Tied to Sin

“Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, tied hand and foot with burial bands, and his face was wrapped in a cloth. So Jesus said to them, “Untie him and let him go.” John 11:43–44

The death of Lazarus can be seen as a symbolic representation of the soul that has died from mortal sin. This is similar to the fact that leprosy, physical ailments and the like are also symbols of sin. For that reason, Jesus’ initial reactions reveal how we should respond to serious sin in our lives. When Jesus faced the death of Lazarus, “he became perturbed and deeply troubled,” “Jesus wept,” He became “perturbed again” and He “cried out in a loud voice.” When Jesus faces our sin, He becomes angry, cries out and weeps.

Grave sin kills the spirit. As a result, we must be deeply affected if we commit or witness a grave sin just as Jesus was in this instance.

One lesson we can take from this passage is that when a soul falls into grave sin, it must not be ignored. Final impenitence is a sin by which a person fails to have appropriate remorse for sin and reacts to it in a dismissive and casual manner. This cannot be our reaction. This is the one sin that is unforgivable. Begin by considering the great value of taking sin seriously, reacting to it with passion and emotion, and crying out to God for forgiveness.

See that when Jesus cried out, commanding Lazarus to come out of the tomb, the details were added that Lazarus did come forth but was still bound “hand and foot with burial bands, and his face was wrapped in a cloth.”

It means that when we sin, even in a less serious way, we become attached to that sin and that the ongoing temptation to return to it is strengthened. Thus, ongoing conversion also means we hear our Lord say, “Untie him and let him go.” This is especially accomplished by ongoing conversion and growth in virtue.

Lazarus’ obedience to Jesus’ command symbolizes the Christian’s response to God when called to repentance. When our Lord says, “Untie him and let him go,” this symbolizes the unmerited effect of the Sacrament of Confession and the power it has to release a person not only from their sins but also from the ongoing effects of those sins. This shows the absolute power Jesus wields over things that can kill us – things beyond the temporal (sin).

Many are tied and bound by chronic sins. Sins passed down through generations of the family. Sins unwrapping the soul. That even when it is called from the tomb of sin and death, these sins bind the soul. These sins are like a disease worse than cancer bound to the soul.

How does the soul overcome these sins?

The Lord of Mercy, weeps at the death of His beloved. He stands at the doorway just waiting for that soul. Jesus has the sovereign power over death and the causes of death to break its powers. When our Lord says, “Untie him and let him go,” the soul witnesses the unmerited effect of the Sacrament of Confession and the power it has to release a person not only from their sins but also from the ongoing effects of those sins.

The soul must come forth from the tomb of sin. Then, hold its bindings up to Christ that He may break those ties. Only God Himself has the power to destroy the hold of sin on a soul. Trust Him.