1 00:00:01,760 --> 00:00:04,440 So my name is Justin Emanuel and I serve as the production 2 00:00:04,440 --> 00:00:07,680 director here. Thank you. 3 00:00:08,880 --> 00:00:12,200 I need my movie buffs. Raise your hand if you know The 4 00:00:12,200 --> 00:00:16,200 Karate Kid 1984, the original Ralph Macchio. 5 00:00:17,080 --> 00:00:21,680 Keep your hand raised if you think Daniel Larusso is the main 6 00:00:21,720 --> 00:00:28,200 hero. What if Daniel Larusso isn't the 7 00:00:28,200 --> 00:00:30,600 hero? He's the problem. 8 00:00:31,800 --> 00:00:35,920 What if everything you thought about The Karate Kid was 9 00:00:35,920 --> 00:00:40,680 backwards? Raise your hand if you've seen 10 00:00:40,680 --> 00:00:44,640 How I Met Your Mother and you know Neil Patrick Harris's 11 00:00:44,640 --> 00:00:49,160 character, Barney Stinson. Barney had a theory. 12 00:00:50,440 --> 00:00:54,720 He argues Johnny Lawrence, the blonde kid from Cobra Kai you 13 00:00:54,720 --> 00:00:57,720 thought was the villain, is the hero. 14 00:00:58,320 --> 00:01:01,720 Think from Barney's perspective, Daniel went after Johnny's 15 00:01:01,720 --> 00:01:05,560 ex-girlfriend. Daniel went after Johnny's face 16 00:01:05,560 --> 00:01:07,080 and he got in his face at the beach. 17 00:01:08,920 --> 00:01:11,920 Daniel beat Johnny in the tournament with an illegal crane 18 00:01:11,920 --> 00:01:17,320 kick to the face. And Johnny, he's a high school 19 00:01:17,320 --> 00:01:20,120 kid trying to win back his girlfriend and defend his 20 00:01:20,120 --> 00:01:22,320 championship while dealing with the toxic coach. 21 00:01:24,800 --> 00:01:28,640 On the surface, Daniel's the hero, but from Barney's 22 00:01:28,640 --> 00:01:34,000 perspective, Daniel's the bully, and Johnny's the real Karate 23 00:01:34,000 --> 00:01:37,760 Kid. Same story, different 24 00:01:37,760 --> 00:01:43,200 perspective on the hero. And perspective changes 25 00:01:43,600 --> 00:01:47,560 everything. Right now, we're watching our 26 00:01:47,560 --> 00:01:52,360 lives from our perspective and from where we're sitting. 27 00:01:53,360 --> 00:02:00,240 When pain and suffering come, when we're in crisis, when life 28 00:02:00,280 --> 00:02:04,520 falls apart, the pain can seem pointless. 29 00:02:05,360 --> 00:02:09,800 I know, because in my suffering I thought it was meaningless, 30 00:02:10,960 --> 00:02:14,920 that I had to be the hero of my life and dig myself out of my 31 00:02:14,920 --> 00:02:19,080 pain. But what if God is watching the 32 00:02:19,080 --> 00:02:24,000 exact same situation and seeing something completely different? 33 00:02:25,160 --> 00:02:31,320 Same story, different hero. People talk now about main 34 00:02:31,320 --> 00:02:35,320 character energy, right? That we're supposed to be the 35 00:02:35,320 --> 00:02:39,120 star of our own movie. There's a problem when we're the 36 00:02:39,120 --> 00:02:41,560 star. We have to fix everything. 37 00:02:42,760 --> 00:02:44,880 We have to bear the weight of everything. 38 00:02:45,480 --> 00:02:48,400 We have to make sense of everything. 39 00:02:49,880 --> 00:02:52,520 And the problem is that we can't. 40 00:02:54,880 --> 00:02:56,840 We're not the heroes of our story. 41 00:02:57,600 --> 00:03:04,400 We're the supporting character. And our pain, God uses it to 42 00:03:04,400 --> 00:03:10,080 write his story about our true main character, Jesus Christ. 43 00:03:10,080 --> 00:03:16,160 And that's our big idea. Your pain is God's pen. 44 00:03:17,480 --> 00:03:22,640 Write that down. Your pain is the pen in God's 45 00:03:22,640 --> 00:03:27,720 hands and he is a writing the story about his Son Jesus that 46 00:03:27,720 --> 00:03:33,480 you don't see yet. The pen doesn't control the 47 00:03:33,480 --> 00:03:38,880 story, the author does. Let me show you in John Chapter 48 00:03:38,880 --> 00:03:41,480 11. Picture this as we get there. 49 00:03:41,560 --> 00:03:44,560 Jesus is 3 years into his public ministry. 50 00:03:45,320 --> 00:03:49,680 He's got this motley crew of disciples, fishermen, tax 51 00:03:49,680 --> 00:03:53,320 collectors, nobodies. Think Master Splinter and the 52 00:03:53,320 --> 00:03:58,280 Teenage Mutant Ninja disciples. It's just and Jesus is 53 00:03:58,280 --> 00:04:00,520 performing miracle after miracle. 54 00:04:01,040 --> 00:04:03,760 That kind of power attracts opposition. 55 00:04:04,120 --> 00:04:06,960 In John 10, the religious leaders just tried to stone 56 00:04:07,080 --> 00:04:10,280 Jesus for trying to prove that he was God. 57 00:04:11,680 --> 00:04:14,200 So Jesus and the disciples went away to lay low. 58 00:04:15,040 --> 00:04:18,880 Now word reaches Jesus that Lazarus is sick. 59 00:04:19,959 --> 00:04:22,880 He's sick. And Bethany, the same place, 60 00:04:22,880 --> 00:04:27,480 they just tried to stone him. John Chapter 11, starting in 61 00:04:27,480 --> 00:04:31,120 verse one, continues the story. Now a certain man was ill, 62 00:04:31,320 --> 00:04:35,200 Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. 