Carter Conlon from the historic Times Square Church in New York City. You say yes, he does the rest. There's a good song. You write a song about that, right? I know you're going to do it.
You say yes, and he'll do the rest. Praise God. No excuses. No quoting scripture without believing it. No more pushing away the voice of God.
Just say Uh Thank you for listening this week to A Call to the Nation with Carter Conlon. In John 11, verse 35, we find what is widely considered the shortest verse in the Bible. Jesus wept. It's only two words, but as Carter will explain, it's a verse we tend to read over very quickly, a verse we may not stop and meditate on. But in these two words, there's an absolute ocean of understanding about the heart of God.
Here's Carter with his message titled, The Day God Cried. Uh I want to talk to you about the day that God cried. And when we think about God, we don't really necessarily think about God crying. Or the sorrow that can sometimes be in the heart of God. But this was a day.
that Jesus Christ who is fully man and fully God He was the one who said today People around him, when they said, Show us the father, he said, Have I been with you so long that you don't know me yet? This is God in the flesh. But something brought him to tears. On a specific day, and I want to talk about the day that God cried. John chapter 11.
Verse 35, Father, thank you, God, for the touch of heaven that's been in this This wonderful worship time. Lord, I ask you that you would stretch your hand out through the internet and you would begin to do miracles. Miracles in people's minds, in their lives, in their marriages, in their bodies, in their homes. Lord, as the psalmist once said, it is time, Lord, for you to act, for they have made void your law. Lord, this is a lawless time.
This is an evil time. Time in our generation, God. And we need you. We need you, Lord. more than perhaps we've ever been aware of it in our lifetime.
Stretch your hand out. And begin to heal for the honor and the glory of your name. And we ask this Father, believing. In Jesus' name. John 11, 35.
Jesus wept, only two words, Jesus wept. But it's a verse that we have a tendency to maybe go over very quickly. It's a verse that we may not stop and meditate. But in these two words, there is, in my opinion, an absolute Ocean of understanding of something about the heart of God. In it.
It's not a verse to be joked about as being the best verse in the Bible to memorize. It's not a verse to be joked about. as just a short verse, it's not something to be lightly just passed over. It was the day that God cried. And the issue is, we might think we know.
Why he was brought to tears, but sometimes it's deeper than what we think it is. It speaks of a deep inner grief. In the heart of the Son of God that expressed itself. In tears.
Now, as we initially begin to look at this, we ask ourselves the question: why? What was it that brought the Son of God to tears in this particular scenario? First and foremost, in John 11, Twenty-three And 25 and 26, he is speaking. But nobody is hearing him. What a tragedy it is to be in a place where God is speaking.
And we actually with our Natural ears are actually hearing words spoken, but we're not hearing what the words spoken really are saying. And that's exactly what was happening in this scenario. Jesus said in verse 23. Your brother, this is to Martha, who had died, his name was Lazarus, will rise again. Martha said to him, I know he'll rise again in the resurrection and at the last day.
In other words, You can't do anything now. It's too late.
Now, if you're thinking that it's too late for God to do something, you're exactly where Martha was. It's never too late for God. He's a God of the miraculous. He's a God who heals. He's a God who delivers.
He's a God who gives strength. He's a God who saves. He's a God who can heal your past and he can. Determine what your future is going to be. Jesus said to her, I am the resurrection and the life.
I am. Life is in me. In other words, you don't have to put it away to another day. I'm here now. I am the one who gives life.
I am everything that is promised in the scriptures. that comes to those who believe. And he who believes in me, though he may die, He shall live. And whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?
And then she said, Of course, yes, Lord, I believe you're the Christ, the Son of God, who's come into the world. She's learning scripture, but she's not hearing what God is saying. You know, as Bible college students, I pray that that never be your story: that you're actually learning scripture but not hearing what God is speaking. To your heart. He's a present God.
He's here now. He does. The miraculous. All around him. Is groaning and weeping about what they felt was lost and could never be regained.
John 11, 31 to 33, the Jews that were with her in the house and comforting her when they saw Mary rose up quickly and went out, and they followed her, saying, She's going to the tomb to weep there. Then Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him. She fell down at his feet, saying to him, Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. If you had been here. If you had answered the prayer that I prayed, A couple of years ago, a couple of months ago, a couple of weeks ago.
