FIFTH SUNDAY OF LENT – A
Ezekiel 37:12-14
Romans 8:8-11
John 11:1-45
There is the occasional athlete who, after winning the championship, will say something like, “I want to give God the glory.” Or maybe it is the recording star at the Grammys who says, “Not to us, but to God give the praise.” Perhaps a lottery winner will say, “Thank you, Lord, for letting me win the lottery.” Certainly, it is a good thing to honor God from whom all blessings flow. While these sentiments are worthy there is something about them that makes me a bit uneasy. I wonder if those who lost the championship or didn’t win the Grammy or had the wrong lottery numbers would also say, “Thank you, Lord, and I give God all the glory.” A few years ago on a retreat a group was reflecting on what led them to have faith in God. One gentleman told the story of his dog getting hit by a car and how, after many prayers, his dog recovered which led him to have faith in God. I remember thinking: what about if the dog died? Would he have lost faith in God?
These questions rise because of the challenge that Martha and Mary threw at Jesus as they were grieving the loss of Lazarus. “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” The presumption behind that thought seems to be that when you have Jesus with you get the raise, you ace all of your tests, you never overcook the beef, the doctor only gives you good news and all your putts go in. Even the most cursory glance at the gospels shows that is not what it means to have Jesus with you. Lord, if you had been here I wouldn’t be full of a sense of loss and grief. No, as a matter of fact Jesus himself is depicted as weeping at the loss of his friend, Lazarus. Having Jesus with you does not eliminate grief. Lord, if you had been here my family would not be driving me crazy. No, the gospels relate that Jesus’ own family were not supportive of what he was doing. Lord, if you were here I wouldn’t have all these money worries. No, Jesus himself said, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests but the son of man has no where to lay his head.” Lord, if you had been here I wouldn’t have these feelings of doubt and loneliness. No, Jesus on the cross prayed, “My God, why have you abandoned me.” The story of Jesus’ own life demonstrates that being with him does not spare one from the worries and troubles that are part of living.
What do we get out of his presence? Why would we want Jesus to be here with us? Our Lord tells the sisters Martha and Mary, and he tells us, what it means to have him as our companion: “I am the resurrection and the life.” He expands that statement a bit later in St. John’s gospel by saying, “I am the way, the truth and the life.” Since Jesus is the way we know that we’re not at the end, that the journey continues. Like any journey there will be ups and downs, twists and turns. But, as Jesus showed when we joined the disciples on the way to Emmaus, he will use our time on the way to enlighten us in the ways of God according to the Scripture and he will invite us to share intimately with him in the breaking of the bread in the Eucharist. What a consolation that in Jesus we have someone who can make a way out of no way. Jesus is the truth, and the truth is that the only way to grow is to change and the only way to grow perfect is to change often. I used to have a poster in college with the saying of Jesus: “the truth will set you free.” Underneath is small print was the addendum: “but first it will make you miserable.” The truth is we are children of God, even when we act like Honey Boo Boo. The truth is that there isn’t anyone out there who isn’t brother and sister to you even if they look or talk or act differently. The truth is that no matter how difficult a slog making it in this world can appear, we are glory bound. In Jesus we find our true selves. And Jesus is the life. In another place Jesus said, “I came that you might have life, and have it to the full.” A full life contains joys and sorrows, sickness and health, better and worse, richer and poorer. A full life includes rejoicing at the crib and weeping at the casket. A full life embraces the love which comes to us in so many surprising ways. Jesus is with us in giving the life which reflects the amazing grace of the whole of human experience.
Since Jesus is the resurrection, since he is way, the truth and the life we can amend the statement of Martha and Mary. “Lord, since you are here, we can face the prospect of sickness and death with serenity. Lord, since you are here, we reach out to your brothers and sisters, particularly those who are hurting. Lord, since you are here, we know that there is nothing we can’t face together.” We just might want to add to that prayer, Lord, help us to hold out until our change comes.
