(“The Lazarus Project”)

Ephesians 2:1-7 (NASU)

(Ephesians 2:1)

Heavenly Father, our earnest desire this morning is that You would glorify Yourself in our midst through the preaching of Your word. Glorify Yourself by enabling our minds to understand the text before us, and humbling our hearts to receive it. Glorify Yourself by reminding us what our own spiritual condition was before You saved us through the gift of faith in Your Son, Jesus Christ. We also pray You would glorify Yourself by helping us see the true spiritual condition of the people with whom we are dealing as we strive to fulfill our Savior’s mandate to be His witnesses. We lay these requests before You in the name of Your Son and our Lord – Amen.

(A) WITH WHOM ARE WE DEALING?

(1) Every professing Christian has a mandate from their Savior to be His witnesses (c.f. Acts 1:8). Nor is it a mandate we can fulfill by relying solely on the abilities and talents we have been given – rather, we must also learn to rely on Christ’s enabling grace. After all, Jesus once told His disciples: “apart from Me you can do nothing” (c.f. John 15:5) – while in another place we’re told that we are “not … adequate in ourselves to consider anything (we do) as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God” (c.f. II Corinthians 3:5).

(2) Our theology is going to have a direct impact on how we go about trying to fulfill our Savior’s mandate. In other words, what we believe about such things as God’s sovereignty, what happened at the Fall, what Jesus came to do, what we are and what we are not responsible for when it comes to the matter of another person’s salvation – (what we believe about these and other basic theological matters) will shape our whole approach to evangelism,¹ including our motives, the content of our message, even the methods we choose to employ.

(3) This morning we are going to briefly address this theological question – what is the spiritual condition of the people with whom we are dealing? What is the spiritual condition of those with whom we are trying to explain the Gospel? What is the spiritual condition of the people with whom we are trying to build relationships and/or friendships, in hopes of being able to tell them about Jesus Christ?

(4) The Bible gives us numerous pictures that not only describe the people with whom we are dealing – they also remind us of what we were like before we repented of our sins and professed faith in Christ, as the third verse of this morning’s Scripture lesson confirms (c.f. Ephesians 2:3).

Romans chapter five gives us a three-fold picture, saying in part: “while we were still helpless … Christ died for (us) … while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us … while we were enemies (of God) we were reconciled to Him through the death of His Son” (c.f. Romans 5:6, 8, 10).

Who are we dealing with as we go about trying to fulfill the mandate to be Christ’s witnesses? According to Romans chapter five, we’re dealing with people who are completely “helpless” to save themselves – who are “sinners” by nature as well as behavior – and who are “enemies” of God, in part because they are constantly resisting His will and breaking His commands.

(5) Nor was Jesus silent on this subject, or flattering. Take the example found in John chapter eight, where He told certain religious leaders (religious, yes – Christians, no): “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father” (c.f. John 8:44a).

Who are we dealing with as we try to build friendships and/or relationships with non-Christians? Jesus said we’re dealing with people whose father is the devil – and who (apart from His intervening grace) are committed to following in their father’s footsteps!

(6) There are other biblical descriptions we could look at – like the fact people are enslaved to sin (c.f. John 8:33; Romans 6:6) – or that the people we hope to speak with about Christ are prodigals who have chosen to turn their back on their Creator and squander their inheritance (as it were) in a far country (c.f. Luke 15:12-13).

The one I want to focus on briefly this morning, however, is the fact that, prior to conversion – and apart from Christ’s saving grace – every person with whom we hope to share the Gospel is “dead in (their) trespasses and sins” (c.f. Ephesians 2:1).

(B) I SEE DEAD PEOPLE

(1) Although physical death is one consequence of sin, the deadness spoken of in our text is spiritual in nature. Nor should we let that word “spiritual” fool us – for spiritual death is a very real and far more serious condition than many people realize.

(a) For example, just as physical death separates us from those we know and love, so spiritual death separates us from God (c.f. Isaiah 59:2) – it separates us from His friendship and love – and ultimately (if we do not repent and profess faith in Christ) we will find ourselves separated from His presence in heaven (c.f. Luke 16:26).

