DEAD MEN WALKING

“Then Jesus, again groaning in Himself, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of him who was dead, said to Him, “Lord, by this time there is a stench, for he has been dead four days.” And he who had died came out bound hand and foot with graveclothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Loose him, and let him go.” ‭John‬ ‭11:38-39, 44‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

To me, this is one of the most fascinating passages in the Bible.  First, because someone who had been dead for four days has come back to life, and second, because of what Jesus asked His disciples to do after Lazarus comes back to life: to have the ministry of unwrapping his grave cloths off his body.

Can you imagine being in this story.  The awe and amazement you would have experienced?  It gives me chills to even think about it.

"By this time he stinketh" (KJV). By the fourth day, the person was well and truly dead; decomposition had set in. 

After Jesus prays, Jesus speaks a word of command to the dead man and this walking corpse  comes walking out still bound in his grave cloths.

Imagine the scene, this smelly corpse wrapped in white linen, shuffles and stumbles out of the tomb, hobbled, blind -- his face wrapped with a cloth and his hands still tied to his sides by grave wraps. It almost sounds like a horror movie! 

The crowd is stunned, afraid. No one makes a move to help him. So Jesus has to command them to come forward and assist him: "Unbind him and let him go!"

Finally, some people come forward tentatively to help him. One removes the cloth covering his face. Someone else begins to unwind the linen that has been wrapped around him. And as they do so, this resurrected man appears alive and well. 

Where there was once inconsolable grief that gave way to fear, now joy and excitement overtakes the crowd. They begin to embrace Lazarus and laugh, leading him back into the town where he is reunited with the rest of his friends. It makes you want to give praise to God Almighty.

In a way, this is my job description in life. As a pastor, it is my responsibility to remove the grave cloths of people who come to me smelling like death.  They hobble in and hear the message of Christ and come back to life.  It is then that the real work begins - the job of coming alongside of Christ to help them get cleaned up and free of their grave cloths.

And, to be honest, this is the assignment that many of us have also - to come alongside those who were dying and or dead and be a loving hand to remove their 
“Grave Cloths.”

I look back on the many people who helped take my stinky grave clothes off my own life - the Sunday School teachers, the youth leaders, the pastors and most of all my parents.

I am thankful for those who lovingly stayed with me and loved me through some very ugly and sinful moments and seasons in my life - for being willing to pull those grave clothes off my life and be instruments of setting me free.

I am a very blessed and thankful man who now embraces the assignment of God to help others become free also.  I am blessed indeed!

What about you?  Do you remember who God used to bring healing and freedom to your life?  And, are you now helping others fo find the same freedom that you have found?

That’s something to think about today!