“And he who had died came out bound hand and foot with graveclothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, ‘Loose him, and let him go.'” John 11:44
In the book of Isaiah, we find where God speaks of the anointing of His Son, the Holy Spirit being given to Him so that He could fulfill His ministry. That ministry in part consisted of the preaching of good tidings, or wonderful, hope-filled news, to the poor. Isaiah went on to write that these “good tidings” consisted of promises made by God to heal the brokenhearted, proclaiming “liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound.” (Is. 61:1) In other words, Christ came with news from on high, not only to proclaim liberty to those who were shackled by sins, cares, and the injustices of this life, but to provide a way by which the burdens could be lifted, and the deep needs of broken hearts could be truly met. Christ came by the authority of the Father, and the power of the Spirit, to give hope to hopeless, help to the helpless, to change ashes into beauty, by ministering to the whole heart, mind, spirit, and body of the believer. However, it is possible to read of the “good tidings” in Scripture, and not benefit from the wondrous promises that accompany them.
Before Christ’s death and resurrection, there came a day when a beloved friend of HIs died. His name was Lazarus. Lazarus had two sisters, Martha and Mary, whom the Lord Jesus loved greatly, and they Him. Jesus, not being where Lazarus was because of His ministry elsewhere, did not immediately go to him, but deliberately tarried four days before He arrived. In the meantime, Lazarus died, and the sisters were heartbroken because the possibility that Christ could have saved him from death. When Jesus came to the tomb of Lazarus, after having instructed Martha to have the stone over the entrance removed, He lifted up His eyes, and prayed: “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. And I know that You always hear Me, but because of the people who are standing by I said this, that they may believe that You sent Me.” (Jn.11:42) It was then that Jesus cried with a loud voice: “Lazarus, come forth.” Lazarus did indeed come forth to the absolute astonishment of those present, but though he was now alive, he was still bound in graveclothes. Even his face was wrapped with a cloth. There was life, even “resurrection life,” but there was bondage, limitations imposed upon one who had been dead. What then was the will of God at that moment? It was expressed in Jesus’ words: “Loose him, and let him go.”
It was Mrs. Cousin who wrote a famous hymn concerning the suffering of Christ out of love for us, and also concerning His marvelous work on Calvary accomplished on our behalf. She wrote: “For me, Lord Jesus, Thou hast died, And I have died in Thee; Thou’rt risen; my bands are all untied, And now Thou liv’st in me.” Mrs. Cousin speaks to us of the salvation in Christ, the forgiveness of sins, by the shedding of His precious blood, and its power to cleanse from all sin. But she does not stop there, because Christ did not stop there. When God the Father placed her in Christ at the moment when she was born of the Spirit, she became identified with Him in death, having died to all not of Him. Just as real and true as her sins were washed away completely in Christ’s blood, is the fact that she was crucified with Him, died, and was buried with Christ. When Christ rose from the dead, on the third day, Mrs. Cousin, even though she had not yet been born, rose with Him in the sight of the Father. By the power of that resurrection, and complete victory of Christ over sin, Satan, and the world, Mrs. Cousin’s bands were ALL untied to follow Christ.
Dear Father, Show us Thy liberty. In Jesus’ name, Amen.