A couple of decades ago, in some cases, God, if you had been here, things would be so different. Do you know, I've learned something over the years that God is never late, He's right on time. He knows what will bring glory to his name. He knows what he will do that will cause the situation to. come out in a way that will bring the most encouragement to the people around him.
Jesus wept is one of the most profound glimpses. Into the heart of God.
Now, there are many reasons for tears, and most of them are readily identifiable. Bottom line is there's When we weep, We communicate not just with tears or with speech, but with body language. You know, like, for example, there are tears that are readily identifiable that are tears of frustration.
Somebody can be sitting here and weeping and going, oh, and we look at the person weeping and we know that it's frustration that's causing those tears. There are tears of disappointment. I'm sure most everybody here at some time in their life has Cried tears like that. There are tears of anger. You ever been so mad you cried?
There are tears of astonishment. When when something happens or A blessing of some sort comes into your life. You never anticipated this was going to happen, and so you suddenly burst into tears. And people who are seeing you weep know that you are astonished. There are tears of joy.
Absolutely. Joy, and some of you I've seen those tears at this altar, and when God touched you in a way that you didn't anticipate, or set you free from something that maybe was troubling your heart or troubling your mind.
So there's, you see, there's body language that goes with tears.
Now, the people standing by. Interpreted the tears that Jesus was crying as tears that were being motivated by love. Jesus wept. And the Jews said, see how how he loved him. They didn't say, see how he's frustrated.
See how he's disappointed. See how he's angry. at the unbelief all around. See how he's astonished. See how he's filled with joy.
No, they said, see how he filled. He Loved him. They knew. They were tears of love. They understood it.
How do we interpret those tears and then through scripture? There's only one way that I know of. and it's through the lens of John three sixteen. For God so loved the world. That he gave his only begotten Son.
that whoever believes in him should not perish. but have everlasting life. God so Loved. The world. God so loved the people that were gathered in that cemetery.
Even those whose hearts were filled with unbelief. God so loved those who were quoting Scripture. and didn't believe it. God so loved those who once sat at his feet, like Mary. But even she was filled with unbelief.
and couldn't bring herself to trust That God's plan might be bigger than her plan, or God's faithfulness. might be larger than she could understand. God so loved the world. You see, Jesus Christ was not bound by time like we are. We're bound by time.
We're bound by our environment. We're bound by what we see right before us, or what our minds can perceive maybe a day or two into the future. But Jesus Christ is not like that. He saw something into the future. He saw throughout time something that broke his heart.
He saw the numbers of people who sit under his word yet do not hear. He saw people in churches all over the country, perhaps all over the world. He saw those who can memorize scripture but don't believe a word of it. He saw those who can quote the fact that he is the Son of God. Whatever you ask the Father, he'll give it to you.
He starts to speak, but they don't believe him. He saw it. He saw the inaction. He saw the spiritual stagnation that's going to be in so many people's lives over the years. He saw the number of times that he would be present, but drowned out by voices of faulty human reasoning.
He's speaking, but the speech of everyone around him is drowning his voice out. It's too late, so sad, too bad. By now he stinks. When even when Jesus said, take away the stone, they're still arguing against the word of God, saying, No, no, no, no, he's been dead for four days, he stinks now. You know, and all these voices, and there's a myriad of them.
I don't know how many are in the graveyard, 100, 200, 150. I don't know how many are there. I just know they're weeping. I just know they're quoting scripture and they don't believe it. I know that they're scorning.
Some of them are scorning the Son of God. Who's beginning to do things in a way that they don't understand? There are many there that believe he could have come, he could have done something, but for whatever reason, there is an indifference in the heart of the Son of God, and he simply chose not to do what everybody was asking him to do. The number of times that he would visit, the number of times that he would begin to move. In churches, he'd begin to move among the people of God, but human reasoning, human voices, would drown out the voice of God, drown out the plan of God and the purpose of God.
I believe he saw you. He saw you today. He saw you where you're sitting right now. He saw you watching this service on your cell phone or on your laptop or whatever other device you've got. He saw you.
Now the story finishes with God's glory being made known once again. In John chapter 11 and verse 40, Jesus said to her, Did I not say to you that if you would believe, you would see the glory of God? Did I not say you would see God do what only God can do? You would be brought into a place of life. Jesus Christ said, I came to give you life eternally and abundantly.
I came to give you a reason to live. I came to give you freedom that can only come from God. I came to transform you from what you are into what you will be. I came to call you out of places of weakness and death and. Diminishment, whatever it is that's in your life, I came to call you into something that only God can do.
And then the scripture tells us: when he had said all these things, he cried with a loud voice. I think he had to shout above the crowd. I really do. I think he had to prove to us that my voice is louder, is more powerful than every other voice on the face of the earth. And to get above the crowd, I think he had to shout to get above the crowd because the mockers are there, the weepers are there, the scripture quoters are there.
Those who don't believe are there. Those who think it's too late are there. And suddenly, above all of their voices, he cries out, Lazarus! Come forth! In other words, I am the resurrection and the life.
I have the power to call out of the grave. I can change any situation, no matter how dark or down, or dire you think it is, how lost you think it is. I have the power. To give life. I have the power to call things that are not as if they are.
I have the power to raise you out of all death and out of all darkness and out of all weakness. I have the power over the voices that said you'll never change. My voice is more powerful than all those voices. Read the psalm that talks about the voice of the Lord, breaks the cedars, strips the forest bare. Causes life to be born.
In the earth. Even the animals give birth to their young because of the voice of God. The scripture says. I have the power. I have the power, God says.
Listen, as God the Father once said on the Mount of Transfiguration, this is my beloved Son, hear him. Don't listen to your own reasoning, Peter, that's telling you to build three tabernacles. Don't listen to all the thoughts that have come into your heart about this particular moment. My son is with you, hear him. It's what he says that matters.
It's his voice. That's the only voice you should be listening to. You see, he saw you Now here's the here's the issue This story finishes with the glory of God being made known once again.
Now the glory of God is known when God calls us out of death and into life. When God does what only God can do. In other words, it's beyond our ability. It's beyond our capability. See, if you're living in the realm.
As a Christian person of Of what you think your life is going to be and what you think you can do, you will always be limited. Matter of fact, you'll most likely end up behind the stone. One day in a place that you don't want to be. But you see the point is God is glorified. When he takes you and me.
And he makes us into what we could never be. He takes us where we could never go. He gives us what we could never have possessed. Hallelujah. Hallelujah.
Hallelujah. And then we shout, and then we glorify, and then we, like the young lady danced on the platform. I hear she had a reason for that today, too, as well. But I'm telling you. If you will hear what he's saying.
This is my son. Hear him. And when Jesus looks at you... And wherever you are, Whatever place you're in. Does he weep?
Or does he call? And you move towards the sound of his voice. Years ago, in this prayer meeting on Wednesday night, there was a young girl and she was at home and she's on the floor in her living room or some room in her house, and she's got a laptop open and she's watching this prayer meeting. And she's hopelessly addicted to alcohol. A relative of hers walked into the room and said, Stop listening to those stupid people.
They're not going to be able to help you. You've always been addicted. You will always be addicted. And she said, to this person, but you don't understand. This man is telling me I could have a new life.
And when God called her that night, she got up. She was set free. From her addiction. Came to this Bible school. Graduated after two years and is living for God today.
Brought out of darkness and into life. You don't listen to the voices. The voices that are saying don't believe this. It's too late.
You're too addicted, you're too far gone, you're too depressed, you're too broken. You've made too many mistakes. The list of all your struggles and flaws is too long. Don't listen to those voices. Only one voice matters.
It's the voice of God, and you will become what He says you will become. You will do what He says you will do. Lazarus, I'm telling you, he didn't have a diploma. Didn't have a litany of great successes in the previous four days that he'd been in the grave. And no doubt he did stink.
But he heard the voice of God, and when he heard the voice of God, as best as he could, he got up. He was all wrapped up and he kind of waddled out like this, I'm sure, and he walked out. His face is all wrapped up. And he stood there. And you can just imagine the people in the graveyard.
And that's what I'm hoping is going to happen to you, sir, to you, ma'am, to you, young person, to you, older person online. That God will do something so powerful in your life that people will go, they will be astounded. And then Jesus gave instructions. He said, loose him and let him go. Loose him and let him go.
Take the bandages of death off of him and just let him go. Praise be to God. I remember as a young Christian one time I was visiting. The church And I was a bit taken aback at how flatlined they were in their worship. I mean, flatline, you're just singing songs, but no expression.
Just very, very, very flat.
So I waited until the service was over. I waited till everybody was gone. Pastor Teresa was there, she remembers. And I ran the aisles and I said, He lives, he lives, Christ Jesus lives today. He walks with me and talks with me along life's narrow way.
He lives, he lives, salvation's you impart. You ask me how I know he lives, he lives within my heart. Hallelujah. Hallelujah, hallelujah. Glory to God.
I had to worship him. I had to get it out because I had to honor him that day for what he had done and was doing in my life. I am just simply not willing to be flatlined with those who just choose not to believe when God speaks. They choose religion over relationship. They choose just staying behind the stone than coming out into public view and acknowledging, yeah, I do need to be unwrapped.
What will be your story? That's the question I think God put on my heart. Will your life bring about a rejoicing? You see, the scripture says that later on Lazarus was sitting at table with Jesus, and people were coming to that gathering. More so to see Lazarus even than Jesus, because this report went out that this man who was dead is now alive.
Let that be your report. Oh God. It's time for the Lord to do what the Lord can do again. It's time. My my part.
And your part. is get up and go forward. Like he does the rest. He'll unwrap you. He'll let you go.
But your part is to hear his voice. And don't say no. To God. When I was in the hospital, a medical person came to see me. One one night And said, I'm under deep conviction.
And I said, Why? He said, I'm a Christian. But I'm not I'm not living in sin, but I'm not living the life that God wants me to live. And so we talked about that for a little while, and then he said to me, What do I need to do? And I said, the only thing you need to do right now is just say yes.
Yes to what? I said, I don't know. Neither do you. But God knows what you're saying yes to. Just say yes.
Yes. Yes, Lord. God, whatever you have for my life, yes, Lord. I said, He knows where you live, He knows your cell phone number, He'll get a hold of you. That's his job.
Your job is to say yes. You say yes, he does the rest. That'd be a good slogan, wouldn't it be? You say yes, he does the rest. There's a good song.
Get right a song about that, right? I know you're going to do it. You say yes, and he'll do the rest. Praise God. Praise God.
Just say yes when God speaks. No excuses. No quoting Scripture without believing it. No more pushing away the voice of God. Just say So I'm going to start.
Here's how it begins. It starts by admitting that you need a Savior. Really simple. And most of you I have no problem admitting that. I need a Savior.
I can't save myself. I don't even know what my life is supposed to be. And then it moves to just believing that God Son died on a cross to take your place so that you can be brought back. into relationship with God. And a relationship with God is a supernatural life.
It's a life where you now, once you've believed in Christ, you are infused by the Holy Spirit of God, which is the third person of God. The words that God speaks in the Bible become alive to you, and the Holy Spirit makes these words a reality in your life. 2 Corinthians 5:17, for example, says, If anyone be in Christ, he is a new creation. The old things are passed away. Behold, all things are become new.
You see, it's God's. part to unwrap that and and let you go into it. and make you into that new creation. Your part is simply believe. that Jesus died so you can have this life.
And then just confess him. as Lord and Savior. Jesus I give you my life. You're like this young lady I talked about, maybe hopelessly addicted. hopelessly wounded.
By things that have happened to you or things that perhaps you have done. hopelessly addicted and Bothered in your mind. hopelessly given to despair that things will never change. But Jesus is calling you now. And those things can't define your life anymore.
Because once you give your life to him, He unwraps you. From all of these garments of death that are around you, and he lets you go. into this new life that he promises. not just here, but for eternity. Whoever believes in me We'll live forever.
Do you believe this? Now it's not just like way off then, it starts now and it goes to then. You'll have a life. that only God can give. You'll have a reason to live that can only come from God.
Pray these words with me. Lord Jesus Christ. Thank you for loving me. Thank you for calling me. And bringing me out.
Of a place of death. and bringing me into A newness of life. Jesus Christ. I believe. That you are the Son of God.
I believe. That you gave yourself for me. You died for me.
So that I could live. I believe. At this very moment As I open my heart to you. You are forgiving my sin. You are bringing me into relationship with God.
When I die. I believe that heaven will be my home. And while I live, I believe that God will be my strength. Jesus Christ. You are the Lord of my life.
Amen. Thank you for joining us this week for A Call to the Nation with Carter Conlon from Times Square Church in New York City. For more information, log on to tsc.nyc. That's tsc.nyc. You can count on a powerful message each week on a call to the nation with Carter Conlon.
