Read:
John 11:18-44
The seventh
sign recorded in John's Gospel is perhaps Jesus' most well known. His command
for Lazarus to "come forth" is certainly one of His most famous
commands, but it is not the only command He gave as part of this miracle.
Before Jesus called Lazarus out of the grave, He commanded the crowd to
"take away the stone" sealing Lazarus's tomb. Understandably
reluctant, Martha objected, "by this time he stinketh: for he hath been
dead four days," (nothing like the KJV!) There is no indication that
Martha was wrong about that. The grave clothes Lazarus wore must have been
pungent with the aroma of death. The smell is no doubt, what led to Jesus'
third command: "Take off the grave clothes and let him go."
Stop and think
about that. One minute you're grieving and the next you are reluctantly rolling
the stone away from a grave you know is filled with the stench of a decomposing
body. One moment you are comforting a grieving family and the next you are
unwrapping the corpse of their recently deceased loved one. If Jesus could
raise the dead, certainly He could have miraculously removed the stone and the
grave clothes. Why these additional directives requiring the crowd's
participation?
First, I
believe Jesus wants His followers to know that, like Lazarus's resurrection,
the miracle of salvation is instant, but that the miracle of transformation
takes time. When Jesus called you from death to life, you also came out of the
tomb wearing grave clothes. You also had the stench of death on you. The
sanctification process is the process of removing grave clothes. If we have
indeed died and been raised to life, the church is the gathering place for
people who have just come out of their tombs, in various stages of removing
rotting grave clothes, which is why the church can sometimes stink of death.
Second, the
miracle of salvation is solely the work of God, while the miracle of
sanctification is a partnership. Paul told the Christians in Philippi to,
"Continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling,"
(Philippians 2:12). The partnership is between you and God, but it is also a
collaboration among believers, which is why, as much as we try to resist bad
smells, we should be concerned if we never smell the stench of grave clothes.
Perhaps we would rather light a candle and cover up the smell, but Jesus called
Lazarus's friends and family to work together to strip him of his burial rags.
Third, while
only Jesus raises the dead to life, He expects His church to remove the grave
clothes from those He calls out of the tomb. Too many times the church assumes
the newly raised will strip off their own grave clothes. This is impossible. It
would be like trying to get out of a straight jacket. You cannot do it alone.
Sometimes the newly raised are too ashamed to allow their grave clothes to be
taken off. That is understandable. It is embarrassing to be stripped naked in
public. Many would rather keep their rags of death to cover their nakedness.
The church should be a safe place where grave clothes are removed and replaced
with robes of righteousness sewn from the faithful teaching of His Word.
Jesus,
Grant me the faith to roll away every stone You would have removed,
regardless of the fear of what lies in the tomb.
Fill me with Your love as You invite me to help remove the grave clothes of those called from death to life.
Amen
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