Originally published on the Electric Gospel on May 27, 2019.
On this Memorial Day, I think back to the funeral of a military officer a number of years ago. I’ve adapted words that I shared on that day for the benefit of other families who have lost a loved one in military service.
This is for God’s glory
by David Sellnow
Jesus had a very dear friend named Lazarus. Lazarus’ sisters, Mary and Martha, also were very dear to Jesus. They lived in Bethany, a short distance outside Jerusalem. Jesus had been a guest in their home. They were followers of his. They believed his teachings and knew of his miracles. They relied on him as their Savior. So it was natural for them, when they had a problem, to turn to Jesus for help.
Lazarus had become ill. His sisters immediately sent word to Jesus. “Lord, behold, he for whom you have great affection is sick” (John 11:3). They assumed Jesus would come quickly; they knew Jesus could heal their brother.
However, when Jesus heard that Lazarus was sick, “he stayed two days in the place where he was” (John 11:6). In the meantime, Lazarus died. By the time Jesus came to Bethany, Lazarus had been in the grave already for a couple of days. Martha went out to meet him and said, “Lord, if you would have been here, my brother wouldn’t have died” (John 11:21).
Think of the pain and bewilderment that Lazarus’ sisters felt: “Jesus, you knew and loved this man; he knew and loved you. We told you he was sick. We called for you to come because we were in trouble. Yet you let him die. You dawdled for two days while he was breathing his last. Why, Lord, why? How could you do this? Why didn’t you help? You had the power to stop this, and instead you let our brother die! Why? Why?”
Dear families of those who have given their lives in the service of our country: You’ve ve likely asked yourselves similar questions concerning the loss of a loved one. “Why, Lord, why?” Such questions are never easily answered. But when we face a tragic and untimely death, the loss of someone who is beloved of Christ, the words and actions of Christ when Lazarus died give us some insight. There are three key things Jesus said and did at that time. When he first heard that Lazarus was sick, Jesus had said, “This sickness is not to death, but for the glory of God, that God’s Son may be glorified by it” (John 11:4). Then, speaking to his disciples about Lazarus’ death, Jesus said, “Our friend, Lazarus, has fallen asleep, but I am going so that I may awake him out of sleep” (John 11:11). To Martha, Jesus also gave an absolute promise: “Your brother will rise again. … I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will still live, even if he dies” (John 11:23,25). Finally, to prove his words, Jesus came to Lazarus’ tomb, had the stone rolled away, and called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” (John 11:43) – and the dead man came out of his grave, once again alive.
What Jesus did for Lazarus is not fiction. It is not fairy tale. It is fact. What Jesus did for Lazarus he will do for each of his people who fall asleep in him. Yes, he calls it “falling asleep.” Several times Jesus used that expression to refer to people who died. Sometimes he was laughed at for speaking that way. Once, at a wake where mourners were wailing over the death of a young girl, Jesus said, “Why do you make an uproar and weep? The child is not dead, but is asleep” (Mark 5:39). The mourners laughed and ridiculed him. But for Jesus, waking someone from death is no more difficult than waking someone from sleep. Death is not the end. It is a temporary state from which God, by his mighty power, will raise us up again. He will reconstruct each person, whether buried in the ground or scattered on the seas or blown apart in battle. The limits of our human mind may object to such a thought, but it us God’s truth. He guarantees it. And he has the authority and ability to do it. He did it for Lazarus, whom he dearly loved. He will do so for your loved ones too. He will raise each of us from our graves. We wait for the coming of the Last Day, when God’s promise to resurrect every one of us in Christ will be fulfilled.
The part of any death that’s hardest for us to understand is how such a thing could be for God’s glory. In Lazarus’ case, God’s purpose was seen rather quickly, within a few days. Jesus had said that Lazarus’ sickness would not end in death, and that God would be glorified. And so it was. The sickness brought about death, but the story didn’t end there. Death was reversed. The miracle was witnessed by many. The Son of God, Jesus, revealed his grace and power. The reputation of Jesus’ name grew, and people put their faith in him more and more.
Where is the glory of God for those whose lives are cut short prematurely today? God’s glory is there, but it is painfully hard for us to see. Those loved by the Lord live on in the eternal light of the Savior. But at present, all we see is the emptiness that is left behind. We grieve. We feel their absence. And that hurts. For the families of lost service members, when they died, you died too. You died on the inside. And you didn’t get to wake up looking into the loving eyes of your Lord in heaven, as your departed loved one did. God has asked you to stay behind in this world, now especially bleak for you without your beloved in it. But the glory of God still will be revealed in this. God, who has crushed your spirit, will strengthen and support you and revive you again. He will uplift your soul. You will never be the same; your lives will be changed. But God will give you reasons to hope and will work to draw you closer to him than you’ve been before. His purpose in life, in death, in all things, is to bring each of us nearer to him in faith. He has a plan, even when horrible tragedy strikes, to bring about blessing for each of his children. Bu remember–he counts blessings in spiritual, not material terms. What matters most to God is increasing and deepening your reliance on him, so that your hearts will be ready on the day he chooses to call you home to himself, to go and be with him, where your loved one now has gone.
You dear family members who are remembering lost loved ones, I know you know these things. I know that your faith in your Savior is still alive and breathing. Nevertheless, even as you hang onto hope in Jesus, you still will mourn. And no one can fully know how you feel. Friends and acquaintances will have a sense of your loss, but few can relate to the depth of loss you’ve experienced. And you yourselves have never felt heartache as severe as this. But keep the faith and take courage in this: There is someone who has experienced the loss of his One and Only Son. The Father in heaven watched his own Son, Jesus, die a bloody, heart-wrenching, horrible death, nailed to a cross in agony. It was a death so devastating that the sun stopped shining when it happened. But it was not a death without purpose. Jesus’ death was for our ultimate and eternal good. By his death, Christ became our Redeemer from death. He has taken our lost loved ones on angels’ wings to be with him. And God will fully, miraculously restore the bodies of all his people in glory. We have hope in a Savior who will do these things for us and a Father who understands the pain we feel. We believe that God is glorious and great and good, and that the only reason he allows death to occur to us is as a way to usher us into the glory and greatness and goodness of heaven. That is where those who have died in the Lord have gone. By faith, that is where we will follow also.
Dear God, make it so.
