It is not often that I get to preach on these readings outside of a funeral –
These are all readings suggested a possibilities for readings at a funeral.
It is not often that I am called to preach on these words on a usual Sunday morning,
as we gather to worship & praise & give thanks to God for all God has done for us.
But then again, this isn't a usual, typical Sunday.
It's All Saints Day,
the day the church sets aside every year to remember & honor
those who have gone before us in the faith,
who have, as they say,
entered “the Church Triumphant”
- fancy ways to talk about those who have died.
We have many euphemisms for death, because we don't really like to deal with the stark reality of death & dying. Because death & dying hurt; they are painful; Isaiah speaks about that day when God will destroy the shroud that is over all the people & swallow up death forever, when God will wipe away every tear from all faces; Revelation rejoices at the vision of God coming from the new heaven to dwell with God's people on the new earth & will wipe away every tear from our eyes, when death will be no more; when mourning, and crying and pain will be no more. And we celebrate that vision of life beyond death, we hope for that day to come.
But that doesn't negate the reality that for here, for now, in this life on earth, we have all of those things. God has not yet destroyed the shroud. God has not yet swallowed up death. God has not yet wiped away the tears from our eyes. We who believe hold fast to the promise that there will come a day when mourning and crying and pain will be no more – but right now, all of those things are a very real part of life.
And the gospel of John doesn't sugar coat it for us. When John tells us this story, he doesn't talk about it in pleasant euphemisms, he doesn't mask hurt that we feel in our grief, or the confusion and anger that often comes along when someone we love dies. He just wades right in & tells it how it is.
We pick up the story mid-stream – so if you're not familiar with it, here's what we missed...
Lazarus & Mary & Martha are brother & sisters. They're also friends with Jesus. So way back at the beginning of this chapter, when Lazarus gets sick, it's only natural for Mary & Martha to send for Jesus. “The one you love is ill,” they say. And the unspoken request is to come now, come quickly, before it''s too late. But Jesus doesn't come quickly. He stays where he is for a few days, even knowing that Lazarus is deadly ill, because this, he knows, will be for God's glory.
And when he finally does come, as we catch up to the story here, it's too late. 4 days too late. And Mary & Martha & the crowd are confused and hurt, and yes, even a bit resentful, there is some recrimination towards Jesus in their words – for both Mary & Martha say to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother wouldn't have died.” And in the words of the crowd, “Couldn't this one who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?” We expected you to do something, Jesus, and you let us down. You have come, but you have come too late – You could have done something if you came in time, but it's over - Lazarus is already dead & buried. There's nothing left to do but to cry & mourn & eventually move on.
Death is a powerful enemy.
Death is a powerful enemy, & it holds us bound, just as Lazarus was bound in grave clothes & placed in a cave & buried. Death is a powerful enemy, and it holds sway over us; Death is a powerful enemy, and we live our lives under its shadow. True, we manage to ignore it much of the time, we're good at pretending it's not there, but there are days & times when death comes swooping in, leaving mourning and crying and pain in its wake, reminding us that none of us gets out of here alive.
Death is a powerful enemy, and most of us don't like to talk about it. I bet there are some of us here this morning who are uncomfortable with me bringing up the subject; we have kids here to be baptized, kids who will be sharing communion with us for the first time, and death is an awfully grown-up topic for such young people. But it's not just them we're worried about – I know most of us don't like this subject; I know you weren't expecting to come to church this morning and be reminded of your own mortality. And you're not alone in that - I'd rather not talk about it either. I'd rather talk about easier, more pleasant things.
But if we don't talk about death, if we neglect to speak about our mourning and our crying and our pain, we rob these readings of their powerful witness. Because what all of these words from scripture promise is that though death may be a powerful enemy, God is more powerful still! Death may have power over us, but death will not have the victory in the end. In this life, Death may bind us in fear and pain and worry, but we will NOT be bound forever.
For God has promised to destroy this shroud of death that covers all people.
God has promised to one day swallow up death forever.
God has promised that one death, death will be no more;
mourning, and crying and pain will be no more!
And God – does – not – lie!
God has not given us an empty promise
– God has already acted.
For God has sent us Jesus.
Jesus who comes to Mary & Martha as they mourn,
Jesus who weeps with them as they weep.
Jesus, who does not stop there but goes with them to the tomb,
Jesus, who will not be stopped by a stone or a stench,
Jesus, who stands outside the place of death
and cries out in a loud voice,
“Lazarus, come out!”
Come out from darkness into light,
come out from despair into hope,
come out from death into new life!
This is the Jesus who comes to us this morning,
comes to us in the face of our fears,
in the face of the mourning and weeping and pain of our lives,
Jesus who comes to us, no matter where we may be
– for there is no place you can be that Jesus is not already with you! -
Jesus who sees the tears you cry and cries with you,
Jesus, who does not stop there,
but comes with you to the tombs of your lives,
whoever or whatever it is that has died,
whether it is a person or a relationship or a dream -
Jesus, who will not be stopped by a stone or a stench,
even when it seems way beyond “too late”,
Jesus who CAN NOT be stopped by the power of death –
because Jesus IS the resurrection and the life –
this is Jesus,
who stands outside the places of death
and cries to us in a loud voice,
“Child of God, come out!”
Come out from the darkness into the light,
come out from despair into hope,
come out from death into my new life!
Come out, and be set free!
Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment