Fifth Sunday of Lent [A]

 

FIFTH SUNDAY OF LENT [A]


In Ezekiel, it’s a promise (37:12-14). In Romans, it is a theological principle (8:11). Meanwhile, in John, it becomes something tangible, something concrete (11:38-44). The “it” has to do with the notion of being raised up. At first, it seems as if the Lord has let Martha down. She sends word, but he arrives too late. In other words, the illness has taken her brother’s life. Jesus reminds her: We are a resurrection people (11:23). And yet, she remains downcast. The resurrection will happen when the time comes for it to happen (11:24). 


Jesus, at this point, takes exception. The Lord makes a declaration of sovereignty: I AM the resurrection and the life (11:25). You’re acting as if time is sovereign, as if time and time alone will dictate when the resurrection can take place. Well, I am about to do some dictating of my own. And with that, a man who was thoroughly dead comes back to life. It can be understood as a demonstration of authority on the part of Jesus. He possesses absolute sovereignty. Even time has to yield when Jesus displays his unparalleled authority. 


A particular theme is being touched upon as Jesus and Martha carry out this verbal exchange. It is a theme that will be explored roughly 1900 years later, by the acclaimed artist Salvador Dali. If you review his 1931 composition, “The Persistence of Memory,” you will see clocks that are melting. Toward the end of his life, Dali would produce a sculpture called “The Nobility of Time.”  Again, what do you suppose is being depicted? You are looking at a clock that is in the process of melting. 


When it’s a work of art, you inevitably end up with a variety of interpretations. What will it mean for us if we adopt a New Testament perspective? Let’s consider the possibility that this is Dali’s way of saying that time matters—but it matters…just so much. It ranks very high. It has a form of nobility. Nevertheless, it cannot be thought of as sovereign. It’s significant, but it isn’t sovereign. What, if anything, is sovereign? According to John chapter eleven, it’s more of a who than a what. Jesus is sovereign. 


He is the one who truly matters. If your life can be compared to a painting, you will want to make Jesus your primary subject. There are any number of things that could potentially show up on your canvas. But you’re not going to be genuinely satisfied until Jesus becomes your central point of focus. Nothing else qualifies as art. Omit Jesus, and you’re settling for what could be described as “framed graffiti.” 

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