63 00:04:35,880 --> 00:04:39,320 It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his 64 00:04:39,320 --> 00:04:42,920 feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill. 65 00:04:43,520 --> 00:04:46,280 So we have Lazarus, Mary and Martha. 66 00:04:46,680 --> 00:04:49,800 These are three siblings and they're friends of Jesus. 67 00:04:50,080 --> 00:04:52,960 Their house became a regular stopping point between Jerusalem 68 00:04:52,960 --> 00:04:56,280 and Jericho for Jesus and Lazarus. 69 00:04:56,280 --> 00:05:01,640 Is ill really ill? Growing up, did you have someone 70 00:05:01,640 --> 00:05:03,640 in your house that always had a cure all? 71 00:05:04,080 --> 00:05:06,880 Mom, grandma, what was it for you? 72 00:05:06,880 --> 00:05:11,160 Was it ginger ale? Was it rub some dirt on it, walk 73 00:05:11,160 --> 00:05:14,160 it off? Was it Big Fat Greek Wedding and 74 00:05:14,160 --> 00:05:16,480 spray some Windex on it? Put some Windex on it. 75 00:05:17,280 --> 00:05:19,880 Was it Vicks? That magical blue tub that 76 00:05:19,880 --> 00:05:22,240 somehow cured everything from the common cold to a broken 77 00:05:22,240 --> 00:05:24,440 heart? What was it? 78 00:05:26,040 --> 00:05:29,240 I'm sorry, grandma. There's no amount of Vicks 79 00:05:29,800 --> 00:05:31,200 that's going to make Lazarus better. 80 00:05:32,480 --> 00:05:36,360 He's on the edge of death, powerless, No strength left. 81 00:05:37,240 --> 00:05:41,400 Every family remedy has failed and the physicians treatments 82 00:05:41,400 --> 00:05:46,560 have run their course. This is a crisis and in their 83 00:05:46,560 --> 00:05:50,680 crisis verse 3 tells us so. The sisters sent to him saying, 84 00:05:50,680 --> 00:05:56,200 Lord, he whom you love is ill. They knew they couldn't do 85 00:05:56,200 --> 00:05:59,160 anything about it, but they knew Jesus could. 86 00:06:00,400 --> 00:06:05,160 Jesus responds in verse 4. This illness does not lead to 87 00:06:05,160 --> 00:06:08,800 death. It is for the glory of God so 88 00:06:08,800 --> 00:06:12,440 that the Son of God may be glorified through it. 89 00:06:14,000 --> 00:06:17,880 Jesus sees the same situation differently. 90 00:06:18,560 --> 00:06:23,840 Mary and Martha saw crisis. Jesus saw an opportunity to 91 00:06:23,840 --> 00:06:26,600 bring glory. This brings us to our first 92 00:06:26,600 --> 00:06:28,240 shift. Write this down. 93 00:06:28,520 --> 00:06:35,640 Your crisis is God's platform. What we see is crisis. 94 00:06:35,880 --> 00:06:39,600 God sees as a platform for His power and His glory. 95 00:06:41,120 --> 00:06:43,440 So your crisis isn't meant to destroy you. 96 00:06:43,920 --> 00:06:48,240 It's meant to set the stage for God's power to be shown, but 97 00:06:48,240 --> 00:06:49,960 it's only how you respond to your pain. 98 00:06:51,520 --> 00:06:54,840 So I've been watching this show about vampires called What We Do 99 00:06:54,840 --> 00:06:56,480 in the Shadows. And in there there's this 100 00:06:56,480 --> 00:07:01,840 character, Evie Russell. She's an emotional vampire. 101 00:07:03,280 --> 00:07:06,120 She feeds off of pity and sympathy. 102 00:07:07,240 --> 00:07:10,520 She generates conversations that talk about nothing but her pain, 103 00:07:11,280 --> 00:07:14,800 and her goal is to keep the sympathy going so she can gorge 104 00:07:14,800 --> 00:07:18,280 herself. And as I'm watching this show 105 00:07:18,280 --> 00:07:23,160 and thinking about things, I realized something that was me 106 00:07:23,160 --> 00:07:28,440 and my pain. That I am a recovering emotional 107 00:07:28,600 --> 00:07:33,920 vampire. As an emotional vampire, 108 00:07:34,840 --> 00:07:39,880 everything became about my pain. Many of you experienced this 109 00:07:39,880 --> 00:07:42,480 with me in the breezeway. You'd come up happy to talk, and 110 00:07:42,480 --> 00:07:45,120 then within 60 seconds I made it about me. 111 00:07:45,280 --> 00:07:49,120 I made it about how my ADHD messed my week up, how I failed 112 00:07:49,120 --> 00:07:55,680 because of my OCD. I see your faces and they drain 113 00:07:56,520 --> 00:08:00,200 and you would be exhausted because I would take every 114 00:08:00,200 --> 00:08:05,120 conversation and make it about me and my pain and my problems. 115 00:08:06,440 --> 00:08:12,040 As an emotional vampire, I fed on sympathy, not solutions, Man, 116 00:08:12,040 --> 00:08:15,680 when someone said I'm so sorry, I don't know how you're going 117 00:08:15,680 --> 00:08:20,160 through with going through it, man, it was this rush. 118 00:08:20,840 --> 00:08:23,760 It's like finally someone understands me. 119 00:08:23,760 --> 00:08:27,320 I became addicted to the validation. 120 00:08:28,480 --> 00:08:31,320 And when sympathy dried up, I'd find a new crisis to keep the 121 00:08:31,320 --> 00:08:36,120 pity supply flowing because if I got better, I'd be normal 122 00:08:36,120 --> 00:08:39,760 Justin. And normal Justin didn't get 123 00:08:39,760 --> 00:08:45,000 that kind of attention. As an emotional vampire, my pain 124 00:08:45,000 --> 00:08:48,720 became my identity. I used my disorders as a get out 125 00:08:48,720 --> 00:08:51,800 of jail free card. Oh, I can't do this because of 126 00:08:51,800 --> 00:08:53,640 my ADHD. I'm going to fail. 127 00:08:53,640 --> 00:08:57,480 Because my OCDI wasn't managing my conditions. 