If you would turn with me to
the Gospel of John chapter 11, please. John chapter 11. We'll begin
reading in verse 43. John 11, 43. I want us to consider 10 words,
beginning with the last three words in verse 43, and then the
next seven words in verse 44. And they are, Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead came forth. 10 words. says a multitude of
things. Now, I know this is a very familiar
passage of scripture, and oftentimes when you already know the outcome
of a story, the surprise and the impact is often lost. But we must not, I encourage
you this morning, we must not let knowing how our story ends
to steal from us the weight of the moment and the gripping reality
of what really happened here. The Lord Jesus cried, Lazarus,
come forth. And what happened? He that was
dead came forth. That doesn't lose its power by
already knowing how it turns out. Now allow me to sketch the
scene in your mind. The Lord here approaches the
sepulcher, the tomb, in which Lazarus lies. And inside that tomb lies Lazarus's
putrid corpse. The Lord gives the instructions.
He says, take away the stone. And the sister of that corrupt
body stands at the side of the tomb and she says, Lord, and
let me paraphrase this for a moment. Do you think it's a good idea?
Lord, by this time, he stinks. For he hath been dead for four
days. Now what's the significance of
being dead four days? Well, and if you remember, the
Lord waited two extra days before going to Bethany after hearing
that Lazarus had been dead. So now this is the fourth day.
And the significance of that is the Jewish tradition taught
that a soul hovered over the body for three days. after death,
seeking an opportunity to return. And this is the fourth day. Now
I know that's ridiculous, but no more so than what people in
religion believe today. All the superstition and traditions
of men, By the fourth day, the soul was
believed to have permanently departed and decomposition had
set in. Therefore, Martha's concern about
this stench of decay is understandable. By now, he stinks. After four days, the death of
an individual was considered final and irreversible. This
is why the Lord waited. No one could claim that Lazarus
was merely unconscious. Well, he wasn't dead. Four days later, he's considered
to be dead. And as some in here in the South
refer to it, graveyard dead. He's tomb dead, graveyard dead. So the Lord here is commanding
life. to come into a decomposing corpse. This was not resuscitation. This was a resurrection. Raising
someone from the dead after four days wasn't just impressive. It was impossible by human or
natural standards and means. Now, I love, I just love how
the Lord responded to Martha when she said, Lord, it's probably
not a good idea. He's been dead four days and
he stinks. And the Lord said, Martha, didn't
I tell you that if you would believe, that you'd see the glory
of God? How many times has the Lord said
those words to you and to me? David, didn't I tell you that
if you would believe, you'd see my glory? So in verse 41, they
roll the stone. of the sepulcher away at the
Lord's request. And at that time, the Lord thanked
His Father that He had heard Him. And this reveals to us that the
Lord had already prayed to His Father before this instant occurred,
because nowhere in these verses does it say that He asked the
Lord to hear Him. Then the Lord Jesus acknowledges
that the Lord always heard him. He said, I know you heard me.
You always hear me. And he also petitions of his
heavenly father that those present here at this tomb might believe
that the father sent him. Verse 42. And then in verse 43,
our Lord cried with a loud voice that says, Lazarus, come forth. Now again, I want to apologize
for the bluntness, but I intend to speak directly. The cry and
the command was aimed at a corpse that was already being consumed
by maggots. This was and this is the natural
result of four days in a grave. But then we read the next seven
words which say, and he that was dead came forth. The cry and the call of the Lord
Jesus Christ was effective. Did you hear me? It was an effectual calling. Effective. He that was dead came forth. He was no longer dead. And the
reason was because of who it was that did the calling. It was a call from the eternal
one and the only one who could and can give life to the dead. The title of my message is effectual
calling, effective calling. Effectual calling is God's work
alone. Romans 8.30, and those whom he,
God, predestinated, he, God, also called. and those whom He,
God, called, He, God, also justifies. Rejoice, dear sinner, dear believer,
all that are called are justified. God's call is always irresistible
and always effective. God's call Now, a lot of men, when you deal
with this particular subject, they talk about a general call.
