John 11 & Hammond Indiana...

Read John 11 the other day; specifically verses 38-40. This is the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead. Here are some things - in no particular order - that impacted me and how I think they relate to what is happening in Hammond.

1. The tomb as a setting struck me. Plenty of people today, though they may be alive physiologically, often still live in some sort of a tomb. So as a setting, this seems relevant to society today.

2. Before Jesus raises Lazarus and calls him out of the tomb, he instructs Mary to roll away the stone. To me, this spoke of removing obstacles between the person in the tomb and Jesus. Certainly Jesus could've moved the stone himself but it gives a great insight into the way Jesus calls us today to continue to remove obstacles between people and himself, people he would desire to call out of their tomb.

3. Mary comments that moving that stone will reveal some unpleasant smells. Simply put, this is messy work at times but always worth it as we soon see.

4. Verse 40, one of my favorites. Jesus says "Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?" It's precisely in front of this open and smelly tomb where belief can see the glory of God made manifest. This does not seem like an accident but rather the irony and power of the Kingdom of God.

5. Jesus calls Lazarus out. To be clear, while we may partner in removing obstacles and what not, it is Jesus alone who has the power to call people out of a tomb, out of death, out of darkness into light, into life with Him! But what a sight to behold!

6. Community. Lazarus did not emerge from the tomb only to find Jesus there and nobody else. Rather, family and friends waited for him. It's important that when people are called out, that they are also called into. That as we see them emerge from their tomb we also see to it that they are enfolded into community.

For us at the Hammond campus, we realize that post Christian culture is full of people living in tombs. Therefore, we see it as our mission to listen to the voice of Jesus and in concert with him, do our best to remove as many obstacles as we can between people and him. This could be anything from the language we use to the love that we convey. We realize that at times, this process will be messy; that it will reveal some foul things along the way but we know it's worth every bit of it. We know this because we believe Jesus and what he said. We believe that this setting is precisely where we will see the glory of God made manifest as he resurrects, heals, and restores. Then, we watch as Jesus calls them out of their tomb unto himself; something only He and His power can achieve. However, we watch with intention and follow the example set by this text by surrounding the person Jesus calls out with family and community. We do not thrive on our own! It's my prayer that God will do this and far more as we prepare to launch this campus.