At the risk of sounding insensitive, let me illustrate it this way. The world likes to pretend the gulf between the living and the dead can be bridged – that people can stand at a loved one’s grave, for example, and talk with them and/or experience some sense of closeness. Many of you have read books, and/or seen movies or television shows that promote this sentimental idea.

To quote King Solomon, however, its all “vanity and striving after wind” (c.f. Ecclesiastes 1:14b), because the fact is physical death puts an end to our relationships. Once a person dies, communication with them is no longer possible – once a person dies, any closeness the living say they feel is a figment of their imagination, because it is impossible to have a relationship with a corpse.

The living may (and often do) enjoy pleasant memories – they may wish their friend or loved one were still alive – they may even pretend they are talking with them. But none of these things can bridge the gulf of separation brought about by death – as times of grief and loneliness make all too plain.

(b) I’m not trying to increase anyone’s heartache this morning. What I am trying to do is show you just how real and/or how serious spiritual death is. I’m trying to show you that those who are “DEAD in (their) trespasses and sins” (c.f. Ephesians 2:1) cannot and do not have any kind of positive relationship with the LIVING God (c.f. Psalm 42:2a), despite whatever protests they may make to the contrary! Because their sins continue to go unconfessed and therefore unforgiven, their relationship with God is one of aversion rather than affection – hostility rather than friendship – and dislike or hatred rather than love.

No person can be spiritually alive and spiritually dead at the same time, any more than light and darkness can exist together in the same physical space (c.f. II Corinthians 6:14c). There can be one, or there can be the other – but there cannot be both!

(c) The separation that characterizes spiritual death is illustrated for us in Genesis chapter three, where one of the first things Adam and Eve did after they sinned against God was try and “hide themselves from Him” (c.f. Genesis 3:8) – even though prior to that moment they had enjoyed a close, intimate relationship with Him.

God had said, “from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die” (c.f. Genesis 2:17) – and though they did not die physically until many years later, spiritual death was immediate – and with it came separation from God, as their desire to hide from Him shows. Hence, the prophet Isaiah was right when he said: “your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear” (c.f. Isaiah 59:2).

(d) This is the true spiritual condition of every unsaved person we deal with – every non-Christian with whom we try and build a friendship or relationship – every lost person we talk to about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We are dealing with dead people – spiritually dead people – people who are “dead in (their) trespasses and sins” (c.f. Ephesians 2:1).

(2) Not only are all those who are “dead in (their) trespasses and sins” (c.f. Ephesians 2:1) separated from God, they are also wholly unable to do anything to change their situation! Indeed, because they are “dead”, they have neither the ability nor the desire to change – which is precisely why we need a Savior! That’s what the Scripture means when it says: “a natural man (which is how the bible refers to unsaved people) (the natural man) does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, (because) they are foolishness to him; (furthermore) he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised” (c.f. I Corinthians 2:14).

He “does not” and “cannot” because he is a spiritual corpse – because he has no spiritual pulse – because there is no spiritual life in him at all – because, as our text says, he is “dead in (his) trespasses and sins” (c.f. Ephesians 2:1).

(a) As we talk with our friends and neighbors and co-workers about Christ, we need to remember we’re dealing with people who, like Nicodemus (c.f. John 3:9-10), don’t understand what we’re talking about (despite whatever intellectual knowledge they may have regarding Scripture and/or certain spiritual matters) – (we need to realize we’re dealing with people) who do not fully grasp what their predicament is, nor how serious it is – (that we’re dealing with people) who don’t know they’re spiritually dead, and therefore, see little or no reason why they should repent of their sin (which some don’t think are serious enough to warrant any eternal concern) and profess faith in Christ (which many, at least here in the United States, claim they’ve already done, even though they haven’t – at least not in the biblical sense).

We have to remember we’re dealing with people who are spiritually dead. That means we’re dealing with people who are incapable of responding to outside stimuli,³ such as the preaching of the Gospel – not people who still have a few spiritual reflexes left, if we can just find them. We’re dealing with people who need to be spiritually resurrected, which is what being “born again” really means (c.f. John 3:3-8) – not people who simply need to be awakened from a coma. We’re dealing with people who are in a spiritual casket (if you will), not on an artificial respirator.

