REV. MATIC Orthodox church celebrates Lazarus

Today, the Eastern Orthodox Church celebrates the resurrection of Lazarus.
The Lord Jesus Christ said, aloud: "Lazarus, come forth!" After four days in the tomb, Lazarus became alive and came forth, his hands and feet bound with cloth and cloth over his face. Then the Lord Jesus Christ ordered: "Untie him and let him go."
The Savior resurrected Lazarus from the dead when there had not even been any talk of Lazarus' apparent death. This can be done only by the real and true God. For that reason the Savior said: "He that believes in Me, though he dies, shall live."
Sunday is the observance of Christ's solemn entrance to Jerusalem. He said to his 12 Apostles: "Now we shall go to Jerusalem. There, they will kill me, but on the third day I will arise."
Therefore, he went with his Apostles to Jerusalem. When they were near Jerusalem, two disciples of Christ brought Jesus a donkey upon which he sat. Because of the feast of Pascha, there was a multitude of people in Jerusalem.
1st Palm Sunday: When they heard that the Lord Jesus Christ was coming, many of them went out to meet and welcome Him. The Apostles laid out their clothes across the path that he was going, and others carried green palm branches.
And all of the people before him and around him greeted him joyously, saying: "Hosanna, Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord."
Thereafter, the Lord Jesus Christ went to the temple of God. There he found people selling cattle and doves. There were also money changers sitting at the tables. Then the Lord Jesus Christ took a whip in his hands and drove them out of the Temple with the animals.
Jesus overturned the tables of the exchangers and said to those selling pigeons: "Clear away these things and don't convert the House of My Father into a market place!"
The Lord Jesus Christ entered Jerusalem gloriously as a king. Once again, for the last time, Jesus wanted to call the sinners of the Jews to recognize him as the Savior of the world.
What was bad: With their bargaining in the temple, the merchants set a bad example for the people, leading them to sin. They endangered their souls and influenced people in the wrong way. They violated the 6th Commandment of God: killing their souls with covetousness.
In memory of Christ's solemn entrance to Jerusalem, we observe Palm Sunday, a week before Easter and, on the Eve of Palm Sunday, Lazarus Saturday, we go to gather willows in lieu of palms.
Lazarus Saturday reminds us of the solemn entrance of the Savior into Jerusalem. May all the universe and all people have a happy and blessed Palm Sunday.
XThe Rev. Mijoljub Matic is pastor of Old Holy Trinity Serbian Eastern Orthodox Church in Youngstown.