Fifth Sunday of Lent: 02 April 2017

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Opening:

Enlighten, O God of compassion, the hearts of your children, and in your kindness grant those you stir to faith and devotion a gracious hearing when they cry out to you. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
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Reading: John 11:3-7, 17, 20-27, 33b-45 (NLT)

The Raising of Lazarus

So the two sisters sent a message to Jesus telling him, “Lord, your dear friend is very sick.”

But when Jesus heard about it he said, “Lazarus’s sickness will not end in death. No, it happened for the glory of God so that the Son of God will receive glory from this.” So although Jesus loved Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, he stayed where he was for the next two days. Finally, he said to his disciples, “Let’s go back to Judea.”
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When Jesus arrived at Bethany, he was told that Lazarus had already been in his grave for four days.
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When Martha got word that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him. But Mary stayed in the house. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask.”

Jesus told her, “Your brother will rise again.”

“Yes,” Martha said, “he will rise when everyone else rises, at the last day.”

Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?”

“Yes, Lord,” she told him. “I have always believed you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one who has come into the world from God.”
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When Jesus saw her weeping and saw the other people wailing with her, a deep anger welled up within him, and he was deeply troubled. “Where have you put him?” he asked them.

They told him, “Lord, come and see.” Then Jesus wept. The people who were standing nearby said, “See how much he loved him!” But some said, “This man healed a blind man. Couldn’t he have kept Lazarus from dying?”

Jesus was still angry as he arrived at the tomb, a cave with a stone rolled across its entrance. “Roll the stone aside,” Jesus told them.

But Martha, the dead man’s sister, protested, “Lord, he has been dead for four days. The smell will be terrible.”

Jesus responded, “Didn’t I tell you that you would see God’s glory if you believe?” So they rolled the stone aside. Then Jesus looked up to heaven and said, “Father, thank you for hearing me. You always hear me, but I said it out loud for the sake of all these people standing here, so that they will believe you sent me.” Then Jesus shouted, “Lazarus, come out!” And the dead man came out, his hands and feet bound in graveclothes, his face wrapped in a headcloth. Jesus told them, “Unwrap him and let him go!”

Many of the people who were with Mary believed in Jesus when they saw this happen.
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Prayer:

Heavenly Father: In your Son, Jesus, you gave life abundant and eternal to all who believe in his name.

+ Remind us again that nothing is impossible for you, even raising the dead to life.
+ Remind us again of your compassion and love for us, especially in times of sorrow and grief.
+ Fill us with confident faith in your Son, Jesus, our resurrection and our life.
+ Draw us close to you during this season of repentance and reflection.

Heavenly Father, hear our prayers, and fill our hearts with your mercy, so that safeguarding the gifts received through your goodness, we may walk in newness of life. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
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“I Am the Resurrection” – Diocese of St. Benedict – Old Catholic Missionaries

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Closing:

See, my servant will prosper; he will be highly exalted.

But many were amazed when they saw him. His face was so disfigured he seemed hardly human, and from his appearance, one would scarcely know he was a man.

And he will startle many nations. Kings will stand speechless in his presence.

For they will see what they had not been told; they will understand what they had not heard about.

– Isaiah 52:13-15 (NLT)

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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Format adapted from Lectio Divina: USCCB Lenten Resources, 2017