Exploring the Wilderness of Death

John 11: 32-44 & Ezekiel 37: 1-14

Roger Lynn

March 13, 2016

5th Sunday in Lent

(click here for the audio for this sermon)

Here we are again - right in the middle of the wilderness, which has been a recurring theme in this season of Lent. This time it takes the form of a vision. The prophet Ezekiel finds himself in a desolate valley filled with bones. And not just any bones - these are dried up and scattered. In describing his vision, Ezekiel uses dramatic language to make sure we get the point that these are really dead. Not “just stopped breathing 30 seconds ago but a little CPR will take care of things” dead, but dead “beyond any hope of recovery” dead. God asks Ezekiel if the bones can live again, to which Ezekiel replies, “Oh Lord, you know.” In other words, “it sure doesn’t look like it to me.” The story of the raising of Lazarus in John’s Gospel is really a variation on this same theme. The story-teller makes sure we know that Lazarus is beyond hope of reviving. “There is a stench,” is how Martha described the situation. “He’s been dead four days. You might have been able to do something then, but now it’s too late.” There is a hopelessness being addressed in both of these stories - death not just of the body but of the spirit as well. And that, finally, is what these stories are all about - the debilitating paralysis which comes when we lose hope, when we start to believe that what we see is all there is, when we forget to remember God’s presence.  And so we come at last to this final wilderness - the wilderness of death.

This is about more than merely our physical demise. There are layers of meaning here. Most of us know from personal experience that death does not have to wait until we stop breathing. Whether it is the death of a relationship, the death of a dream, or simply the death of our enthusiasm for living, there is more than enough death to go around. Ezekiel’s valley of dry bones has remained a powerful story for all these thousands of years precisely because it provides such an apt description of what life feels like sometimes. All too often despair seems to reign supreme in our world. There is no life in evidence. Our bones are very dry!

But wait! There’s more to the story than that. If this were only about a valley of dry bones - if this were only about the death of a beloved family member or friend - if hopelessness holds the final word - then there really is no point. I’ll stop talking now and we can all drift quietly back into our own private realms of despair. But it doesn’t stop there. There is more. “Prophesy!” says God to Ezekiel. Speak a word of Light into the midst of this darkness! Speak of word of Life into the midst of all this death! There is more here than meets the eye. God is here. And where God is present, even death cannot finally hold sway.

Singer/songwriter David Wilcox put it this way in his song “Show the Way”:

You say you see no hope, 

you say you see no reason we should dream

that the world would ever change

You’re saying love is foolish to believe

’Cause there’ll always be some crazy with an army or a knife

To wake you from your daydream, put the fear back in your life...

Look, if someone wrote a play

just to glorify what’s stronger than hate,

would they not arrange the stage

To look as if the hero came too late

he’s almost in defeat

It’s looking like the Evil side will win,

so on the edge of every seat,

from the moment that the whole thing begins

It is...

(Chorus)

Love who mixed the mortar

And it’s love who stacked these stones

And it’s love who made the stage here

Although it looks like we’re alone

In this scene set in shadows

Like the night is here to stay

There is evil cast around us

But it’s love that wrote the play...

For in this darkness love can show the way

So now the stage is set. Feel you own heart beating in your chest.

This life’s not over yet, so we get up on our feet and do our best.

We play against the fear.

We play against the reasons not to try.

We’re playing for the tears burning in the happy angel’s eyes

For it’s...

(Chorus)

We lose heart. We get overwhelmed by grief and pain, and we are more than ready to simply give up. We get so caught up with all of the truly heartbreaking reality around us that we lose sight of the even deeper reality - the deep truth which is present even in the midst of the despair. God is here. Life is here. We are not alone. We have not been abandoned. And remembering makes all the difference. It doesn’t stop the hurt. Even Jesus cried at the death of his friend. But remembering the truth that death does not hold the final word transforms the wilderness of death into an oasis of new possibilities. Even here - especially here - God meets us.

We live in a world that is filled with death - both literally and metaphorically. There is despair just waiting for us around every corner. And we can play a part is changing all of that. We can choose to participate in life instead of death. Prophesy to the bones, God tells Ezekiel. Unbind him and let him go, Jesus tells the friends of Lazarus. Proclaim the truth which is more powerful even than death, the truth that the God of Life is here, now, in the very midst of our despair. Prophesy to the wind! Call God’s holy Ruach to blow through us and restore us. Proclaim with our words, and even more importantly, proclaim with the powerful witness of our living that we choose Life - we choose to serve as agents of Love and Light even in the face of darkness, death and despair. God is on the side of Life, and Life will prevail.