Christ, the resurrection and the life

Preached at St Alphege Church on Sunday 9th March 2008 at 9.15am Eucharist
Fifth Sunday in Lent, Year A

Readings: Ezekiel 37:1-14 Romans 8:6-11 John 11:1-45
(Shortened sermon to compensate for long readings)


[The fifth Sunday in Lent is often known as Passion Sunday. It marks the point where Jesus resolves to return to Jerusalem, despite the fact that he knows that many people in Jerusalem are out to kill him.
So from today our crosses and statues in church are all covered up, and our liturgies start to build towards the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus. Next week we have Palm Sunday, when we remember Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem. Then we are into Holy Week which culminates in the all important Triduum; the three days from the evening of Maundy Thursday to the evening of Easter Sunday. In the liturgies that we celebrate on Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and on the evening before Easter Sunday we follow Christ’s progress through his passion and death to his glorious resurrection. The liturgies help us to write the pattern of Christ’s death and resurrection into our own hearts and to reflect it in our own lives. They are among the most important liturgies in the Church’s year and we hope that you will all try to attend those services and walk with us as we follow Christ through those most holy hours.]

Passion Sunday has a very solemn feel, and it might therefore be surprising that our readings today are all about resurrection and new life.
First of all we had the reading from Ezekiel, where Ezekiel witnesses the whole tribe of Israel rise into new life, from having been simply dry bones scattered round a valley.
Then, from his letter to the Romans, we heard St Paul explain that life and peace come from setting our mind on God, on God’s Holy Spirit. We know that one day our mortal bodies will die, and we can’t do anything about that. But if the Spirit of God dwells in us, if we share in the Spirit of Christ, then, even though our bodies will die, we will continue to have life in the Spirit. And because of this we can have hope, we can even have hope for our bodies. Just as God raised Christ’s body from the dead, so at the second coming of Christ, we too will experience the resurrection of our bodies through the Spirit of God in which we share.
Finally in our gospel reading we heard the story of Lazarus being brought back from the dead. In this story Jesus reveals himself to be the resurrection and the life, and so we can have hope in him.
And this explains why Jesus was able to turn toward Jerusalem and make his way back to Judea, even though he knew that people there wanted to kill him. Jesus knew that he was walking towards his passion and death and he was able to do this because he was the resurrection and the life. The scribes and the Pharisees could do their worst, the devil could throw everything at him, they could even put him death. But Jesus has life within himself. Ultimately he cannot be killed; ultimately he can only conquer death.
And this is supremely encouraging. As Christians we share in the life of Christ through the Spirit. We seek to make that life grow within us always. We can do this by growing in love for God and in love for our brothers and sisters. We can make the life of Christ in us grow by nurturing ourselves on God’s word in the bible, and by receiving Holy Communion. And as we share more deeply in the life of Christ, we come to trust in it more and more. Little by little we realise that all earthly things pass away. Whatever we have to lose or give up to follow Christ, it is worth it, because Christ always gives us more. And the life he shares with us is eternal life and its value is completely beyond measure.
I would like finish by reflecting briefly on the witness given to new life in Christ by persecuted Christians from around the world. Sadly there are still many places where Christians suffer discrimination or outright persecution as they seek to follow Christ. Why do they continue to follow Christ in such circumstances? Well who can say? But it seems that they somehow realise that the life that they have in Christ is of great value, and worth suffering for. This is extraordinary. There is an organisation called Christian Solidarity Worldwide who publish a magazine about persecuted Christians. It can be very inspiring to read their stories and to find out about churches and their situations. It is very humbling to read about the Church in China where there are many persecutions and trials, but where the Church is thriving and growing rapidly. As you leave church this morning you will be offered a free copy of the Response magazine; they are always available at the back of church, and Richard Chillcott is our contact. Do take a magazine away with you, read it and offer prayers for the persecuted church. But whether or not you get a magazine, let’s all show our solidarity with the persecuted church by placing our trust not in earthly things, but in Christ who is the resurrection and the life.