A Certain Man
A man named Lazarus. The Hebrew name for Lazarus was Elazar - "the God who helps." His sisters call for Jesus - Joshua - "God is salvation," expecting both help and salvation to come immediately. They believe both are true. They believe Jesus is the embodiment of both. He is. But he waits. This story starts with the age old question: does God care? Does God actually help? Will God save? It is normally couched in terms of derision. If God can help why didn’t he help me (my mother, my child, my sister, my brother)? If God saves where is he when I need him? Here is a story that plays out thousands of times a day all across the world. And here is an answer. God loves these people. He loves them all. But he waits. Heaven waits while Lazarus dies. While all hope goes out of the situation heaven is silent. But the silence of heaven does not mean the disengagement of heaven or the impotence of heaven or the cluelessness of heaven. If we believe this story we can wait differently than Mary or Martha. We can wait with hope in the most hopeless of circumstances.
Bethany
The name has two possible meanings: house of affliction or house of dates. What a difference! Which one is it? A house of dates would be a place where sweetness and fruitfulness abounds. A house of affliction would be the opposite. But here they lay on top of one another. This is where affliction and sweetness coexist. Disease and fever and rest and healing. The kingdom of heaven is a “both - and” kingdom, not an “either - or” kingdom.
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