March 22, 2026

In this Lenten homily, Pastor Ron traces our journey from wilderness to new life, culminating in Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead in John 11. Drawing together the season’s gospel readings—Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness, Nicodemus at night, the Samaritan woman at the well, the man born blind, and now Lazarus—he shows a pattern of ever-deepening signs that reveal both Jesus’ humanity and God’s astonishing power.

Pastor Ron reflects on why Jesus wept, suggesting that his tears are not for Lazarus alone but for the lack of faith among those closest to him—and perhaps for us too, even after 66 books of Scripture proclaim God’s compassion, grace, love, and mercy. He connects the raising of Lazarus with Ezekiel’s valley of dry bones and Paul’s contrast between “flesh” and “Spirit,” challenging worldly values that prize control, success, and accountability over compassion.

Through quotes from Ashley Wheeler’s devotionals, we hear the good news that Christ has entered our pain, surrounds us with love, and changes us forever by the life-giving power of resurrection. Death is not the end but the beginning of a new adventure with God; nothing can separate us from God’s love, and there is nothing—even four-day-old death—that God cannot overcome. This homily invites you, in the final stretch of Lent, to live hopefully, to trust God in every “storm,” and to set your mind on the Spirit who brings life and peace.