Tim Ross: If you would go to the gospel, according to Saint John chapter, number 11, the gospel, according to Saint John chapter, number 11. I was so tempted to read 44 verses to y'all, ooh, I was so tempted to do it, but because of time constraints, I can't get all 44 verses in and get where I need to go. I'm going to just give you 10:34 through 44, but I at least want to recap the previous verses, so that we are all on the same page.

John chapter number 11 is the story of Lazarus, Mary, and Martha. Versus one through 10 is a breakdown of Lazarus getting sick, Mary and Martha, sending out a messenger to Jesus who is a dear friend of Lazarus, Mary, and Martha. The messenger says, "You need to come back to Judea, even though everybody there has just tried to kill you. You just need to come back real quick because your friend is sick." Jesus says, "Don't worry about it, I will come back. His sickness is not unto death." The disciples are like, "Well, if its sickness is not into death, then I guess we're all good."

Jesus rolls his eyes and He's like, "You guys have no idea what I'm talking about, he's dead." Well, which one is it? Is he sleep or is he dead? They kind of go back and forth versus 11 through 20. He tells them that he is glad that Lazarus is not-- not glad that Lazarus is dead, but he's glad that he wasn't there so that the glory of God could be realized in this moment. Thomas, not understanding what's going on at all is like, "Cool, let's go with Jesus so we can die too." Imagine being the other disciples, like speak for yourself, but I did not. I'm not trying to do all that.

Jesus gets down to Bethany. When he is there, if anybody was with us last weekend, then you remember the professional Criers and the Wailers, they're here too. When Jesus shows up, it's pretty much the same scene as when they went to Jairus' house. The first one to meet him out there is Martha. Martha's like, "Hey if you would've been here, my brother would've still lived" and he's like, "I promise you, you're going to see the resurrection." She's like, yes, yes, yes, yes in the last day, but not now, he's already dead. We already buried him, it's all good.

Just letting you know, you should have been here, we're friends. I know this is like a complete paraphrase but deal with it. Getting down to 21 through about 33, he gets closer to the house, Mary comes out, says basically the exact same words and Martha and Jesus is looking at this scene, He's starting to get a little bit disturbed on the inside because he's like if anybody knew, I thought my friends would know that I can do this too. Now we pick up at verse number 34, He says to them, "Where have you put him?" They told him, "Lord, come and see." Then Jesus wept.

The people who were standing nearby said, "See how much he loved him. Some said, "This man healed a blind man, couldn't he have kept Lazarus from dying?" Jesus was still angry as he arrived at the tomb, a cave with the stone rolled across its entrance, "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." Jesus responded, "Didn't I not tell you?" That's how I feel like the tone was.

The dude was already angry, I just feel like keeping that same energy. Your boy was like, "Didn't I tell you that you would see God's glory if you believe?" They rolled the stone aside. Then Jesus looked up to heaven and said, "Father, thank you for hearing me. You always hear me, but I said it out loud for the sake of all these people standing here. This is hilarious so that they will believe you sent me. Then Jesus shouted, "Lazarus come out?" The dead man came out.

His hands and feet bound in grave clothes. His face wrapped in a head cloth. Jesus told them, "Unwrap him and let him go." Oh, this is good. If you're taking notes on this message, here's the title. He can get me out of here. Last message in this series and I feel like the last miracle you need to know is that He can get you out of here. He can get you outta every dead place you have ever found yourself in. He can get you out of here.

[applause]

Bow your heads. Let's pray before we get started. Holy Spirit, get us out of here. Amen. Oh, Jesus has taken us on quite an adventure this month. All the miracles that the Holy Spirit has led us into. We get to see all of these beautiful ways that he chooses to show and reveal God's glory to us

Tim: The gospel according to St. John's meticulous writing by the apostle who lived the longest, gives us a glimpse into what is to be not known to the people around at the time, but the precursor to Jesus' own resurrection. If there was any trailer to a movie that was about to be released, this was it. That the man that would say to Martha, I am the resurrection would perform a resurrection before having his own experience with the Holy Spirit raising him from the dead.

