Although I'm posting this next video on the Monday of Easter week, the events in this video technically took place before Palm Sunday. However, I thought it would be fitting to share this video on Monday because of the strong foreshadowing of what was to take place at the end of the week.
The story in this video is that of Lazarus and his two sisters, Mary and Martha. We know precious little about these three individuals other than that they were close friends of the Savior. Particularly, we are told of one time when Jesus is invited to dinner and Martha is caught up being a typical "Martha Stewart" while Mary is less interested in hosting the perfect dinner party and more interested in spending time with her guest. Although Jesus' gentle words might be taken as a rebuke when he tells Martha that Mary had chosen the good part, I tend to believe that He might have in fact been saying that Mary had chosen the better part for her.
Personally, I feel that Martha had the best of intentions when deciding to make her very best effort to serve her master. Did not the woman who anointed Jesus' feet with very costly oils and perfumes in her alabaster box receive the Savior's praise when His disciples otherwise thought the anointment a waste that could have better served the poor? I'm pretty sure that our perfect exemplar was not showing any hypocrisy here and was not making any general statement about the merits of expensive oils, party planning, or listening and attentive ears. I think that each of these three acts was an attempt to serve and connect with Christ in a personal way, and I think that Jesus recognized and was grateful for each gesture and act of love. I think that there are most definitely good and better ways to show forth our love. Personally, I would contend that there isn't a single best way to show forth our love to our Master. But each of us should strive to find some way that is a personal best way for each of us when we are evaluating gifts that we might offer our King. Martha was reminded gently that, ultimately, there were more important things than making sure that the dinner place settings were aligned just so. But I don't believe that the Savior was telling her that her service and gifts to Him were unacceptable or warranting criticism.
Looking forward in time, we are again introduced in the scriptures to Mary and Martha at the unexpected death of their brother Lazarus. When Christ comes to meet these sisters, we are again reminded of their close friendship when Jesus is moved to tears upon sharing their grief. As a child, this was the verse of scripture that my friends and I joked about sharing in Sunday School when it was our turn to recite a favorite scripture. Why? Because it was only two words, Jesus wept. Having put aside childish things, I now can appreciate the beauty and significance these two words and of this glimpse into our elder brother's raw emotions in this moment. We are asked as disciples and saints of God to mourn with those that mourn and to bear one another's burdens that they may be light. Without a doubt, our Savior has borne our burdens making our yoke light. Without a doubt, we can be assured that He stands close by mourning along with us when our griefs are near the surface. And He knows how to succor us because of what He experienced for us in the Garden as He, in some way that I will never fully understand, took upon Himself and experienced every burden, every sorrow, every joy, every emotion that we will ever experience. Without a doubt, He understands.
One more thought about the story behind today's video. We read in the scriptures that by the time Jesus answered the call of Mary and Martha and came to Judea, Lazarus had lain in the grave four days. Jesus had previously told his disciples that Lazarus' sickness was not unto death, but for the glory of God. And we read that Jesus purposely delayed his journey to heal Lazarus by two days. With what we know about the love Jesus felt toward Mary, Martha, and Lazrus as evidenced by his tearful weeping upon meeting the mourning sisters, this two day delay might seem out of place. But is it? Some quick mathematical reasoning would suggest that, had Christ not delayed for the two days, He would have still been too late to save Lazarus by two days. So one might argue that the Savior knew there was no cause to rush and that He might have chosen to complete some business before making His journey. I tend to believe that the two day delay had other significance and purposeful intent.
