Fifth Sunday in Lent 2026

Ezekiel 37, 1-14 & John 11, 1-45

Rev. Neli Miranda

 

            As we approach the climax of our Lenten path, the liturgy gifts us with a profound message of Life. Today, we hear the prophet Ezekiel proclaiming, “I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live…” With greater power, Jesus proclaims, “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live…” In these readings, we experience an anticipation, a foretaste, of the glorious resurrection of Easter Sunday.

            During the sixth century BCE, the people of Israel—the kingdom of Judah—endured one of their deepest crises. Jerusalem and the temple had been destroyed, and the king and the people had been deported to Babylon. They were suffering the consequences of the wrong decisions of Judah's monarchy and its leadership, who had turned away from the path of justice. Uprooted from their home, the land promised by God, they were overwhelmed by a profound sense of hopelessness. They were living through a moment of great despair and uncertainty; they felt abandoned by God and dead inside.

            This dramatic situation is revealed to Ezekiel through the powerful vision of a valley full of dry bones, which will be brought together and raised to life. Ezekiel was called to prophesy to this exiled people, who felt as though they were already dead. Ezekiel’s mission was to deliver God’s message: “I am going to open your graves, and bring you up from your graves… I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live…” (37:12, 14). What a glorious promise to the captives! They will be set free and will return to their own land. Although their liberation took time, God’s promise sustained them, allowing them to remain confident in their future.

            Our own human lives are an ongoing journey of learning. At times, we too face unexpected and challenging situations that can make us feel trapped in a grave, much like the people of Israel. However, death and suffering are not God’s will. God our Creator does not abandon us but accompanies, comforts, and strengthens us during our pain and suffering, announcing to us: “I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live!”

            John’s Gospel also invites us to experience the Divine Presence among us in the midst of death. The entire passage brims with love, hope, consolation, faith, life, and rebirth—all the gifts God brings to us when we are in pain and grief.

            Martha, Mary, and Lazarus lived in Bethany near Jerusalem. They were followers and close friends of Jesus, and he loved them very much. So, when Lazarus became ill, his sisters sent a message to Jesus. We are not told why Jesus waited another two days before heading for Bethany. He simply states, “This illness does not lead to death; rather it is for God’s glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it” (John 11:4).

            When Jesus arrives in Bethany, he finds two sisters and their entire community mourning the loss of a beloved brother. The atmosphere is heavy with pain and grief. Yet, Jesus’ arrival begins to transform the community's mood from one of mourning to one of faith and joy.

            Martha approaches Jesus in the hope of finding consolation, and she hears these revealing words: “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die” (John 11:25-26).

            Jesus’ consolation was not superficial or provisional; his answer came from a total and radical faith that enlightens and gives meaning to our lives. Through these words, we understand that while physical death is an inevitable part of our journey, it is not the end. Life is not confined to our physical bodies, but in all our entire being, for we are filled with the Divine breath. In this understanding, our deepest fears, related to death, are taken away by Jesus. He takes away the power of death over us.

            After this radical statement of faith, Jesus meets Mary. When he saw her weeping, and those with her also weeping, he was deeply moved with compassion and wept with them. Then he performed the great miracle of Lazarus’s resurrection. He came to Lazarus’s tomb and, after invoking the God of Life, he called him to “Come out!” Lazarus emerged, after four days in the grave, and was restored to his community.

            Dear sisters and brothers, as we approach the glorious Sunday of Easter, today we are strengthened and consoled in the midst of our own grief, pain, despair, uncertainty, and fear. We are not alone. We walk in the company of Jesus, who arrives in our communities and in our individual lives to weep with us, comfort us, reaffirm our faith, and liberate us from our graves—graves of personal sorrow, communal injustice, or societal indifference. Even when, like Lazarus, we feel we have passed the threshold of “four days”—when hope seems utterly lost and decay has set in—Jesus calls us out and offers us rebirth. He is going to unbind us and set us free.

            Lazarus’s resurrection is not merely a consoling story in John’s gospel; it is an announcement of salvation for us today. It provides a foretaste of our own spiritual rebirth and a powerful preview of the coming Easter. In the meantime, we continue to hear the echoes of the liberating message from Ezekiel: “I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live…” Amen.