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The Gospel of Mark Bible Studies
January 2006
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December 2006
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All Saints Sunday In the Name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and our eternal hope. Amen. In today’s gospel reading, Mary told Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” Her sister Martha had also said the same thing to Jesus several verses before. Mary and Martha were in the midst of a situation that many of us are all too familiar with. Their loved one – their brother Lazarus – was dead. They knew in their hearts that they would never see him again. Their hope was gone. And because of that, they were filled with grief and despair. Before Lazarus had died, the sisters had sent word to Jesus that their brother was ill, asking him to come and heal him. As long as he was alive, Mary and Martha thought that their brother had a chance to live - if only Jesus could get there in time. Their hope may have been a desperate one, but at least it was a hope that they could hold on to. But now their hope was gone. Jesus had NOT gotten there in time – and Lazarus DID die. It was over. It was all over – so they thought. But as we know, it was NOT over! Four days later after Lazarus’ death, Jesus came to his tomb and asked that the stone be taken away – even though Lazarus’ body had begun to decay. And after praying to God, Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” And the dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth. And Jesus said to those who stood by, “Unbind him, and let him go.” What are we to make of this story? To me, it shows us that God’s power works best in a graveyard! It is during those times when hope is completely and utterly dead that God’s power can do its greatest work. Mary and Martha found that out in a very dramatic way through the resurrection of their brother, Lazarus. If Jesus had come before and healed their brother before he had died, it would have been appreciated – but it would not have been nearly as great of a miracle as what Jesus actually did in raising him from the dead. God’s power works best in a graveyard! People of God, the same is true for us! God’s power works best in the graveyards of our lives. It is when our hope is gone, and we see nothing but grief and despair, that God does His mightiest work. What are the graveyards that people are in? There are all sorts of various kinds. Some people are trapped in the graveyard of overwhelming financial debt – with no hope of ever seeing light at the end of the tunnel. Some are trapped in bad and abusive relationships. Others are enduring the trauma of divorce. Some have a job that seems like a completely dead-end kind of thing, with no hope of it ever getting better. Others simply do not HAVE a job, with no prospects of finding one. Some people are facing chronic illness or have a handicap, with no realistic hope of a cure. And finally, people everyday and everywhere face the graveyard of dealing with the death of their loved ones. When we lose a parent, a spouse, a child, a sibling, or a good friend to death, IT HURTS! It hurts more than we can say – because our hope is gone. We feel like we are in a black hole of grief and sorrow and pain and despair. Perhaps some of you are going through this kind of experience even now. But in the midst of our graveyards, whatever they might be, may we know that we are not alone. One of the themes of this All Saints Sunday is remembering that through our baptisms we have been made God’s saints and that we belong to him forever! God loves us and will never forsake us. God is always with us! Because we are his beloved saints, God will work for us and in us even when our cause for hope is gone. Especially then, because God’s power works best in a graveyard! May we claim that power and that hope in our lives! Another theme of All Saints Sunday is that God has brought us together to be a communion of saints – a community of people who not only belong to God, but who also love and care for each other. One of the ways in which God works in the graveyards of our lives is through the love and care and support that we give to and receive from each other as God’s people. So it was for Mary and Martha in today’s gospel text. Even in the midst of their grief because of their brother’s death, others were ministering to them. Many of their friends had come to console them and to weep with them. Even Jesus himself began to weep! In a strange and yet powerful way, their presence and their weeping was a great gift to Mary and Martha – a source of blessing to them. I know that for me personally, some of the times when I have been most powerfully aware of God’s love were during those times when I was hurting the most – when I was going through the worst traumas and tragedies in my life – because that is when God’s people (his SAINTS!) ministered to me and let me know of their love and concern. Often they did not even know what to say, but that was OK. The important thing was simply that they were willing to be there with me during those “graveyard” times in my life – either physically, or through letters or phone calls or cards – and certainly through their prayers. I am sure that most of you have also experienced this kind of caring ministry as well – both as givers and as receivers. What a blessing and powerful gift this is! As God’s people, as his communion of saints, we “rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep (Rom. 12:15).” God uses us as his saints to minister to each other whenever there is hurt and sorrow and pain among us. It is one of the ways in which God works in the graveyards of our lives! May this be so for us and among us and through us! A final theme of this All Saints Sunday is knowing that even though we die, yet shall we live. Even though our cause for hope is beaten down and destroyed again and again, God can restore it and make it alive. We have been made God’s saints through our baptisms into Christ; and as the apostle Paul writes in Romans 6:4-5, “we have been buried with (Christ) by baptism into death, SO THAT, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.” Because we have been united to Christ Jesus by baptism, we will share his life – even though we die. We will share his life, even though we fail. We will share his life – and his power – even when we are at the ends of our ropes in the many and various situations we face in our daily living. We may get knocked down in many ways – by our failures, by illness, by circumstances of life, and yes, even by death itself. But the power of the risen Christ gets us up again! And again and again and again and again! Even in the graveyards of our lives. Yes, especially in the graveyards when hope seems to be nonexistent. On this All Saints Sunday, may we remember that we truly are God’s saints and that we have a hope that neither life nor death can ever destroy! May we remember that even though we die, we will live forever. May we remember that we shall be resurrected from the grave and be reunited with those who have died before us. And may we remember that, as we heard in the words of today’s second reading from Revelation; “God himself will be with (us); he will wipe every tear from (our) eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.” God’s power works even when there is no hope. God’s power works among us as we love and care for each other. And yes, God’s power works even in the midst of death itself. God’s power works best in a graveyard – and he does it for us! Thanks be to God, now and forever! Happy All Saints Sunday, everyone! Amen!! -------------------- George R. Karres, Pella Lutheran Church 418 W. Main Street Sidney, MT 59270
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