Opening Prayer

During Lent, we remember the events that led up to the crucifixion. Jesus had come into the world to bring hope and light, but at every step there were those who could not accept the power of that light. He came to create a new relationship between God and human beings, but there were those who had other ideas. Because he could not be manipulated, they sought to kill him.

Betrayed by a kiss from a friend for thirty pieces of silver … anyone could have been the one, Jesus came as the truth, but it was too brilliant for those who liked the darkness. As the small bag of coins was traded from hand to hand, a little of the light that had come into the world went out.

(Extinguish the fifth candle)

Children’s Time

Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead

Confession & Words of Assurance

 

God of Martha and Mary,

Your world is crying out for the sick and dying, for the scared and resistant. We are in mourning for a world that is and a world that has yet to come. This Lenten Journey is not what we expected, and we know we have not lived up to our potential. Forgive us for our focus on ourselves and forgetting those in other places. Forgive us for our demands to horde all the medical equipment while Your children around the world suffer without any help. Forgive us for forgetting the people in our community who don’t have the resources we take for granted. Help us become the people You have called us to be.

Christians have a long history of helping in crisis, so be a Christian and help from your place of isolation. Give. Pray. Your sins have been forgiven, so stay and sin no more.

Scripture

 

The Death of Lazarus

John 11 ^1-2 A man by the name of Lazarus was sick in the village of Bethany. He had two sisters, Mary and Martha. This was the same Mary who later poured perfume on the Lord’s head and wiped his feet with her hair. ³ The sisters sent a message to the Lord and told him that his good friend Lazarus was sick.

⁴ When Jesus heard this, he said, “His sickness won’t end in death. It will bring glory to God and his Son.”

⁵ Jesus loved Martha and her sister and brother. ⁶ But he stayed where he was for two more days. ⁷ Then he said to his disciples, “Now we will go back to Judea.”

⁸ “Teacher,” they said, “the people there want to stone you to death! Why do you want to go back?”

⁹ Jesus answered, “Aren’t there twelve hours in each day? If you walk during the day, you will have light from the sun, and you won’t stumble. ¹⁰ But if you walk during the night, you will stumble, because you don’t have any light.” ¹¹ Then he told them, “Our friend Lazarus is asleep, and I am going there to wake him up.”

¹² They replied, “Lord, if he is asleep, he will get better.” ¹³ Jesus really meant that Lazarus was dead, but they thought he was talking only about sleep.

¹⁴ Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead! ¹⁵ I am glad that I wasn’t there, because now you will have a chance to put your faith in me. Let’s go to him.”

¹⁶ Thomas, whose nickname was “Twin,” said to the other disciples, “Come on. Let’s go, so we can die with him.”

Jesus Brings Lazarus to Life

¹⁷ When Jesus got to Bethany, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. ¹⁸ Bethany was only about two miles from Jerusalem, ¹⁹ and many people had come from the city to comfort Martha and Mary because their brother had died.

²⁰ When Martha heard that Jesus had arrived, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed in the house. ²¹ Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. ²² Yet even now I know that God will do anything you ask.”

²³ Jesus told her, “Your brother will live again!”

²⁴ Martha answered, “I know that he will be raised to life on the last day,^[a] when all the dead are raised.”

²⁵ Jesus then said, “I am the one who raises the dead to life! Everyone who has faith in me will live, even if they die. ²⁶ And everyone who lives because of faith in me will never really die. Do you believe this?”

²⁷ “Yes, Lord!” she replied. “I believe that you are Christ, the Son of God. You are the one we hoped would come into the world.”

²⁸ After Martha said this, she went and privately said to her sister Mary, “The Teacher is here, and he wants to see you.” ²⁹ As soon as Mary heard this, she got up and went out to Jesus. ³⁰ He was still outside the village where Martha had gone to meet him. ³¹ Many people had come to comfort Mary, and when they saw her quickly leave the house, they thought she was going out to the tomb to cry. So they followed her.

³² Mary went to where Jesus was. Then as soon as she saw him, she knelt at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

³³ When Jesus saw that Mary and the people with her were crying, he was terribly upset ³⁴ and asked, “Where have you put his body?”

They replied, “Lord, come and you will see.”

³⁵ Jesus started crying, ³⁶ and the people said, “See how much he loved Lazarus.”

³⁷ Some of them said, “He gives sight to the blind. Why couldn’t he have kept Lazarus from dying?”

³⁸ Jesus was still terribly upset. So he went to the tomb, which was a cave with a stone rolled against the entrance. ³⁹ Then he told the people to roll the stone away. But Martha said, “Lord, you know that Lazarus has been dead four days, and there will be a bad smell.”

⁴⁰ Jesus replied, “Didn’t I tell you that if you had faith, you would see the glory of God?”

⁴¹ After the stone had been rolled aside, Jesus looked up toward heaven and prayed, “Father, I thank you for answering my prayer. ⁴² I know that you always answer my prayers. But I said this, so that the people here would believe that you sent me.”

⁴³ When Jesus had finished praying, he shouted, “Lazarus, come out!” ⁴⁴ The man who had been dead came out. His hands and feet were wrapped with strips of burial cloth, and a cloth covered his face.

Jesus then told the people, “Untie him and let him go.”

The Plot To Kill Jesus

⁴⁵ Many of the people who had come to visit Mary saw the things that Jesus did, and they put their faith in him.

 

Sermon

 

Prayers of the People

 

(Please add your prayers aloud and in the comment section below)

Loving God, this morning we come to You with hearts full of love, worry, and perhaps sorrow like Martha and Mary so long ago. Please hear our prayers as we offer them for Your children.

For the world we pray….. doctors, families (add your own concerns)

For our country we pray…. leaders, essential workers, families who are separated (add your own concerns)

For our community we pray….. friends, neighbours, officials (add your own concerns)

For our elders we pray….

For our children we pray….

Gathering all these prayers into one, we offer the prayer tradition has taught us:

Our Father, who art in heave, hallowed be Thy name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

Benediction & Commission

 

As you stay in your space

remember that you are never alone, especially in struggle and in the fear of the unknown. As Jesus told Martha nothing, not even death, can separate you from God’s love and presence. Be good to yourselves. Be good to others. And be confident in the One who will be with us all now and in the end.

In the name of God the Creator, God the Redeemer, and God the Sustainer, remain in peace.