Cycle A - Year I:  

26 March 2023: Fifth Sunday of Lent 

(Liturgical Color: Violet)

Readings:

First Reading:        Ezekiel 37:12-14

Second Reading:   Romans 8:8-11

Gospel:  Please Read  John 11:1-45 

Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life!

 People fear death because of the unknown beyond our present existence. But death is a certainty, and no one gets out of this world alive.

This Sunday's Gospel narrative is about the death of Lazarus and how he was restored back to life with divine intervention through our Lord Jesus Christ. It confirms the truth that God alone is the author of life, and so only God can defeat death.

St. John tells us the story of Lazarus the brother of Martha and Mary, who were friends of Jesus. The sisters sent word to Jesus that their brother Lazarus was seriously ill.  But instead of rushing to their house, our Lord Jesus took His time and might have allowed Lazarus to die, so "that the Son of God may be glorified through it."

Jesus finally arrived in Judea, to the house of Martha and Mary. By this time, their brother Lazarus was dead and already buried for four days. But Jesus asked to be led where they buried Lazarus. He orders that the stone at Lazarus' tomb be taken away, prays to the Father, and then calls out "Lazarus, come out!" And immediately Lazarus came back to life again.  

This is one of the most spectacular miracles of our Lord Jesus. What is the significance of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead?

This is more than a miraculous event. It is a "sign" of God's promise to raise up all who died in Christ to everlasting life with Him in the heavenly kingdom. Through the raising of Lazarus from the dead our Lord Jesus showed the disciples and the world that He has power over death.

But let us not forget, that although this is an spectacular miracle by our Lord Jesus, it is not the end by itself. For Lazarus came back to the same life with struggles, hardships and pains, and he eventually died again no doubt.

Now St. John is making a point that Lazarus is raised from the dead to prove that Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life. This is the central point of the text. That we may know that Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life. So that the raising of Lazarus from the dead is nothing compared to our Lord's Resurrection. For our Lord Jesus rose to a glorious, new and everlasting life completely free from sufferings as we experience them now in our present world.

For the followers of our Lord Jesus Christ, we know and believe  that we will be raised again to a glorious, new and everlasting life free from suffering through our Lord Jesus Christ. This is what Jesus promised to Martha: "I am the resurrection and the life;  whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and anyone who lives and believes in me will never die." (Jn 11:25-26)

We believe in this promise of our Lord Jesus Christ, as we profess this belief every time we pray "The Creed".

Trivia: Jesus simply says "Lazarus come out." Some have said, jokingly but also with some seriousness, that Jesus said "Lazarus come out" because if Jesus merely said "Come out", then ALL of the dead would have arisen.  

A blessed Sunday to us all. And thank you for a moment with God.

Ad Jesum per Mariam!