Good Morning Friends,
Sometimes in life there are those embarrassing moments when we just want to get away and eventually that will happen when we pass. But I doubt we will be so eager to leave. Until then we must deal with the challenges of life, living into the narrative we have been given. And what I have learned is that some people’s passing creates a void that calls out to be filled. And others may hardly be missed. It will be interesting how history will view our lives. What will be interesting to see is if those charitable acts of small things done with great kindness overshadow the mighty acts of warriors and generals. Perhaps those memories of us that people first consider may not be the greatest of accomplishments. Perhaps we need to rethink the idea of death and the idea of life in the light of the resurrection of Jesus and others in the Bible. Perhaps death does not change everything. Perhaps death changes nothing and we all go on meaning what we have meant to each other, and we go on without the forced air of solemnity. With that in mind we consider our footprint here and the legacy we leave as we delve a little deeper into the life and resurrection of Dorcas the disciple and ask…. What Account of Our Lives Will People Share When We Die?
Scripture: Meanwhile the church throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and was built up. Living in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers. Now as Peter went here and there among all the believers, he came down also to the saints living in Lydda. There he found a man named Aeneas, who had been bedridden for eight years, for he was paralyzed. Peter said to him, “Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you; get up and make your bed!” And immediately he got up. And all the residents of Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord. Now in Joppa there was a disciple whose name was Tabitha, which in Greek is Dorcas. She was devoted to good works and acts of charity. At that time she became ill and died. When they had washed her, they laid her in a room upstairs. Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, who heard that Peter was there, sent two men to him with the request, “Please come to us without delay.” So Peter got up and went with them; and when he arrived, they took him to the room upstairs. All the widows stood beside him, weeping and showing tunics and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was with them. Peter put all of them outside, and then he knelt down and prayed. He turned to the body and said, “Tabitha, get up.” Then she opened her eyes, and seeing Peter, she sat up. He gave her his hand and helped her up. Then calling the saints and widows, he showed her to be alive. This became known throughout Joppa, and many believed in the Lord.
Acts 9:31-42 (NRSV)
When many of his disciples heard it, they said, “This teaching is difficult; who can accept it?” But Jesus, being aware that his disciples were complaining about it, said to them, “Does this offend you? Then what if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? It is the spirit that gives life; the flesh is useless. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. But among you there are some who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the first who were the ones that did not believe, and who was the one that would betray him. And he said, “For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted by the Father.” Because of this many of his disciples turned back and no longer went about with him. So Jesus asked the twelve, “Do you also wish to go away?” Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.”
John 6:60-69 (NRSV)
After this the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became ill; his illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him. She then said to Elijah, “What have you against me, O man of God? You have come to me to bring my sin to remembrance, and to cause the death of my son!” But he said to her, “Give me your son.” He took him from her bosom, carried him up into the upper chamber where he was lodging, and laid him on his own bed. He cried out to the Lord, “O Lord my God, have you brought calamity even upon the widow with whom I am staying, by killing her son?” Then he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried out to the Lord, “O Lord my God, let this child’s life come into him again.” The Lord listened to the voice of Elijah; the life of the child came into him again, and he revived. Elijah took the child, brought him down from the upper chamber into the house, and gave him to his mother; then Elijah said, “See, your son is alive.” So the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth.”
1 Kings 17:17–24 (NRSV)
Then Jesus cried again with a loud voice and breathed his last. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, and the rocks were split. The tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised. After his resurrection they came out of the tombs and entered the holy city and appeared to many.
Matthew 27:50–53 (NRSV)
Message: The Bible has thousands of characters and some of them play more important roles than others. But some of them have been in a group that have been resurrected from the dead. And that is a special list. The first one that comes to mind is of course Jesus but there are many more including the son of Zarephath’s widow, the Shunammite woman’s son, the man raised out of Elisha’s grave, the widow of Nain’s son, Jairus’ daughter, Lazarus of Bethany, many holy people in Jerusalem at Christ’s resurrection, Tabitha also known as Dorcas, meaning gazelle (the focus of today’s devotional), and Eutychus that guy who fell out of window while listening to a sermon of Paul. So, today we look at the resurrection of Dorcas the first woman disciple mentioned by name in the Bible. Now this designation should give us a clue to look a little deeper into her story and what we find is that she is undoubtedly a formable woman of wealth, influence and judging from her name beauty and grace. And she was likely a widow. And she had three names. Dorcas was her Grecian name and Tabitha is her Aramaic name and both names mean Gazelle which would be her nickname. Acts recounts that when she died, she was mourned by all the widows who cried and showed Peter the robes and other clothing that she had made while she was still with them. These women were likely the recipients of her charity. This narrative indicates her prominence in the community at Joppa. That Peter took the trouble to come to her from a neighboring city, when requested by the community members, is an indication of her influence. Maybe Dorcas was ordinary but maybe she was, as her name implies, a creature with stunning eyes and swift feet and graceful movements. It was common practice back then to give an animal nickname to a beautiful woman, but this is conjecture. What we do know is that she was a gem of a disciple. She did not do anything heroic like Deborah or risky like Rahab. She simply served her Savior by ministering to the marginalized. The needs of people moved her to action. She was not lazy. She made clothes for people. She was full of good work. And what we learn from her that may help us to answer today’s question is that after we die our deeds follow us and matter. We do not know what happened to Dorcas after her resurrection. I would guess she went back to making clothes. But we do know that many were moved by her resurrection to believe.
And So, the ministry standard set by Dorcus as she embodies the Spirit of Jesus and claims the Way of Jesus in new life everlasting is what I hope people will recount of our brief time after we are long gone. And that they too would be moved to a life filled with kindness believing in the promises of Jesus.
Pray we persevere with Jesus in all things, good or bad, sorrow or joy, pain, or gladness. Pray God help us to live a life that never loses a focus on Jesus. Pray we are filled with good work because it is the right thing to do. Pray we appreciate the power of teamwork. Pray we realize that at our death, a Christian has nowhere to go to and no one to be in except Jesus. Pray our life is a miracle that magnifies God and spreads the good news of Christ’s glory. Pray we are in Jesus’ Spirit of Resurrection now and always. Pray we are committed to devote our time to doing good works not because it gets us into heaven but because the Spirit of Jesus in us compels us to believe.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 