Recently I was out walking with Benny and I saw an empty milk jug getting blown down the road. I grabbed it and carried it with me the rest of the walk, throwing it away once we got back to the rectory. As we walked, I felt the emptiness of this gallon jug and thought of it just tumbling along the street, blown around by the wind, and I thought of what a contrast this was to when the jug was actually full of milk. It was in someone’s refrigerator, ready to be brought out to use for a recipe or maybe for somebody’s morning cereal or coffee. Its label was shiny and helpful. It was doing its job. Even if a crazy wind happened to blow through the kitchen when somebody opened the door, that jug wasn’t going to go anywhere, because it was full and sturdy. What a difference between that state and when I found it. Empty inside, it was helpless to resist the wind, blown about and eventually to be discarded.
This got me thinking about sin and its effects in our own lives. When we allow sin to take root in our hearts, we allow ourselves to be emptied out. It may not happen all at once, but little by little, the life of grace that God intends us to have seeps out, leaving us only an empty shell, liable to be blown about from one empty pursuit to another. I can think of many times when I have experienced the emptiness and hopelessness that sin brings. There were times in my life when I didn’t feel like I knew where I was going or who I was, because I had voluntarily let the world, the flesh and the devil convince me that the transitory pleasures of sin would fulfill me. We all have those moments where we allow sin to empty us, whether in big or small ways.
Into this hopeless moment steps Jesus, who is constantly knocking at the door of our hearts, saying, “A thief comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy; I come so that you might have life and have it more abundantly.” That is His message to you and to me each and every day. Come and experience life, experience the power of the resurrection flowing through you and lifting you up!
Think about the hopelessness that Martha and Mary went through today as we see them in the Gospel. They were beside themselves with grief as their brother and Jesus’ friend, who He loved, was laying cold in the grave. When Jesus neared the town, Mary – who had sat at Jesus’ feet previously and learned from Him – was so overcome that she didn’t even go out to meet Him. Martha – who previously had been scolded by Jesus for not giving Him priority – went right out to Jesus and boldly said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you.” Now she put her trust in Jesus, who assured her and each of us with words that should give our hearts hope: “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” I pray that we all respond as Martha did, putting our faith in Christ.
The apostles were there with Jesus, but they weren’t prepared to see the miracle He was about to perform because they were preoccupied with the threats to Jesus’ own life. They tried to keep Jesus from coming, reminding Him that the Jews there had tried to stone Him to death the last time they were there. They didn’t yet realize that Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life, that no threat to His life was going to succeed until the time that He had established where He would freely offer Himself for all of our sins in His Passion.
As Jesus enters the village, Mary comes to meet Jesus as well. She falls at His feet saying, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” At this we hear that Jesus is perturbed, His heart is deeply moved by the suffering of his friends and the tragedy of the passing of Lazarus. John tells us that Jesus wept out of love for His friend. So the stage is set for the Apostles, Martha, Mary and all of us to see the depth of Jesus’ power and what His love is able to accomplish.
Jesus speaks a prayer to the Father that reminds us of the fact that He is not just some great teacher or prophet, but God the Son Who has come in power to save each and every one of us. He utters the simple words, “Lazarus, come out!” And Lazarus does.
I pray that those powerful words echo within our hearts, reminding us that Jesus has power over life and death, power to raise our hearts out of the depths of sin and the fear of death so that in Him, we might be transformed. This time of Lent invites us to be transformed ever more fully by encountering the power of Jesus, the Resurrection and the Life.
Jesus shows us that death doesn’t have the final word when confronted by His power. Jesus allowed Lazarus to experience death, but knew this was not yet the end of Lazarus’ earthly journey. He was able to call Lazarus back to his earthly life so that he could continue to love and serve those around him. Jesus’ raising of Lazarus is a physical sign of the immense power that Jesus has within Him as God. This power allows Him not only to raise Lazarus back to earthly life, but to fill Lazarus, Martha, Mary, the Apostles and all of those present with His life-transforming grace, giving them the power to live new lives through their faith in Him.
Lazarus in the grave is a sign of what we all have experienced when we allow ourselves to be conquered by the spiritual death of sin. Cold and lifeless as Lazarus’ body was after four days, at times we find ourselves blown through life without hope or purpose, like that empty milk jug. We start to lose sight of God, like Mary, who at first couldn’t even bring herself to go to Jesus. But regardless of how empty we can become, how devoid of the life that Jesus has for us, we always have the opportunity to hear the clear and powerful words of Jesus: “Lazarus, come out.” He says that to you and to me whenever we have fallen away from Him: “Come out.” When we listen and respond, Jesus fills us up once again, giving us back the hope, purpose and direction He has for our lives. What a marvelous gift!
So let’s take advantage of these last few weeks of Lent. Maybe we find ourselves spiritually like that empty milk jug, like Lazarus in the grave. Jesus cares for each of us deeply, as He cared for his friend Lazarus. The Resurrection and the Life is right here with us, in this tabernacle. He beckons us to listen to His voice, to open up our hearts to Him in those ways He wants to encounter us: in the Eucharist, in Confession, in Scripture and in our brothers and sisters in Christ. Let’s all take time to listen for His voice, inviting us confidently: “Come out.”
+ Heavenly Father, thank you for sending Jesus to give us the abundance of His grace, leading us toward the fullness of life with You! Jesus, help us to open our hearts more fully in these days of Lent to your invitation to come out of the grave of sin. Holy Spirit, help us to see the ugliness of sin so that we can run into the Lord’s arms and know the deep freedom of His grace in our hearts. We ask this through Christ, our Lord. Amen. +