There is no doubt that Jesus is truly human like us. Last Sunday’s Gospel told us about a story of Jesus crying at the tomb of his friend, Lazarus. What was moving in the gospel story is the fact that Jesus is sharing his humanity with us.
We have the tendency to forget about the humanity of Jesus. We always look up to him as God who is unreachable in his heavenly kingdom. In fact, he got hungry after he fasted for forty days and forty nights in the desert. He got tired and needed a drink, while passing by Samaria, on his way to Galilee. He felt disgusted and got angry upon seeing the moneychangers defiling the Temple of Jerusalem, the House of God. He felt so lonely seeing his disciples asleep while he was at prayer at the Garden of Gethsemane. And he felt so thirsty while hanging on the cross.
Remembering these gospel scenes is so important for all of us. They remind us of the humanity of Jesus. Jesus wept at the tomb of his friend, Lazarus, and this event shows his humanity.
The humanity of Jesus is something we can all identify with. Jesus got hungry and thirsty, he got weary and depressed and he even wept. So, now we know he understands how we feel in these same situations. We know he understands what it is like to be human. Knowing Jesus to be truly human, just like you and me and all of us, gives us hope. Jesus assures us that God is not a distant God, indifferent to the struggles of his creation.
Another important point in the story of Lazarus is not only about Jesus weeping for Lazarus; it also about him raising Lazarus. A proof for all of us that, indeed, he is also the Son of God. Jesus can not only inspire us by his humanity. He can also empower us with his divinity. Jesus can touch our lives in a way that no other human could ever touch. He can raise us to a new life, as he raised Lazarus. However, take note that, Jesus saves the life of his friend Lazarus, but he must pay for it with his own life.
The raising of Lazarus gives emphasis to the theme of Jesus as the giver of life. But first, like a grain of wheat that falls on the ground and dies, he must lose his life. Only then can he preserve it for eternal life.
We have our own lives to live, and we have all the power to live our lives in just the way we want to live them. We enjoy the fullness of freedom, the freedom to choose what to do with our life. Now, looking at our lives, from the point of view of this material world, and putting it at the disposal of all the worldly temptations and allurements, and our inability to rise above these worldly things, will make us all dead to our sinfulness.
It is sad to note that this is the popular tendency of the world today and, by just looking around and observing every event that takes place every now and then, we do not need proof that we are in the darkness of our sinfulness. We are all dead and we need Jesus to raise us all back to life.
Death is not only physical, but we can also die spiritually. Our sinful way of life is death, and it is sad that we do not consider the seriousness of this kind of death. We may have the fulness of the physical aspect of our life, and we may be considered to be at the best of our health, but even with all these, we can be dead spiritually.
Jesus raised his friend, Lazarus, back to life. Our death, because of our sinfulness, does not need a miracle, like what Jesus did for Lazarus, but simply a decision to accept Jesus in our lives so we can enjoy the fulness of our lives by being healthy both physically and spiritually. Jesus is the life-giver and we believe that he is very much willing to help us enjoy that fulness of being alive with his grace.