Raising of Lazarus "O How He Loves" 8-15-99

Sermon 8-15-99 Raising of Lazarus "O how he loves"

Intro...Pat Shumate story
Jerrod, 16, brain tumor, grief, part of family, doesn't want to lose him
Vacillates between faith and doubt, peace and anger

All of us have struggles
Death, finances, divorce, illness, relationships
Even children have them...rejection, fitting in

They are all important
Story of black butterflies...it was a problem to him

Part of the human condition is the pain of brokenness
How do we face it...How do we overcome?

Lessons from the story of Lazarus death
Jesus cared, God feels the pain of our grief and cares
Jesus loved...O how he loved him

this is not a sickness unto death, but that God would be glorified
Every situation is one in which God can be glorified
Jesus can help us through our problems
he didn't solve everyone's problems...Lazarus died again

i have been to some bad places
In the day of my sister in laws wedding I was called to the hospital to baptize a baby that was dying
I have seen some bad stuff

I have noticed in my journeys there...two ways we can handle our pain

1. resist, struggle, hate, be bitter
   we usually start here, but don't get stuck here
   Romans 12
   Natural human tendency is to bite back, angry, bitter, depressed
   Do not return evil for evil, overcome evil with good
   Do not inject anger into a situation
2. others come to find rest in the Lord
   learn to understand his love, not just talk about it, but feel it come to believe that he is there

If circumstances change/not, being connected makes a difference
Jesus loves me this I know

Pray for those who need to know the love of God