The Gospel of John - Outline Part 27 - No Limits on God’s Power

TITLE

John 11:1-44 – No Limits on God’s Power

EXPLANATION

After spending time away from Jerusalem, Jesus now prepared to return.  His friend, Lazarus, who lived in Bethany, which was quite near the city, was terminally ill.  Jesus, knowing what He was about to do, was not concerned.  He fully intended to allow Lazarus to die, so that He could raise him from death and showcase the glory of God through it. 

When Jesus proposed His plan to the disciples they were afraid.  The Jews had just tried to stone Jesus, and now He was wanting to go right back into the lion’s den.  Jesus chided them for their unbelief by encouraging them to walk in the light of obedience rather than the darkness of fear.  It is noteworthy that Thomas, he who is called doubting because of his later actions, demonstrated that doubtful tendency here as well.  Yet, in spite of his worry, it should also be noted that Thomas had a zeal for God.  Although he thought they were going to die, he was prepared to go with his Lord and die with him.

Jesus arrived at Bethany four days after Lazarus had been buried.  He was met by Martha, Lazarus’s sister.  She lamented that if He had been there, Lazarus would not have died.  Jesus encouraged and strengthened her faith by questioning what she believed about Him.  Martha confessed that she believed Him to be the Messiah.  Next Jesus was met by Mary, Lazarus’s other sister.  Mary was grief-stricken by her brother’s death.  And, Jesus, upon seeing her depth of emotion, was Himself moved to grief.  This must have been a sorrow borne of compassion.  Jesus certainly was not saddened by Lazarus’s death, because He knew that he would be alive again in a brief time.  Therefore, He must have felt empathy for Mary’s grief.

Finally, Jesus arrived at the tomb.  He had the stone rolled away.  And, in a loud voice He commanded Lazarus to come out of the tomb.  Lazarus was restored to life, serving as a graphic illustration of the Lord Jesus’s own death which was to occur in the very near future.

APPLICATION

We humans are forever trying to limit God’s power.  We think He cannot sustain us.  We think He cannot defeat sin within us.  We think He cannot mend broken relationships.  We think He cannot salvage the mess we have made of our lives.  In this chapter, even those who walked and talked with Jesus continually doubted Him.  These people, who had seen His miraculous divine power firsthand, repeatedly thought He was limited to what they had already seen.  First the disciples questioned Jesus about returning to Jerusalem.  Then Martha questioned Him about having any power over her brother’s death.  Then Mary did the same.  Even at the very point of resurrection, even after acknowledging Jesus as the Messiah, Martha still balked at the thought of removing the stone from Lazarus’s tomb, because she still did not truly believe that the Lord could raise him from death.

This should be a lesson for us to not doubt the power of God, that is at work in our lives.  We should trust Him implicitly and have faith that He can do anything He wants to do.  We need to stop limiting in our own minds His ability to work miracles.