"The Resurrection and the Life"

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Death is unnatural. Contrary to what you may hear from many popular sources nowadays, death is not a part of life. Rather, death is the exact opposite of life, the enemy of life, even. Death is not a natural process, nor is it something to be embraced, celebrated, or taken lightly. Death is the result of sin, and the fruit of the devil's work upon Adam and Eve so long ago in the garden.

Martin Luther was no stranger to death. He saw the death of many of his friends and colleagues, and ministered to many of the faithful as they lay dying from the Plague. He delivered more than a few funeral sermons in his career. And one thing that is striking about Luther's preaching in those cases is that he encouraged Christians to mourn and grieve. At the death of Frederick the Wise, Elector of Saxony, Luther said that those who stifled their grief were uncaring and deceitful. Rather, grief, in moderation, is entirely appropriate for the Christian, because in the process of death, we are bereft of something very precious. Death means a loss. Death causes a hole in our lives and our hearts where that person had been. Death is a reality, and it is difficult. And so we are right to grieve for what we have lost.

Death is difficult to accept. We do everything we can to avoid death. Our pharmacies are packed with pills, powders, and elixirs, each one promising more and better life in this form or that. It seems like half the commercials you see on TV are for some new neat potion to alleviate this, that, or the other – as long as you are willing to risk tuberculosis in order to relieve your arthritis pain.

And of course there are the diets and workouts. Eat this food six times a day. Do these exercises twelve times a week. Go here. Drink that. Follow these steps, and you will be healthy, wealthy, and wise. Just look at this beautiful model in this glossy magazine – don't you want to be like him?

One sector of our economy that has not seemed to suffer much is the medical technology world. Scientists are ever hard at work developing new and better gadgets to improve or lengthen our lives. Just consider the state of medicine from a century ago. Gone are the ether and chloroform. Gone are smallpox and polio. We think nothing of multiple-organ transplants or radical radiation therapy. The world of today spends a fortune on these things. And, if these things fail to save us, for enough money you could pay to have your terminally ill body frozen in suspension, to be reanimated when they discover a cure for what ails you.

In similar fashion, the family and friends of Lazarus pleaded with Jesus that he not die. They sent word to Jesus that Lazarus was on his death-bed, hoping and praying that the Lord would come and heal his sickness and make him better. They fervently believed that God has the power to heal those whom He wills, and they hoped for the gracious will of God to have mercy on Lazarus.

This was probably a crisis of faith for those poor sisters. Sure, they knew that Jesus had turned water into wine and that He had fed five thousand with just a few morsels. Those things were just parlor tricks compared to something that really mattered, a matter of life and death. They confessed that the Son of God has the power to raise the dead. But is Jesus really the Son of God, and will He really care about them right then and there? It is great to believe in the general resurrection at the last, but what about this man, right now?

To be sure, when Lazarus died, Mary and Martha probably questioned the will of God. Why had Jesus not come to his rescue? Where was the Lord in his death? Perhaps Jesus was not strong enough. Or perhaps He did not care.

The psalmist promises us, “Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.” Our Lord would not have any of His children die. Death is an unfortunate consequence of sin, one which bereaves our heavenly Father even more than us, as He experiences the loss of His lost children. And Jesus is not without compassion or care for us. When Jesus saw the bitter grief of those who mourned the death of Lazarus, He wept. As Luther put it, His eyes overflowed. Our Lord Christ was filled with compassion for Mary and Martha, and He felt their loss with them. Our Lord wept for Lazarus, that he had to endure the pains of death on account of sin.

Likewise, our Lord Jesus weeps over the death of each of His saints. So precious are you and me that our Lord and Savior wept over us when we were yet dead in our sins and trespasses. And He still weeps with us at the death of each of His beloved children. He weeps because of the sin that separates us from one another, and separates us from Him.

In fact, so moved is God in His love for you and me that He sent His Son, Jesus Christ our brother to die our death, in order that we might have His life. He suffered the death and decay of this body, even to the point of death upon the cross. He was laid into the tomb and sealed into the ground. He was taken from His family and friends. And yet He returned. Through the glory of God, Christ our Savior did not remain dead, but the Father called Him back to life, that we might have life in Him, and have it abundantly.

Christ our Lord died so that we might face death in Him. He rose so that He might be our resurrection and our life. He gave Himself so that we might receive all that He has to give.

At the mouth of the tomb, Jesus calls out, “Lazarus, come out!” And what happens? Lazarus, the man dead four days, comes out! Our Lord calls to people who have the stench of death upon them, and they come to life. He calls us to life, and we are made alive in Him. When our Lord calls to us, the stench of death, the grave-clothes, and the decay of sin are all removed, and we are restored to life and health by His Word.

At the Word of the Lord, the dead rise. As he was commanded, Ezekiel spoke the Word of the Lord to the dry bones, and they were reassembled into living, breathing men. At the Word of the Lord, Lazarus came out of his tomb and was restored to life once again. At the Word of the Lord, you and I were brought forth from death to life in the waters of the font. By the Word of the Lord were the heavens and earth created, and by that same Word were all things made anew.

“Whoever believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live.” Jesus promises us life in Him. Unnatural death has died. Life has triumphed forever. “It is finished.” Death has been buried once and for all, and life has arisen with victory and healing for us all. Though we die in the body, yet shall we live in Christ. Though we be bereft for a time, we shall be made whole forevermore.

We mourn because we are bereft, because we suffer loss, because the enemy appears to have gained ground before us. But the one who dies in the Lord is with our Lord. For Jesus Christ is our resurrection and our life, and whoever lives in Him shall never die. Though our bodies be laid in the ground for a time, we shall all rise again when the Word of the Lord calls us forth, never to die again.

In the Name of Jesus. Amen.