I love the Biblical story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. It is full of intimate details and emotion.
Mary, Martha, and their brother, Lazarus, were dear, close friends of Jesus. They lived in Bethany, just a few miles outside of Jerusalem, and Jesus likely stayed in their home during his visits to Jerusalem. This story is found in chapter 11 of John’s Gospel,

and several times in the passage, John reminds his readers how much Jesus loved this family, and how much they loved him. In fact, when Lazarus becomes ill, Mary and Martha send word to Jesus. This is what they said: “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” That was how they described to their brother, Lazarus, to Jesus—the one whom you love. And when Jesus heard that, he knew they were talking about Lazarus. They didn’t have to use his name. Jesus knew.

When he heard the news, Jesus did strangest thing—he waited two days! He didn’t go immediately to Bethany. He waited two days before he began his journey. Of course, when he did arrive at their home in Bethany, Lazarus had been dead and buried for four days. The rest of the story flows along. He walks toward the tomb where Lazarus was buried, and Jesus wept (the shortest verse in the Bible). He then commands Lazarus to come out of the tomb. John’s Gospel says that he cried out with a loud voice, as much confronting death as speaking to his then dead friend. And, of course, Lazarus stumbles clumsily out of the side of that hillside, his body still wrapped in the grave clothes.

Now, my question is this: What do you think Lazarus thought about all of this? What do you think it was like for Lazarus to have been snatched from the very presence of God, from the glories of heaven, from the joys that are forever at the right hand of God, and put back into his earthly body? What do you think he was thinking as he shuffled out of the tomb in that burial wrap? He probably thought, “Dang it! And I was just getting used to heaven!” He felt the limitations of his body again. He smelled the odor of the burial clothes. Was he happy to be back with his family or was he sad to leave heaven? We don’t know. But I’ll guarantee you this. I believe that he lived the rest of his days differently! He had seen the Father, he had heard the angels singing, he had walked the streets of gold and seen the gates of pearl and dipped his feet into the river of life. Don’t you think he came back different?!

You see, you can’t kill a man who can never die, and if death is the worst thing this world can throw at us, then bring it on! I think for the rest of his life Lazarus approached hardship and discouragement with a slight smirk on his face. I think he faced suffering and persecution with an odd confidence. I think he viewed the commands of Scripture to love God and others, to be selfless and sacrificial, to be humble and generous and thankful in all things, with a reckless abandon that only comes because you’ve read the last chapter. And don’t you think he approached his second death differently? As he was lying on his death bed, for the second time, there was a sense of anticipation, like a little kid who can’t go to sleep on Christmas Eve. He was so excited he could hardly stand it.

In order for us to live well, and then die well, we’ve got to be confident of the end of the story. In order for us to give our lives, and our time and our money and our conveniences, away sacrificially for the sake of God’s Kingdom, we’ve got to be more sure of the beauty and the wonder of heaven than we are of anything else. If heaven is not better than what this world has to offer, then we are not going to want to leave. But, Lazarus knew better.