It's amazing to me that we can be in Jesus' presence, that we can see all the miracles that he has done here about all the testimonies of how the Holy Spirit moves in people's lives and find it in our lives and in our space that we can believe it for everybody else, but sometimes we can lose sight of it for ourselves. We can believe for everybody else's miracle, but then right off our own belief for everybody else's healing, but not believe that he'll do it for us. Believe for everyone else's breakthrough, but then look around and say, "I don't think he would do it for me."

Mary, Martha, and Lazarus are dear friends of Jesus. Three people that have believed in his ministry known, received the revelation without being with him every day as the other disciples were. They knew that he was the Messiah. When the sisters call for their friend, they expect him to come right away. Lazarus who is sick on what is to be his deathbed has faith that his friend will come while he is yet living. While life is escaping his body by the hour and the minute, he is literally dying, holding on to his faith. I don't know if you know what it feels like to be dying and still holding on to your faith. Being in a season of life where you feel like nothing is going your way and everything around you is withering and dying and yet you are still believing God that he can do this too.

Lazarus is laying on his bed, dying with the thought in his mind that my friend can get me out of this situation. The messenger comes back after receiving the word from Jesus to let Mary and Martha know that Jesus said he was coming but when he comes back, it's the same kind of report that Jairus came back to, and that is he's dead. He told me to come back and let you know that he was going to do a miracle for Lazarus. They're like, "He's dead." As it is with Jewish custom, we have to bury this man today. They wrap him up. They put him in a tomb and they roll a stone in front of it. Jesus has already promised that he was going to come and fix the situation but because he did not come on their timetable, they put Lazarus away.

Anybody beside me ever believed God to come at a certain time and it was like he did not pick up the phone? Have you ever told him, "I need you now?" And he's like," I'll be there in September." Imagine the frustration in this situation as Mary and Martha are sitting there, perplexed there. They're holding a message from the messenger saying that Jesus was going to heal, but they have buried their friend. He didn't show up that day. He didn't show up on day two. He didn't show up on day three. He shows up casually on day four seemingly unbothered by what these sisters and this extended family has gone through. Just walks in, "Hey, y'all." Martha's like, "If you would've been here, my brother wouldn't have died." He's like, "Martha, I told you, I am the resurrection. I am literally the resurrection." I know you are but-- I know he's going to be raised in the last day. I get it. You're the Messiah. We know everybody's going to get up but right now, though. He's like "You've missed it."

Mary comes out of the house the professional wailers, run with her, [cries] and they all get up to Jesus. She says the same thing that her sister says, "You should have been here." Jesus gets a little bit perturbed on the inside. I don't believe he's angry with them, but he's angry at this situation because anytime God steps into a dead situation, he knows something that we don't, that ain't nothing dead in God's presence that cannot be resurrected back to life. I have five points to this message. I'm ending on a strong note. I'm giving you five because the last two weeks I gave you none. I'm giving you five points to this message because I believe the statements that are here are just meant to put something on the inside of you to believe that God can get you out of whatever situation you feel like you're in right now, that you can't handle by yourself.

Point number one, please write this down. The question he asked him was, "Where have you put him?" After arriving on the scene and understanding what the situation was, where their faith was, where their misunderstanding was, he wanted to know where did you put Lazarus. I need to know where you buried your faith. I need to know where you buried your belief. I need to know where you stopped believing me. Where did you put it? He doesn't show up and asked the Holy Spirit to lead him to this situation. He says, "You show me where you put Lazarus because God wants you to own the responsibility of what it takes to see him do a miracle in your life."

Show me where you stop believing. Show me where you've buried the promise. Show me where you stopped having faith that I would come through in this situation. Where did you put him? Where have you put your faith? Where have you put your belief in Jesus? Is this still centered around the great I am? Is this still centered around the fact that he is the way, the truth, and the life, or has it been displaced? Has it been misdirected? Have you allowed the vicissitudes of life to come in and cause you to put your faith in a place that's not securely anchored on the rock? Where did you put him?

They bring him to the place and they said. "He's in there. Right there." I don't know what we're going to do right now, but that's where he is which brings us to point number two, please write this down. The second statement he makes that we need to observe is he tells them, "Roll the stone aside." Again, king James' people roll the stone away. He says, "Thank you for showing me where you put him, now roll the stone away." Martha said, "Rabbi, it's been four days. He stinks. I don't know if you know how decomposition works, but this body has already gone through the stages of rigor mortis. The blood has already settled down to the bottom of this man's body?

