Isaiah
25:6-9; Revelation 21:1-6; John 11:32-44
On this day, we remember. We remember
and give thanks for the saints who have gone before us, from long ago and from
just yesterday. We give thanks for those saints who are role models for us
today, and far into the future. Today, we remember all the saints.
The word saint refers to those who are
or have been faithful believers in Jesus. Beyond that, the word in Greek means “holy
one”. Long ago, God said to God’s people, “Be holy, as I your God am holy.” Being
a saint, or holy, means we have set ourselves apart so that we may do God’s
work in the world. Being holy means having a relationship with God; it does not
mean we have to be perfect. For example, even St Peter put his foot in his
mouth with Jesus on a regular basis.
We remember today those special
servants whom the Church has named as saints, and those everyday faithful
servants whose names are recorded only in our hearts and in God’s heart. We
sing the hymn “For All the Saints” to remember all the saints, the famous ones
and the unknown ones.
… I love how powerfully Jesus proves
to us that God has power over death in this event in John 11. Our Gospel text
today is the short version of a longer story. Jesus intentionally stays away
from Bethany when he learns that his friend Lazarus is very ill. By the time
Jesus does get to Bethany, Lazarus has been dead for four days. By this time
his body has begun to decay. He was really, truly dead. First Martha then Mary
approach Jesus and basically yell at him. They greet him with the words we have
all shared –“If only.” “If only you had been here, Lazarus would not have
died,” they cry.
Jesus asks where Lazarus’ body is, and
they take him to the tomb. Jesus begins to weep. We are not told why he cries,
but we get a lot of comfort in reading that Jesus sheds tears like the rest of
us. Over the centuries, many scholars and lay readers have explained why Jesus
cries. They say: He is angry that people don’t believe he can raise Lazarus
from death. They say: He grieves for his dead friend. They say: He didn’t want
such a large audience for what he was about to do, for fear that it might mess
up the timetable Jesus has in mind. Personally, I believe Jesus cries with
the sisters, sharing their sadness.
Over the objections of Martha, who
knows what a decaying body smells like, Jesus asks for the stone in front of
the tomb to be rolled away. Jesus then prays out loud, for the benefit of those
present. Jesus wants to be clear that it is God who acts, not Jesus. Then Jesus
calls out, “Lazarus, come out!” And Lazarus comes walking out of the tomb. He
is still wrapped in his burial cloths, and Jesus says to the sisters and
others, “Unbind him, and let him go.”
An important point here is that Jesus
starts the process of freeing Lazarus by calling him out of the tomb; but then
he turns the unwrapping over to the crowd. Unbinding Lazarus becomes a
community action.
… When we grieve, we often feel that
our sadness is a private matter, that no one else feels the way we do, and that
we should stay home and cry alone, so we don’t bother other people with our
sadness. It’s true that everyone grieves differently, but there are many things
those who grieve have in common. Grieving with a community is very helpful. I
love the way the widows and widowers at Hope take care of each other. It is community
grieving, similar to what we see in the story of Lazarus and his sisters. We
remember these saints, these people, these friends of Jesus.
The texts from Isaiah and Revelation
are about community grieving as well. These texts are the stories of large
numbers of people, whole communities, who are grieving. In Isaiah, the Jewish people
are grieving the loss of their homeland; they are a thousand miles away in
Babylon and worry that they will never see Jerusalem again. God’s words through
the prophet encourage the people, promising them that God does indeed hear
their cries and that there will come a day when they no longer weep for their
homeland. We remember these believers, these children of God.
The text from Revelation, with its
vision of a new Jerusalem, a new creation, reassures the people of the early
Christian church that God does hear their cries of grief and frustration. They
are being persecuted because of their belief in Jesus and their refusal to
worship the Roman emperor. This passage gives the people hope that they will
one day be free to worship Jesus whenever and wherever and however they wish. We
remember these saints, these children of God.
Today, these three texts together can
give hope to the people of the northeastern US and the Caribbean as they work
to restore their lives and homes and businesses from the devastation caused by
Hurricane Nancy. Just like Lazarus’ family, they cannot do this work alone. They
need the support of the larger community of all the saints, including us here
in Florida.
We remember on this All Saints Sunday
that people we loved have died. We are sad that they are gone from us, and we
rejoice because we have faith that they are with Jesus, no longer weeping, no
longer in pain.
We remember on this All Saints Sunday
that there are many people who have taught us about Jesus, those we have known
and those we know only through the stories of their faith, twenty centuries
worth of faithful servants.
We remember on this All Saints Sunday
that there are many people who have suffered in the past for their faith. They
have been Jesus’ witnesses. And we remember that there are many people today who
are suffering from circumstances far beyond their control, brought by the power
of Hurricane Sandy. We are the saints who will unbind them from their misery
and let them go.
Please pray with me: Almighty God, you
call us to be your saints. You comfort and strengthen us with your Holy Spirit.
You call us into community, to help one another, to unbind them from whatever
holds them. Fill us with your power, and guide us to create new lives for those
who hurt. Amen