(b) There was a couple in our former church in Illinois whose sense of humor often expressed itself in unusual ways. For example, one winter before Christmas, they decorated an old sleigh and put it in their front yard. A short time later, one of their farm cats died. And, since it was winter, and everything was frozen, they decided it would be funny to pose that dead cat (in an upright position) on the seat of the sleigh in a way that gave people driving by the impression he was holding the reigns of the sleigh.

Now, I could have stopped alongside the road in front of their house and called, “Here, kitty, kitty, kitty!” – but that cat would never have responded. I could have placed a bowl of warm milk in the seat next to him – and that cat would never have drunk a drop. I could have crawled up on the seat next to that cat and petted him for hours – and he would never have purred. Why not? Because that cat was dead! And, as everyone knows, dead cats don’t purr! In fact, no dead cat in the history of the world has ever purred!

(c) Beloved, the same thing is true of every person who is “dead in (their) trespasses and sins” (c.f. Ephesians 2:1). We can explain the Gospel to them, but they won’t respond – we can entice them into our church and/or to our services with various attention-getting devices, but they will come and leave without ever responding to the message of salvation. We can “pet” them (as it were), and befriend them – we can make our building visitor friendly, and our services seeker-sensitive – and still, people will not respond by repenting of their sin and professing faith in Christ. And if we inquire as to why not, the answer is, because they are “dead in (their) trespasses and sins” (c.f. Ephesians 2:1) – because, as everyone should know (although many don’t), people who are spiritually dead cannot respond, nor do they even want to respond to the things of God!

(3) Sometimes we will see dead people responding to a dead gospel, which is similar to Jesus’ comment about “the blind leading the blind” (c.f. Luke 6:39) – and/or “the dead burying the dead” (c.f. Luke 9:60). Nor should we be surprised by this – for the truth is, people who are spiritually dead cannot respond to the true Gospel, nor do they even have the desire to do so (c.f. Psalm 14:2-3), until and/or unless God first does something in them which only He and He alone can do.

(a) Let me illustrate what I mean by having you think about what must have happened – indeed, what had to have happened – when Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead.

Scripture tells us Lazarus had been in the tomb “four days” by the time Jesus arrived at Bethany (c.f. John 11:17). In fact, if you read the account in John chapter eleven carefully, you’ll see Jesus deliberately waited for Lazarus to die before starting for Bethany (c.f. John 11:6, 14). The purpose behind this four-day-delay was to insure everyone knew Lazarus was really and truly dead – not swooned – not passed out from pain – not in some kind of deep coma – but stone-cold dead. Hence, when Jesus gave the order to “remove the stone” covering the entrance to her brother’s tomb, Martha protested, saying: “Lord, by this time there will be a stench, for he has been dead four days” (c.f. John 11:39).

(b) Once the stone was removed, Jesus offered a brief prayer (c.f. John 11:41-42) – and then cried out with a loud voice: “Lazarus, come forth” (c.f. John 11:43)!

Now remember who Jesus is talking to – He’s talking to a four-day-old corpse – He’s giving a command to a dead man! He’s telling a man whose heart hasn’t beat in four days – whose blood stopped flowing ninety-six hours ago – whose flesh has started to decay – whose ears can’t hear – whose eyes can’t see – whose arms and legs don’t work – whose synapses in the brain haven’t “synapsed” in over half a week – (Jesus is telling this dead man) to do something no dead man can possibly do, namely, “come forth” – Jesus is telling a dead man to get up off a slab of stone, and walk to the entrance of his own tomb! Nevertheless, despite the utterly impossibility of what Lazarus has been commanded to do, the miracle of all miracles happens – for the Scripture says, “the man who had died came forth” (c.f. John 11:44a), meaning he “came forth” very much alive!

(c) The question is, how?? How could a man who had been dead four days respond to Jesus’ command? Dead cats don’t purr – and dead men don’t get up and leave their graves – so how was Lazarus able to “come forth”?

There can only be one answer – Jesus’ voice had the supernatural power to regenerate Lazarus! Jesus’ command had the divine ability to resurrect him from the dead – to start his heart beating – his blood flowing – and his brain cells working! Within Jesus’ words (which is to say that within Jesus Himself) was the sovereign power of Almighty God – and it was that power that enabled Lazarus’ ears to hear His command – and not only hear, but obey!

(d) Beloved, the same kind of thing needs to happen spiritually to those who are “dead in (their) trespasses and sins” (c.f. Ephesians 2:1). Before those we are befriending, and/or talking with about Christ will respond in repentance and faith, they must be regenerated by the Holy Spirit – which is what Jesus really meant when He told Nicodemus, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God” (c.f. John 3:3).

Before lost people can respond to the preaching of the Gospel, they need to have a supernatural heart transplant – i.e. they need to have their heart of stone removed and replaced with a heart of flesh (as it were), like the prophet Ezekiel talked about (c.f. Ezekiel 36:26) – they need to have their deaf ears divinely unstopped, and their blind eyes miraculously opened (c.f. Isaiah 35:5). Only then will they be able to “understand” the message of salvation, and “see” their need for a Savior – only then will they want to respond to our witness by repenting of their sin and professing faith in Jesus Christ – and only then will they be able to actually do it!

(e) These are things you and I cannot do – i.e. we cannot impart spiritual life to people who are “dead in (their) trespasses and sins” (c.f. Ephesians 2:1). That’s something only God and God alone can do. Hence, the fifth verse of this morning’s Scripture lesson says simply, but succinctly: “even when we were dead in our transgressions, (God) made us alive together with Christ ([hence, it is] by grace [that we] have been saved)” (c.f. Ephesians 2:5). Indeed, this verse is the spiritual equivalent of Jesus raising Lazarus from physical death!

(C) SO WHAT?!

(1) What affect, then, does the answer to this morning’s theological question have on our evangelistic efforts? What impact will knowing we’re working with people who are spiritually dead have on our efforts to fulfill Christ’s mandate (c.f. Acts 1:8)?

We only have time to briefly mention a couple of things. First, since we’re dealing with dead people, we shouldn’t be surprised when they don’t understand what we’re telling them – nor should we become too discouraged when the people we have built a relationship with don’t respond positively to the Gospel. Sadden? – Of course! Grieved? – Yes! But surprised? – No! Given the fact we’re dealing with spiritual Lazarus’s, we should be surprised (and grateful to Christ!) every time someone does respond!

(2) Once we accept the fact we are dealing with dead people, we also need to realize the heart of their rejection of our witness has nothing to do with our approach, or our method, or our inability to understand the post-modern culture.¹ That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be concerned about these things – it simply means these things are not the crux of the problem. The problem is, we’re dealing with people who are “dead in (their) trespasses and sins” (c.f. Ephesians 2:1) – with spiritual corpses – with dead cats –with spiritual Lazarus’s – with people who have neither the ability nor the desire, in and of themselves, to respond to the message of the gospel and be saved.

Nor do we have the power, in and of ourselves, to change that. Hence, their rejection of the Gospel is not our fault¹ – which means we don’t have to feel guilty every time our witness fails to produce the desired results. There are plenty of things in life we should feel guilty about – but this isn’t one of them. We might as well beat ourselves up over not being able to raise people from the dead, as to do it over not being able to “win over” every person we talk to about Christ.

(3) God alone is able to give life to those who are spiritually dead. Hence, today’s Scripture lesson says: “God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ …” (c.f. Ephesians 2:4-5). Among other things, that means all the credit for any success we do have belongs to Him – that He alone deserves the praise for any people who come to Christ through our efforts – that our motivation for witnessing should always be summed up in these words: “Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to Your name (be all the) glory …” (c.f. Psalm 115:1a).

(4) The fact God alone gives life to those who are spiritually dead also means all our witnessing, all our evangelism training, all our relationship building needs to be preceded and/or accompanied by fervent prayer – prayer God would be merciful to those to whom we are witnessing – prayer He would regenerate the spiritually dead so they (like Lazarus) can hear, and understand, and respond to the message of the Gospel we’re trying to share with them – prayer God would be pleased to use us to draw some to Christ in repentance and faith.

¹St. John: Evangelism and the Reformed Faith; p. 1;

PCANews; www.christianity.com/CC/CDA/Content.

²MacArthur: Ephesians; p. 53.