Freedom Bearers: We need each other, mess, and all
“He cried out with a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come forth. The man who had died came forth, bound hand and foot with wrappings, and his face was wrapped around with a cloth. Jesus said to them,“Unbind him and let him go’.”
John 11:43-44 ESV
Fear.
Failure.
Anxiety.
Uncertainty.
Incompetence.
The accusations came in synch with every stroke of the paint brush. Upward, “you can’t do it”, downward, “who are you anyways?” The insecurities had nothing to do with painting my outdated bathroom cabinets, but the mindless task paved the way for thoughts to run rampant.
A battle of flesh, spirit and lies.
If I am being completely honest, I was running and feeding into every excuse why I could not accept God was calling me, in this season of life, to walk down a specific road. A path riddled with uncertainty, well, uncertain to my line of vision, but fully seen by Him.
The cost of obedience would push me far beyond comfort zones and undoubtedly leave me feeling turned upside down and inside out. Past journeys came to mind, the ones that seemed illogical in the moment, but I still jumped feet first. This task, however, just felt too big, too much, too far beyond my capabilities.
“I don’t have any of the right qualifications.”
Now, I was not sure what those qualifications should be, I was just convinced I did not possess any of them.
“Are You sure You have the right girl in mind?”
Without skipping a beat, my hands kept painting, but my heart felt confined, unable to believe freely or hope deeply.
As I watched the second coat of paint dry, I sent a video message to a friend, about the jumbled mess swirling around my muddled brain. A dear friend, Samantha, who has the reputation of speaking truth, saying what she means and not speaking for the sake of flattery. Everyone needs a Samantha in their lives.
Over the last four years, I have observed my friend’s journey towards a specific calling. Years of obedience when the days felt too much, stretched too thin, moments of second guessing, but repeatedly brought to the point of surrender time and again. She lived days questioning whether she was doing the right thing, hearing the right words, but she kept walking. I know she will continue onward, until the Spirit tells her otherwise.
Samantha’s journey is not without messy days.
She listened to my message, asked some questions and then, in true Samantha fashion, set the record straight with words of encouragement and affirmation. Truth spoken from a friend and used by the Spirit to penetrate a heart frosted over with fear; and the melting process began.
That conversation directly led to the moment later in the afternoon, when I reached the end of myself and simply whispered, “I surrender.”
Two words that have the power to change the trajectory of our hearts. Whatever the ailment of human flesh, whisper the words of surrender. They will cause the hardened soil to quake, bring remembrance of Who God is and who we are in relation to Him. We can abandon ourselves to the One who is trustworthy, all the time.
Surrender changes everything.
Over the last several months, the story of Lazarus and his sisters has been stamped into my mind countless times. The Spirit continually leads me back to these 57 verses in John 11. Thinking about my conversation with Samantha, I am reminded of the words Jesus spoke right after he called Lazarus out of the tomb, “Unbind him, and let him go.” (John 11:44b)
Lazarus, a beloved friend of Jesus (11:3) had died from an unknown illness. His body was first prepared for burial with wrapped layers of cloth and aromatic spices, to mask the scent of death, then placed in a tomb. Days before, knowing their brother was on his deathbed, Lazarus’ sisters sent word to Jesus of his condition, believing He could save him.
Knowing full well the state his beloved friend was in, Jesus remained where he was for two full days, allowing death to come, before returning to the city.
Jesus does the will of the Father, and God’s timing is never late. “There is an appointed time for everything.” (Ecclesiastes 3:1). Jesus stands outside the open tomb with enough time passed for there to “be a stench,” but right on time to reveal “the glory of God.” (John 11:4)
First, Jesus prayed to the Father, then cried out, “Lazarus come forth” (11:43). Lazarus exits the grave fully alive, the breath of life in his lungs and spirit in his being, but still wearing the robes of death, “bound hand and foot with wrappings, and his face was wrapped around with a cloth.” (11:44)
There are days I feel like Lazarus walking out of that tomb.
