Encountering God at the Grave

 

                Here we are, already, the last Sunday in Lent. Five weeks deep into this “Encountering God” sermon series.
-We’ve encountered temptation, in order to see its opposite,
-for Nicodemus encountering God was like Night/Birth/Water/Spirit/life,
-we’ve been surprised beside the Samaritan woman,
-and had our definitions shifted on us with the man formerly blind.

                Now today, God encounters a whole family
—a choir, a chorus—Mary, Martha, and Lazarus.
They encounter God at the Grave, and they are met with:
mutuality, relationship, friendship
—a conversation, a duet, a harmony.
Encountering God resounds with echoes of love and is an entrance into conversation. (God wants to have a back and forth with us!)

Let us pray

 

                First Martha rushes out and meets Jesus,
and she says what will become a refrain,
“Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

                One of those unanswered questions
—a heavy statement
— for folks after they lose a loved one.
“Why God? You could have done something Jesus.”

                And the conversation spins around a bit,
and Martha names a general truth, “On the last day”
and Jesus pulls her into the present,
from the general to the particular, “I am the resurrection.”
And she calls back, “I believe it! I trust you.”

                Gospel isn’t a generalized propositions,
but a poignant proclamation to the present
—here is the good news for you! Now!

                C.S. Lewis famously went on a bike ride and, at the start of it,
the Gospel was a good bit of folklore,
but by its end it had become true and pertinent good news for him!
Similarly, my Confessions professor tells the story of his mother riding a bus home from church, and realizing somewhere along the line, that the Gospel and the Sacraments she’d received at church were “for her.”
For you Chris Halverson…
“For you WX.”
“For you YZ.”

                Encountering God is a conversation,
drawing us into the story,
giving us the lyrics to sing along.

 

                Then Mary is called over,
followed by the crowd,
to Jesus.
She too repeats the refrain, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

                And a chorus of mourners join her
—weeping left, right, and center.
“Come and see him laid in the tomb!”
Come and hear our sad song!
This throng, singing away, moves Jesus
—breaks him thoroughly.
Just as Martha was brought to the present and the particular
—now Jesus is brought there—brought low,
Lo! While resurrection will certainly glorify God
—his friend Lazarus is in the tomb
—as Jesus will be soon,
just a few chapters later,
and a short walk from Betheny.

                This weeping becomes true and poignant for Jesus too
—yes encountering God is entering into a conversation
—a back and forth
—a Blues Duet,
between Mary and Jesus.

                The Unmoved Mover,
moved by the music of mourning,
moved by the pleading sincerity of dialogue
—a heart-to-heart that can break your heart!
He weeps with the full breadth of the emotion
Anger, crisp crisis,
the topsy turvy wrenched guts of moments like these.

 

                Lastly, a solemn pause, an unspoken refrain,
“If you’d been here, I wouldn’t be in the grave.”
Lazarus’ silence.
Silent in the grave, silent as the grave.

                Lazarus’ stink as well,
once the stone was rolled away.

                That glory,
that glory in the midst of the depths
—you need it.
We need it! “Come out!”

                A mummy-like man, comes out.

                That choir of mourners get to the strange work of unbinding,
releasing this man,
released from death’s deep grasp.

                The conversation that surely had a period at it,
has a semi-colon instead.
The music,
surely at its last refrain,
receives instead a Da Capo,
a repetition mark.
Encore, encore!

 

                Encountering God is joining a song,
it is a dialogue.
God talks back:

Lazarus will lean against Jesus at his last meal.
And his resuscitation foreshadows Christ’s resurrection,
it will crescendo,
an early echo of Easter!

                Mary, always at Jesus’ feet,
will bring perfume,
meant to bathe her brother’s corpse,
and wash Jesus’ feet with it.
A loving action Jesus emulates,
washing his disciple’s feet.

                Martha, identified as a Deacon,
one who serves at table,
will become the example of Christian love
—"Love one another”
If the Lord is the servant,
so too siblings,
serve one another.

                Do you hear what I’m saying
—the conversation is not done,
the song is still being sung.
When God encounters us,
we are brought into the song,
the conversation is more complete,
the back and forth with God,
we know it starts at Baptism,
but thank God it is unending!

Amen.