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THE FIFTH SUNDAY IN LENT March 22, 2026 Pastor Tom Steers Christ the Saviour Lutheran Church, Toronto OPENING HYMN: 947 “All Glory Be to God on High” Lutheran Service Book CONFESSION AND ABSOLUTION Page 184 THE INTROIT Psalm 116, verses 1-4, 8; antiphon: Ps. 116:15 15Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints. I love the LORD, because he has heard my voice and my pleas for mercy. 2 Because he inclined his ear to me, therefore I will call on him as long as I live. 3 The snares of death encompassed me; the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me; I suffered distress and anguish. 4 Then I called on the name of the LORD: “O LORD, I pray, deliver my soul!” 8For you have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling; Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen. 15Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints. The Salutation – Pastor: The Lord be with you. Congregation: And with thy Spirit. COLLECT PRAYER: Almighty God, by Your great goodness mercifully look upon Your people that we may be governed and preserved evermore in body and soul; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. OUR BIBLE READINGS: Old Testament – Ezekiel 37: 1-14 Psalm 130; antiphon v. 7 Epistle Reading – Romans 8: 1-11 Our Gospel Reading – John 11:1-45 THE APOSTLES’ CREED Page 192 HYMN OF THE DAY: 430 “My Song Is Love Unknown” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Re6yzS24FRw&list=RDRe6yzS24FRw&start_radio=1 THE SERMON – There is an uncomfortable, yet undeniable truth about life—and that is, we die. It’s inescapable. Some are graced with what we consider a long life, perhaps reaching into their 80s or even 90s. But ultimately, as a result of the sin of our first parents, and our own, we die. This is a hard reality. Hard for us to face for ourselves, and hard to face for those who see their loved ones pass away before them. Imagine then that you’re attending a funeral for a loved one, and that you have been grieving for four days. Then, someone comes and raises the deceased to life. Now imagine you are the person who has passed away. And someone comes and raises you to life. This is exactly what happens for the Christian. And the only thing our Saviour, our Redeemer, Jesus Christ, asks is that we believe it. That was the case 2,000 years ago when Jesus raised Lazarus from death. In today’s Gospel text we read that Jesus has friends, Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. They care about Jesus, and He cared deeply about them. The two sisters and brother lived in Bethany, which was about three kilometers east of Jerusalem. Lazarus is sick. Dying. And his sisters send Jesus word that he is ill. Then Christ says something striking: “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” And as if to reassure us, John writes next that Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. But then we have what might seem as another non-starter, because we read that when Christ heard Lazarus was ill, He stayed two days longer in the place where He was. And the disciples might have asked, and you might in your own hearts wonder, why? Why not just rush out and save Lazarus? Jesus says His friend has fallen asleep. And in the truest sense, this is the case. Lazarus’s soul is asleep in the Lord. But his body is dead. And Jesus clarifies that. Then Christ explains—and the explanation is as startling as it is enlightening. Jesus says, “For your sake I am glad I wasn’t there when Lazarus died, so that you may believe. But let’s go to him.” Christ is saying that for the disciples’ sake, and for Mary and Martha, and those in Bethany, and for every human being since then—including us here today—He is glad He wasn’t there so that when He raises Lazarus, you will believe. Physical death is not something that Jesus, that God, can’t handle. Unbelief, which causes eternal spiritual death, is what concerns Christ. And so, it is faith in Him that Christ wants. But the tug of this world, and the emotions of this life, are real and hard for us. Illness and death bring real emotional pain and physical suffering, and Christ doesn’t deny that. But sometimes we forget. Sometimes we behave and act as though physical death is permanent. And it’s at those times of suffering, when facing illness and death, that we need to hold on to our faith tighter than ever — when we need to remember, as Jesus is teaching here, that physical death is not the end, and that there is hope, true hope. Christ returns to Bethany. And Martha goes out to see Jesus. Her sister Mary is grieving, and angry, and stays in the house. Martha goes out to her Lord, and in a beautiful and timeless confession of faith says, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask God will give you.” Christ assures