5A LENT, SUNDAY HOMILY, JOHN 11:1-45 March 26, 2023
1. STORY
Once there was a monk who longed to
discover the secret of immortality. He
heard that there was an elderly monk who lived far away who knew the secret of
how to live forever. He was so excited
that he began the log trip to the distant mountain where this monk lived. However, when he arrived at the destination,
he was terribly disappointed to discover that the monk with this secret had
died a few days before his arrival. Upon
his return home, he was consoled by his friends who said that if the elderly
monk knew the secret of how to live forever, he would not have died. The lesson he learned was that only God can
give eternal life.
2. GOSPEL, JOHN 11:1-45
A) LAZARUS DIED
The sisters Martha and Mary were saddened by the death of their brother Lazarus. The friends of the two sisters were in great sorrow knowing that Martha and Mary’s brother had passed away. Even Jesus was “perturbed and deeply troubled.”
B) LAZARUS LIVED
Martha believed Jesus when he said
that whoever believed in him would never die. Jesus went to the tomb where Lazarus was
buried and cried out in a loud voice. “Lazarus,
come out.” Lazarus came out of the tomb, a living man. Jesus had the power to raise the dead to life.
Jesus is the resurrection and the life.
3. APPLICATION TO LIFE
A) SORROW IN THE WORLD
There is much sorrow in the world. This is caused by the death of a loved one, illness, discord in the family, unhappiness at work, lack of a descent place to live, and not having enough money to live even a simple life. It comes from war, hunger, and disease.
B) JESUS BRINGS US HAPPINESS
Each year at Easter there is much joy
and happiness among the newly baptized for they have come to believe in Jesus. Jesus brings us happiness when we believe that
he has the power to give us eternal life, to give us strength to live a happy
life, and the truth that there is life after death. Because he brings us happiness, we should do
two things:
i) Thank him for the joy and
happiness he gives us.
ii) We must bring others to know
Jesus who will also bring them happiness.
4. CONCLUSION
In the story, the monk learned that
none of us can give eternal life. In the
gospel, we learned that only Jesus can raise the dead to life and give us
eternal life. He taught us that he is
the resurrection and life. We must thank Jesus for the great gift of eternal
life and should introduce others to Jesus who will also give them joy and
happiness here on earth and happiness forever in heaven.
