John 11:1-45
Lead in: Faith tells us that what Jesus did for Lazarus, raising him from the dead, is what he will do for us. On the last day, we will be raised up to new life. For that reason, faith tells us that at death, life is changed but not ended. This is not wishful thinking. It is a promise.
Prompt: When you think about the inevitably of your own death, are you at peace accepting death as part of life? Or are you fighting it, finding it hard to trust what faith tells us, that with death there is nothing to fear?
Lead in: The story of Lazarus being raised from the tomb confronts us with the reality of death. Our faith invites us to trust that as we pass from this life to the next, that there is a loving God who awaits us on the other side. Yet none of us has yet to make that leap to the other side. With the unknown, it is natural to feel some element of fear. On the pendulum of the unknown, we can swing back and forth between fear and trust.
Prompt: Where are you on that pendulum?
Lead in: Jesus said of Lazarus’ illness, “It is not to end in death but is for the glory of God.” In the economy of God’s grace, nothing is wasted. God can bring good from even the worst of tragedies.
Prompt: Was there ever a seemingly unfortunate event in your life that, in retrospect, turned out to have threads of a silver lining? How did God bring good out of what looked like a disastrous situation?
Lead in: When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him and said, “Lord, if you had been here my brother would not have died.” Martha’s response to Jesus almost feels like a guilt trip. But it’s not. It’s her genuine lament at the loss of her brother. Life is full of “if onlys”.
Prompt: What have been some of the “if onlys” that you have lamented? How did you come to terms with those laments?
Lead in: “He (Jesus) cried out in a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come out!’ The dead man came out, tied hand and foot with burial bands, and his face was wrapped in a cloth. So Jesus said to them, ‘Untie him and let him go.’”
Prompt: The people untied Lazarus who was bound by the burial wrappings. Where is it in your life that you have been unbound and set free? Who have been the people who have set you free? Where is it in your life that you are yet bound and need to be set free?