He is beginning to rot from the inside out. We put spices and herbs and wrapped them properly, but that's only going to last for a little while. There are bugs in his gut right now eating this way out.

[laughter]

I know y'all didn't want it to be this graphic, but you're going to deal with this today.

[laughter]

I was going to be a homicide detective. I know about the decomposition of a body. I won't go that far but just know. I could give you all this work right now if you wanted to. He stinks. The body is rotten. There is no way he's coming back from that. I don't want to deal with a stinky situation. I wanted you to come when he was still alive. I wanted you to come while he still had a heartbeat. You showed up too late. The marriage stinks. You showed up too late. The body is rotten. You showed up too late. The relationship with my kids is already broken. You should have came when there was still some hope. You should have came before I went back and relapsed to alcohol. You should have came when I still had something to fight for. It's too late.

Jesus says, "Roll the stone away. You heard what I said. Roll the stone away." I need to tell at least 200 people in this room. God is not intimidated of your stinky situation. He does not care how rotten your situation has gotten. God will come in if you just rolled the stone away, and so they do. They literally push that stone away. Well, Jesus doesn't do something, which is amazing to me. He doesn't go in that tomb. He tells them to roll the stone away. The scent probably escapes as soon as the stone is rolled away, and Jesus doesn't go near that tomb. They're probably like, "Do the thing. We know you can do the thing. Tim's been talking to us about the things in the last three weeks. We know you can do the thing. Do the thing."

Before He does the thing, he says something. Ooh, this thing got me in my study. Point number three. Three words, "Didn't I tell you?" He rolled that stone away. She said, "He stinks by now. We don't want anything to do with this." He looked at her and he said, "Didn't I tell you that you would see the glory of God if you just believed?" Do you not understand that I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last? Do you not understand that I am the word wrapped in flesh? That when I came down, I cannot go back to my Father without accomplishing everything that He has asked me to do? Didn't I tell you I was going to restore you? Didn't I tell you I was going to break generational curses off of you? Didn't I tell you I was going to restore that marriage? Didnt I tell you I was going to bring your wayward son back home? Didn't I tell you I would break that addiction? Didn't I tell you?

I don't need you to agree with me. I'm not taking back what I said. I'm going to do this because I said so.

They're all standing there. That's when Jesus says the three words that changes the whole trajectory of everyone that is there on that day. Theologians have said this before, but it is worth saying again, that Jesus had to name Lazarus. He had to call him by his name because had he simply said, "Come out," every dead person within 100 square mile radius would have popped up out of their grave and came walking to the Savior because when God speaks a word, everything has to listen and bow down to the name of Jesus.

[Applause]

He had to show some restraint this day. He said, "Lazarus. Come out," and a dead man who had not breathed in four days started to have his blood circulate again.

Whatever was trying to get out of his body went back in his body. The whole process of decomposition reversed and he got up. Now, here's the miracle. The miracle was that he's alive. This other miracle is that he could get up, bound in his grave clothes, hand and foot, with what they called a death napkin wrapped around his head. He was essentially mummified. Do you know how hard it has to be?

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Y'all know where we are? This is not like the other deaths and resurrections. This one is different because he's tied down. Now, he has been told to not just come alive, but to come forth. How do you come forth bound? My answer is the best way you can. Lazarus heard that word. It did not matter how much was tying him down. He knew that God's word was stronger than the thing that had him tied up. This man went moving around until he could get up. I imagine he got up to his knees and he was like, "Where am I? The last thing I remember was being in the bed waiting for Jesus. Now, I'm tied up." He makes it to his feet somehow and bound head to toe.

Lazarus starts hopping out of the grave, bound and all, can't see where he's going, but following the voice, because the just shall live by faith. We do not go off of what we see in the kingdom. We go off of what we hear. The Bible says that the just shall live by faith. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.

[Applause].

