“Unwrap
Him
And
Let
Him Go!”
Scripture
John
11
32 When
Mary arrived and saw Jesus, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord,
if only you had been here, my brother would not have died.”
33 When Jesus saw her weeping and saw the other people wailing with her, a deep anger welled up within him, and he was deeply troubled. 34 “Where have you put him?” he asked them. They told him, “Lord, come and see.”
36 The
people who were standing nearby said, “See how much he loved
him!” 37 But some said, “This man healed a blind man.
Couldn’t he have kept Lazarus from dying?”
38 Jesus was
still angry as he arrived at the tomb, a cave with a stone rolled
across its entrance. 39 “Roll the stone aside,” Jesus
told them.
But
Martha, the dead man’s sister, protested, “Lord, he has been dead
for four days. The smell will be terrible.”
40 Jesus
responded, “Didn’t I tell you that you would see God’s
glory if you believe?” 41 So they rolled the stone aside.
Then Jesus looked up to heaven and said, “Father, thank you
for hearing me. 42 You always hear me, but I said it out
loud for the sake of all these people standing here, so that they
will believe you sent me.”
43 Then
Jesus shouted, “Lazarus, come out!” 44 And the
dead man came out, his hands and feet bound in graveclothes, his face
wrapped in a headcloth. Jesus told them, “Unwrap him and let
him go!”
Observation
This
has got to be my favorite story in all of the Bible or at least it is
one of my top 5!
If
at all possible I always try to share this story or at least part of
it at every funeral I preach! Why? ... Because it is so powerful!
Take
a minute and read the entire story. It is found in John 11.
This
story shows us Jesus' heart. It is a story that is full of emotion.
It is full of God's power! And this story reveals God's glory! It is
full of God's love for you and it is full of God's love for me. It is
proof for us that Jesus has power over death, power over the grave!
Jesus
wept. Jesus was angry. Jesus commanded, “Roll the stone aside.”
Martha protested, “Lord,
he has been dead for four days. The smell will be terrible.” They
rolled the stone aside. Jesus prayed. Jesus shouted, “Lazarus, come
out!” Dead man came out … then Jesus said, “Unwrap him and let
him go!”
One
day this will be my story! One day I am going to die. But the moment
I breathe my last breath here on this earth will be the moment I
begin to live forever! I am never going to really die. When this tent
that I am now living in is finally taken down that is when Eddy
really begins to live!
How
about you? If you were to die today where would you spend Eternity –
Heaven or Hell?
2
Corinthians 5:1-3
For
we know that when this earthly tent we
live in is taken down (that is, when we die and leave this earthly
body), we will have a house in heaven, an eternal body made for us by
God himself and not by human hands.
We grow weary in our present bodies, and we long to put on our
heavenly bodies like new clothing.
For
we will put on heavenly bodies; we will not be spirits without
bodies.
Romans
8:10-11,38
And Christ lives
within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the
Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God.
The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in
you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give
life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you. And
I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love.
Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears
for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of
hell can separate us from God’s love.
Application
I
will hold on to the promises in John 11, 2 Corinthians 5, and Romans
8 about my future. How about you?
Prayer
Heavenly
Father, the grave can't keep me down. My death is not final. It is
only the beginning for me. I believe. I am convinced that nothing can
ever separate me from Your love. Neither death nor life, neither
angels nor demons, neither fears for today nor worries about tomorrow
– not even the powers of hell can separate me from Your love.
Daily
Bible Reading: Jeremiah 3,4; John 11
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