“… we may boldly say: ‘The LORD is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?’”

Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory forever! Forgive me, the sinner. God forgives, and I forgive.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

            Our Lord, brethren, in his earthly ministry, is a “man on a mission.” He knows his task, his purpose, his vocation, and he cannot be deterred. He is a divine mercenary, employed for a swift and sure execution: the execution of sin and death. However, it is easy enough to forget all this in the wake of the festive and celebratory atmosphere of Palm Sunday weekend, as we enjoy a brief reprieve between the severe seasons of Great Lent and Holy Week. For a moment in our Lord’s earthly ministry, there is joyfulness; there is recognition. The crowd cheers, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” (Mark 11:9). Yes, indeed, hosanna in the highest. But less than a week later the crowds will jeer, “Crucify him!” What a contrast: “Hosanna in the highest!” and “Crucify him!” Our Lord understands—as God—this juxtaposition of sentiment far too well. Our Lord is not taken aback by the sudden turn in timbre. There is no gasp and awe: “What? How? I thought they liked me. I thought they really liked me!” There is no hesitation. Our Lord is a man on a mission. He knows his task; he cannot be deterred.

            Hear the words of the sticheron at the Praises which will be sung tomorrow night, at the Bridegroom service:

“As the Lord was going to his voluntary passion, he said to the apostles on the way, ‘Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man shall be delivered up, as it is written of him.’ Come, therefore, let us also go with him, purified in mind. Let us be crucified with him and die through him to the pleasures of this life. Then we shall live with him and hear him say, ‘I go no more to the earthly Jerusalem to suffer, but to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God. I shall raise you up into the Jerusalem on high, in the Kingdom of Heaven.”

I love that hymn. In our Lord’s earthly ministry, he is clear—that is to say, he has a clarity of purpose—[he is clear] and he is confident. Does he know that he goes to Jerusalem to suffer and to die? Yes, he knows. Does he know that his disciples will be left alone, scared, shaken, scattered, confused, sad, mournful, discouraged following his crucifixion and death? Yes, he knows. Then what gives our Lord such clarity, such confidence and hope that he can boldly go to Jerusalem, to his death? It is the resurrection.

Jesus said to [Martha], “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, though he may die, he shall live” (John 11:25, italics mine).

            Today, brethren, we have heard the account of the raising of Lazarus from the dead, from the hand of St. John the Theologian. As in most Gospel accounts, there is great import in the minor details. Yes, Christ hears that Lazarus has died. Yes, Christ goes—in route to Jerusalem—to Bethany to raise him from the dead. Yes, at the command of his Lord, Lazarus rises from the dead to the great joy of his friends and relatives. But do you recall what the disciples say to Jesus, in response to his suggestion—that they go to Jerusalem—knowing that Lazarus has died, knowing that Jesus cared so deeply for this man and his sisters, knowing that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God? They say, in the most prudent of terms: “[But] Rabbi, lately the Jews sought to stone you, and you are going there again?” What a practical cautionary word. “Jesus, if we may, have you considered the following…?” It is an attentive but nonetheless foolish suggestion. We will say it again: our Lord is a man on a mission. He knows his task; he cannot be deterred.

            Brethren, we may ask ourselves, keeping in mind the events commemorated today, keeping in mind the events that we will celebrate next weekend: truly, what matters in the light of the resurrection? Truly, what may reasonably deter us from our purpose in Christ?

“Now Martha said to Jesus, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Your brother will rise again. … ‘[Martha], I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, though he may die, shall live. And whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?’ [Do you believe this?] [Martha] said to him, ‘Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is to come into the world’” (John 11:21-23, 25-27).

Are you hungry? Are you thirsty? Are you in pain? Do you suffer a chronic illness? Are you depressed, anxious, lonely, afflicted in spirit? Are your finances in tatters? Is your home falling apart? Have you lost a parent, a spouse, a child in death? Are you unemployed? Are you estranged from a friend? Is your country at war? Are you sick unto death?

“I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, though he may die, shall live. And whoever lives and believes in me shall never die” (John 11:25).

There is nothing, brethren—there is no temporary affliction—that can separate us from the saving power of Christ’s resurrection! We think that financial hardship, anxiety, a lack of vocational certainty or a lack of occupational fulfillment [we think that these things] prevent us from living? Brethren, in Christ—in Christ—even death cannot prevent us from living! In Christ, death cannot prevent us from living!

“[And] when Mary came where Jesus was… she fell down at his feet, saying to him, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.’ … And Jesus said to her, ‘Your brother will rise again’” (John 11:32, 23).

Brethren, these words of our Lord transcend emotional consolation. These words are not spoken as a spiritual “pick-me-up” to Mary and Martha. These words of our Lord are true to the deepest reality of our physiological and spiritual being. In the resurrection: all will be made well! Every aspect of our selves which is broken will be healed. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation” (2 Cor 5:17).

            Brethren, as we begin our journey into Holy Week, as we “go up to Jerusalem” with our Lord to be “crucified with him and die through him to the pleasures of this life,” let us also become men (and women) on a mission. Let us define our task clearly: to suffer, yes; and to die, and to be resurrected in glory with our Lord. Let us not be deterred. And finally, let us take great consolation in the words of the Apostle, which we also heard today,

“Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. … [Let us] boldly say, ‘The LORD, he is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can [a] man do to me?’” (Heb 12:28, 13:6, italics mine).

Through the prayers of our holy fathers, O Lord Jesus Christ, our God, have mercy on us and save us. Amen.

Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory forever!