Lazarus Saturday 2022

Father and Son of the Holy Spirit, how could

we possibly say more after hearing that incredible

account that St. John the theologian gives us?

In just a few words, although it's a long account,

but he's spare in his description. He gives us

everything we need to know. It's very, it's soul

-shaking. I want to start by congratulating all

those who celebrate the anniversary of their

baptism on this blessed day. That God would continue

to strengthen you, to give you zeal and love

for him and your brothers and sisters as you

progress and mature in the Christian life. This

account we heard from St. John in the chapter

11 not only is spare in words and just so shaking,

it rings true, doesn't it? Martha's hope that

Jesus can do anything, then her rebuke to him,

if you had been here, my brother would not have

died. It echoes the universal voice that we hear.

It's the cry of believers and unbelievers too,

who wonder why God allows death and suffering.

Why doesn't God deal with stuff that we know

is important the way we want him to deal with

it? We might stand in wonderment how it is that

the God -man, Jesus Christ, weeps at the death

of his friend, the one he loves, it says. So

clearly in the account, we see that death, which

is something not created by God, the book of

wisdom tells us that, and we know from the account

in Genesis that when God said to Adam and Eve,

when you eat of that, you shall surely die. And

they did die spiritually immediately. They lost

the Holy Spirit, and then they died physically

as time went. And we see that this death which

God did not create, which God does not want,

which is, St. Paul says, is the last enemy to

be overcome. And he shouts out, death, where

is thy sting? Oh, Hades, where is thy victory?

Because since the resurrection, the crucifixion

and the resurrection, the sting and the finality

of death are gone. So when Christ says, he who

believes in me shall never die, the words are

true. But so many of us are married to the idea

of progress. Things should get better. Why are

things not better? Why are things the same? Why

does this these horrible things continue? Why

can't we should be progressing? But that's that's

a devious and terrible and corrupt idea. Because

Christ doesn't compel anyone. He invites. He

loves. He gathers us together. And it's one heart

at a time. It's not a group of people that he

comes to. Your friend Lazarus, the gospel says.

We are his friend. All of humanity is his friend.

Perhaps Jesus still weeps. The hour is coming

in which all who are in the grave will hear his

voice and come forth. We hear in chapter 5 in

the Gospel of John. And now, in order to destroy

death and its grip on humanity, Christ himself,

and this means God himself, love itself, life

itself, and there is no other, raises Lazarus.

not by asking God, his Father, to do it, but

by his own word. Come forth. And he is raised

not as a ghoul or some kind of zombie. This day

is a sign of what is to come the following week.

Scriptures are full of signs. Moses asked for

a sign. God tells him to throw his staff down

and it becomes a snake. Then he says, pick it

up by its tail, which is a very dangerous thing

to do. And he picks it up and becomes a staff.

And this is the sign that he will have authority

and judgment. And the most famous sign of all,

of course, is the sign given to Ahaz, who says,

I don't really want a sign, but he gets it anyway.

Deliverance will come. God will come when a virgin

conceives. and bears a child. And this is the

sign that the hour has come in which all that

are in the grave will hear his voice. And brothers

and sisters, we have been baptized. We have heard

that voice. And our souls, which were under the

stone in the tomb, have come forth and are now

living for the life of the age to come, the kingdom

of God. War has been declared, the right kind

of war. to the right enemy, that is death. The

word that Lazarus was raised from the dead spread

like wildfire, and people came to see him. We'll

hear that in the gospel later. And yes, we come

back to church this evening. The church does

our best to take us through all of Lent. for

example, was this passage so we could come to

Bethany today and then to Jerusalem and then

to Golgotha and then to the tomb. Church does

its best. We just respond. I'm mindful that today

and tomorrow are united by a single hymn, a triparian

we call it, by raising Lazarus from the dead.

You've heard it sung, and you'll hear it sung

many, many times. Our singing of that traparion,

and it is tempered, properly so, and sung with

restraint, with the understanding that these

two days between the end of Lent and Holy Week

were certainly very sorrowful days for our Savior.

For everything he did, was in preparation for

the Passion. And those tears he wept were not

for show. He groaned in his spirit, St. John

says, weeping for the death he sees and for those

who do not hear his voice and come forth. He

did everything not to gain followers, not to

start some kind of religious movement, or to

gain fame. but to save us. It's a very odd combination

of things. These two days are filled with the

shadow cast upon them from Holy Friday, the darkness

and the rebellion, our rebellion, our sin, because

the crucifixion wasn't because of some bad people's

sins, but also... these days also have the light

shining, the revelation of what that cross is,

God's kingdom. And St. Paul says, therefore,

since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot

be shaken, have full trust in God. He's faithful.

Let us have grace by which we may serve God acceptably

with reverence and fear. The master calls thee,

is what Martha said to Mary. The master calls

you and me. He wants me to stay. He wants us

to accompany him through Holy Week. How do we

do that? We simply come back. To our Lord, who

is our life, be glory and honor now and ever

to ages of ages. Amen.