Many are called, but few are chosen. And then they talk about
the effectual call. Well, I have no problem with
the general call and the effectual call, but I will say this, that
what good is a general call if that call is not effective, not
effectual? So there's no need to dwell on
a general call if it's not effective. I'm interested in an effectual
call. How about you? Well, that's what
we're gonna look at. Our Lord had also said in John
chapter six, verse 37, he said, all that the Father giveth me
shall come to me. That's effective, that's effectual. And him that cometh to me, I
will in no wise cast out. That sounds like an effective,
effectual call to me. In John 6, 44, he said, no man
can come to me except, what's the exception? Except the Father
which hath sent me draw him. If God draws you, you're gonna
come. You're gonna come. And he said, and I will. I shall
and I will raise him up at the last day. It's effectual. It's
effective. Death is mankind's greatest enemy. It silences the strong. It humbles the proudest. And
when the Lord Jesus arrived at the tomb of Lazarus, He stands
face to face with the enemy called death. But unlike us, he has no need
to stand in helpless grief. You know, a lot of people comment
on this passage where it says, and Jesus wept. They say, oh,
look how he loved him. Look how he loved him. I'm convinced
he wept at their unbelief. That's something to weep over.
Here's God in the flesh. Death is no object to Him. He stands as the resurrection
and the life. Back in verse 22, Martha said,
Lord, if Thou hast been here, my brother had not died. But
I know that even now, whatsoever thou shalt will to ask of God,
God will give it to thee. And in verse 23, Jesus saith
unto her, thy brother shall rise again. Not he might, not I've got good
hope that he's gonna rise. He said, he shall rise again. And in verse 24, Martha said
unto him, now I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection
at the last day. I know that. But in verse 45,
Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection and the life. I'm the resurrection and the
life. And he that believeth in me, though he were dead, Yet
shall he live. And whosoever believeth and believeth
in me shall never die. And then he asks the question
that I'm asking you. Believest thou this? Do you believe
that? Do we really believe that? The
Lord Jesus Christ is the resurrection and the life. Now the ten words
of our text No doubt record one of the most shocking and glorious
moments in all the Scripture. A man four days dead hears the
voice of Christ and comes back to life. Well, no, that's not
right. That's not a true statement.
A man four days dead is given life and then he hears the voice
of the Lord. Let's don't get the cart before
the horse, as they say. That doesn't roll very well,
does it? A dead man can't hear and cannot come to Christ. And
this is no metaphor, this is no myth. It's actually a preview
of what Christ does, both physically and spiritually, to and for all
His chosen and called people. He raises them from death unto
life. Believe us all this? So let's make some glorious observations
here. It's called good news. Let's
rejoice in some good news. I've had enough bad news this
week. Can't turn on the daggone television without seeing some
bad news or whatever, but that's another story another time. First
thing I want you to observe, as a glorious observation, is
that this is a command of Christ. Our Lord, He doesn't speak with
a whisper, He speaks with a loud voice. This is a voice of authority. The same voice that in the beginning
said, Let there be light, and there was light, now says, Lazarus,
come forth. Same voice, same command, same
God making it. He's not pleading with death.
He's commanding death. This command is, secondly, it's
specific and it's personal. The Lord calls for Lazarus. He
doesn't call out all for all. the dead, he calls one man by
name here, Lazarus. Now, if he hadn't, every single
corpse in that graveyard would have come forth. His word, his voice, his command
is always effective, effectual. If He hadn't specified who was
to come forth, they all would have come forth, that whole graveyard. So shall my word be that goeth
forth out of my mouth. It shall not return unto me void,
but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall
prosper in the thing whereunto I sent it. That's what He said. That's what God the Son said.
Isaiah 55, 11. Now God's Word may convict, it
may comfort, it may judge, it may call, it may say, but it
never fails. Ever. Perish the thought. So whether it's the Word preached,
or whether it's the Word read, or whether it's the Word spoken
in the heart by the Spirit, God's Word never falls short of its
intended purpose. Never. Now Christ's command,
His Word, has power over death. We see that right here. This
is not magic. This is not an illusion. This
is not some miraculous ritual. This is the divine power of the
Word of God. He speaks and the dead obey. Death, which holds every man
and woman in chains, must release its grip when the Lord Jesus
commands. Now the spiritual application
is this. Just as Lazarus heard Christ's
voice and lived, so too must every called and chosen sinner
hear the gospel and be made alive. We're dead in trespasses and
sin. We are no less dead spiritually
than Lazarus was dead physically. And I might add spiritually too. Ephesians 2.1 says plainly that
we're dead in trespasses and sin. None of us can deny that. And yet, just a few verses later,
God says He's made us alive together with Christ. Dead, made alive. Dead in trespasses and sin, made
alive in perfect righteousness by His blood. That's the gospel. That's substitution. Who made
us alive? God did. How were we made alive? With Christ. Secondly, we see the miracle
of God's word. What was this miracle? Life.
Life. That's a miracle to one that's
dead. To bring one back from the dead, that is a miracle.