128 00:08:57,520 --> 00:09:00,680 I was hiding behind them. I was using them as a shield 129 00:09:00,680 --> 00:09:05,040 against responsibility. I wore my pain like a badge. 130 00:09:05,240 --> 00:09:08,040 Many of you I introduced myself as hi, I'm Justin. 131 00:09:08,280 --> 00:09:11,320 I have ADHD and OCD. So if I mess up that's OK, 132 00:09:11,320 --> 00:09:16,960 right? I wasn't Justin, follower of 133 00:09:16,960 --> 00:09:22,400 Jesus, loved by God. How is Justin the guy with 134 00:09:22,400 --> 00:09:27,520 disorders and problems? And I was comfortable there. 135 00:09:29,040 --> 00:09:32,880 See, if people expected me to struggle, that I wouldn't be 136 00:09:32,880 --> 00:09:38,200 responsible for getting better as an emotional vampire, I 137 00:09:38,200 --> 00:09:43,080 drained everyone around me. Emotional vampires don't just 138 00:09:43,080 --> 00:09:46,200 feed on sympathy, they drain the people they love. 139 00:09:47,080 --> 00:09:49,720 In therapy this year, I had this mental picture of a train 140 00:09:49,720 --> 00:09:53,200 passing by. And in the window window was my 141 00:09:53,200 --> 00:09:58,000 pastors, my friends, the staff here, family back home. 142 00:09:59,280 --> 00:10:03,280 And I realized two things. These are people who loved me 143 00:10:03,280 --> 00:10:10,560 dearly, and I was the jerk who dumped on every single one of 144 00:10:10,560 --> 00:10:15,080 them. People stopped asking how I was 145 00:10:15,080 --> 00:10:19,560 doing, not because they didn't care, but because they'd leave a 146 00:10:19,560 --> 00:10:26,440 conversation with me exhausted. I even drained myself. 147 00:10:27,400 --> 00:10:30,680 I'd hear myself complaining and as I'm saying the words in my 148 00:10:30,680 --> 00:10:32,840 head, I'm going. I don't even want to listen to 149 00:10:32,840 --> 00:10:38,200 me right now. Then my mentorship group sat me 150 00:10:38,200 --> 00:10:41,720 down. I said, Justin, we, we love you. 151 00:10:42,560 --> 00:10:46,720 You become exhausting. Every conversation circles back 152 00:10:46,720 --> 00:10:52,000 to your pain. You're not looking for help, 153 00:10:52,440 --> 00:10:56,560 you're looking for an audience. You're putting on a show and 154 00:10:56,560 --> 00:10:58,520 it's leaving everyone around you drained. 155 00:10:58,520 --> 00:11:04,920 I had a choice. Do I get defensive and walk out 156 00:11:06,160 --> 00:11:11,800 or do I hear the truth? They were right. 157 00:11:13,000 --> 00:11:16,960 I wasn't the victim of my pain. I became an addict of it. 158 00:11:18,440 --> 00:11:22,040 I made it my identity and it was destroying me. 159 00:11:24,280 --> 00:11:25,720 Do you remember what I said in the beginning? 160 00:11:25,720 --> 00:11:29,240 That when we're the main character, we have to fix 161 00:11:29,240 --> 00:11:31,560 everything. We have to make sense of 162 00:11:31,560 --> 00:11:34,200 everything. We have to bear the weight of 163 00:11:34,200 --> 00:11:36,960 everything. That was me. 164 00:11:39,640 --> 00:11:44,800 I was the main character of my own misery, and I couldn't fix 165 00:11:44,800 --> 00:11:49,960 it. I hated what I saw, but instead 166 00:11:49,960 --> 00:11:54,840 of working on it, I escaped. Video games, YouTube, anywhere 167 00:11:54,840 --> 00:12:00,600 that would take me somewhere. But here inside I was screaming. 168 00:12:00,600 --> 00:12:03,440 There was something wrong that I needed to change. 169 00:12:03,800 --> 00:12:07,800 But my pain muffled my screams and I kept on going until my 170 00:12:07,800 --> 00:12:11,080 mentorship group confronted me. And that's when everything 171 00:12:11,080 --> 00:12:14,240 changed. Because everything changes when 172 00:12:14,240 --> 00:12:19,960 I stop being the main character. When I got out of the way and 173 00:12:19,960 --> 00:12:23,240 let Jesus take center stage, I didn't have to worry about 174 00:12:23,240 --> 00:12:26,200 fixing me. I didn't have to bear the weight 175 00:12:26,760 --> 00:12:29,560 of my story. I didn't have to make sense of 176 00:12:29,560 --> 00:12:32,280 my life. Jesus did. 177 00:12:35,160 --> 00:12:38,160 And the people around me, they weren't drained anymore because 178 00:12:38,200 --> 00:12:41,120 I wasn't searching for pity and sympathy. 179 00:12:41,800 --> 00:12:43,960 They didn't see me with my problems anymore. 180 00:12:44,320 --> 00:12:47,920 They saw Jesus working in and through me as he transformed me. 181 00:12:51,120 --> 00:12:57,960 So be honest with yourself. Does any of this sound familiar? 182 00:12:57,960 --> 00:13:01,960 In your life, not someone else's? 183 00:13:02,760 --> 00:13:08,840 Your life? Do your conversations circle 184 00:13:08,840 --> 00:13:15,160 back to your struggles? Are you more comfortable in 185 00:13:15,160 --> 00:13:24,240 crisis than in healing? Do people seem exhausted after 186 00:13:24,240 --> 00:13:30,280 talking with you? Have you made your pain and your 187 00:13:30,280 --> 00:13:33,040 problem as your identity instead of Christ? 188 00:13:37,240 --> 00:13:41,320 If you're thinking that's me, welcome to the club. 189 00:13:43,400 --> 00:13:45,160 You don't have to live that way anymore. 190 00:13:47,280 --> 00:13:51,480 Your pain is real, I am not dismissing that, but how you're 191 00:13:51,480 --> 00:13:54,800 handling it is hurting you and everyone around you. 192 00:13:55,800 --> 00:13:58,760 They say that hurt people hurt people, and right now you have 193 00:13:58,760 --> 00:14:01,880 weaponized your pain instead of bringing it to God. 194 00:14:03,360 --> 00:14:08,200 Scripture says we're supposed to bear one another's burdens, but 195 00:14:08,200 --> 00:14:11,880 you can't just unload your pain on the people around you while 196 00:14:11,880 --> 00:14:14,200 you refuse to bring it to Christ yourself. 197 00:14:16,880 --> 00:14:19,120 That's asking people to carry what you won't. 198 00:14:19,120 --> 00:14:24,360 Surrender to Jesus. Keep going this way and you're 199 00:14:24,360 --> 00:14:26,720 going to push away everyone in your life. 200 00:14:27,560 --> 00:14:30,200 Make the change now before you find yourself alone. 201 00:14:32,920 --> 00:14:39,600 And if you're there alone with your pain, God's still there. 202 00:14:40,560 --> 00:14:46,360 God still loves you. God is waiting for you to bring 203 00:14:46,360 --> 00:14:50,960 it to Him. So you have a choice. 204 00:14:52,320 --> 00:14:55,080 Are you going to use your suffering as a shield, hiding 205 00:14:55,080 --> 00:14:58,800 behind blame and being a victim and watch every one of your 206 00:14:58,800 --> 00:15:05,680 relationships die, or surrender it to Jesus and let the healing 207 00:15:05,680 --> 00:15:11,120 begin? Your pride, your pain, your 208 00:15:11,120 --> 00:15:14,960 fear, your whatever it is, is what is holding you back from 209 00:15:14,960 --> 00:15:18,560 the one and only one who can heal you from what you are 210 00:15:18,560 --> 00:15:24,880 suffering through. Bring your pain to Jesus and 211 00:15:24,880 --> 00:15:28,520 here's what that looks like. If that is you this week, find 212 00:15:28,520 --> 00:15:32,080 someone in your life you trust, a strong believer, a mentor, 213 00:15:32,200 --> 00:15:35,800 someone from your community group and go, I need help. 214 00:15:36,400 --> 00:15:38,760 I've been handling my pain the wrong way. 215 00:15:39,840 --> 00:15:42,880 Can you pray with me? Can you keep me accountable? 216 00:15:43,200 --> 00:15:46,440 And then be receptive to what they have to say in their 217 00:15:46,440 --> 00:15:51,360 counsel to you. Now, if you're thinking that's 218 00:15:51,360 --> 00:15:54,600 someone I love and care about, how can I help them? 219 00:15:55,880 --> 00:15:59,240 Keep pointing them to Jesus? Pray. 220 00:16:01,160 --> 00:16:04,880 Set boundaries where you need to, but remember that you can't 221 00:16:04,880 --> 00:16:11,120 carry what only God can carry. Jesus is the one who can heal an 222 00:16:11,120 --> 00:16:15,560 emotional vampire. Bring them to Jesus, and if they 223 00:16:15,560 --> 00:16:19,280 refuse to let God work, you may have to love them from a 224 00:16:19,280 --> 00:16:22,800 distance. It's not abandonment, it's 225 00:16:22,800 --> 00:16:30,080 wisdom. Pray, point them to Jesus and 226 00:16:30,080 --> 00:16:35,760 trust God to do what we cannot. And if you're thinking I don't 227 00:16:35,760 --> 00:16:38,800 do that or I'm past this, you might be right. 228 00:16:38,800 --> 00:16:41,680 You may be past this and God has brought you through it. 229 00:16:42,040 --> 00:16:46,800 God wants to use your story so that someone younger can see 230 00:16:46,800 --> 00:16:51,440 what he has done in your life. Keep going, but remember that 231 00:16:51,440 --> 00:16:55,240 even the most mature believer stays teachable. 232 00:16:56,120 --> 00:16:59,320 That the moment we stop being teachable and we think we're 233 00:16:59,320 --> 00:17:01,640 past things, that's when we become vulnerable. 234 00:17:02,120 --> 00:17:07,800 That's when our growth stops. Because the reality is when it 235 00:17:07,800 --> 00:17:13,079 happens to you, we are all one crisis away from making 236 00:17:13,079 --> 00:17:17,359 ourselves the main character. So the choice is yours. 237 00:17:18,119 --> 00:17:22,839 Stay focused on your crisis and drain everyone or surrender it 238 00:17:22,839 --> 00:17:27,960 to God and become a platform where God displays His glory. 239 00:17:29,720 --> 00:17:33,600 Let's continue in verse 5. Now Jesus loved Martha and her 240 00:17:33,600 --> 00:17:36,880 sister and Lazarus. So when he heard that Lazarus 241 00:17:36,880 --> 00:17:41,840 was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was 242 00:17:43,160 --> 00:17:50,440 what he'd love them. Does your Bible say what He 243 00:17:50,440 --> 00:17:55,480 stayed two days longer? That doesn't make sense. 