We have all lived through the death of a loved one. We have all ached when someone we dearly love has passed away. We have all wondered about what comes next, and fretted about our own death. In our gospel story for today we find Jesus dealing with those experiences. And together with Lazarus, Jesus (along with our other Bible lessons) shows us what comes next after sin and death. He does not just show it; he gives it. What he gives is freedom given through love. That is what comes next when the new life is given, when death and sin are conquered. Freedom given through love is what awaits us on the other side of death. Let us hear the story.

Jesus certainly loved the dying man and his family. When Mary and Martha (Lazarus' sisters) first came to tell Jesus about their brother's illness, t…