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<P><SPAN style="COLOR: black">Sermons for the Lent 5:</SPAN> </P>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> John 11:1-45<SPAN
style="COLOR: black"> – <STRONG><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: normal">“</SPAN></STRONG></SPAN><B>It’s Time to Get
Up</B><STRONG><SPAN style="COLOR: black; FONT-WEIGHT: normal">”
</SPAN></STRONG><B> </B></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> Romans 8:6-11–
<B>“</B><B>The Big “J” and the Little “j””</B> by Leonard Sweet</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="COLOR: black">_____________________________</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN style="COLOR: black">John
11:1-45, the sermon titled "</SPAN>It’s Time to Get Up<SPAN
style="COLOR: black">" </SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Good News all around us and I have good news
for you: God has a resurrection for you! He wants to bring you out into the
light again. He wants to bring you out of that tomb of oppression and give you a
new start. And listen! He has the power to do it. He can bring you back to
life.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">This powerful story in John 11 speaks to this.
Remember it with me. Mary and Martha who live in Bethany are some of Jesus’
closest friends… They send word to him that their brother, whose name is
Lazarus, is desperately ill. “Please come. We need your help. Hurry. He is
sinking fast.” But by the time Jesus gets there, Lazarus has died… and has been
in his grave for four days. Mary and Martha come out to meet Jesus and they
express their grief: “He’s gone. We’ve lost him. O Lord, if only you have been
here, our brother would not have died.”</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">The family and friends have gathered and in
their deep sorrow, they begin to weep over the loss of their loved one, Lazarus.
The heart of Jesus goes out to them… and Jesus weeps with them. He loved
Lazarus, too… and he loves them… and he shares their pain. Jesus goes out to the
cave-like tomb and he says to them: “Roll back the stone!” Martha, always the
realist and ever ready to speak out, protests: “But Lord, we can’t do that. He
has been in the grave for 4 days. By now there will be a terrible odor.” Jesus
says to her: “Martha, only believe and you will see the power of God.”</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">So they roll the stone away… and Jesus cries
out in a loud voice: “Lazarus, come forth!” And incredibly, miraculously,
amazingly, before their very eyes… Lazarus is resurrected! He comes out of the
tomb. He still has on his grave clothes. His head and feet are still wrapped
with mummy-like bandages. Jesus then turns to the friends and family and says to
them, “Unbind him and let him go. Unwrap him and set him free.”</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">In this graphic and dramatic story, three
awesome lessons jump out at us. Three great truths emerge which can be so
helpful to us today. Let me list them for us: Jesus wept with those he loved and
he still does. Jesus raised people up and he still does. Jesus included others
in the healing process… and he still does.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">1. First, Jesus wept with those he loved...and
he still does.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">2. Second, Jesus raised people up…and he still
does.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">3. Third, he included others in the healing
process…and he still does.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN style="COLOR: black">The rest of this
sermon following the outline above can be obtained by joining <A
href="http://www.sermons.com/"><FONT color=#800080>www.Sermons.com</FONT></A>.
</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="COLOR: black">_______________________</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Romans 8, the sermon titled ‘"Big “J” and
Little “j”’ by Leonard Sweet </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">A new kind of “American Idol” competition is
underway this month. By the end of April there will be a new voice behind that
loud, squawking Aflac duck. It seems the original duck voice actor was let go
after “tweeting” several insensitive remarks immediately after that 9.0
earthquake and 80 foot tsunami struck Japan. Evidently “tweets” can silence
“quacks.” </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">The competition for the next famous quacker is
fierce. Already over 28,000 people have inquired on the Aflac website
(QuackAflac.com) about the position for “spokes duck” for the insurance company.
Everyone, it seems, wants to be a “quack.”</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Drive down almost any rural road that runs
alongside a waterway and you are likely to see a bright yellow road sign with
silhouettes of ducklings warning you “Slow. Duck Crossing.” Nothing says spring
so sweetly as a line-up of little fuzzy yellow ducklings waddling or swimming
behind their mother. The babies look so devoted, and are so completely
lock-stepped on their parent, that they will blindly follow-the-leader right
into traffic or over the edge of a waterfall.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">It isn’t love that keeps those baby ducks so
obediently bounded behind their mother. Flocking birds like ducks and geese are
genetically programmed to “imprint” on the first creature they see after
cracking out of their eggshell. Of course, that first creature would normally
always be the baby duck’s mom or dad. Imprinting on their parents keeps the
hatchlings from wandering off on their own, or trying to make up-close and
personal friends with a cat or a Buick.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">But imprinting can go very wrong. Baby ducks
imprint on the first moving creature they encounter, no matter what it is. If
the eggs are hatched in an incubator box then the human being caring for the new
hatchlings will become the object of the babies imprinting. If the eggs are
hatched by a friendly dog, then the ducklings “mom” will forever be a barker,
not a quacker.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">There are some Christians who think they are
following Christ, when really they have simply been “imprinted” by a culture
that calls itself “Christian.” Following some accepted line of “Christian”
behavior is not necessarily following Christ…</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN style="COLOR: black">The rest of this
sermon following the outline above can be obtained by joining <A
href="http://www.sermons.com/"><FONT color=#800080>www.Sermons.com</FONT></A>.
