Last Sunday we celebrated the affirmation of baptism for three of our youth. As part of that milestone, we ask them to choose a verse that’s meaningful to them, and we only exclude one verse. It’s the one that shows up in our gospel today: “Jesus began to weep.” In at least two other Bible translations it’s even more succinct, saying simply, “Jesus wept”.
It almost becomes a joke with the students because we hope they’ll remember the verse they chose, and choosing a verse that’s only a couple of words long isn’t much of a challenge.
But I’m rethinking those instructions this morning.
Today, as we celebrate All Saints Day, and we remember people who have died, in our congregation, among our family and friends, and in the wider world, I would guess that more than a few of us are weeping. And I think it is reassuring for us to know that Jesus also wept.
Jesus is fully human and because of that, he experienced the full range of emotions that we have – love for his friends, joy and thanksgiving for the gifts God shares with us, exhaustion from a weary world, anger at injustice, and as we hear in today’s gospel, deep sorrow and grief at the death of a dear friend.
And he is fully divine. Jesus is Emmanuel - God with us - throughout our lives, and bears witness to our tears. God accompanies us in the dark valleys of pain, loss and grief.
But that’s not all. Just as we do, Jesus experienced the helplessness and the heartache of not being able to stop death.
Lazarus died, and the man’s sisters and friends buried him in a tomb. It certainly felt like the worst thing had happened.
Reflecting on the gospel text, I wonder whether each of us can name grave moments we have experienced.
When have we felt like life was over?
When have we felt buried by life’s circumstances?
The wonder of the sign Jesus performs here in John’s Gospel is that, in Frederick Buechner’s words,
The worst isn't the last thing about the world. It's the next to the last thing. The last thing is the best.[i]
The last thing is the resurrection promise that we have new life in Christ.
In his first letter to the Corinthians Paul writes, “The sting of death is sin [and the things that separate us from God]” (15:56) and in the story of the restoration of Lazarus, God triumphs over death. It is a miracle or sign that points to God’s power over the death that threatens us all.
As Lutheran pastor Delmer Chilton says, “Jesus had to go into the tomb so we could come out…. we emerge from the decay and the rot”, new creations, restored to life by God’s love for us.[ii]
That doesn’t mean that the bad stuff doesn’t stink.
It doesn’t mean that death doesn’t sting.
It doesn’t mean that we don’t shed tears.
But it does promise us as our Scriptures say, that God will wipe away our tears (Rev. 21:4) and soothe our spirits. God will be the Comforter we are promised later in John’s gospel. (John 14:16,26)
The author of Revelation assures the community that not only does God live among us, but God is making all things new. (Revelation 21:3-5)
Of course, there’s no promise about God’s timing for all of this. We know from Scripture, and from experience, that it won’t be our timing, but the promise stands.
So, in the meantime, what do we do?
We could blame others, like Mary did when she told Jesus, “If you had been here, my brother would not have died.” (John 11:32)
We could be resigned to our circumstances, like Martha, when she said, “already there is a stench because he has been dead for four days.” (John 11:39)
A better way is to follow Jesus who saw what had happened and talks to God about it. He believes in God’s power to disrupt death, and he calls out, remembering God’s faithfulness and asking God to do what only God can do.
And Lazarus is revived and restored to his family and community.
May we always follow Jesus and have confidence in God’s promises for us
and the world God created, believing that death is not the last thing.
Amen.
[i]
Frederick Buechner, The Beast.
[ii] “All
Saints Sunday, Year B”. The Rev. Delmer Chilton. Lectionary Lab Live Podcast.
