Grave Clothes

The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.    Remember in John 11…

Lazarus was dead and had been in the tomb for four days when Jesus went to his tomb with his sisters and others…

³⁸Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. ³⁹“Take away the stone,” he said.
“But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.”

⁴⁰Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?”

⁴¹So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. ⁴²I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.”

⁴³When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!”

⁴⁴The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.  Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.”

From this, I understand that when He brings us from death to life (spiritually) he wants us to remove our grave-clothes and then go on with our lives.   When I was brought from the dead and to life in 2002, I was saved and loved.  It was done!  However, I was still wearing my grave-clothes.  It didn’t take me long to figure that out.  However, as uncomfortable and confining as grave-clothes are, there is comfort in wearing our familiar grave-clothes.  It is Christ that makes us uncomfortable in our grave clothes.  No one else can successfully do that.  However, even after Christ makes us uncomfortable in our grave clothes, we continue to resist taking them off.  Why?

It is painful to go through your  past and re-think about, re-see and re-feel what is back there.  However, I believe most of us are willing to undergo some pain in order to be free of it.  No, I don’t think that pain is the main obstacle for us.

I think the issue is two-fold and are “wrapped up” in one:

~Every time we unwrap a layer, we feel a little more free but we find another layer underneath. It is scary to think about what the next layer we uncover will be.  I have unwrapped several layers already.  And each time, I found another layer of grave clothes underneath.  After all, there is more than one layer over the dead.    I started looking at my lack of self-esteem and found big marriage issues.  While working through that layer, I found the layer of childhood sexual abuse.  While unwrapping that layer, I found a layer of  physical, emotional and verbal abuse at the hands of my mother.  As I process that I found a layer of abandonment issues.

That is where the real fear comes in.  Yes, we are worried that, as we get deeper in the grave-clothes, the issues are harder to uncover and deal with.  They are buried deeper and hurt more to uncover them.  We yearn for when we unwrap the layer and there aren’t any more layers under there —  except,  we know that when all the layers are unwrapped, we will be standing there stark naked!  As freeing as that is, it is also very vulnerable.  So,

~ As each layer is unwrapped, we never know what is going to be exposed, another difficult and perhaps very vulnerable layer or a part of our naked body or complete nudity!

However, remember the story of the prodigal son.  What happened when he returned to his father?  Luke 15:  20b-24   says…

“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.  “The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.^[b]‘ “But the father said to his servants,

‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.

Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.

Like the father and prodigal son, when we come to our Heavenly Father, he will wrap us in the best of robes so he will not leave us naked.    For this reason, I no longer worry about what will be exposed as I unwrap my grave-clothes but look forward to the complete freedom of walking without grave-clothes.    After all, when I came to Father in 2002, he wrapped me in a beautiful royal robe.

Anyone who has not yet been able to let go of their grave-clothes may just need help seeing that Father has wrapped them in a beautiful new robe already!

Points to be aware of:

• The Holy Spirit gives the desire to shed the grave clothes.
• There is a feeling of fear of the unknown and extreme vulnerability.
• Feel the honor if they ask for or allow you to help them unwrap
• Don’t force the issue.  Be patient.
• Reassure them that they are loved and covered by God!  After all, He already knows.

This article was written by Freddy Chakhachiro.  Freddy is one of the most valiant Christians I know.  She is an inspiration to everyone who knows her.  She faithfully proclaims the faithfulness of her Lord and Savior.    

“I will greatly rejoice in the LORD; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.”   Isaiah 61:10 (ESV)