He got up. I've got to stop right here because I cannot tell you how many people think that when they come to church, they have to be free before they come forward. I can't tell you how many people have been misled to believe that they need to get all of their grave clothes off first before they come into the presence of Jesus. Let this example be a message to us all that God will take you stinking, God will take you rotten, God will take you with grave clothes on because He knows that He is not going to leave you the way He found you. Is there anybody in here beside me that knows what it is to have your grave clothes come off in a way that makes you be someone that you never was going to be before? It is, oh, woah. Jesus, okay.

Lazarus. This is the process of sanctification, justification, the process of what it takes to come out of the grave and there are some people in this room that God has chosen, and you've been making excuses that it's too stinky, that it's too rotten, that you're too tied up to come out now and His command to you is, "come out not a week from now," "come out, not a month from now," "come out, not a year from now." Today. The day that you hear His voice, is the day that you get to come out. There is someone in this room that I have been assigned to tell that today is your day.

Now, this is where I always have to move by faith because I have no idea what Jesus wants to do, but I just be doing what I think my Rabbi is telling me to do and then we just see what happens. Point number four it's for someone in this room across all campuses, wherever you may be. It's for you to come out now, no hype, no show, no theatrics. You know you have been bound in a grave that has kept you silent, isolated, darkened, and depressed and He says, today is your day to come out.

I don't know who the Lazarus is. I don't know who the Lazareth is, but today is your day to come out from silence, come out from bondage, come out from secrecy, come out from hiding and if that's you, I need you to come out right now. Come out right now, come out right now, come out right now, come out right now, come out right now, come out right now, come out right now. Lazarus, Lazarus out of your depression, out of your bondage, out of your secrecy, out of the generational curse, out of the habit, out of the lifestyle. Lazarus you don't have to stay this way for the rest of your life. Lazarus, you don't have to be bound for the rest of your life. Lazarus come forth, Lazarus come forth Lazarus, come forth Lazarus, Lazarus.

Before you were formed in your mother's womb, I knew thee Lazarus. I'm not late, says the Lord, I'm on time, Lazarus come forth. From wherever you are, there's somebody that's on the edge of their seat and you're afraid of being misunderstood or judged and God says, come anyway. Don't worry about what they might think of you. Grave clothes and all. If you can't walk, hop, get down here right now. Lazarus, Lazarus come forth. This is what it looks like. This is what it feels like. Do not let a grave define you, do not let grave clothes define you. That's point four, I told you there were five points.

The fifth point just loose him and let him go and unwrap him, unwrap her, let him go. You don't have to stay like this, you don't have to stay like this. Look at me, I'm talking to you. He loves you so much. He loves you so much. There is a purpose and a plan that God has for you. The enemy had to come at you real young to try to derail you, but it's not going to work. He loves you.

I'm going to ask the alter ministry team to come. I know this is crazy right now, but here's what I want to let you know. You can't get free by yourself. Lazarus could not untie himself from those grave clothes. That's why Jesus said, get the community around Lazarus, loose him and let him go. See sometimes the reason why we stay bound in our grave clothes because we try to fix ourselves. We try to work it out ourselves. Sometimes we have too much pride to ask for help, but when you're tied up and you're wrapped up in a bunch of stuff, don't try to get free alone.There's some people that love you that want to help you. That will help you get unwrapped from the stuff that you are wrapped up in.

This is a holy moment. One that I wanna pray over before we end. The community is taking their place. Lazarus has taken his place, her place. I see tears and smiles and burdens being lifted all over this altar. God loves you so much that he would not let the month of June escape with you still trapped in a grave. So God, I thank you so much for my brothers and sisters, for your sons and daughters. I thank you, Lord God, that there is nothing too dead did that you cannot bring back to life.

God, I pray that you will restore marriages right now at this altar that you would heal hearts right now at this altar, that you would free people here right now in ways they've never felt free before God. I pray that someone confesses something they've held a secret for years and just watch shame come out of their life. God, I pray [music]

that you will continue to be the miracle worker that brings dead things back to life.

God, thank you for raising people from the dead. Thank you for raising us up and lifting us up out of darkness, shame, despair, and death. May the sweet work of the Holy Spirit do for us what we can never do for ourselves and may the beautiful work of the community that we're surrounded with unwrap us in ways and free us in ways that we never thought possible. Let none of this be for our credit but all for your glory. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.