Summary: I remember the time I tried to introduce my daughter Lily, then two years old, to one of my favorite children's books, "There is a Monster at the End of this Book" starring lovable, furry, old Grover. To begin with, Lily was excited about Grover--even if she thought he was Elmo--and allowed me to read her the book. About halfway through the book, though, she grabbed it out of my hands and slammed it shut. "That's a scary monster," she told me. "I don't want it." As disappointed as I was, I said, "Ok, we don't have to read it," and I put the book back on the shelf. The next day I found the scary monster book in the refrigerator freezer--at Lily level. Lily was just a child and she could still get away with putting the scary story in the freezer. In fact, it was kind of cute, and it won't be long before she, like the rest of us, has to look far too many scary stories right in the eyes. The titles range from "Goodbye My Love" to "Why Me?" The characters are named illness, tragedy, poverty, and hopelessness. I thank God every day that Lily doesn't have to meet these characters just yet...Grover was too much for her. My guess is that you don't have to look far to read your scary story. My guess is that your scary story can't be hidden in the freezer; but if you can't think of one, perhaps you might take in your hands the scary story of today's text. Once there was a man named Lazarus. Your scary story might not have anything in common with that Lazarus. Lazarus lived outside of a gate. This is scary enough, but Lazarus didn't just live outside the gate--he lay outside the gate, Actually, the text says, literally, he was thrown outside the gate. The Greek verb used here is built from the verb meaning "to throw"; this is important to note because, while it is a common verb, it is only used a handful of times in the New Testament in reference to a human being.
