Jesus stood at the tomb of his friend Lazarus and gave us a preview of His power. He called in a loud voice, “Lazarus! Come forth!”. At the call of Jesus, a dead man came to life. Some of you may be skeptical about the truth of that story of Lazarus. For me, it helps to break the cycle of grief. When I get stuck in that place of trying to remember the good things about my grandma and feeling the acute pain of her absence, I remember the call of life that is greater than the call of death. It is the call of Jesus. Because of His grace, someday, He will call me too and, I hope, He will call you.

In the last of our “Lavish” series we will hear Jesus call the name Zacchaeus. We will see Zacchaeus transformed. His transformation makes clear for us what it looks like to hear the call of life from the lips of Jesus.