Day 37—Monday, January 5

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?” She said to Him, “Yes, Lord; I have believed that You are the Christ, the Son of God, even He who comes into the world.”
John 11:25-27

ALPHA AND OMEGA

Lazarus was already dead when Christ arrived. He had purposefully waited four days after Lazarus was entombed to join Mary and Martha and to lament the death of His beloved friend. When a grieving Martha rushes to meet Jesus upon His arrival, there is pain in her greeting—“Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” These words carry in them the Job-like cry of all who have ever felt lost or abandoned by God in times of grief or despair—wondering where He was in our suffering and why He could not have prevented it.

However, amidst their grief, Mary and Martha are unaware that the Jesus’ delayed arrival has allowed him to orchestrate the circumstances surrounding a miraculous event that embodies the cornerstone of the Christian faith. Jesus assures Martha that her brother will rise again, and while she acknowledges the truth and promise of the final and future resurrection—“I know he will rise again in the resurrection of the last day”—this does not give a satisfactory answer to her present grief.

Christ’s response to Martha indicates that the full meaning of His words has not been comprehended. Jesus tells Martha “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.” Thus, Christ proclaims that the Kingdom of God is not just a promise of glories to come, but is a present reality. He calls Lazarus forth from his tomb, revealing in a palpable way, the glory of God and the fulfillment of the promises of His Kingdom. Through the resurrection of Lazarus, Jesus not only powerfully demonstrates that death no longer holds dominion, but declares Himself to be the source of the life He promises to all of us who are dead in sin so that we might share in His ultimate victory.

This triumphant Christ can be seen in the beautifully illustrated Pantocator of the Deësis Mosaic. Artisans of the Pantocrator (translated as "Almighty" or "All-powerful”) sought to express in one image the dual nature of Christ: His divinity and His humanity. The two different expressions of the Pantocrator’s solemn visage show both the humbled incarnate person of Jesus and the eternal Divine Majesty of God, the Alpha and Omega, the Resurrection and the Life.  The artisans envisioned the humanity of Jesus, the Jesus who wept with Mary and Martha over the death of their brother, in perfect unity and oneness with the kingly Jesus, the Jesus that spoke life back into the form of Lazarus.

As we reflect on the Pantocrator image may we be reminded that the Jesus who laid the foundations of the world is the same Jesus who met Mary and Martha that day in Bethany and who meets us in our times of need. Often, we like Mary and Martha in times of darkness and despair, wonder where God is and how He will fulfill His promises. But that is when He comes—amidst our profound disappoints or when all hope seems lost—and breathes life into the dying and brings comfort to meet us in our deepest fears. Ultimately, after this time of expectant waiting during the advent season, we must remember that Lazarus’s story is also our own story—condemned to death in sin, but alive again through the infinite power and might of Christ. This is the already and the not yet—rejoicing in the resurrection we have now, and awaiting the one to come. “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16: 33)

Prayer
Merciful God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who is the Resurrection and the Life: Raise us, we humbly pray, from the death of sin to the life of righteousness; That when we depart this life we may rest in him, and at the resurrection receive that blessing which your well-beloved Son shall then pronounce: “Come, you blessed of my Father, receive the kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the world.” Grant this, O merciful Father, through Jesus Christ, our Mediator and Redeemer.
Amen.
(Book of Common Prayer)

Amanda Rountree, Art Department
Nila Osline, CCCA