Today’s readings turn our attention to life, which is not just the opposite of death but is life in its fulness, life in the Spirit. In effect, this means being truly alive because of our relationship with God through our commitment to the values of the Spirit.
Ezekiel 37:12-14 This passage follows the episode of the raising of the dry bones. Ezekiel tells how God spoke to him in a vision and promised that defeated Israel would be lifted from its exile and raised again to its former status. The Lord showed him a valley that was littered with the bones of dead warriors and asked the prophet if it was possible for these bones to rise up as living human beings. Ezekiel acknowledged that God could do anything and immediately the bones rattled into order and rose up as reconstituted human beings.
God pointed out that this was an allegory of Israel being restored to its former life as a nation. The divine promise was that the spirit of the Lord would give new life to the nation and restore the people to their homeland. All this would happen to prove the power of the Lord and the efficacy of the Lord’s protection.
The whole point of the vision was to show Ezekiel that restoration should produce a new spirit in the people of Israel so that they would never again worship false gods and would never allow injustice to flourish in their land. The vision is an example of a dramatically illustrated prophecy.
We can read this and think, ‘Nice try!’ but even with the best resolutions it is hard for human nature to stay on the straight and narrow. It would be safe to bet on Israel submitting again to corruption and self-serving behaviour. After all, that’s the story of human weakness.
Psalm 130 This psalm comes from the depths of an overwhelming feeling of national failure. The poet is really speaking for the nation and admits that its record of keeping faith with God is fairly abysmal, particularly in areas like authentic worship, corruption and justice in society, especially for the disadvantaged. But there is hope. There is supreme confidence that God will not abandon humanity but will leave open the pathway to a return to the Lord and restoration.
Romans 8:8-11 Paul makes no bones about the fact that people whose lives are fixated on self cannot have room to focus on spiritual things. There is no outgoing spirit or habit of reaching out to others where the values of the Spirit are buried in self-absorption. He commends the Roman Christian community for being driven by the spirit of Christ.
The mindful can switch off common distractions to have moments of connection with the Spirit.
When he describes the Romans as being ‘spiritual’ he is not talking about being pietistic or even devout. Rather, he means being open to the transformation that comes about when we are attentive to the movement of the Spirit. It is the mindful who can switch off common distractions to have moments of connection with the Spirit. And this involves listening, by way of good reading, tuning into podcasts that promote solid Christian values and being discerning in our choice of entertainment and information.
Here is a short anecdote about good reading. A grandfather established a very simple practice: every evening he read aloud to his grandchildren—stories of courage, kindness, and sacrifice. Years later, one grandchild said, ‘I didn’t realise it at the time, but that’s where I learned what a good person looks like.’ It doesn’t take much to set up good habits. In fact, the best way to put a stop to a bad habit is not to just resolve to stop, but to replace it with a good habit.
Paul is writing here about growing to wholeness by living out the values of Christ. And this comes back to the old truism: To know him is to love him. And how can we know him if we don’t actually take steps to read about him and listen to what he has to say about authentic living?
John 11:1-45 We are all pretty familiar with the story of Lazarus being raised to life, but what really matters is what can we learn from this episode? What is John trying to get across to his listeners/readers. It is worth recalling that at the end of the first century when this gospel was circulated not many ordinary folk could read. Parts of this gospel would be read out in the weekly assemblies and explained to the gathering by a community leader or scholar.
This account is about the seventh and last sign in the Gospel of John. In the other three gospels there are many ‘acts of power’ performed by Jesus. We routinely call them ‘miracles’ which is not helpful because of its association with the idea of magic. Jesus is not a magician. For John, the seven signs point beyond themselves to Jesus – who he is, what his mission is and what God is working through him.
The first impression we get is that Jesus was totally at home in the company of Lazarus and his sisters. Secondly, Jesus foreshadows the fact that what was going to happen shortly would say something powerful about the Son of God. Hearing the news that Lazarus had died, Jesus resolved to return to Bethany, just two miles outside Jerusalem. This meant putting himself in danger because he knew the chief priests and Pharisees were gunning for him.
We can understand Martha greeting Jesus and expressing her faith that Jesus could have cured her brother if he had come back sooner. But we are not prepared for the astounding words of Jesus, ‘I am the resurrection.’ And here lies the point of the story. Jesus is declaring that he is the fulfilment of Jewish expectations of the end-time. He previously said that he has power to give life to anyone he chooses (John 5:21) and in this respect he is claiming to be one with the Father.
Authentic faith is indicated by the quality of life that flows from it.
He will demonstrate this power to give life by raising Lazarus from the dead. But he also adds that those who commit to him in faith will have life, a life that has no end. Believing in Jesus, in this gospel, is not simply assenting to the formula, ‘I believe’ but implies committing to a lifestyle that is dictated by the values and expectations of Jesus. Authentic faith is indicated by the quality of life that flows from it.
We next get a glimpse of Jesus’ reaction at the death of Lazarus. He is angry, possibly at the power of death, and then is overwhelmed by grief and sheds tears. Notice how in his exchange with Martha Jesus is addressing us and urging us to faith. Martha represents us who need an explanation of what is going on. Jesus’ prayer to the Father spells out to the witnesses the significance of this sign and underscores the unique relationship he has with the Father.
As Lazarus emerged from the tomb Jesus said to the sisters, ‘Unbind him. Let him go free.’ New life is God-given but growing to freedom involves our participation in our community. Some of those around us can contribute to our unbinding. Being a committed part of a community is our way of allowing others to share in our own healing. There are things we need to let happen in order to grow to wholeness. In addition, there are things we need to be mindful of doing in order to contribute to the unbinding and healing of others.
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You can’t be brave if you’ve only had wonderful things happen to you.
Mary Tyler Moore
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A couple went shopping together just before the holidays. In the chaos of the mall they got separated. The wife called her husband. When he picked up she said, ‘Where are you? We’ve still got a lot to do!’
He said, ‘Remember the jewellery shop we went into about five years ago, when you fell in love with that diamond necklace? We couldn’t afford it at the time, and I said that one day I would get it for you?’
The woman started to get choked up. She wiped a tear from her eye. ‘Yes,’ she said softly. ‘I do remember that shop.’
‘Well, I’m in the video game store next to that.’
Laurie Woods