Worship Opportunities

It’s Good Friday, and while I’m thinking ahead towards what we get to celebrate on Sunday, I sit in the heaviness today, not only of Christ’s death, but also the weight of sin that He took with Him to the grave.

And as I’ve been reflecting on Mary’s offering to Jesus just before His betrayal and crucifixion (Part I and Part II), I want to flash back to another grave… a grave where Mary and Martha wept… and consider how this could have prompted her significant and sacred act of love and devotion. And perhaps sparked some glimmers of expectant hope.

John’s gospel is the only one that highlights this account, so I’m focusing on that today. You can find it in John 11:1-44. It’s a passage that has held so much meaning in my heart in the last several years, but this year I’m feeling it more deeply than ever in conjunction with Mary’s lavish offering of love given to Jesus.

Here’s a short summary, but I hope you’ll take the time to read the whole passage to soak up alllll the meaningful details. 

Lazarus, a friend of Jesus, was sick, so his sisters (who were also His friends) sent for Jesus to come. When news reached Jesus, He intentionally delayed and arrived four days after Lazarus had been in the tomb. Seems heartless, doesn’t it? An intentional delay?! At least we have this hint that something good is intended: He said, “This sickness will not end in death but is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” (John 11:4)

But Mary and Martha didn’t know He said this, and the sisters are understandably grieving. “Lord, if you had been here, my brother wouldn’t have died.” Each sister spoke these words to Jesus once He arrived. Martha first (sentence ending with a period in verse 21), and then Mary (sentence ending in an exclamation point! In verse 32. Ha! I kind of love that little detail!!). 

Even some Jews expressed the same faith but also had confusion: “Couldn’t He who opened the blind man’s eyes also have kept this man from dying?”

I’ll be the first to raise my hand in sharing the sister’s sentiment: “Lord, if you had been here…” ! Or “If He could do ______, why wouldn’t He do _____?!” If I asked in faith, why wouldn’t Jesus answer with a “yes!!!”? And in the way I expected?! Do you have those questions, too?

Each sister (and these Jews) clearly had faith that Jesus could’ve prevented such a tragic loss.  The sisters certainly felt the painful sting of their brother’s death, but additional concerns for the future may have also hung heavily on their hearts. Given the culture and time, they may have felt financial provisions had gone to the grave with their brother, possibly left without a male to provide for them. 

But Jesus is just so sweet and loves His dear friends. Deeply moved, He goes to Lazarus’ grave and calls out for him to come out. And he did!!! “The dead man [I think it’s funny that he’s still called a dead man!] came out bound hand and foot with linen strips and with his face wrapped in a cloth…” (John 11:44)

“Therefore, many of the Jews who CAME TO MARY and saw what He did believed in Him.” (John 11:45) Truly, this was a fulfillment of what He said in John 11:4. 

Lazarus’s resurrection wasn’t just for Lazarus. Or Mary and Martha. Or even just the many who witnessed it. Lazarus’s resurrection was intended that the Son of God may be glorified through it.

A bit of time passes before we step into the dinner party that was actually an opportunity for people to see both Jesus and Lazarus (John 12:9). This is where Mary pours out her oil…and her heartfelt adoration. 

I hit “rewind” on the story today because after her brother’s resurrection, I wonder if Mary may have developed a deeper sensitivity regarding the hints Jesus had been dropping about His impending death and resurrection. I wonder if she was putting some pieces together even though the big picture was still somewhat incomplete in her mind.

I don’t know everything that Mary understood, but I do know this: Mary saw with her own eyes that a grave didn’t have to stay closed. She demonstrated her adoration, not because the whole picture was complete, but because she trusted the One putting it together.

I’m reminded that on this Good Friday, I can worship in that tension, too, clinging to what I know to be true even if the grave seems closed.