Pastor Bria Bradshaw

John 11:17–27 ESV Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother. So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house.

Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.”

✓ Yesterday’s Disappointments

John 11:21 “Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

John 11:32 Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

✓ Tomorrow’s Distance

John 11:23-24 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.”

Key Thought: Jesus doesn’t just want us saved, He wants us ALIVE!

1. We Come Alive

Galatians 2:20 ESV I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

2. The World Comes Alive

Romans 6:4-5 ESV We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.

Pastor Bria Bradshaw

John 8:12 (ESV) Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Matthew 5:14–16 (ESV) “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

The Problem: We can give off the illusion of light in the way we live, but it is artificial.

Genesis 1:1–5 (ESV) In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

Genesis 1:14-19 (ESV) And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night…” 16 And God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars…19 And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.

The more Jesus shines in me, the better He shines through me.

1. Let the light in to transform.

Question: Is there any place within me where God doesn’t have the freedom to shine?

2. Let the light in to reveal the truth.

Question: Where in your life are you telling God, “I’m good. I’ve got this part right.”?

3. Let the light in to lead you.

Question: Are you done leading you?

Pastor Wes Morris

John 10:11-15 (NLT) I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd sacrifices his life for the sheep. A hired hand will run when he sees a wolf coming. He will abandon the sheep because they don’t belong to him and he isn’t their shepherd. And so the wolf attacks them and scatters the flock. The hired hand runs away because he’s working only for the money and doesn’t really care about the sheep.

I am the good shepherd; I know my own sheep, and they know me, just as my Father knows me and I know the Father. So I sacrifice my life for the sheep.

I. WE ALL WANDER.

Isaiah 53:6 (NLT) All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the Lord laid on him the sins of us all.

II. THE FATHER KEEPS CALLING.

John 10:27-28 (NIV) My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand.

Isaiah 43:1-3 (TLB) The Lord who created you says: Don’t be afraid, for I have ransomed you; I have called you by name; you are mine. When you go through deep waters and great trouble, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown! When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up - the flames will not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, your Savior.

Romans 5:8 (MSG) God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him.

III. THE GOOD SHEPHERD LEADS US HOME.

Luke 15:5-6 (NLT) When he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on his shoulders. When he arrives, he will call together his friends and neighbors, saying, “Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.”