Lazarus' raising from the dead was far from the first miraculous raising in the scriptures. Jesus raised both Jairus' daughter and the son of the widow of Nain from the dead. Both Elijah and Elisha raised souls from the dead. Another miraculous raising was the result of a body simply coming in contact with Elisha's bones upon temporarily being cast into Elisha's sepulcher at the signs of an approaching enemy. So the raising of Lazarus from the dead was not a new, unprecedented miracle. But, to those who witnessed the miracle, it was unprecedented and exemplified the glory of God as Jesus prophesied. Why? According to Jewish custom, the spirit would linger with the body for three days after death and, upon the fourth day, resurrection would no longer be possible. When Jesus commanded that the stone be taken away from the tomb, Martha was horrified at the prospect, suggesting that her brother stinketh. I would guess that Jesus' disciples knew that He had raised others from the dead. I am pretty sure that they had faith that He could do so again. However, as evidenced by Martha's reaction, I believe that most of them didn't even consider such a miracle at this moment given their tradition of the spirit and the body. In delaying two days and waiting for the fourth day after Lazarus' death, Jesus was demonstrating His complete and total power over death, something He would be demonstrating again in the coming weeks on the Sunday following Passover.
Thinking about the miracle of Lazarus, I am reminded of my own sister, Amy. My sister died at the age of three in a tragic accident, and I still vividly remember the grief and pain I felt in the days that followed. I generally keep these memories close to my heart and don't often share them with others. When I hear the glorious chorus, I am the Resurrection, I think about Amy and other loved ones who have gone before me. I think about the joy and majesty that accompanies my faith that I will be able to see them again. I am the resurrection and the life. He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live! What a wonderful hope! What a miraculous prospect! O Death, where is thy sting? Where is thy victory? Paul answered his question to the people of Corinth in his epistle to the people of Rome, We are more than conquerors through Him that loved us!
I am so grateful for the Savior's healing power. Not only will He make me whole when I will, along with each and every one of you, be resurrected from the grave; but He has the power to make me whole each and every day as I seek for spiritual, emotional, mental, or physical healing from my Savior. I am happy to say that I have selected Jesus Christ as my primary care physician. Without a doubt, He is the Healer of Healers and the King of Kings. And though the rising costs of healthcare are a heated topic of debate in today's world, my personal co-pay costs to cover the valuable care I receive at His hand seem so insignificant to me. I will happily pay my mite for such healthcare. However, I know that, even though the monetary value of my co-pays and premiums seems little, my personal contribution can and should be as valuable and precious as the Widow's mite. I love the words of Christina Rossetti who ponders the gifts of the shepherds and the wise men to the Christ child, "What can I give Him, poor as I am? If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb; If I were a Wise Man, I would do my part; Yet what I can give Him: give my heart." Like the Aramean commander Naaman, who was prepared to give any sum of money to seek miraculous healing from a Heavenly source, I will discover that silver and gold, of which I have none, cannot buy the miracle I seek. But such as I have, I can pay the true cost to have the Savior make me whole. Here's my heart, O take and seal it, seal it for Thy courts above.
God Bless!
Personally, I feel that Martha had the best of intentions when deciding to make her very best effort to serve her master. Did not the woman who anointed Jesus' feet with very costly oils and perfumes in her alabaster box receive the Savior's praise when His disciples otherwise thought the anointment a waste that could have better served the poor? I'm pretty sure that our perfect exemplar was not showing any hypocrisy here and was not making any general statement about the merits of expensive oils, party planning, or listening and attentive ears. I think that each of these three acts was an attempt to serve and connect with Christ in a personal way, and I think that Jesus recognized and was grateful for each gesture and act of love. I think that there are most definitely good and better ways to show forth our love. Personally, I would contend that there isn't a single best way to show forth our love to our Master. But each of us should strive to find some way that is a personal best way for each of us when we are evaluating gifts that we might offer our King. Martha was reminded gently that, ultimately, there were more important things than making sure that the dinner place settings were aligned just so. But I don't believe that the Savior was telling her that her service and gifts to Him were unacceptable or warranting criticism.
