Why Not Now: Repairing My Relationship with Family - Thursday
John 11:4
Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” (NIV)
When Jesus hears of Lazarus’ sickness He assures the disciples that this sickness will not end in death and that it has happened for God’s glory. He’ll say it again with Martha in verses 22-23 and it is essentially the same thing His disciples have heard Him say before (John 9:3).
As Jesus approaches the tomb He commands them to “Roll the stone aside”. This scene of a tomb with a stone in front of it, a group of mourners, and the smell of burial spices filling the air was a scene familiar to John’s readers.
For us, in the modern 21st century, not so much. If anything, we have done all we can to get as far from death as possible. Some sociologists have even given it a term and call us a “death-denying” society. Dying, which once was viewed as natural and expected, has become medicalized and unwelcome.
Whether it's a tomb with a stone rolled in front of it or a coffin with six feet of dirt and a tombstone. We are often ill-equipped to deal with death when it touches our lives. In the world of all living things, only humans hold funeral ceremonies. Sure, different cultures have different practices, but at the end of the day there’s something in us that feels the need to honor a person and reminds us of the preciousness of life.
Human nature is to minimize the death part though and get back to the life part as soon as possible. We just celebrated Easter, and how many of us overlook Good Friday to move straight to Easter Sunday. It’s uncomfortable, it’s morbid, and it’s never a great ice-breaker at a party, but it is something we must face. So the question for today is: how does God want us to deal with death? Or take it a step further, as Jesus followers, how should the promise of resurrection and the hope of God’s new creation affect our thoughts on death? How should Jesus’ words, “I am the resurrection and the life. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never die”, shape your life?
Thursday’s Reflection
Are you equipped to deal with death when it touches your life? Whether it’s your own or that of a loved one, it’s a reality we must face. Take time to see what God has said and done about it.
