John 11:1-45.                     The glory in death???                                                     6/4/14

 {21} "Lord," Martha said to Jesus, "if you had been here, my brother would not have died. {22} But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask." {23} Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again." {24} Martha answered, "I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day." {25} Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; {26} and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" {27} "Yes, Lord," she told him, "I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world."

{39} "Take away the stone," he said. "But, Lord," said Martha, the sister of the dead man, "by this time there is a bad odour, for he has been there four days." {40} Then Jesus said, "Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?
Jesus called in a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!" {44} The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, "Take off the grave clothes and let him go." {45} Therefore many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, put their faith in him.

 Here on the road to Easter we are once again confronted with the big issue of life for us as human beings. Death! The harsh, sobering reality of death. Lazarus is dead: he is already ‘on the nose.’ Sinful humanity; you and me, are dead: already ‘on the nose.’ Anybody who has been around a dead animal knows the smell. It is awful. Anything associated with death is an awful experience.  The closer it is to us the worse is the stench.

 Here, look around you. Smell the stink of dead men walking. Nothing is surer than the fact that we are all going to die. The little child drowns as it falls out of a boat. The tragic car accident that claims the life of another three people. The horrible suffering of another, gradually succumbing to the ravages of cancer. The last frail breath of a ninety year old as her life passes from her. Also consider those who have given up on life and turned to drink or drugs; and hopelessness of many a life. It stinks!

 Death is all around; waiting on our doorstep for its time to take us also. It is always there; and it stinks! We hate it. We fear it; we try and hide from it. We spend billions of dollars on seeking to find a cure for it. But it is always still there. And it will claim us all sooner or later. None of us will escape. What a horrible, gut-wrenching thing this is for us here to have to think about: to constantly live with.

 Yet, it is right here, that we hear from this reading something which is absolutely amazing. Absolutely fantastic. This Jesus has the grave of Lazarus opened and out of that stinking hell-hole walks a man in grave-clothes. Lazarus has been raised from the dead. This Jesus has mastery over death. The last and greatest despair of humanity has been shattered. This Jesus truly is the great hope for us as human beings. Now we can have eternal youth and the very best of everything. Now everything will be OK. Now there is no need to fear death.

 Here we see the power of God at work. Here we now have One that we can truly believe in and look up to. Here we have One who can really help us out with the troubles and difficulties of life. Here in Jesus there is One who can make the dead come alive. This surely is the One in whom we can now put our faith in. Here we have the answer and the hope that we need.

 ‘But what a great fairy story this is. [is the thinking of many around us]. Where is this world of the dead raised and of us being given everything that we miraculously need.’ Tell this event to people out there who have lost their spouse. Tells this story of Lazarus, to the parents of the little child drowned. Tell of the miracles, to the man dying of cancer. We long for it all to be true; but it is not there. We long for the reality of it in our lives, but we are left frustrated again and again.

 Obviously we need people like Jesus today to do these miracles for us, but they are not there. We need more miracle workers. We need a church that will display all this goodness. We want it and we want it now. We want to have what we want so that we can enjoy ourselves free of suffering and pain. But it is not there. The miracle workers have defrauded us and let us down. We have been ripped off once again.

 Yes even this Jesus was a fraud. For he went from Lazarus to Jerusalem and there, himself, was put death. There he was hung as the worst of criminals on the cross to die a most pitiful of deaths. Death has won again. There instead of establishing his kingdom; throwing out the Romans and giving humanity everything we want; he allows himself to be killed. Death and evil has won completely this time. As a result many have come to the conclusion that Christianity is a nonsense.

 But!  But, Jesus however did not stay dead. That is true Christianity’s great message; this Jesus who died on the cross, was three days later raised from the dead. Death does not have mastery of this Jesus; it cannot hold him or destroy him. He surely then is the Lord of life and death. He is God Almighty himself; supreme over all. Sin, death and devil are overcome by him and his death and resurrection. To God be the glory great things he has done, indeed.

 Now this life and death of ours has much, much more in store. Lazarus was raised from the dead only to die again. But now all who are connected to this Jesus have the absolute assurance that now nothing in all creation can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. At our baptism’s we were joined to him and his death and resurrection. Spiritually we died with him and were also raised to eternal life with him. Death now is not the end of the story for us.

 We now have the assurance that our life will go on for all eternity. We now are connected to that life which is in every way ideal. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain. Everything that will be good for us is there; laid on for us: Pure peace, joy, security, contentment and much more, all there for us. By the sure promises of God Almighty himself, this now is all in store for us. So much to have in store for and to be assured of! This now is truly great.

 Yes sure, we don’t experience all of this now as we live out our life here on this earth. We still have to suffer through our daily struggles of life and we still have to face our physical death. But now they are good for us. Yes, good for us. For all of this bad stuff that happens to us in this life are all the results of and reminders of us sinful human beings doing what is bad for us. It is our choosing to be sinful and rebellious. They are reminders to us that we need a saviour; a way out from ourselves and the disasters that we bring on ourselves.  This life cannot overcome death, because we daily sin much. But as we now suffer; as we now face our death, we are turned away from ourselves, to look to Jesus Christ alone as our one sure hope.

 In many ways we are now like Lazarus when he stepped out of that tomb covered in his grave clothes. We too are wrapped in the constant reminders of death. We are the walking dead, who have been given the word of life. We long to be free from the shackles of sin and death, and are waiting to be taken from this world of sin, to truly live a life that knows no death. We know that it is but a few short breaths away. Just think how quickly the years have already passed for us as individuals. Even sooner will the time ahead pass, till we are free; raised to eternal glory.

 As a result, we don’t need miracles now, for we have the greatest miracle of all extended to us. We have forgiveness of sins, life and salvation. We have the certainty of a resurrection to a new and better life ahead. Nearly all other miracles then, are distractions; taking our focus of our Lord Jesus Christ and that which he has won for us. In fact that now is surely what we long for each and every day of our lives. We want to be with our Lord and Saviour; free from  this life of sin and death. And knowing that it is there for us, we look forward to it. Each trouble, suffering and death, now ever heightens our desire for it.

 Because this is not some ‘fairy story,’ but is based and founded on the certainty of Jesus Christ and his death and resurrection and his promises which he has given with regard to our salvation, we can now wait patiently. Just as surely as we will physically die, now we can be just as certain of our rising to life on the last day.

 So now day by day, week by week, as we are surrounded by the stench of death, we look to our Lord Jesus and all that he has done for us. We daily remember our baptism; we weekly come and receive anew his words of life; and his very body and blood in the Lord’s Supper, so that we might constantly hear those words of life; those words that reassure us of the forgiveness of sins, life and salvation that is there for all who are connected to the Lord Jesus Christ.

All this now is our sure confidence and hope as we live out our life every day. That surely now turns us to look away from ourselves and our trust in humanity and the death it constantly brings on itself. It turns us to give all glory and honour to our Lord Jesus Christ. This truly is the great One who has the power to do all that is necessary in order to ensure that death is not the end for us, but the beginning of all that is good and perfect. Therefore to him alone, belongs all glory and honour, now and always. AMEN

  Pastor Roger Atze

Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish