From Grave Clothes to New Life: Ongoing Transformation in Christ

Jesus calls Lazarus come out, and I think it's neat on how it was four days because the culture at the time, they believed that the soul would actually hang around the dead body for about three days. So Jesus waited for to really show them, listen. No. I'm not resuscitating him, not doing anything. Lazarus was dead. He was dead dead, and he has the power of resurrection and life. Jesus does, And he raises him from the dead, foreshadowing to what was about to happen in a few days. Here was for the one. And in a few days, it was for all of us. Amen? Amen. [00:45:27] (42 seconds)  #ResurrectionRevealed

Sometimes it's frustrating because we want that just switch. Right? Jesus, would you just flip a switch, and then I do all the right things and say all the right things, and there's no more trouble. Right? Anybody wish there was that switch? I know. I wish too, but that's not the reality. It's an ongoing process. We're being continually transformed as we journey together with Jesus. Because together, when we say yes to Jesus and to his way of living, he begins to form our character in our lives and in our community through grace and repentance. [00:30:51] (41 seconds)  #TransformationJourney

He loves us so much. He, there, in that moment, was noticing the destruction. Once again, it's not like it was the first time. That's why he came because God so loved the world that he sent his only son not to condemn us, but to save us. And so in this moment, Jesus was troubled. He was moved. He wept because he saw the destruction, the hurt, the pain that sin brings on our lives. But I am glad that it does not end there because he already knew what was about to happen with Lazarus. [00:41:24] (33 seconds)  #JesusWeeps

I used to kinda refer to this passage when I was talking with people who were going through hard times or perhaps at a funeral. And I meant many years ago, I would think about it in the way of, like, Jesus was sad. His friend was still dead, but, really, that's not the context here. The context here, as one commentator put it, that Jesus was deeply moved. He was angered at the destruction that sin has had on his creation. That's us. [00:40:55] (29 seconds)  #RighteousAnger

Oh, I love this story. I love this story. Jesus was on his way to his death, but that will not be the end because he just showed us that he has victory even over death. Amen? Amen. And I am so excited that this is a church that believes that he has victory over death, that he has victory over everything, that we aren't just here for ourselves, That we're a church that is here for our community. Amen? Amen. We are here because we have been given the greatest story, which is more than a story, a story that transforms. And we get to share that with others and see how others are transformed by Jesus. Amen? Amen. Amen. [00:46:09] (52 seconds)  #VictoryOverDeath

But we wanna do whatever we can to remove as many bottlenecks as possible so that people can come in and they can worship together. You know, we can focus on God. We can see him transform our lives, our communities' lives because transform people transform cities, transform communities. Amen? I I know we're that church. We don't just want people saved and come to church now and again. We wanna see people transformed by Jesus, empowered to be sent into this world to also disciple others. This is a church where a place where people will be known, will discover their identity, and discover their purpose. Amen? [00:47:59] (43 seconds)  #TransformingCommunities

But as we see later in the story, it still hasn't quite stuck. And I find comfort in that because I've said yes to Jesus, and I would love to tell you that I then, from that point on, had it all figured out. And every time a challenge came in front of me where Jesus would say go right, I would, of course, go left. But I know that's just me because I had it all figured out. Because it takes a while for it to go from here to get into here and to really become something that transforms you completely. Again, that journey of small incremental transformation, sometimes big moments, sometimes big moments of transformation. [00:39:20] (48 seconds)  #ProgressNotPerfection

And we respond to our risen savior who then also sends us out into the world to talk about this transformation that we're seeing in our lives because we've said yes to him and tell other people about Jesus to be people of purpose and to people of hope because we were in darkness, and god loves us way too much to leave us there. So he came up with a solution the moment we invited sin into this world because we've all sinned. [00:31:32] (32 seconds)  #SentToShareHope