And this is life that would, again, would never cease. He who was dead came forth. Now is the perfect time to ask
this question and the perfect time to put works-based religion
to the test. There's no more opportune time
to reveal the bankruptcy of religion based on works and the lie of
man's personal righteousness. Lazarus was dead and he was given
life And then He came forth. You and I were dead, given life
by God, and then we believed. A dead man or woman can't do
anything, especially believe. So we didn't first believe, and
then we were given life because we, as dead men and women, couldn't
believe. Right? That's so simple. Three or four year old could
tell you that. That's what the Lord Jesus said. He said, without me, you can
do nothing. Nothing means nothing. There
was once popular song, nothing from nothing leaves nothing.
Those of you my age probably remember that song. Something
from someone who is nothing and has nothing and can do nothing
is still nothing. We just quoted it. No man can
come to me except the Father which sent me draw him. Without
Christ we can do nothing. And we see the condition here
of the one that was called. Lazarus wasn't sick. He had been
sick. And Lazarus wasn't unconscious. They said he's asleep. They said
Lazarus is dead, and the Lord said he's sleeping. And they
said, well, if he sleeps, he's doing well. But then the Lord
clarified, Lazarus is dead. You can call it soul sleep, whatever
you want to. It's dead. Lazarus wasn't weak. He was dead. You and I are not only sick,
we're dead. And we need God's Word, the Gospel. And it's the same words that
the Gospel declares today that the Lord used. You know what
they are? Come forth. Come forth. And they who are dead, come forth. Can't be resisted. It's God who
calls. Come forth is the command, and
the command is still effectual. If God Almighty, sovereign and
all-powerful calls, we who were dead will come forth. God gave us the life and the
ability to come. Lazarus didn't help himself.
This was not a call to his deaf hearing. This was a call to his
eternal soul. This miracle of life by the Lord
was not just an act of compassion to a friend. Lazarus loved, the
Lord Jesus loved Lazarus and his sisters. Scripture's very
clear about that. But this wasn't just an act of
compassion and love to a friend. It was a sign that Christ was
the resurrection and the life. It's also a preview of what's
to come for the believer. One day all who are in the grave
will hear His voice, but only those who belong to Him will
rise to eternal life. The Lord Jesus said in John chapter
5 verse 25, the hour is coming and now is when the dead shall
hear the voice of the Son of God and they that hear shall
live. Who's gonna hear? Those who have
God-given hearing. Time and time again, the Lord
said, if any man have ears to hear, let him hear. Who has ears
to hear? Those who God gives hearing ears. Hearing ears are much more than
just these appendages here on the side of our head. They're
instruments of the heart. tuned by God's Spirit to discern
His voice, given by God and opened by grace, that we might receive
His truth and obey His voice. One thing about one who's dead,
their deadness is the only hindrance to hearing. They're not distracted by the
things of the world and again revealing that God has to first
give life and then he gives the believers ears to hear. A dead
man's not distracted about what's going on around him, right? The raising of Lazarus was not
for his sake only. It glorified Christ, according
to verse 15. It strengthened the faith of
the apostles, verse 15. It testified to those that were
there, to the crowd, verse 45. Paul said, we are raised to walk
in newness of life. What does that mean? Newness
of life? Certainly isn't about self-help.
It's not about turning over a new leaf. You ever heard that? I'm
gonna turn over a new leaf. Well, if I believed in luck,
I'd say good luck with that. It's holy spirit-powered Christ. It's a Christ-centered transformation. You're made a new creation, a
new creature, where? In Christ. And old things are
passed away, and behold, all things have come new. And it's
a present-tense walk. It's daily. It's step-by-step.
It's not walking under the dominion of sin any longer. It's walking
under the reign of grace. I'm walking under the reign of
grace. If you belong to Christ, you're walking under the reign
of grace, not under the dominion of sin. We're dead to sin, we're
alive unto God, transformed and conformed to Christ's image. Herein is our love made perfect,
that we may have boldness in the day of judgment, because
as He is, so are we in this world. As He is, we are right now in
this world. This is how our love is made
perfect. This is how we have boldness
in the day of judgment. As he is, present tense, we are
right now. Not as he was, referring to his
earthly life, but as he is right now. How is He right now? He's glorified and seated at
the right hand of God the Father. He's victorious. He's righteous. He's beloved. He's accepted. So are we. So are we. As He is, so are we. It's by His finished Word. It's by His finished work. We
are accepted in Him. God's beloved. It's about our
union with Jesus Christ. This speaks of our identity,
our confidence, our love found only in Christ that is now made
perfect right now as we live in this fallen world. We've got
boldness in judgment because of our oneness with Christ. We
don't face God's judgment with fear. Listen, I know all of us still
have enough of that old man and sin in us that we fear death.