244 00:17:57,280 --> 00:17:59,760 For the three siblings, this only deepens their pain. 245 00:18:00,520 --> 00:18:03,280 Lazarus isn't sick anymore, He's dead. 246 00:18:04,560 --> 00:18:07,720 And Mary and Martha go from watching their brother be sick 247 00:18:07,720 --> 00:18:14,200 to now grieving his loss. And they appealed to Jesus to 248 00:18:14,200 --> 00:18:16,840 heal him. And Jesus didn't come. 249 00:18:20,600 --> 00:18:22,720 If Jesus loved him, why didn't he come? 250 00:18:24,640 --> 00:18:27,600 Why wait, knowing Lazarus is already dead and they're in 251 00:18:27,600 --> 00:18:31,760 their grief? Have you been there? 252 00:18:34,080 --> 00:18:38,480 You've given your crisis to Jesus and things didn't get 253 00:18:38,480 --> 00:18:43,280 fixed. You found yourself crying out. 254 00:18:43,280 --> 00:18:47,640 God, if you loved me, why didn't you show up? 255 00:18:52,040 --> 00:18:56,840 The text gives the explanation Jesus delayed because he loved 256 00:18:56,840 --> 00:18:59,240 them. That's our second principle for 257 00:18:59,240 --> 00:19:00,600 today. Write this down. 258 00:19:01,040 --> 00:19:05,600 God's delays reveal God's deeper love. 259 00:19:08,040 --> 00:19:12,080 What we're seeing is delays God is seeing as revealing A deeper 260 00:19:12,080 --> 00:19:16,560 purpose behind our pain. This is how God often writes. 261 00:19:16,920 --> 00:19:20,440 He sometimes used delays on purpose so he can reveal more of 262 00:19:20,560 --> 00:19:25,240 Jesus. By allowing Lazarus to die and 263 00:19:25,240 --> 00:19:31,400 to stay dead, Jesus was setting up a platform so that only God 264 00:19:32,000 --> 00:19:33,440 could be the one who could raise him. 265 00:19:34,440 --> 00:19:37,080 Look back at verse 4. Jesus says this. 266 00:19:37,080 --> 00:19:40,160 This illness is for the glory of God. 267 00:19:41,600 --> 00:19:44,800 Before their message even reached Jesus, Lazarus has 268 00:19:44,800 --> 00:19:48,000 already died. So why did Jesus wait two weeks 269 00:19:48,000 --> 00:19:50,280 more? Two days more? 270 00:19:51,800 --> 00:19:54,680 Well, you'd have to know Jewish burial customs. 271 00:19:56,080 --> 00:19:59,240 See, when a Jewish person died, they would bury them the same 272 00:19:59,240 --> 00:20:01,160 day. And for three days they believed 273 00:20:01,160 --> 00:20:04,280 that there was a spirit that hovered over, looking for a way 274 00:20:04,280 --> 00:20:08,440 to get back in. But on day 4, the body would 275 00:20:08,440 --> 00:20:10,840 start to change, and the spirit would go. 276 00:20:10,840 --> 00:20:13,960 And now death is final. Death is permanent. 277 00:20:15,320 --> 00:20:18,680 Sounds morbid, sounds theological, sounds boring. 278 00:20:19,960 --> 00:20:21,280 Who knows? The Princess Bride. 279 00:20:22,920 --> 00:20:24,520 There we go, breath of fresh air. 280 00:20:25,520 --> 00:20:29,360 This is a case of mostly dead versus all day. 281 00:20:31,560 --> 00:20:34,440 Day one, Day 2, day three, Mary and Martha are going to go He's 282 00:20:34,440 --> 00:20:38,800 dead, he can't talk, and Miracle Max is going to go Nope, he's 283 00:20:38,800 --> 00:20:40,920 mostly dead, which is slightly alive. 284 00:20:42,880 --> 00:20:47,480 Jesus waited for day 4 because on day four, mostly dead becomes 285 00:20:47,520 --> 00:20:50,800 all day. So now as Jesus arrives on day 286 00:20:50,800 --> 00:20:53,880 4, the miracle Max of Bethany can look at Jesus and go, well, 287 00:20:53,880 --> 00:20:56,680 Rabbi, he's all dead. There's only one thing we can 288 00:20:56,680 --> 00:20:58,640 do. Go through his clothes and look 289 00:20:58,640 --> 00:21:06,560 for loose change. Four days in the tomb, no 290 00:21:06,720 --> 00:21:09,880 possibility of revival by human means. 291 00:21:10,560 --> 00:21:14,320 This wasn't cruelty. The delay was strategy. 292 00:21:15,840 --> 00:21:19,200 Jesus wanted to ensure that when he raised Lazarus, it would be 293 00:21:19,200 --> 00:21:22,080 unmistakable that only God could do such a thing. 294 00:21:23,080 --> 00:21:26,240 If Jesus came and he healed Lazarus when he was sick, they 295 00:21:26,240 --> 00:21:30,760 would say he was a good doctor. Jesus brought Lazarus back when 296 00:21:30,760 --> 00:21:33,160 he was mostly dead. Miracle Max would have said he 297 00:21:33,160 --> 00:21:37,120 was a great doctor. But to bring someone back, Four 298 00:21:37,120 --> 00:21:40,200 days in the tomb, body decaying, all dead, no hope. 299 00:21:41,120 --> 00:21:44,320 They could say that only God can do this. 300 00:21:47,600 --> 00:21:51,800 Picture the scene, Mary and Martha, the sealed tomb. 301 00:21:51,800 --> 00:21:56,000 They've been there for four days in their grief, 4 days asking 302 00:21:56,000 --> 00:22:00,000 what if Jesus showed up? Four days and now the body 303 00:22:00,000 --> 00:22:04,840 begins to decay and then Jesus shows up and he says roll away 304 00:22:04,840 --> 00:22:08,400 the stone. They say it's too late, it 305 00:22:08,400 --> 00:22:11,640 stinks in there. Then Jesus said, did I not tell 306 00:22:11,640 --> 00:22:16,640 you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God? 307 00:22:17,480 --> 00:22:21,520 God's delays are not denials, they're setups for greater 308 00:22:21,520 --> 00:22:25,600 glory. When He makes you wait, He's not 309 00:22:25,600 --> 00:22:27,880 ignoring you. He is setting something up in 310 00:22:27,880 --> 00:22:29,880 your life that you can't see yet. 311 00:22:31,080 --> 00:22:35,320 Isaiah 3018 puts it this way. Therefore, the Lord waits to be 312 00:22:35,320 --> 00:22:38,880 gracious to you, and therefore He exalts Himself to show mercy 313 00:22:38,880 --> 00:22:41,240 to you. Did you catch that? 314 00:22:42,000 --> 00:22:48,120 The Lord waits. God sometimes delays on purpose. 