</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">___________________</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Giving Thanks for Our Trouble</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Ours is a God who does not despise or abhor the
affliction of the afflicted and does not hide his face from them.” There is
always a sense in which great living is found in the midst of suffering and
tears.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">An old Yiddish folk story tells of a well-to-do
gentleman of leisured much interested in the Hebrew Scriptures. He visited a
wise rabbi to ask a question. He said: “I think I grasp the sense and meaning of
these writings except for one thing. I cannot understand how we can be expected
to give God thanks for our troubles.” The rabbi knew instantly that he could not
explain this with mere words. He said to the gentleman: “If you want to
understand this, you will have to visit Isaac the water-carrier.” The gentleman
was mystified by this, but knowing the rabbi to be wise, crossed to a poor
section of the settlement and came upon Isaac the water-carrier, an old man who
had been engaged in mean, lowly, backbreaking labor for some fifty years.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">The gentleman explained the reason for his
visit. Isaac paused from his labors. Finally, after several minutes of silence,
looking baffled, he spoke: “I know that the rabbi is the wisest of men. But I
cannot understand why he would send you to me with that question. I can’t answer
it because I’ve had nothing but wonderful things happen to me. I thank God every
morning and night for all his many blessings on me and my
family.”<BR><BR> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">It is true, is it not? The pure in heart see
God. The humble in spirit know Christ’s joy and enter into God’s glory. “For I
consider,” writes Paul, “that the sufferings of the present time are not worth
comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">_______________________</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">The Way Out</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Most everyone has worked one of those mazes
where you follow the right path to find your way out. As you move your pencil
through the maze you keep running into dead ends until you find the one path
that sets you free.<BR><BR>Life is a lot like living in a maze. We continue to
take wrong turns which lead nowhere and often retrace our steps until we can
find our way. It can be very frustrating. Sometimes we never do find our way
out. Those are the times we are stuck and feel like a prisoner with no
escape.<BR><BR>Today I want to help set you free. I believe that no matter how
difficult the maze you live in may seem, there is always a way out. Not even
death can stand in the way of your life’s journey.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Keith Wagner, Only One Way Out</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">____________________________</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Sunday's A Comin'</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Tony Campolo tells the story of a black Baptist
preacher in the inner city of Philadelphia who preached a sermon Tony says he'll
never forget. Tony preached first. He was "hot," so "hot" he says, that he even
stopped and listened to himself. He sat down and said to his pastor: "Now see if
you can top that one!"</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">"Son," said the black pastor, "you ain't seen
nothin' yet." For an hour and a half the pastor repeated these words over and
over again: "It's Friday, but Sunday's a comin'."</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">"I've never heard anything like it," Tony said.
"He just kept saying it. The congregation was spellbound by the power of
it."</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">"It's Friday. Mary, Jesus' mother is crying her
eyes out. That's her son up there on the cross. He's dying the agonizing death
of crucifixion as a criminal. But it's only Friday," the preacher said.
"Sunday's a comin'.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">"The apostles were really down and out. Jesus,
their leader, was being killed by evil men. But it was only Friday. Sunday is a
comin'.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">"The Devil thought he had won. 'You thought you
could outwit me,' he said, 'but I've got you now.' But it was only Friday.
Sunday is a comin'."</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">"He went on like that for 30 minutes, 40
minutes, an hour. Each time he said, 'It's Friday,' the crowd began to respond,
'but Sunday's comin'. An hour and 15 minutes.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">"It's Friday and evil has triumphed over good.
Jesus is dying up there on the cross. The world is turned upside down. This
shouldn't happen. But it's only Friday. Sunday's a comin'.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">"It's Friday. But Sunday is comin'. Mary
Magdalene was out of her mind with grief. Her Lord was being killed. Jesus had
turned her life from sin to grace. Now he was dead. But it's only Friday. Sunday
is a comin'."</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">The place was rocking. For an hour and a half.
"Friday! But Sunday is a comin'. Friday. But Sunday is a comin'.</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">"The sisters and the brothers are suffering. It
just isn't fair...all they have to go through, but it's only Friday. Sunday is
comin'."</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">"I was exhausted," Tony said. "It was the best
sermon I've ever heard. The old preacher was saying it and the people were with
him. 'It's Friday, but Sunday is a comin'. It was powerful," Tony said. "It was
personal."</DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Ronald J. Lavin, I Am the Resurrection and the
Life, <A
href="http://www.esermons.com/newadmin/www.eSermons.com">www.eSermons.com</A></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">_______________________</DIV>
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