This is a very special celebration because today we have the scrutinies for our catechumens, our brothers and sisters who will be part of the church, here joining the people of God in just two weeks. So we are excited and we are looking forward to that day. It's so beautiful to see how, in this community the Holy Spirit works in the hearts of many. And what a beautiful Gospel passage the church offers us today, the resurrection of Lazarus. In John’s Gospel, this is the climax of Jesus’ miracles but an expensive one because it cost Jesus His life. This miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead was the “straw that broke the camel’s back” for Jesus’ opponents.
Because of this miracle, the people applauded Jesus on his way to Jerusalem in what we know as Palm Sunday. This miracle turned on the ignition that would lead to Jesus’ arrest and death. Yet, with all of its power and drama, this miracle carries a teaching of Jesus to you and me that is central to Lent, to Easter and to the Christian life. It must have an awesome, magnificent moment, to see Jesus facing the tomb and commanding “Lazarus, come forth!” Suddenly, out of the shadows, a bound body emerges. Jesus says, “Untie him and let him go free.” And Lazarus comes back to life and is set free. It is a splendid example of Jesus’ power over life and death.
There are many Christians who readily believe that Jesus will give them eternal life when they die (and that is a truth of enormous power, peace and hope) but they live as if He has no power to give them new life now. They are like Martha saying, “Lord, I know that Lazarus will rise on the last day,” not realizing that Jesus can raise him that very moment. If Jesus has the power to give us life after we are dead then He certainly has the power to give us life here and now. Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead in such a public and dramatic way to show His power over all kinds of life and over all kinds of death.
There is not only biological death that signals the end of our life here. There is also such a thing as spiritual death. We can have biological life as our heart is beating, our lungs are breathing, our brain waves are active, blood rushes in our veins but spiritually we are dead. Our life may have lost purpose and direction. We have no conscious relationship with God. Our spirit is deadened, trapped by sin, addiction, obsessions and fatal attractions.
We can be among the living dead. These are the people who live in tombs. These may not be tombs of stone but they are still tombs. From these tombs, Jesus calls us to come forth. When Jesus says that He is the Resurrection and the Life, the Lord is teaching us that the critical moment in every human life is not the moment of puberty, not the moment of our first job, not the moment of a promotion, not the moment of marriage, not the moment of giving birth but the moment when we turn from unbelief to real belief in Jesus Christ. That moment is decisive because it connects us to Jesus Christ in a very personal way. Jesus becomes not a distant figure but Someone close to us and involved in our life. From Him, we receive a new kind of life that is stronger than death because it is Jesus’ own life that we call grace.
When we place ourselves in the hands of Christ and His truth, we start to emerge from the darkness. The bonds around us by which we are bound are loosened as grace enters our life. It is the moment when we open ourselves to the power of Christ. There are moments when Jesus calls out to us.
From the tomb of separation from God, Jesus calls us in the sacrament of Baptism to “Come forth” to union with God.
From the tomb of private spirituality, Jesus calls us in the sacrament of Confirmation to “Come forth” to a public expression of Faith.
From the tomb of sin, Jesus calls us in the sacrament of Penance to “Come forth” to a renewed life of grace.
From the tomb of isolation, Jesus calls us in the sacrament of the Eucharist to “Come forth” to a life of communion with Him and with His Church.
From the tomb of anxiety in illness, Jesus calls us in the sacrament of the Eucharist to “Come forth” to join our illness to His redeeming work.
From the tomb of self-absorption, Jesus calls us in the sacraments of Marriage and Holy Orders to “Come forth” to sacrificial love.
Can you place yourself in the position of Lazarus, bound up in the darkness and spiritually lifeless? Then you can hear the words of Jesus to you in this Gospel, in every sacrament and every Mass, “Come forth!”
We know Jesus can bring people to new life. We have heard their stories. The history of the Church and of every parish is filled with empty tombs. Jesus can do that for you and me. The miracle of Lazarus coming to life is the promise of new spiritual life that Jesus can give to you and me. Jesus gives us a new kind of life that conquers any kind of death.
The point of this Lazarus Gospel is that Jesus is indeed the Resurrection and the Life, our Resurrection and our Life! And maybe, just maybe, this year this church will be our Bethany where we will come back to life!!
