Lent 5, Year A

He said to me, “Mortal, can these bones live?” I answered, “O Lord God, you know.”
~Ezekiel 37:3
 
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
~John 11:25-26
 
The far reaches of evil—the slaughter of school children, the callous regard for the poor—the deafness to God's voice for justice and the care of all creation, is an ongoing reality that cannot be glossed over with a word that everything will be all right with God in charge. Evil is real and ever-present. It is there in the hubris of the powerful. It is there in major tragedies and the suffering they cause. It is present in our own quiet desperation. And true religion does not gloss over these realities. It engages it. True religion renounces evil and actively resists its power in the world.
 
And the good news is that this understanding is at the very core of Christian faith. The stories of our faith are not naïve. In John’s story, the disciples are painfully aware of the presence of danger. They know all too well that the last time Jesus was near Jerusalem he just barely escaped with his life. And Thomas is sure that to return means certain death. And while his dire predictions about Jesus’ immediate death don't come to pass in this story, it turns out he is not wrong. Had we read the next few verses we would have seen that Jesus' return to Bethany does indeed set in motion the story of his death.
 
And Lazarus isn’t allowed to rest either. We find out that, ironically, now that he is raised from the dead his life is in grave danger. The resistance to this story of life only increases as a result of the raising of Lazarus. And yet, even as his prediction comes to pass, John’s story suggests Thomas’ despair is unfounded. Even in this death God works. Indeed, with God, death is a prelude to new life. Self-sacrifice is the way to progress.
 
Look at the seed sprouting. Smell the fragrance of new life flowering all around you. Dry bones? Look again. What do you see?
 
Enter into worship.
 
Readings: Ezekiel 37:1-14 † Psalm 130 † Romans 8:6-11 † John 11:1-45
 
About the Art: Gogh, Vincent van, 1853-1890. Raising of Lazarus, from Art in the Christian Tradition, a project of the Vanderbilt Divinity Library, Nashville, TN. https://diglib.library.vanderbilt.edu/act-imagelink.pl?RC=57322 [retrieved March 4, 2026]. Original source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:De_opwekking_van_Lazarus_(naar_Rembrandt)_-_s0169V1962_-_Van_Gogh_Museum.jpg.

---

If you can't join us, you can still watch the service in real-time. Join us in person or watch it here live Sunday morning, 10:00am. You can view it upon completion by clicking on the video graphic to the left.

​We continue to keep our financial commitments to our mission partners and staff. If you are not yet able to join us, thank you for remembering to send in your financial pledges and offerings or donating here in support of our ministry.