Reflections: Sunday the Fifth Week of Lent

March 26,  2023

Today’s Reading: John 11:1-45

Daily Lectionary: Ex. 1:1-22, Mark 14:12-31

John 11:21: “Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen. I think John made sure to get this in the story not to leave us with a bad impression of Martha marked on one of the hardest days of her life. I think it’s to give us the words to speak on our own. Its bitterness and genuine anger rolled up in a confession of the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting. It isn’t just an accusation. It’s a recognition. It doesn’t ignore the problem because of Jesus. But it doesn’t dismiss it either. 

Something wrong happened. God could have stopped it. There will be a resurrection someday. But today, hope feels far off. Because we tend to root hope in the answer to prayers, not the God answering them.  Hope is a Lazarus who didn’t die. Hope is a Lazarus who will rise on the last day. But that leaves hope very far away when he’s four days in the tomb and rotting. 

It might be worth noting that throughout this entire story, every time the followers of Jesus presume to know His plans, they’re wrong. Every time they put their hope in something He can control, but not in Him, it falls apart. Because hope is not found in God answering prayers. Hope is found in God. 

Where God is, there is hope. And Jesus draws near to dead Lazarus.  He could have stopped it. He could have chosen not to go into Jerusalem to die. He could have chosen to punish sinners for insolence and impoliteness…and you know…sin. Instead, His will is done as absolutely done, confounding the imaginations of everyone. So maybe hope in Jesus, not what you think He’ll do. 

Hope is not measured in anything other than the presence of Jesus. Everything else is turned upside down. The body should never have died. The dead body should stink. And in all of it, hope is measured in something else. Jesus is near.  

Which may be why He gives us His Body and Blood in church. So that hope can be measured in more than “Did I get what I wanted?” or “Did I die and go to heaven and on the last day rise?”. It’s measured in “Is Jesus here for me?” and the answer is Yes. Amen. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Almighty God, by Your great goodness mercifully look upon Your people that we may be governed and preserved evermore in body and soul; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. 

– Pastor Harrison Goodman is Content Executive for Higher Things.

Audio Reflections Speaker: Patrick Sturdivant, Development and Marketing Executive at Higher Things.

Study Christ’s words on the cross to see how you can show more Christlike grace in your life. Perfect for group or individual study, each chapter has a Q&A at the end, and the back of the book includes a leader guide. Available now from Concordia Publishing House.