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For the Glory of God
Join us as we explore John 11:1-27, where Jesus demonstrates His power over death and reveals Himself as the resurrection and the life. This profound passage shows us a God who weeps, loves tenderly, and is victorious over death itself.
The Scriptures Point to Christ
The Scriptures themselves speak with one voice: Jesus is worthy. The Bible is inherently Christocentric—every verse, passage, and theme points to the revelation that Jesus is the worthy one who came and will reign forevermore.
The Gospel of John particularly highlights this theme, offering some of the most magnificent Christologies found anywhere in Scripture. John reveals Jesus as fully God, equal with the Father, yet in a submissive relationship that beautifully displays the inner trinitarian community of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
John's Gospel: Signs and Glory
1
The Book of Signs
Chapters 1-10: Seven miraculous signs revealing Jesus' identity and divine authority
2
The Book of Glory
Chapters 11-21: Jesus revealed through His ultimate sacrifice and resurrection power
John writes "so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God" (John 20:31). The seven signs include turning water to wine, cleansing the temple, healing the nobleman's son, healing the lame man, feeding the multitude, healing the blind man, and finally in chapter 11, raising Lazarus from the dead—His most powerful sign.
The Seven "I Am" Statements
I Am the Bread of Life
True sustenance for the soul
I Am the Light of the World
Illuminating truth and life
I Am the Gate
The only entrance to salvation
I Am the Good Shepherd
Caring for His flock
I Am the Resurrection and the Life
Victory over death itself
I Am the Way, Truth, and Life
The exclusive path to the Father
I Am the True Vine
Source of spiritual life
The Illness Is Not an Accident
When Lazarus fell ill, the sisters sent word to Jesus: "Lord, he whom you love is ill." Jesus responded with stunning words: "This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it."
This illness was not an accident but the result of divine providence. Jesus wasn't saying Lazarus wouldn't die—he did die. Rather, death wouldn't have the last word. This was an illness for God's glory, a God-revealing, God-glorifying event where Jesus would demonstrate He holds the keys to death and life.
"This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it." — Jesus (John 11:4)
What Does "Glory" Really Mean?
In John's Gospel, glory is closely tied to revelation. God's glory is God revealed—the curtains pulled back so we see Him for who He is. When Moses asked to see God's glory on Mount Sinai, God showed Moses His form. Glory is revelation.
To glorify God means to make God clear through our actions and lives. A God-glorifying church reveals God, making Him known through everything it says and does. The cross is the pinnacle of Christ's glory—the moment where Jesus is most fully revealed as God in the flesh, Savior of mankind.
Glory = Revelation
God with the veil pulled back
Glory = Clarity
Making God known through our lives
Glory = The Cross
Where Jesus is most fully revealed
Moved by His Love, Not Ours
The sisters didn't appeal to their love for Jesus. They said, "Lord, he whom you love is ill." They invoked Jesus' love, not their own. And Scripture tells us "Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus." He moved because He loved them, not because He felt loved by them.
This is one of the great axioms of Scripture: God moves because of His love—who He is—not because of what we are. While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. We love God because He first loved us. His love is the first mover. That's why we call it grace.
Not Our Love for Him
Salvation doesn't depend on how much we love God
But His Love for Us
He first loved us while we were still sinners
Your Days Are Numbered by the Father
Divine Appointment
"Are there not 12 hours in the day?" Jesus asked. God appoints our days. No one can shorten what God has ordained.
When the disciples warned Jesus that going to Judea would get Him killed, He responded with confidence: the Father has ordered both His life and His death. It wasn't His time yet, and He knew it. He could go boldly because His days were appointed by God.
  • Matthew 6:27 - "Can anyone add a single hour to his span of life?"
  • Psalm 139 - "In your book were written every one of them, the days that were formed for me"
  • Job 14:5 - "Man's days are determined; the number of his months is with you"
This truth gives us tremendous confidence. Whether in Lynchburg or the most dangerous parts of the world, the Lord has ordered our days. Yet we must also steward wisely the body and time He's given us.
Do You Believe This?
Jesus told Martha, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live. And everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die." Then He asked the question that echoes through eternity: "Do you believe this?"
Jesus had divine joy in awakening belief. He delayed coming to Lazarus so that through this tragedy, He could awaken belief in a way they never would have known before—that He truly is the resurrection and the life. Even Thomas, the pessimist, showed grit and loyalty: "Let us also go that we may die with him."
"Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live. And everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?" — Jesus Christ