We ought not to. Because we're not going to face
God's judgment with uncertainty. We're going to stand boldly before
the throne of grace because we're covered with His blood and His
perfect righteousness. And we'll see no judgment. To omit the remainder of verse
44 here in our text would be a failure on my part to faithfully
preach the whole counsel of the gospel to you. So I'm gonna take
the rest of my time, I'm not gonna take long to do that. John 11, 44, look at the whole
verse this time. And he that was dead came forth,
bound hand and foot with grave clothes. and his face was bound
with a napkin. And Jesus saith unto them, loose
him and let him go. Now verse 44 shows us first that
the power of Christ to call the dead is life. The gospel's not
making bad people better. It's about making particular
dead people live. Not making me better, it's making
me new. Preaching Christ without preaching
His power to raise the dead is to strip
the gospel of its essence and power. Verse 44 shows us, secondly,
that salvation is entirely the work of Christ. Lazarus didn't
contribute anything to His resurrection. Did the Lord say, Lazarus, now
if you will, if you'll walk up here to the front of this tomb
and give me your heart and you let go and you let me save you,
you will be saved. That's not what he said. He said,
Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead came forth. No sinner can believe before
being made alive. God effectually calls, and the
dead soul comes. It's effectual. It's an effectual
calling. The gospel is not an invitation.
I'm sorry, my Baptist friends. It's not an invitation for the
sick to get well. Now, won't you just let Jesus
have your heart? And He'll make you well if you
give Him your heart. Well, then I'll never be well,
because I'll never give you my heart, not willingly. The gospel
is a command for the dead to rise. Christ's word accomplishes what
it commands. Why? Because it's effectual.
Verse 44 also shows us that when God gives us life, we still must
be made free. Lazarus came forth, he was alive,
but as we see here, he was still bound. The Lord Jesus said, loose
him and let him go. He was alive, but he was still
bound. You see, the gospel doesn't just
raise us, it frees us. It frees us from what bound us
in death. That being sin. In verse 44,
grave clothes here symbolize death and decay. Grave clothes
were the wrappings of a dead and decaying body. It's the same
way that you and I were daily decaying under sin and corruption. Like Lazarus physically stank
after four days, our souls reek from the from sins wrought within
us. We have no life, no righteousness,
we have no hope, only the stench of separation from God. Oh, by
now we stink it. That's right, we stink. We stink
in the nostrils of God. In verse 44, grave clothes represent
and symbolize bondage. Grave clothes bind the hands
and feet, picturing spiritual bondage. We're unable to walk
with God. When Lazarus came out of that
grave, wrapped in those grave clothes, you know, he just could
shuffle his feet because he's bound like a mummy. You know,
he's just shuffling his feet. He's bound. He's under bondage.
So are we. We're unable to walk with God.
We're unable to work righteousness with our hands. They're bound
together. We're unable to free ourselves.
Before Christ called us out, we were all wrapped up. Wrapped up in our sin. Wrapped
up in ourselves. Bound by sins of affliction,
shame, and guilt. Bound and wrapped in self-righteousness. We were in total rebellion. We
had no freedom, we had no movement, we had no spiritual life. Whosoever committeth sin is the
servant of sin, John 8, 34. The law is spiritual, but we
are carnal. sold under sin. The wicked are
holding with the cords of sin, Proverbs 5, 22. But in verse
44, we see the identity of the old man, the person that we once
were. Christ raises us to new life. That identity is, that old identity
is no longer, the old man, that's no longer my identity. to wear
grave clothes after resurrection would be like trying to live
while we were still dead. Impossible. It'd be as though
Christ never had raised us. We don't just pass from death
to life. We don't just hear a call. We
walk in total and complete freedom. Are you following me? This is
so important. Our effectual call strips every
remnant of death from us. The results of gospel preaching
and full salvation is that you no longer live in the wrappings
of who you once were. When God calls and raises us
from spiritual death, He makes the one He calls and raised free. The Lord Himself said that in
John 8, 36. If the Son therefore shall make you free, what? You
shall be free indeed. It's the preaching of the Gospel,
the knowing of the truth. Christ is the truth. And the
truth will make you what? Free! In verse 44, we see the
need of discipleship. The Lord didn't remove the great
clothes Himself, did He? He told others to do it. This
is the church's role in helping new believers to walk in freedom. I'm so thankful. I tell you,
I am so thankful. And even then, not as I ought
to be, but I'm so thankful for the men who went before me and
preached the Gospel to me. Aren't you? They'll always hold a special
