“Then Jesus shouted, “Lazarus, come out!”
And Lazarus came out,
bound in grave clothes,
his face wrapped in a headcloth.
Jesus told them, “Unwrap him and let him go!”
(John 11:43-44, NLT)
Lazarus like us was a sinner. He died, was wrapped in grave clothes and buried. After four days, Jesus came to Bethany and Lazarus’ sisters implored Him to bring their brother back to them. Jesus loved Lazarus, Martha and Mary so He did what the sisters asked. He raised Lazarus from the dead and brought him to a new life with Jesus.
As sinners, we are wrapped in grave cloths. Through His Resurrection, Jesus has given us a way to remove our grave clothes and share in the glory of the Resurrection. Like the caterpillar in the chrysalis, we grow, but are trapped by our sins. By breaking out of the chrysalis, a beautiful butterfly is revealed. The same happens to us when we throw of the grave clothes of sin.
Jesus has made this easy for us. By suffering a horrible death on the cross, He took our sins. We have to embrace the beaten, bruised body of Jesus and let Him take our sins. We must die with Christ and die to our sins. Death is a gateway to life and all we need to achieve this life is to confess our sins. Without the Resurrection, we are still condemned.
Through His Resurrection, our sins are forgiven. The only condition is we have to take off our grave clothes and leave them behind. Then we will be resurrected with Jesus on Easter Sunday.
“Peter and the other disciples ran to the tomb to see.
The other disciple outran Peter and got there first.
He stopped and looked in and saw the linen cloth
lying there, but he did not go in.
Then Simon Peter arrived and went inside.
He also noticed the linen wrappings lying there,
while the cloth that had covered
Jesus’s head was folded up and lying to the side.
(John 20:3-7, NLT)
What happens, after Easter Sunday? The glorious Resurrection is over, but we are still struggling with our grave clothes. Resurrection and Assumption are not the end, but the beginning of a new life in Christ. Those who believe in the Resurrection and confess Jesus as Lord will be raised too.
We must reach out to other’s, to Jesus, to help remove our grave clothes. Jesus left his grave clothes behind in the tomb, so must we leave ours behind if we are to embrace our new lives in Christ. We do not need the encumbrances of the grave clothes of sin when we are reborn with Christ in the glory of the Resurrection.
Once we are reborn with Christ then we must share His wondrous word. Proclamation is good for your soul and good for other souls. By sharing your experiences of removing your grave clothes and sharing the grace of the resurrection and the assumption, you are given a new life in Christ.
When Jesus returns to His Father in heaven, we are left with a piece of Jesus to share with the world. We must go out and share the glory of the Resurrection and the Assumption with everyone.
Jesus left his grave clothes in the tomb along with our sins. If Jesus left our sins behind and God has forgiven us through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, shouldn’t we do the same by throwing off our grave clothes of sin and joining Jesus in a glorious new life?
Copyright 2014, Christina Weigand
Christina Weigand
Christina Weigand’s a writer, wife, and mother of four. She is also Nana to three granddaughters. She lives with her husband and youngest daughter in Cranberry Twp. Pennsylvania, returning there after a short sabbatical in Washington. Currently, she’s working on fantasy novels and inspirational writing. Through her writing, she strives to share the Word of God and help people young and old to realize the love and mercy He has for everyone. When she’s not writing, she’s active in her local Church as a lector, Bible Study, volunteering at her daughter’s school helping the children develop a love for reading and writing. Jesus fills her home with love as she shares Him through her writing.
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