It was two days before Lent and my wife Julie asked me what I was planning to give up for Lent. If I’ve learned one thing in my 20 years of marriage, it’s that the correct response to this question is this, “What do you think I should give up for Lent dear?” Without hesitation, she said, “being late.” My wife’s Lenten prescription for me was diagnosed after suffering through this shortcoming of mine since we started dating in high school. Wanting to stay a married man, I committed to giving up being late for Lent.
When it comes to sticking with what you gave up for Lent, I hope you are doing better than I am. I started off Ash Wednesday by getting my kids to school late. I was beating myself up about being late for Lent and then I started reflecting on today’s Gospel reading. In today’s Gospel reading, did you notice who shows up later than expected? … That’s right, Jesus. Man, do I love Jesus.
Jesus has a way of taking that which we most hate about ourselves and finds a way to redeem it with his grace if we let him. The more this story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead goes on, the more Jesus reveals about his grace, his humanity, and his divinity. Like any good story, this story answers the questions we have about Who, what, when, where, and why?
Since I’ve been talking about timeliness, let’s start off by looking at the question of “when.” When Jesus showed up, was he late? Consider and be open to the possibility that sometimes, like in this story, the expectations and timing of the world are out of sync with God’s timing. Jesus’ timing is always better than our timing. We do not see the future. Jesus does.
Jesus knew that raising Lazarus from the dead after he had been dead for four days would be a better miracle than Jesus healing Lazarus of his illness before he died. Jesus knows that this greater miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead would result in more people believing in him as the source of their salvation than if he had instead healed Lazarus of his illness before he passed away. Jesus shows us his wisdom by waiting so that an even greater miracle could occur than the healing miracle Martha and Mary wanted for their brother Lazarus.
I’m struck by how sad it is that Martha and Mary were so fixated on their expectations of Jesus to show up and heal Lazarus before he died that they missed out on the opportunity to be fully present with their brother at the intimate and sacred moment of his death. Instead of being Jesus’ peaceful and loving presence for their brother at this moment, Martha and Mary were likely fixated on the future and what they expected to happen next asking themselves and one another, “when is Jesus going to hurry up and get here? He should have been here by now?” Then, when Jesus does show up, instead of being fully present with Jesus and the grace he is trying to bring into their lives and their dead brother’s life, they are fixated on the past saying to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”
In our own lives, how often are we not fully present with those who are in front of us at the moment? This could be either because we are fixated on what we think should happen next in the future like the next meeting we have to hurry up and get to or when someone shows up later than we expected for an appointment and instead of showing them grace and being fully present with them, we are fixated on the past and the resentment we feel for them showing up later than when we expected. When we live in the future or the past like this, we let our expectations get in the way of receiving and giving the grace Jesus is trying to bring into our lives in the present.
Second, let’s focus on the question of “who?” Who receives the greatest miracle in the story? I don’t know about you, but I sometimes doubt my ability to bring someone who is dead back to life. While we may doubt our ability to raise someone from the dead, we may paradoxically be more likely to believe in our ability to do the greatest miracle Jesus does in this story.
Let me explain. If we asked Jesus what was the greatest miracle he did in this story, I believe raising Lazarus from the dead would not be his answer. You see, when Jesus brought Lazarus back to life, he presumably died again, as I think we would have heard about it if there was a 2,000-year-old man still walking the earth. So, Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead was temporary and it cost Jesus nothing to do this miracle. Contrast this with what I think Jesus would say was his greatest miracle in this story. Jesus increased Martha’s faith, which resulted in her making the profession of faith that she believes he is Lord and the Christ and that those who believe in him will never die. Jesus increasing Martha’s faith in him has implications for life for eternity. Giving Martha eternal life would cost Jesus everything on the cross.
Third, let’s focus on the question of where. After Jesus increases Marth’s faith, Jesus asks about Lazarus saying “Where have you laid him?” Jesus’ question of “where” is an echo God in the Garden of Eden asking Adam and Eve “where are you?” after they sinned. Before they sinned, there was no disease or death. When they sinned, Adam and Eve ushered into the world the disease that Lazarus caught and the death he died. The ultimate consequence of sin is death. After Lazarus has died, Jesus asks this same question of where as he is searching for Lazarus in much the same way God was searching for Adam and Eve seeking to restore the life-giving relationship that was intended from before time began. Jesus is still searching for us sinners today. Maybe in a particular way during this penitential season of Lent, Jesus’ presence can be found in the confessional this Lent seeking seeking to reconcile his relationship with us asking “where are you?”
Fourth, let’s look at the question of “what?” What makes Jesus weep? Sin does. Jesus, of course was fully human and fully divine. With his weeping we see Jesus’ humanity on full display. The people see Jesus weep and they say, “see how he loved him.” Jesus felt what it was like to lose a friend and when we weep at the death of a friend of loved one, Jesus’ tears mingle with our tears.
With his weeping, we also see Jesus’ divinity on display. Jesus doesn’t weep to lecture us. Jesus doesn’t weep to fix us. Jesus doesn’t weep because he is upset with us. He weeps because he knows what life was supposed to be like. Jesus knows from before time began that the original plan was that we were not supposed to die. When his friend Lazarus dies, there is something that moved in the Son of God that only God would know, because God knows what we were like before we humans even begin to sin. He knows what we were made for and he knows what we have become as the result of sin and he is not okay with it. It is as if Jesus is saying with his weeping, if you would only let me save you, there wouldn’t be a need for so much pain and suffering and death. If you would let me come to you, I can heal it. Jesus’ tears are not paralyzing tears. He sits there in this place of weeping, but he doesn’t stay there. The same should be true for us, we weep because of death, but we don’t stay there. We move onto the resurrection from the death.
Fifth, let’s look at the question of “why?” Why is this story relevant for our lives? There is one meeting for which we won’t be late. For our meeting with Jesus after we take our last breath. In this moment, we are dead and we can’t bring ourselves back to life. There is only one person who can bring us back to life.
Jesus said, “Lazarus come out” and even death must obey his command. Lazarus was living proof walking around that Jesus was who he said he was. Lazarus was evidence of Jesus’ ability to bring us back to life. I don’t care who you are or where you are, Jesus can call you back to life. The same power that raised Lazarus from the dead and that raised Jesus from the dead will be living inside us in a few moments when we receive Jesus in the Eucharist. Then, we like Lazarus, will become the living testimony of the glory of God walking around.
We have two more weeks before we celebrate Easter. We ask God to help us in being faithful to our sacrificial Lenten practices so we may truly share in the joy of new life Jesus has won for us with his resurrection.