Hidden Warrior - Pastor Bartz

Sermon Text: John 11:33-37

When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. “Where have you laid him?” he asked. “Come and see, Lord,” they replied. Jesus wept. Then the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?”

The passengers all boarded the plane at the same time. The flight attendant scanned all the boarding passes, and everyone walked down the Jetway. If you looked at the people, they all looked normal. But, of course, they were different: men, women, children, old, young, and from different ethnic backgrounds. When the passengers were comfortable in their seats, the attendant welcomed them all on board and welcomed one special passenger. When she announced his name, most did not know who he was, but then she said that he was a veteran who had earned the Medal of Honor for his valor on the battlefield. Everyone was surprised and clapped their appreciation.

Our theme for this Lenten season is about “The Son of God Going Forth to War” that would change the whole world. But Jesus did not look like a warrior any more than the passenger on the plane did. Jesus as our great warrior walked among the people like anyone else. You could say that he was a . . .Hidden Warrior

1. He wept like one of us!

We are told that Jesus was like all of us. He got tired, hungry, and thirsty. When he was a child, he grew up like every other child. “Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and with people.” (Luke 2:52).

But there was one difference. He had no sinful nature and was completely without sin. When he was a child, it must have felt unusual to be his parents. He was always respectful, smart, and obedient.

Peter tells us that we were redeemed (ransomed, purchased) from sin, death, and the devil with “the precious blood of Christ, like a lamb without blemish or spot” (1 Peter 1:19). He goes on to tell us, “he did commit a sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth” (1 Peter 2:22).

As true God, Jesus remained without sin all his life. When he gave himself for us on the cross, we know for certain that his was the absolutely perfect sacrifice!

As true man, there has never been a human being like Jesus! Again, you couldn’t tell he was sinless by looking at him.

· Jesus felt compassion for others, he wept,

· and he even got angry when his Father’s house was turned into a market.

But if someone had paid really close attention, they might have seen that he was different. As a 12-year-old, Jesus went with his family just as they always had every year to Jerusalem for the Passover (Luke 2:41). But Jesus showed he had come for the battle to come. As he engaged the temple teachers in truth discussions, they could see that from all outward appearances Jesus looked like your average sixth grader. But the words that came from his mouth gave evidence that he was much more! These temple teachers were getting the first recorded peek at the hidden side of Jesus.