Scripture: John
11:1-53
John 11 is a transition point in this Gospel, and it is at
the end of this chapter that the Pharisees form their plot to kill Jesus.
Before that takes place, however, we see Jesus, who is the resurrection and the
life, confront death and defeat it by raising his friend Lazarus from the
grave. For us in our Lenten journey we see once again that Jesus is the Lord of
Life and that he defeats death for his people promising to raise us up on the
last day.
Teaching
There are many things to notice in this reading; too many to
cover in this little devotion. A couple things, however, might grab out
attention within the theme of death and life. First, notice that Mary and
Martha reached out to Jesus before Lazarus died, and that Jesus chose not to
come in time to heal him. This is difficult for us, for we tend to think that
the worst thing that can happen to a person is for him or her to die. We must
see that God is glorified in the death of his people, because he purpose is to
raise us from death and give us eternal life.
Second, Jesus’ response to Martha, “I am the resurrection
and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and
everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die,” reminds us that life
extends beyond our mortal bodies. To be sure, our bodies are essential to who
we are, and when we are whole we have a body along with our soul - which does
not die. Even when our bodies die as the just reward for our sin our souls live
with the Lord and await the day of resurrection with him.
Life
A woman’s elderly father fell and injured himself, which led
to a downward spiral in his health. When she spoke with her pastor about the
situation, she said that the thing she wanted him to focus on in prayer is that
God would send someone to her father who would share the Gospel with him so he
might come to believe in Jesus. While she wanted her father to be healthy
again, she recognized something of greater importance in the situation: her
father’s eternal life. Often we pray for people to be well, but we should also
pray for people’s salvation, for this is why Jesus died and rose.
Grief is hard for us, even as people who believe in Jesus’
promise of resurrection. We should not expect to face death without negative
emotions. Jesus, himself, wept at Lazarus’s tomb! When our hearts hurt at the
death of a loved one, we can find comfort in Jesus’ emotion and in knowing that
he understands our sorrow. He will hear our prayers and comfort us with his
promise to rescue all his children from death.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, we praise you for raising Lazarus from the grave
and for promising to raise us too. Thank you for giving us eternal life by your
death and for comforting us with your resurrection when we grieve. Please
forgive us for valuing this life over the everlasting life you promise us, and
for the times we have doubted that we would see the glory of God. Please keep
us in faith until that day when we rest with you in glory in the hope that you will
raise the dead. Amen.
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