERE. - DISEASE YOU HAVE NO MORE POWER HERE. - AIDS YOU HAVE NO MORE POWER HERE. CANCER YOU HAVE NO MORE POWER HERE. - POVERTY YOU HAVE NO MORE POWER HERE. - HUNGER YOU HAVE NO MORE POWER HERE. – WAR, VIOLENCE, AND INJUSTICE YOU HAVE NO MORE POWER HERE. – BECAUSE I AM THE RESURRECTION AND THE LIFE. – I AM THE EVERY EMBODIMENT OF THE LOVE OF GOD. – I AM THE GREAT I AM.

Jesus is putting the universe on notice here in this moment. Jesus is putting Death on notice and Jesus is putting Satan on notice. The game is up, you’re gonna lose. Christ is the victory and through him we will have the final victory. These are the words of hope that we cling to. This makes the impossible, possible.

Let us pray…

Grant, O Lord,

that what has been said with our lips we may believe in our hearts,

and that what we believe in our hearts we may practice in our lives;

through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.