Jesus meets other people- Mary at Cana in ch. 2; the boy with loaves and fishes in 6 and so on. Those are not 'encounter stories,' because the encounter stories are actually excuses for a sermon. These 'encounter stories' lead to sermon/discussions which carry much of the teaching baggage of John, (along with the 'teaching sermons' in chapters 6, 7 and 8.) The 'encounter stories' introduce these long teaching sections, in way that remind me of the old Hollywood musicals. Somebody asks a set-up question, and pretty soon the star breaks out into a song, which leads to the big production number. These people encounter Jesus, and things begin to happen. Sometimes Jesus says very little, but the other characters carry on the teaching in the same way Jesus would- like living parables- like in the 'Man Born Blind.'

B) Learning the Gospel of John

Here's a main point- throughout this year I've been teaching the Gospel of John. We don't do this very often; the last time was 12 years ago. Many of our older youth were little grade schoolers then! When we 'do' John, I want to teach you a way to look at John in your own studies. I want to go over the structure- the 'encounter stories', the 'I AM's,' I have wanted to call your attention to the way his 'Circle of Believing' keeps using the same words over and over to show how faith comes and spreads. I have gone over many of John's 'key words,' all of which interact with each other and create a theological three-dimensional framework for the Gospel.

What I want to do in this year of sermons is to give you a structure by which you can study and teach John to yourself, your family and your friends. John is simple and yet so complex. You can study it daily for a lifetime and still find new things.

Today's story is so long that I've cut out a few parts. Both Martha and Mary come to Jesus, saying almost identical things. I'm not going to walk through the text today, like I have been doing this summer. Instead, I want to call your attention to a few spots, then zero in on one main spot.

I) The Story Begins

When Jesus hears Lazarus, his friend is sick- he doesn't go to help. He stays right where he's at for TWO MORE DAYS! Sometimes we want an immediate answer to prayer- sometimes things get worse- I wonder if sometimes this isn't so that we can really see God work!

He goes back to Jerusalem-where they've just tried to kill him. The tension is made clear. Good old cynical Thomas says, 'OK, let's go die with him.' John pulls back the hammer again. The tension is set. Mary bawls Jesus out for being late; so does Martha. Jesus is deeply moved by the scene. He cries. Isn't good that we have a Lord who is so moved by human death, that he weeps? When we are mourning, we have a Lord who knows what that is like. I find that very moving and comforting.

John sets up the tension again- he stops to report on the crowd. Ever notice that? Hear the crowd arguing:

[36] Then the Jews said, "See how he loved him!" [37] But some of them said, "Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?" John reports the tension in all of our minds- he loved this guy- but he let him die!

The they roll away the stone. Then it happens.

II) The Punchline

Philip Hansen used to say, "Isn't it good Jesus said, 'Lazarus, come out!' or every grave in the world would have had to burst open!"

Now, can you imagine being there? You're in some sort of cemetery. There is a solid stone cliff in front of you; a round stone covers the mouth of a cave- nobody's ever seen a sight like this- crying people all around you. Wilted flowers by the stone. Jesus standing there as one very small figure. Every person who has died before this, has stayed dead. There Jesus stands, looking at the stone through his tears.

Now, go one step further- imagine the audience John is telling this to. Here is this old man- a man who had been with Jesus- Jesus' best friend. He's come to your town, and he's been telling you this story for several nights. You've been listening to every word, because this is your only chance, your one chance in a lifetime to hear this old man, John. You've been hearing these encounter stories for what, three or four nights- and now, these encounter stories have grown to this. This is the man who is knew Jesus-the Jesus who was able to raise people from the dead.

You're sitting in a tiny room packed with people, with a couple of flickering oil lamps. The room is more shadow than light. You've been waiting for this story. This is it. John is describing all these people, standing in a cemetery, when the world was about to change.

And Jesus said, 'Lazarus, come out.' And there was probably a small pause. There was only the buzzing of flies; the bray of a donkey. The sun was hot. All these people had been crying their eyes out for five or six days- they were exhausted, they were spent, and now, now....

And Lazarus, wound up in cloths, comes waddling out of the cave. He's wrapped up all over. He's packed with spices. His face is covered.

Someone screams. People faint. People swoon. There are little puddles on the ground. Can you imagine?

I took a picture years ago of a winning basketball shot, at a championship game, the ball going through the basket, with one second left. Every mouth on the other side of the gym is wide open. That's nothing as to what happened in the cemetery. Every mouth is open, and they are filled with fear, grief, joy, shock, terror, amazement, disbelief- most are stunned into absolute silence.

And then comes the most amazing sentence in the whole Bible. It's the most delightful thing Jesus says in any tough circumstance. His eyes twinkle. He looks at the crowd. He gives a little smile. And he says, 'Unbind him and let him go.'

Can you imagine the laughter, the delight, the cheering, the clapping of hands that followed those words? In John, that continues through a dinner the next day and right down the donkey ride into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. It's all the response to the punchline, "Unbind him and let him go."

A "punchline" is the surprise at the end that makes you laugh. It's not something you decide to do. It grabs you. It surprises you. The Lazarus story is about the punchline. The fact that Jesus can say "Unbind him" is the fact of the punchline. It anticipates the Easter punchline, the greatest surprise at all. Easter is the punchline that grabs you so strongly that it produces the laugh of faith.

The Lazarus story tells us that Jesus is not only the Lord who heals, the Lord of all people and the Lord of the Sabbath, he's also the Lord of Life itself. He has power over death, because of who he is. He is YAHWEH, who created us, and recreates the blind man's eyes with the same dust of the earth. Nothing is too great for him. And he has power to lay down his life for the sins of the world, and he has power to take it back up again.

III) Where Are YOU Dead?

The payoff is this. Where that punchline hits you this morning is right where you're dead. What's dead in you right now? (Pause)

Are you dead in fear? Are you dead of hope? Are you dead over someone disappointing you? Are you dead over frustration? Are you dead tired of trying? Is a relationship dead? Are you dead in your love for someone you ought to love? Are you dead with bitterness? Are you dead depressed? Are you dead tired, period? Are you afraid of death? Are you afraid Jesus won't be there when you need him? Is your hope dead?

Jesus says, (say your name) "Come out!" Jesus is Lord of even the places you're dead.

We need life around here. We all need life inside. As we go to our time of prayer, it's going to be extended this morning. We need life. Jesus says, "Come out!" Let's bring these dead spots to him now, and receive his Life.

Invitation, Amen.