Looking forward in time, we are again introduced in the scriptures to Mary and Martha at the unexpected death of their brother Lazarus. When Christ comes to meet these sisters, we are again reminded of their close friendship when Jesus is moved to tears upon sharing their grief. As a child, this was the verse of scripture that my friends and I joked about sharing in Sunday School when it was our turn to recite a favorite scripture. Why? Because it was only two words, Jesus wept. Having put aside childish things, I now can appreciate the beauty and significance these two words and of this glimpse into our elder brother's raw emotions in this moment. We are asked as disciples and saints of God to mourn with those that mourn and to bear one another's burdens that they may be light. Without a doubt, our Savior has borne our burdens making our yoke light. Without a doubt, we can be assured that He stands close by mourning along with us when our griefs are near the surface. And He knows how to succor us because of what He experienced for us in the Garden as He, in some way that I will never fully understand, took upon Himself and experienced every burden, every sorrow, every joy, every emotion that we will ever experience. Without a doubt, He understands.One more thought about the story behind today's video. We read in the scriptures that by the time Jesus answered the call of Mary and Martha and came to Judea, Lazarus had lain in the grave four days. Jesus had previously told his disciples that Lazarus' sickness was not unto death, but for the glory of God. And we read that Jesus purposely delayed his journey to heal Lazarus by two days. With what we know about the love Jesus felt toward Mary, Martha, and Lazrus as evidenced by his tearful weeping upon meeting the mourning sisters, this two day delay might seem out of place. But is it? Some quick mathematical reasoning would suggest that, had Christ not delayed for the two days, He would have still been too late to save Lazarus by two days. So one might argue that the Savior knew there was no cause to rush and that He might have chosen to complete some business before making His journey. I tend to believe that the two day delay had other significance and purposeful intent.
Thinking about the miracle of Lazarus, I am reminded of my own sister, Amy. My sister died at the age of three in a tragic accident, and I still vividly remember the grief and pain I felt in the days that followed. I generally keep these memories close to my heart and don't often share them with others. When I hear the glorious chorus, I am the Resurrection, I think about Amy and other loved ones who have gone before me. I think about the joy and majesty that accompanies my faith that I will be able to see them again. I am the resurrection and the life. He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live! What a wonderful hope! What a miraculous prospect! O Death, where is thy sting? Where is thy victory? Paul answered his question to the people of Corinth in his epistle to the people of Rome, We are more than conquerors through Him that loved us!
I am so grateful for the Savior's healing power. Not only will He make me whole when I will, along with each and every one of you, be resurrected from the grave; but He has the power to make me whole each and every day as I seek for spiritual, emotional, mental, or physical healing from my Savior. I am happy to say that I have selected Jesus Christ as my primary care physician. Without a doubt, He is the Healer of Healers and the King of Kings. And though the rising costs of healthcare are a heated topic of debate in today's world, my personal co-pay costs to cover the valuable care I receive at His hand seem so insignificant to me. I will happily pay my mite for such healthcare. However, I know that, even though the monetary value of my co-pays and premiums seems little, my personal contribution can and should be as valuable and precious as the Widow's mite. I love the words of Christina Rossetti who ponders the gifts of the shepherds and the wise men to the Christ child, "What can I give Him, poor as I am? If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb; If I were a Wise Man, I would do my part; Yet what I can give Him: give my heart." Like the Aramean commander Naaman, who was prepared to give any sum of money to seek miraculous healing from a Heavenly source, I will discover that silver and gold, of which I have none, cannot buy the miracle I seek. But such as I have, I can pay the true cost to have the Savior make me whole. Here's my heart, O take and seal it, seal it for Thy courts above.
God Bless!
**********
Touch my eyes and bid them see that my gaze might pierce the veil,
And behold the wondrous scene that, in dreams, I've long beheld.
Oh, touch my heart and bid it know that ev'ry sorrow here is but a moment's tear,
And Thou wilt make me whole again.
Touch my ears and bid them hear all the glory of ?Thy truth,
That my hope might come of faith and no more require proof.
Oh, touch my heart and bid it know that, while in darkness here, the Light is ever near,
And Thou wilt make me whole again.
Then touch my lips and bid them sing songs of everlasting praise,
That my soul might then believe and give thanks through all my days!
Oh touch my heart and bid it know that ev'ry breath I take is by Thy tender grace,
And Thou wilt make me whole again.
**********
I am the Resurrection and the Life.
He that believeth in me, though he were dead, Yet shall he live.
And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die!
I am the Resurrection.
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