The Resurrection of Lazarus

Whilst visiting the parish churches of Anglesey where I live I came across this headstone. Most stones are lettered in Welsh in the Anglesey churchyards but this one was different. On reading the details I found that the wife of the man buried here was also placed in his grave when she died. Her name was Ourania, which was unusual. But the clue regarding her birthplace and name was to be found at the bottom right of the headstone. It said in Latin script: "Kalinikta, oniraglika." I immediately realised that the woman must have been Greek because the word, "Kalinikta" is Greek for "Goodnight". I looked up the second word and, as I suspected, it said in English, "Sweet dreams".

This week the Lectionary gospel reading was the story of the raising of Lazarus. It is a tale which speaks volumes about Jesus and his relationship with Lazarus and his sisters, Mary and Martha. They were very close friends. Perhaps the inscription, "Goodnight, sweet dreams" could have represented the way the two women felt at the loss of their brother. We can only guess at their feelings as they grieved over Lazarus.

The gospel tale begins with news coming to Jesus about Lazarus' illness. But Jesus remained where he was after hearing the news. When he did go to Bethany to see the family Lazarus had been in the tomb four days. Upon meeting the two sisters Jesus was very emotional. Their grief seemed to affect him badly. This is how it is among friends at the time of the death of a loved one. Earlier in the gospel passage Jesus said, "Lazarus is dead. I am glad not to have been there; it will be for your good and for the good of your faith. But let us go to him. Quite clearly, Jesus had to go to Bethany because his friends there had need of his presence with them. Martha met him on the way and made her declaration of belief in Jesus as Messiah. On meeting him she said, "Even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will grant you." There is no suggestion of precisely what she meant but she certainly placed her faith in whatever Jesus would do.

Martha then went to Mary and quietly told her that Jesus was here. Immediately Mary got up to meet Jesus. As she spoke to him her tears of grief came out - "If you had only been here, my brother would not have died." She had believed Jesus capable of curing the illness that had overtaken Lazarus. Next Jesus went with them to the tomb entrance and orders the closure stone to be rolled away. After a prayer, Jesus called out to Lazarus, "Lazarus come forth." he came out of the tomb and was helped in removing the grave clothes he wore. Many Jews present saw and belived in Jesus, the Messiah. The rest went back to Jerusalem to report to the Pharisees.

This passage is very important in that it tells us two great things. Firstly, we see the followers of Jesus being prepared for his own resurrection after his death at Calvery. Secondly, it is a reassurance that even when we think we are down and out God can come to us and raise us back to service. In other words, there is nothing we can count impossible for God. There is no such thing as an insurmountable obstacle as we follow Jesus in today's world. We need to know this because we sometimes reach a point from which we think there is no continuing. In his letter to the church in Rome, Paul declares that "there is nothing in all creation that can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." This the lesson of the raising of Lazarus. At no point can we ever say there is no way we can continue. "Nil desperandum" is a Latin expression we hear used in difficult circumstances. "Do not despair" is the message we learn in Bethany. The same message is given at the end of the Book of Revelation. The celestial city remains and the river of life flows down its centre. Even though we suffer terribly at the hands of others we are assured that God has claimed us for his own and will not let go of us when we place our hands in his.

Back in the days of black and white television we used to see the Burns and Allen Show. George Burns and Gracie Allen were the presenters. The late Gracie Allen once said, "Never put a period (full stop) where God places a comma." This is the message in John's Gospel for us today. It is not for us to decide when the job stops - that is God's function. Even in the impossible situation of the death of Lazarus, God wins the day. It is so and will always be so. This is the basis for our faith, that, together with God, we shall win! In the days of the struggles in the Southern States of America the black people kept on singing, "We shall over come some day!" We can count on it through faith in God.