315 00:22:49,120 --> 00:22:52,680 He didn't abandon you, He's setting up something greater. 316 00:22:53,600 --> 00:22:57,360 So when God doesn't show up on your timeline, it doesn't mean 317 00:22:57,360 --> 00:23:01,920 He doesn't care. So in your delays, you can 318 00:23:01,920 --> 00:23:05,680 interpret God's love by your circumstances, or you can 319 00:23:05,680 --> 00:23:08,600 interpret your circumstances by God's love. 320 00:23:12,400 --> 00:23:16,040 Now I know some of you are in here and you're thinking Lazarus 321 00:23:16,040 --> 00:23:22,480 came back, but mine didn't. My marriage didn't. 322 00:23:23,480 --> 00:23:27,200 My career didn't. My loved one didn't. 323 00:23:27,240 --> 00:23:32,320 My health didn't. I can't promise that God would 324 00:23:32,320 --> 00:23:37,040 bring back what you've lost. What I do know is that Lazarus 325 00:23:37,040 --> 00:23:42,240 himself died again. Lazarus's resurrection was for 326 00:23:42,240 --> 00:23:46,120 proving that Jesus had power over death. 327 00:23:48,600 --> 00:23:52,440 Even if God doesn't resurrect your marriage, your dream, your 328 00:23:52,440 --> 00:23:57,560 health, Jesus still has the power over death. 329 00:24:00,280 --> 00:24:05,600 If you've lost someone you love, that grief is so raw and just in 330 00:24:05,600 --> 00:24:09,320 your chest. When you breathe, your pain is 331 00:24:09,320 --> 00:24:12,600 seen. God is not distant. 332 00:24:13,600 --> 00:24:18,520 He's not punishing you. When Jesus came to the tomb, he 333 00:24:18,520 --> 00:24:22,160 wept fully knowing that he was about to raise Lazarus. 334 00:24:23,040 --> 00:24:30,080 Jesus grieves with you right now, the resurrection promises, 335 00:24:30,080 --> 00:24:31,880 and that you'll get them back today. 336 00:24:32,240 --> 00:24:35,600 It's that death does not get the final word. 337 00:24:37,760 --> 00:24:42,480 John 1125 Jesus says I am the resurrection and the life. 338 00:24:42,760 --> 00:24:48,520 Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live. 339 00:24:49,400 --> 00:24:53,200 For the believer, physical death is not the end. 340 00:24:54,000 --> 00:24:58,880 A believer's last breath on earth is immediately followed by 341 00:24:58,880 --> 00:25:01,680 their first breath in eternity with Jesus. 342 00:25:04,200 --> 00:25:08,600 God's purpose isn't always to change your circumstances, it's 343 00:25:08,600 --> 00:25:11,200 to reveal who Jesus is through them. 344 00:25:11,760 --> 00:25:14,480 Romans 818 would say. For I consider that the 345 00:25:14,480 --> 00:25:18,000 sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the 346 00:25:18,000 --> 00:25:21,120 glory that is to be revealed to us. 347 00:25:22,360 --> 00:25:27,480 God's greatest work isn't removing pain, it's sustaining 348 00:25:27,480 --> 00:25:32,800 you through it. Now there's one more perspective 349 00:25:32,800 --> 00:25:35,320 shift and it might be the most challenging. 350 00:25:35,840 --> 00:25:38,880 Let's look at verse 11, Jesus talking to his disciples. 351 00:25:38,960 --> 00:25:42,680 After saying these things, he said to them, our friend Lazarus 352 00:25:42,680 --> 00:25:45,960 has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him. 353 00:25:46,520 --> 00:25:49,440 The disciples said to him, Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will 354 00:25:49,440 --> 00:25:52,240 recover. Now Jesus had spoken of his 355 00:25:52,240 --> 00:25:56,120 death, but they thought he meant taking rest in sleep. 356 00:25:56,760 --> 00:26:02,160 Verse 14, Jesus told them plainly, Lazarus has died, and 357 00:26:02,160 --> 00:26:05,560 for your sake I am glad that I was not there. 358 00:26:05,880 --> 00:26:12,600 So that you may believe Jesus is glad he wasn't there, not glad 359 00:26:12,600 --> 00:26:18,680 that Lazarus died, but that by Lazarus's death a greater thing 360 00:26:18,680 --> 00:26:22,520 would be accomplished, that it would give evidence for everyone 361 00:26:22,520 --> 00:26:30,680 to see that Jesus is God. Look again at verse 15 so that 362 00:26:30,720 --> 00:26:39,080 you may believe Lazarus's story isn't about Lazarus, it's about 363 00:26:39,200 --> 00:26:43,400 Jesus. Your story is not about you, 364 00:26:44,040 --> 00:26:47,920 it's about Jesus. And that's our Third Point for 365 00:26:47,920 --> 00:26:49,080 today. Write this down. 366 00:26:49,080 --> 00:26:52,960 Your pain writes Jesus story for others. 367 00:26:55,040 --> 00:26:58,880 God wants to use your suffering, not waste it. 368 00:26:59,200 --> 00:27:05,280 Use it so that others would believe your pain. 369 00:27:05,520 --> 00:27:09,600 Is the pen writing a story about Jesus that others will see? 370 00:27:11,360 --> 00:27:14,280 Right now we have moments like this in our church. 371 00:27:14,720 --> 00:27:18,920 Some of you are sick. Some of you are seeing family 372 00:27:18,920 --> 00:27:22,040 members suffer. Some of you are seeing them die. 373 00:27:24,160 --> 00:27:26,720 You're seeing your careers fail, your marriages fail. 374 00:27:27,640 --> 00:27:29,240 You're seeing all of these things. 375 00:27:30,120 --> 00:27:35,240 Here's what I need you to see. Your pain is not pointless. 376 00:27:36,440 --> 00:27:41,920 God sees it and he wants to use it so that others would believe. 377 00:27:43,520 --> 00:27:46,480 Your Co workers? They see how you handle that 378 00:27:46,480 --> 00:27:50,600 impossible boss. Your neighbors, they notice how 379 00:27:50,600 --> 00:27:52,800 you respond when life falls apart. 380 00:27:53,920 --> 00:27:57,000 Your kids are asking, is your faith real when it costs you 381 00:27:57,000 --> 00:28:01,080 something? Your friends wonder if this 382 00:28:01,080 --> 00:28:03,880 whole Jesus thing still works. When the bottom falls out in 383 00:28:03,880 --> 00:28:08,840 your life, this can be how you respond in your personal crisis. 384 00:28:09,160 --> 00:28:12,800 It can mean how you respond to global and national tragedies. 385 00:28:14,400 --> 00:28:17,840 I was a high school senior in New York City. 386 00:28:18,480 --> 00:28:24,000 On September 11th, 2001. We were in homeroom. 387 00:28:24,640 --> 00:28:27,640 We heard a rumor that a plane had hit the World Trade Center. 388 00:28:29,360 --> 00:28:33,480 Then we watched live on TV as the second plane hit just 10 389 00:28:33,480 --> 00:28:39,760 miles north of us. And then the towers fell and the 390 00:28:39,760 --> 00:28:41,560 announcement came over the speakers. 391 00:28:42,520 --> 00:28:46,240 Anyone who has a family member working in the towers or a first 392 00:28:46,240 --> 00:28:49,640 responder on duty, please come to the library. 393 00:28:51,360 --> 00:28:55,680 I watched half my class stand up and walk out not knowing if 394 00:28:55,680 --> 00:29:00,480 their family members were alive. In the days that followed, the 395 00:29:00,480 --> 00:29:04,240 ashes from the rubble reigned over Staten Island for days. 396 00:29:06,400 --> 00:29:13,080 Unspeakable tragedy. Yet from those ashes, God was 397 00:29:13,080 --> 00:29:16,120 moving. In the days that followed, my 398 00:29:16,120 --> 00:29:19,960 future pastor LED teams that provided care for the 399 00:29:19,960 --> 00:29:24,600 firefighters responding, they provided food, care, comfort, 400 00:29:24,600 --> 00:29:28,320 just a hug. And that movement became the 401 00:29:28,320 --> 00:29:32,000 catalyst that would later birth Crossroads Church in Staten 402 00:29:32,000 --> 00:29:35,600 Island, the church that eleven years later would become my 403 00:29:35,600 --> 00:29:40,040 home. Crossroads is where I was. 404 00:29:40,040 --> 00:29:44,200 Disciples, Crossroads is where I got my calling for ministry. 405 00:29:45,080 --> 00:29:47,720 Crossroads is where I served for 10 years. 406 00:29:49,520 --> 00:29:53,680 Hundreds have come to faith and still come to faith in Christ 407 00:29:53,880 --> 00:29:59,560 because of Crossroads Church. It's the same church that was 408 00:29:59,560 --> 00:30:08,240 born from the literal ashes of America's worst tragedy. 24 409 00:30:08,240 --> 00:30:12,280 years later, God is still riding with those ashes because 410 00:30:12,280 --> 00:30:14,440 crossroads exists. I'm here. 411 00:30:14,960 --> 00:30:18,600 And because I am here, you are hearing this message. 412 00:30:21,360 --> 00:30:24,400 When you stop asking why is this happening to me? 413 00:30:25,160 --> 00:30:29,360 And you start asking who might believe because of how I respond 414 00:30:29,360 --> 00:30:32,440 to this. That is how you take your 415 00:30:32,440 --> 00:30:36,280 suffering and let it be a stage for God's glory. 416 00:30:37,520 --> 00:30:41,880 Because here's the story God is writing with the pen of your 417 00:30:41,880 --> 00:30:44,720 pain. He's writing that Jesus is 418 00:30:44,720 --> 00:30:47,400 powerful enough to handle what you can't. 419 00:30:49,080 --> 00:30:52,640 Jesus is loving enough to be trusted in the delay. 420 00:30:54,040 --> 00:30:58,000 That Jesus is supreme over death itself. 421 00:31:00,080 --> 00:31:04,600 And that story written through your suffering is what brings 422 00:31:04,600 --> 00:31:08,320 people to faith, not your strength. 423 00:31:08,920 --> 00:31:15,520 His in my life today. It's not pain free, but in the 424 00:31:15,520 --> 00:31:20,440 pain God is still writing. I wake up in the mornings and 425 00:31:20,440 --> 00:31:22,560 that emotional vampire wants to come back. 426 00:31:23,320 --> 00:31:26,840 I want to be the main character again, but God reminds me. 427 00:31:26,840 --> 00:31:34,240 My place in my story is as the supporting character and my 428 00:31:34,240 --> 00:31:41,880 story is to be a life used by God so that others would believe 429 00:31:43,480 --> 00:31:47,480 your crisis. Right now someone is watching 430 00:31:47,480 --> 00:31:56,240 how you respond, and one day you will stand before Jesus and He 431 00:31:56,480 --> 00:32:00,800 will show you everyone who has come to faith because you 432 00:32:01,040 --> 00:32:07,760 allowed God to use your crisis so that they would believe that 433 00:32:07,760 --> 00:32:12,280 you would see the glory fully revealed, that you would see the 434 00:32:12,280 --> 00:32:19,280 full story. So until then, surrender your 435 00:32:19,280 --> 00:32:27,640 pain, trust God's timing, and be the platform where Jesus 436 00:32:27,640 --> 00:32:35,720 displays His glory. There's one more way God rides 437 00:32:35,720 --> 00:32:42,640 with pain, the ultimate one. At the cross, everyone saw a 438 00:32:42,640 --> 00:32:46,600 tragedy. The disciples saw their dream 439 00:32:46,600 --> 00:32:50,480 destroyed. But God was revealing something 440 00:32:50,480 --> 00:32:53,920 different. At the cross, God was writing 441 00:32:53,920 --> 00:32:57,800 the ultimate story, your salvation. 442 00:32:59,400 --> 00:33:04,200 See, Jesus died on the cross not because he deserved it, because 443 00:33:04,200 --> 00:33:08,280 you do. On the cross, Jesus took the 444 00:33:08,280 --> 00:33:13,000 punishment for your sin, for your rebellion against God. 445 00:33:13,840 --> 00:33:17,440 He died, and on the third day he rose again, defeating death 446 00:33:17,640 --> 00:33:22,400 itself. And maybe you're realizing right 447 00:33:22,400 --> 00:33:26,000 now there is more to life than my pain. 448 00:33:27,400 --> 00:33:32,640 Romans 10/9 says if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is 449 00:33:32,640 --> 00:33:36,840 Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the 450 00:33:36,840 --> 00:33:43,440 dead, you will be saved. If you'd like to surrender to 451 00:33:43,440 --> 00:33:48,320 God today with every eye closed and with every head bowed, 452 00:33:49,440 --> 00:33:55,720 repeat this prayer after me. Jesus, I know I am a Sinner. 453 00:33:56,880 --> 00:34:02,960 I cannot save myself. I want you to save me and adopt 454 00:34:02,960 --> 00:34:08,320 me into your family. I surrender everything to you, 455 00:34:09,480 --> 00:34:14,120 my pain, my suffering, my circumstances. 456 00:34:15,120 --> 00:34:19,880 I receive your promise of forgiveness and eternal life. 457 00:34:20,760 --> 00:34:26,639 Be my Lord, please Jesus, if you just prayed that prayer for the 458 00:34:26,639 --> 00:34:29,800 first time, would you be brave enough to raise your hand so I 459 00:34:29,800 --> 00:34:37,360 can see? Thank you, thank you, thank you. 460 00:34:37,360 --> 00:34:41,239 You can put your hands down and Amen everyone. 461 00:34:41,239 --> 00:34:45,000 Let's look up here if you have put your faith in Christ. 462 00:34:45,560 --> 00:34:53,040 Welcome to the family. In a moment, there's 2 tables in 463 00:34:53,040 --> 00:34:54,960 the back that say I raised my hand. 464 00:34:54,960 --> 00:34:57,760 We want to celebrate with you. We have a gift for you. 465 00:34:58,680 --> 00:35:02,520 But for all of us, here's what you can do starting today. 466 00:35:03,280 --> 00:35:07,400 First, respond differently. When you find yourself turning a 467 00:35:07,400 --> 00:35:10,160 conversation back to your pain, stop. 468 00:35:11,200 --> 00:35:14,400 Take a breath. Thank God for one thing in your 469 00:35:14,400 --> 00:35:18,320 life, and let the conversation be about what the other person 470 00:35:18,320 --> 00:35:22,320 has to say. Second, choose to trust God's 471 00:35:22,320 --> 00:35:26,560 timing over your timeline. When anxiety hits about God's 472 00:35:26,560 --> 00:35:28,680 silence, pray. Pray. 473 00:35:28,680 --> 00:35:32,200 Lord, I choose to trust you in your timing. 474 00:35:33,520 --> 00:35:37,720 Let His delays draw you closer to Him in your prayer life, in 475 00:35:37,720 --> 00:35:40,800 your Bible study, in your devotion and desperation for 476 00:35:40,800 --> 00:35:44,840 Him. Third, invite someone into your 477 00:35:44,840 --> 00:35:48,720 crisis. Ask a trusted person this week 478 00:35:48,720 --> 00:35:50,960 to pray. You don't have to have it all 479 00:35:50,960 --> 00:35:54,520 together to simply say I am struggling and I need help. 480 00:35:54,920 --> 00:35:58,920 Will you pray with me? Would you all stand with me? 481 00:36:00,680 --> 00:36:02,960 Our prayer team is coming to the front right now. 482 00:36:04,120 --> 00:36:06,680 You've come in with your pain, with your suffering. 483 00:36:07,040 --> 00:36:08,880 You do not have to be alone with that. 484 00:36:09,960 --> 00:36:12,640 Come to the altar, pray with our team. 485 00:36:13,280 --> 00:36:17,600 Do not leave here the same if you put your faith in Christ. 486 00:36:17,600 --> 00:36:19,440 Head back to those I raise my hand tables. 487 00:36:19,440 --> 00:36:22,120 Now the rest of us. The altar is open. 488 00:36:22,480 --> 00:36:23,960 You move as the Lord leaves church.