Today's Scripture Readings
Ezekiel 37:1-14 (NRSV)
The hand of the Lord came upon me, and he brought me out by the spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me all around them; there were very many lying in the valley, and they were very dry. He said to me, "Mortal, can these bones live?" I answered, "O Lord GOD, you know." Then he said to me, "Prophesy to these bones, and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. I will lay sinews on you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live; and you shall know that I am the Lord."
So I prophesied as I had been commanded; and as I prophesied, suddenly there was a noise, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. I looked, and there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them; but there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, "Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, mortal, and say to the breath: Thus says the Lord GOD: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live." I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood on their feet, a vast multitude.
Then he said to me, "Mortal, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, `Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are cut off completely.' Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD: I am going to open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people; and I will bring you back to the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people. I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you on your own soil; then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken and will act," says the Lord.
Psalm 130 (BCP., p.784).
Romans 8:6-11 (NRSV)
To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For this reason the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God's law-- indeed it cannot, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
But you are not in the flesh; you are in the Spirit, since the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in you.
John 11:1-45 (NRSV)
Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair; her brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent a message to Jesus, "Lord, he whom you love is ill." But when Jesus heard it, he said, "This illness does not lead to death; rather it is for God's glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it." Accordingly, though Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, after having heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was.
Then after this he said to the disciples, "Let us go to Judea again." The disciples said to him, "Rabbi, the Jews were just now trying to stone you, and are you going there again?" Jesus answered, "Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Those who walk during the day do not stumble, because they see the light of this world. But those who walk at night stumble, because the light is not in them." After saying this, he told them, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going there to awaken him." The disciples said to him, "Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will be all right." Jesus, however, had been speaking about his death, but they thought that he was referring merely to sleep. Then Jesus told them plainly, "Lazarus is dead. For your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him." Thomas, who was called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also go, that we may die with him."
When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, some two miles away, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them about their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, while Mary stayed at home. Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask of him." 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. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" She said to him, "Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world."
When she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary, and told her privately, "The Teacher is here and is calling for you." And when she heard it, she got up quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet come to the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. The Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary get up quickly and go out. They followed her because they thought that she was going to the tomb to weep there. When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved. He said, "Where have you laid him?" They said to him, "Lord, come and see." Jesus began to weep. So 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?"
Then Jesus, again greatly disturbed, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. Jesus said, "Take away the stone." Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, "Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead four days." Jesus said to her, "Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?" So they took away the stone. And Jesus looked upward and said, "Father, I thank you for having heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me." When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!" The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, "Unbind him, and let him go."
Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what Jesus did, believed in him.
Blog Reflection
There are few conversations that most human beings do not like to have. One conversation no one likes to talk about is death and/or dying. Many people in their early years try to get educated, begin a career, start a family thinking that the sky is the limit in life. Many like to believe that if they only earn enough money, get the best car, eat all the right foods their life will be prolonged. The reality of life is, that nothing in life is really a guarantee, except for one thing. Some day, each of us will die.
The Gospel narrative of the death and raising of Lazarus, brings us with Jesus, to look at death in the face. Depending on where the reader understands the reading, it seems that when Jesus heard that Lazarus was sick and dying, He was not very concerned. Why would this man who has healed many people from every disease imaginable, drove the money changers out of the temple and raised Jarius' child from death; not rush to the side of Lazarus before he died? Don't Mary and Martha have a point when they tell Jesus upon arrival after Lazarus died; that if Jesus had been there their brother would not have died?
Jesus, being true to His purpose of being on earth, has other intentions. In so doing, Jesus shows us all that just when we think we know how things ought to be, God has other plans. When our lives are turned upside down, that's when God is closest to us. Even when we do not see or feel anything happening.
At the point that Jesus prays for those around Him, and raises Lazarus, He has told us all how much God loves each of us. God loves us so very much, that in Jesus Christ: God's perfect revelation of Self, our death is not the last word. Rev. David Sellery in Speaking to the Soul wrote:
Before Jesus came among us, Death was the grim reaper, the all-powerful terminator come to extinguish us all. Jesus changes all of that. Death is not the dreaded conclusion to a meaningless existence. Our fate is not extinction. Death is a beginning, not an end. It is our passage to a life that will never end. Death came into the world through sin. It was conquered by the Sinless.
In two weeks from today, we will celebrate Easter Day. Here at the raising of Lazarus, Jesus puts a face and a name on those who have died. This means that whatever we might be facing in our health, our relationships or in life in general, as long as we put our faith in Jesus Christ and trust in God's mercy, everything and anything is only a passing guest. It may hurt us to the core, but it does not have the final say over us. Each day, moment and event that happens to us in daily life is a moment to encounter the saving grace of God. God's work of salvation in our lives is always at work in and through us.
Grace and salvation are not just something that are a matter of Baptism or the sinner's prayer. They are not only about praying, reading or worshiping God. Grace and salvation are also about seeking the common good of each other, whether it is convenient or not. The grace of God reaches out through us to the poor, the oppressed and the marginalized. If Jesus did not even marginalize the dead such as Lazarus, then we have no business marginalizing anyone for any reason. Jesus shows us that not even the tomb is strong enough to keep God from saving the lost of this world. So, not even the Supreme Court's horrible decision regarding campaign financing this week, the Archbishop of Canterbury's outrageous statement about LGBT people and Africa or any other reason should keep us from believing what God can do through us out of gratitude for our redemption.
As we walk through this Fifth Week in Lent, let us all take some time to reflect on what the Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ means in our lives. How do we live in our relationships with each other, and those who are different from us in ways that reflect our belief in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior?
Whatever darkness or tomb we may be in today. Whatever it is that pinches our hearts and shakes our minds. Whatever is going on between us and those we love, making us feel like all hope is lost, Jesus has one question for us. "I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"
Amen.
Prayers
Almighty God, you alone can bring into order the unruly
wills and affections of sinners: Grant your people grace to
love what you command and desire what you promise; that,
among the swift and varied changes of the world, our hearts
may surely there be fixed where true joys are to be found;
through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with
you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. (Book of Common Prayer, p.219).
Eternal Lord God, you hold all souls in life: Give to your
whole Church in paradise and on earth your light and your
peace; and grant that we, following the good examples of
those who have served you here and are now at rest, may at
the last enter with them into your unending joy; through
Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the
unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. (Book of Common Prayer, p.253).
Almighty God, we entrust all who are dear to us to thy
never-failing care and love, for this life and the life to come,
knowing that thou art doing for them better things than we
can desire or pray for; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Book of Common Prayer, p.831).
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