place in my heart and mind. Brother Montgomery, Brother Mahan,
Fortner, Shanks, Richardson, Reibenbach, Tommy Robbins, the
Groovers, Cody and Walter both, Joe Terrell. A brother by the name of John
Mitchell, who was the pastor for many years out where Moose
is now. And then there are those that
are still with us. Dear friends of mine. And yours. Still preaching the unsearchable
riches of Christ. And what do we say? How beautiful
are the feet of them that preach the gospel of our peace. Brother
Gene. I pray that I get to hear him
preach again. They preach the gospel of peace
and bring glad tidings of good things. And we see here in verse
44, we're reminded of the stark contrast between our grave clothes
and the ones of Christ our Lord. So, in closing, turn with me
to John 20. I'll finish up. I'm out of time
anyway. But look at verse 6. John 20,
verse 6. I want to show you the contrast
between our great clothes and the Lord's. This is when the Lord, after
the Lord resurrected, verse 6 says, Then cometh Simon Peter following
Him, and went into the sepulcher, that being the tomb of the Lord
Jesus, and seeth the linen clothes lie. and the napkin that was about
his head, not lined with the linen clothes, but wrapped together
in a place by itself. Now, our Lord's gray clothes
are neatly folded, showing His victory over death. Unlike Lazarus,
the Lord Jesus did not need any help being unbound. The Lord Jesus said, unbind Lazarus,
but the Lord didn't need any help being unbound by his great
clothes. He conquered death by himself. We no longer wear what belongs
to the dead. We meet together, friends, to
worship the One who effectually called us by His grace. We also
meet together and preach this glorious gospel to help others
walk in freedom by pointing them to the One and only Savior who
can call them out of darkness into His marvelous light. Our
Lord defeated death fully and finally by Himself. His grave clothes lying empty,
preaching a silent sermon. His tomb was not abandoned in
fear. He didn't need any help getting
his grave clothes off. He left the tomb in victory. Our grave clothes were left Our Lord's great clothes were
left behind, but not His body. His body was gone. His body was
raised and glorified. He left behind what He no longer
needed. And remember the Jewish leaders
believed that our Lord's resurrection was fake or that somebody had
stolen His body. But every effectually called
believer knows that it was an act of divine triumph. and death,
and by God's grace, we're enabled to believe based upon the testimony
that God provided. I love that phrase there that
says, Peter saw the linen clothes lie. They weren't torn or tossed. They didn't look like what it
often looks like at the side of my bed when I get ready for
bed. Just thrown on the floor and
disarrayed? No, they were neatly folded. They lay undisturbed. They were gently laid there.
They pointed to a calm and deliberate resurrection. Our Lord didn't
escape death in a frenzy. Our Lord calmly conquered death. in confidence. And the folded
napkin, as we read, was separate and folded. A clear act of determined
intention. It's believed by some, though
there's no proven documentation, that Jewish tradition teaches
that a master folded his napkin, his dining cloth, to show that
he was coming back. Well, I don't need Jewish tradition
in order to know that my Lord will return. Do you? He said
so himself. He said, in my Father's house
are many mansions. If it were not so, I would not
have told you. I go to prepare a place for you,
and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and
receive you unto myself. And where I am, there you may
be also. Dear believer, one day, very
soon, we're going to put off this corruption and be clothed
with immortality And as our Lord Jesus left the tomb behind, so
shall all who are in Him. The empty linens declare the
work's finished. The empty linens declare death
and the grave are defeated. The empty linens declare the
Savior's risen. And they declared the promise
of resurrection is sure. Just as sure as the Lord rose
from the grave, you and I who believe will one day rise from
the grave. And in closing, let me read Romans
8, 29 through 31. If you want to turn there, you
can. For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be
conformed to the image of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, that
He might be the firstborn among many brethren. That simply means
if God raised Him from the dead, He's going to raise me from the
dead. He's going to raise all that
trust in Him from the dead. Moreover, whom He did predestinate,
them He also called. Effectually so, I might add,
And whom He called, them He also justified. And whom He justified,
them He also glorified. Hey listen, one day this corrupt
body is going to put on incorruption and I'm going to be glorified.
I'm going to be in the image of Christ. No more sin. No more
iniquity. Perfect. Just like Christ my
Lord. What shall we say then to these
things? What are we going to say? If God be for us, we can
be against it. Our God is effective. Everything
He does, He does effectively.