her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha, still thinking as a grieving sister, replies, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” And so Jesus says the words that have echoed throughout the last 20 centuries—it is the pure Gospel, and powerful, and meant to be recorded and heard by you. Christ says, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live.” Many of us have heard those words spoken at funeral services. And when we allow ourselves to really hear and take them in, they are life-changing. Christ overcomes our greatest enemy. He ultimately overcomes what we fear the most when He says everyone who lives and believes in Him shall never die. Christ then asks Martha the simple question, and He asks it of us: “Do you believe this?” Martha’s reply is heartfelt: “Yes, Lord; I believe you are the Christ, the Son of God.” But day-to-day life and loss can lead us to be like Martha’s sister Mary. Despondent and angry, she’s still in her house. Despite this, Christ calls to her, as He calls to us through His Word and sacraments. In the Gospel account, Martha says to Mary in private, “The Teacher is here and he’s asking for you.” When Mary hears this, she rises quickly and goes to Him. Mary runs to Him and falls at Jesus’ feet, and she’s crying. She says in honest anger and grief, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” What she’s saying through tears is: Christ, if you had come when we wanted, this wouldn’t have happened. Why weren’t you here? Sometimes, I’ve heard people say to those who are grieving that they shouldn’t cry. In this situation, Christ Himself did. Verse 35, the shortest verse in the Bible, says, “Jesus wept.” This is not an unfeeling Saviour that we have. Christ asks, “Where have you laid Lazarus?” Some around Jesus are moved. Others say, as we sometimes do in tragedy, why didn’t He do something? The scene is powerful. Mary, Martha, the grieving family, and friends approach the tomb. They approach the reality of Lazarus’s death, so much so that Martha says to Jesus there will be a bad smell when they roll away the stone, for Lazarus has been dead four days. Martha is thinking again as a human being. She’s focused on the reality of death, so Jesus gently reminds her. “Didn’t I tell you that if you believe you will see the glory of God?” Then Christ prays to God the Father. He asks for the Father to hear Him. He says He knows God listens to Him, but asks for the sake of those there, so they will believe. Then Jesus yells in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” There might have been some in the crowd, perhaps many, who doubted. There are many today who believe, and many who doubt. Even those who believe may sometimes wonder, “How will my body be resurrected after it’s dust?” And that’s the reason why the Old Testament reading for today is Ezekiel, Chapter 37, verses 1–14, because it’s about the power of God’s Word. God tells Ezekiel to prophesy to a valley of dry bones. They hear his call, and obey him. The word of the prophet is powerful because it is the Word of the Creator, of God. Here, death itself is undone. This is no resuscitation, but a re-creation of the very flesh and sinews necessary for human life. God says something to each one of us here. He says, “And you shall know that I am the Lord when I open your graves, and raise you from them, O my people. And I will put my Spirit within you, and you shall live… then you shall know that I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will do it…” Christ raises Lazarus. In the painting on the first page of your service bulletin, you see Lazarus in his grave clothing. The clothes are bright, illuminated it would appear, by the Word and power of Jesus. The face is still covered. And that allows us to imagine anyone being in those grave clothes. Our loved ones, even one day ourselves, when Christ calls out to us to arise, and raises us in the bodily resurrection. When He raises believers who received faith in Him as the Saviour who paid for our sins. Faith in Him who is the living resurrection. Faith that Christ has the power to overcome death, and that He keeps His word. As the Apostle Paul reassured us, “…the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:23) May this reassurance and certainty of His resurrection, and your own, be with you this day, and throughout your life. Amen. PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH SERVICE OF THE SACRAMENT Page 194 SANCTUS (Holy, Holy, Holy) Page 195 THE LORD'S PRAYER Page 196 THE WORDS OF OUR LORD Page 197 AGNUS DEI (The Lamb of God) Page 198 THE DISTRIBUTION NUNC DIMITTIS (Song of Simeon) Page 199 THE THANKSGIVING Page 200 POST-COMMUNION COLLECT (Right-Hand-Column) Page 201 SALUTATION and BENEDICAMUS Page 201 THE BENEDICTION Page 202 CLOSING HYMN: 548 “Thanks to Thee, O Christ, Victorious”