A person fully alive, redeemed, called out from death, and yet, there are moments I smell the stench of decay about me. The lies of the flesh and fiery arrows of the enemy entangle my thoughts, leaving me feeling crippled. My vision is blurry, and my hands and feet refuse to work as they ought.
Discouragement, fear, anxiety, anger, resentment, broken relationships, isolation, lies we believe, hardship, loss, whatever the hurt, an opportunity arises for us to choose freedom or to be bound. We cannot live deceived, rather,“be of sober spirit; be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” (I Peter 5:8)
Sometimes the fiery darts meant to paralyze our hearts are blatant and repulsive, other times, however, they are subtle. Among the most damaging death filled linens are the words we speak to ourselves, what we believe to be the accurate view of our “true self.”
Unworthy
Incompetent
Ugly
Unlovable
Forgotten
Too Flawed
Too Broken
Never Enough.
Scripture is noticeably clear; God does not describe His children that way. With ease, we can encourage others in these areas and yet still believe the age-old lie, “I am the exception”, and the death garments start to tighten.
Speaking of death garments, Jesus just raised a man from the dead. Easily, He could have caused the burial linens to fall off in the tomb or unravel as Lazarus made his way towards the entrance.
But He chose not to.
No, instead we see Jesus command the people, the ones surrounding Him at the tomb, to “unbind him, and let him go” (11:44).
But why?
To be perfectly clear, Jesus did not need their help. He did, however, present an opportunity for people to obey his command and to be used. An invitation to touch Christ’s work, as their fingers labored to unwrap layers of linen.
I am speculating here, but I think the job was probably a little bit messy, removing cloths caked with burial spices, holding remnants of decay’s stench.
Messy. But Jesus commanded it.
“Unbind him.” In other words, set him free.
Jesus spoke, first with the Father, then to Lazarus, then to the people, and the people went to work.
This image reminds me of the church. A picture of God’s people being used by Him to bring freedom, yes to the spiritually dead, but also freedom within the body of Christ to “lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race set before us.” (Hebrews 12:1)
Run the race remembering, we are Freedom Bearers. “It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore, keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5:1)
Run the race remembering, we do not run alone; “let us run with endurance the race set before us.”
Can you imagine if the people started unraveling Lazarus’ bindings, only to hear him say, “no, no, I’m good. I got this.” People forced to stand from the sidelines and watch his struggle. Eyes covered; he could not see the one who called him from the tomb. Feet bound, he could not walk, let alone run towards Jesus. With time, he probably would have unraveled himself, but was it worth it?
“Unbind him and let him go.”
Jesus’ command to the people also gave an implicit command to Lazarus as well, to allow himself to be unbound, to receive freedom.
We are a people called to:
- Bear one another’s burdens.
- Confess our sins to one another.
- Pray for one another.
- Spur one another on towards love and good deeds.
- Meet together
- Encourage one another.
- Keep unity in the body.
When circumstances feel too heavy, too messy and the friction of daily life leaves us raw and irritated, the body can bring a remembrance of God’s freedom to one another. It must, however, also be received. To carry one another’s burdens, burdens must be shared. Life must be shared.
What about personal study and individual pursuit of Christ?
Personal and communal growth is not an either/or, it is a mutual “yes”. Christ commands both because He knows we need it. We suffer without it. And through it, He accomplishes His work, freedom.
For freedom begets freedom.
Samantha’s listening ear and encouraging words, loosened the lies I was feeding into and bolstered up my remembrance that “God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.” (II Timothy 1:7)
Bound by fear, freed by truth, changed by surrender. The reality is this freedom allows me to obediently walk whatever path God has forged. Right now, I do not see the full picture, just fragments day by day, but it is enough.
Perhaps you are feeling the same? Falsely held captive by lies we know are not true, fearful of the future, bottomless discouragement, painful wounds that do not seem to heal and brokenness from old scars that still tend to itch. Invite Him in, invite others as well.
We all have messy areas in life. But together, as “iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another” (Proverbs 27:17), we can uphold one another one and bear witness to the work God does in our lives. For He is always at work.
“So, the people, who were with Him, when He called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead, continued to testify about Him.”John 12:17
-by Sarah Morris
