OUT OF THE GRAVE CLOTHES – INTO THE LIGHT

Lazarus hears Jesus calling and sits up in his grave clothes

I lived much of my life as a dead man. I ran around and did what I thought was expected of me – people pleasing. I tried to make everyone happy and keep the peace. Not every part of me was dead, the functional me was up and running, paying bills, going to work, fulfilling commitments, but performing tasks is not the core of a person. When you live with the sole purpose of pleasing others, you lose track of who you really are.

The real me lay bound up in grave clothes and lay on a cold slab in a dark cave. No, really! Dreams and desires that burned in my heart as a young person, lay dormant, placed aside to help other’s dreams instead. My attempts at self-expression became too scary to live out loud and so became tightly bound and muted with grave clothes.

EXPECTATIONS EVERYWHERE

Responsibilities come at us fast and furious in this modern life. Everywhere we go, we are faced with a set of expectations. If you’re a people pleaser and are not careful, you can begin to fade little by little as you willingly bury yourself in tasks and duties. It seems easier to hush and tie your time up with expectations, than figure out who you really are. It seems easier to reflect what other people want.

I tell myself I can live like this. It’s safe. I never have to be myself. Who wants conflict? Yet all the while, the real me lays in a silent tomb, bound in grave clothes, waiting for the time to pass.

Living like this isn’t truly living.

Light shines into a tomb

WHISPERS

Lately, tiny rays of white light began to penetrate the darkness of my tomb. Something stirred deep inside my heart and I woke up.

Those rays of light carry a sound of comfort and warmth.

They whisper, “Come forth.”

I realized that I am not really dead and I still have time left!

But Who is it that is calling me?

LAZARUS

In the bible we read of another dead man, Lazarus, a friend of Jesus, a brother to Mary and Martha of Bethany. I don’t know if he was a people pleaser like me, but he became sick, died, and lay in a tomb all tied up.

John relates the story of this radical miracle in John chapter 11. Lazarus became seriously ill, so his sisters sent word asking Jesus to come and heal their brother. Even though the family had close ties to Jesus, He delayed His travel to Bethany. Jesus did not arrive in time to heal His friend but got there after Lazarus died and was buried. For four days, Lazarus lay in a tomb, wrapped in grave clothes, rotting in the heat.

Martha And Jesus at tomb of Lazarus

THE CALL TO COME

When Jesus finally arrived, he found the family in desperate mourning. But Jesus encouraged Martha to believe the promise of the resurrection from the dead.

25 Yeshua said to her,
“I am the resurrection and the life!
Whoever believes in Me,
even if he dies, shall live.
John 11:25 TLV

Martha believed, but did not fully understand the timing. After a bit of commotion and weeping, she took Jesus to Lazarus’ tomb, and here is where the dead man heard The Light.

As horrifying as it must have seemed, Jesus told them to roll the stone away from the entrance to the tomb. His request made no sense and broke every ceremonial law from the Old Testament. Martha worried, but upon Jesus’ commands, they removed the stone.

Jesus prayed, gave thanks and then cried out in a very loud voice,

“LAZARUS, COME FORTH!”

He who had been dead came out,
wrapped in burial clothes binding his hands and feet,
with a cloth over his face.
And Yeshua tells them,
“Cut him loose, and let him go!”
John 11:44 TLV

Lazarus comes out of the tomb in Grave Clothes

FAITH LIKE LAZARUS

I want to have faith like Lazarus. Even as a dead man, he obeyed Jesus the moment He called! It meant waking up, standing up, and walking forward into the Light – grave clothes and all!

And life came immediately  at the sound of Jesus’ voice!

Jesus did not say, “Lazarus, get up and when you are ready – Come forth!”

He did not say, “Lazarus, get yourself together, clean up and then – Come!”

Resurrection came immediately, not from the efforts of the dead man, rather from the power of the sound of Jesus’ voice.

Jesus did not fear the stench of death or worry about Lazarus tripping on grave clothes. In fact, it wasn’t until after Lazarus came out of the tomb, that Jesus commanded the others to cut them off and let Lazarus go.

The grave clothes lost their power to constrict Lazarus in death. In the light of the love of Jesus, they are simply something in the way of freedom. Maybe we just have to trust the voice of Jesus, stand up and come forward before our grave clothes fall off.

TRUST THE VOICE OF JESUS

Martha feared the stench of death, but dared to trust the voice of Jesus and they rolled away the stone. When Jesus called Lazarus to come, Lazarus knew His friend’s voice and trusted. Not even grave clothes could stop him. The voice of Jesus calls us to life!

Jesus teaches us in John 10 that all who belong to Him are like sheep that know the Good Shepherd’s voice. If you belong to Him, you can trust His voice and come when He calls. He has light and life for us.

THE TROUBLE WITH GRAVE CLOTHES

They become so comfortable. We sleep in tombs swaddled and bound, in the lies we accept about ourselves. Grave clothes sing lullabies of lies into our thinking and we sleep.

God loves us so much, before we were ever born, He designed dreams, purpose and beautiful works for us to walk in. These bring joy and pain as we struggle to understand how to walk in freedom. Psalm 139

The lies of the enemy sing their song to keep us in silence, but Jesus calls us to come to life.

THE SONG OF MY GRAVE CLOTHES

I buried myself and my dreams so long ago. Dreams of writing, singing and speaking, called to me even as a youngster, yet growing up in trauma, I had no confidence in myself, or the dreams God placed in my heart. It was easier to serve others, so I silenced those longings and went to sleep.

When I did attempt to step out into light, I often failed, and the voice of Guilt and Shame held me tight and pointed out my every imperfection. The voice of Fear and Intimidation convinced me that trying again would only bring embarrassment. So, I lay back down on the cold slab, convinced silence was best.

As a people pleaser, with my worth tied to what others thought of me, the fear of Rejection whispered, “don’t take the risk of being yourself.”

Man lies on slab in Grave Clothes

Even today, as I begin to untie myself and try to walk, the indignant voice of Accusation recounts everything wrong with me, and lists every time I have tried and failed. Worthlessness sighs and shakes his head and Perfection sneers in the background.

Believe me! It is easier to stay tied up than to try and walk forward in freedom.

Grave clothes chatter their endless lies and all flow from the enemy’s ugly mouth to convince us to stay put in the dark tomb.

But Jesus sees beyond those dirty, smelly clothes to the treasure of a frightened sheep who has not yet run free in the Light.

I am beginning to see that even after the years I spent bound and laying in a tomb, He holds my purpose and there is still time. Jesus is still calling.

A LONG TIME COMING

Big miracles take time. Jesus delayed in coming to heal Lazarus, in favor of the greater miracle – calling forth life out of death. Sometimes I worry it’s too late for me to walk in the dreams of my youth. Jesus has already healed me in so many wonderful ways. I am so grateful. Isn’t this enough?

But Jesus never lets us settle for second best. He calls every part of us to life. His voice calls to wake up every dream. There is still time. He calls us by name and never leaves us in the tomb. 

Just like Lazarus, Jesus calls for the greater miracle in us, not just healing, but life from the dead!

WHEN YOU HEAR HIM CALLJesus calling to come forth out of the Tomb

You may not be a people pleaser or bound up from trauma, but I am sure a dream or purpose lies buried within you, and Jesus is calling. Perhaps He is calling you to rise and come forth in 2025.

Perhaps, He is calling you to enter into your purpose and use the time you have left to walk in the dreams silenced by the enemy so long ago.

Will you trip on your way out of the tomb? Yes! You will trip, and the voice of Accusation will be right there to say, “See! You fell again!”

But shut down that thought, it’s only a filthy rag. Trust the voice of Jesus calling and bringing light.

Will you be able to stand when He calls? Yes! You are never too old or too far gone. Jesus knows the plans he has for you, to prosper you and give you hope and a future.  Jeremiah 29:11

Some people may not like you rising up and coming out of the tomb. They may even say ‘you stink!’ But Jesus did not make a mistake. He loves you and is calling you by name to come! You belong to Him and carry His fragrance of life!

As He calls, I hope you hear His voice above the chatter of the grave clothes!
He will bring you out of the tomb just like Lazarus.
Come forth into the Light of His presence.
Shine – for the Light of the Lord is risen upon you!  Isaiah 60


Are YOU READY?

 

Lori Assadi Ramsey

Lori Assadi Ramsey is an author, musician, and kid’s illustrator who loves communicating the love of Jesus through words, music, and pictures. Called to encourage others, she has spent 30 years leading and participating in praise and worship ministry. A founding member of Manna of Life Foundation and the Chicken Coop Children’s Library in Ghana, Lori lives in Northern Virginia with her husband Mr. Ed, and her rescue pup Missi. You can connect with Lori @lightyourlamps, or Auntylulav.com

More Posts

3 comments

  1. I never thought of people pleasers as being like someone dead, bound up in pleasing others and not what God called them to do. Good analogy.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *