Already But Not Yet: Healing, Suffering, God's Presence

Devotional

Day 1: Seas No More

The vision crashes like waves: John sees chaotic waters vanish as the new Jerusalem descends. No more storms, no more instability—only God’s city-bride shining. The loud voice declares permanent presence: no separation, no tear left unwiped. This isn’t mere metaphor—it’s the end of every fear that drowns you. [09:46]

Jesus didn’t promise calm seas today. He promised His presence in the boat. The vanished sea in Revelation shows God’s final answer to chaos—not temporary relief, but total transformation. The same Spirit who hovered over creation’s waters now anchors you through life’s storms.

When anxiety surges this week, name one specific "sea" threatening to overwhelm you—a relationship, health crisis, or financial wave. How might embracing God’s presence shift your focus from the storm to the Shore-Maker?

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.”
(Revelation 21:1-2, ESV)

Prayer: Ask Jesus to show you His presence in your stormiest relationship or circumstance today.
Challenge: Write “SEA NO MORE” on your mirror; each time you see it, name one chaotic situation you’re surrendering to God.

Day 2: Tasting the Cookie Dough

John’s vision of no more tears feels distant when bills pile up and bodies ache. Like sneaking cookie dough before the oven dings, the Spirit gives foretastes—healed marriages, unexpected provision, moments where grace overflows. These aren’t the full feast, but they’re real. [14:20]

Jesus healed Lazarus knowing he’d die again. Every miracle points beyond itself to the Day when death itself dies. The Spirit’s gifts—healing, prophecy, tongues—aren’t party tricks. They’re appetizers for the Wedding Supper, proof the Chef is working.

What “cookie dough” moment have you tasted recently—a sunset, a reconciled friendship, a pain-free hour? How can you share that flavor with someone starving for hope?

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”
(2 Corinthians 5:17, ESV)

Prayer: Thank God for three specific “already” blessings amidst your “not yet” struggles.
Challenge: Text one person today describing a recent “foretaste” of God’s goodness.

Day 3: Lazarus Limbs Unwound

Imagine the stench as Lazarus shuffled out, grave clothes clinging. Jesus didn’t magically teleport him clean—He told the crowd, “Unwrap him.” Resurrection power often comes through calloused hands doing messy work. [30:42]

The Spirit heals through doctors, counselors, and friends who sit in your grief. When Jesus raised Lazarus, He proved death doesn’t get the last word—but He still let humans untangle the miracle. God’s power shines brightest when we join His restoration work.

Who’s “bound” near you—emotionally, spiritually, or physically? What practical act (a meal, a visit, a prayer) could help unwrap their chains?

“The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, ‘Unbind him, and let him go.’”
(John 11:44, ESV)

Prayer: Confess one way you’ve avoided “messy” ministry lately; ask for courage to engage.
Challenge: Perform one tangible act of “unbinding” for someone within 24 hours.

Day 4: Groans Toward Glory

Paul compares our longing to birth pains—not meaningless hurt, but pressure toward new life. Your chronic pain, your grief over a prodigal child, your frustration with injustice: these groans aren’t weakness. They’re the Spirit’s traction pulling us Home. [19:05]

Jesus wept at Lazarus’ tomb though He knew the miracle coming. The Spirit doesn’t shame your tears but shares them. Redemptive suffering isn’t stoicism—it’s letting your ache for shalom fuel acts of love in a fractured world.

What “groan” have you been silencing or resenting? How might voicing it to God shift your perspective from despair to holy anticipation?

“For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.”
(Romans 8:22, ESV)

Prayer: Ask Jesus to transform one specific pain into purposeful groaning for His kingdom.
Challenge: Share your hardest “groan” with a trusted believer today; listen to theirs in return.

Day 5: Scars and Broiled Fish

The resurrected Jesus ate fish while bearing nail marks. His scars weren’t erased—they were redeemed. Your chronic illness, your divorce, your addiction recovery: these aren’t failures. They’re future scars on resurrection skin, testimonies of wounds healed by the Lamb. [48:16]

Lazarus’ second death couldn’t cancel his testimony. Every healing—temporary or permanent—points to the Day when “I am making everything new” drowns out death’s growl. The Spirit empowers you to live from that reality now.

Which scar—physical or emotional—do you most dread Christ seeing? What if He’s waiting to kiss it into glory?

“But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body.”
(Philippians 3:20-21, ESV)

Prayer: Hold your hands open; verbally surrender one wound to Christ’s redeeming touch.
Challenge: Write your hardest scar on paper, then write “REDEEMED” over it in bold letters.

Sermon Summary

Revelation 21 opens the end of the story where it all lands in wholeness. The vision wipes out the sea, the chaos, and sets a city down where God’s dwelling is with humanity. Death is no more, tears are wiped, and the One on the throne says, “I am making everything new.” The picture turns the dial to presence and shalom, not just quiet but the fullness of healed life. The text draws a straight line to the Spirit, because the story keeps saying life shows up where God’s presence dwells.

The already not yet names this in-between. The Spirit is here, Jesus conquered death, resurrection life is already on the move, and yet the restoration is not complete. The image lands like cookie dough in the kitchen. It is not the finished cookie, but that taste wakes a hunger for the feast.

The gift of healing sits inside that tension. Scripture keeps showing God healing before Jesus, through Jesus, and through the apostles. The methods vary. Sometimes a touch. Sometimes a word. Sometimes a walk to the priest with nothing but trust. Faith and proximity show up again and again, but there is no formula to manage. The point keeps circling back to glory, to presence, to a glimpse of the world to come.

Lazarus makes the point sharp. Jesus delays, weeps, calls, “Lazarus, come out,” and a dead man walks out wrapped in grave clothes. But Lazarus does not live forever. Jesus is resurrected. Lazarus is resuscitated. The miracle charges his ordinary days with the glory of God, but it is still the already not yet, not the end of the story.

So healing is not an escape hatch. Healing is a preview. And where healing does not come on a timetable, redemptive suffering says there is still glory in the groaning. Romans 8 names the church as co heirs with Christ if they suffer with Him. Philippians 3 calls that fellowship of His sufferings. Self pity contests or stoic hiding do not bear witness. The Spirit uses suffering to grow love that lays down life, compassion that co suffers, forgiveness that answers evil with good, gratitude that treats every breath like a gift, and a holy groan that longs for the world to come.

At the table, the cross shows how suffering becomes wholeness. Scars become testimony, not shame. In Jesus’ scars, pain gets redeemed. In His presence, people live as little temples, seeking healing with surrendered motives and walking through hurt with Spirit strength, eyes fixed on the day when the city comes down and everything is made new.

Key Takeaways

1. New creation centers on God’s presence. The end of the story is not escape but nearness. The city comes down, the sea is gone, and God lives with His people, wiping tears and ending death. The vision puts presence at the center of life, and life blooms where He dwells. Longing gets re-aimed at communion, not comfort. [10:35]
2. Life now is already, not yet. The Spirit is here, resurrection life is loose in the world, but the work is not finished. That taste is real, like cookie dough in the kitchen, and it stirs hunger for the meal to come. Patience grows where promise and ache sit together. Hope learns to breathe in the meantime. [14:37]
3. The Spirit heals as a preview. Healing is a signpost, not the destination. God still mends bodies and hearts, but the aim is glory, witness, and a charged ordinary, not a guarantee of ease. Asking in faith becomes surrender to His timing and His purpose, not control of outcomes. [35:32]
4. Lazarus shows resuscitation, not resurrection. “Lazarus, come out” is real power and real mercy, yet Lazarus still dies later. Jesus’ resurrection ends death’s rule, while Lazarus’ return previews the kingdom and magnifies the Son. Expectation gets reshaped to love the glimpse without mistaking it for the finish. [33:36]
5. Suffering with Christ becomes witness. Redemptive suffering refuses self pity and bravado and leans into the Spirit’s strength. Love deepens, compassion co suffers, forgiveness breaks cycles, gratitude counts gifts, and holy groaning looks for the city to come. The church’s scars start to look like His, and people see His glory. [41:00]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[07:49] - Revelation 21: Presence Makes All New
[12:22] - Longing and the Already Not Yet
[15:34] - Resurrection Life: Now and Future
[20:08] - The Spirit’s Gift of Healing
[22:16] - Jesus Heals: Many Paths, One Faith
[25:28] - Lazarus: Delay, Tears, Glory
[31:23] - Lazarus Walks Out, But Not Forever
[35:32] - Why Healing Isn’t The Finish Line
[36:37] - Redemptive Suffering With Christ
[41:00] - Suffering Well as Kingdom Witness
[43:02] - Compassion, Gratitude, and Holy Groaning
[48:16] - Scars Redeemed, Pain Transformed
[55:41] - Communion, Pentecost Waiting, and Sending

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
Revelation 21:1-5 (ESV)
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.”

Observation Questions

In Revelation 21:1-5, what specific details describe the “new creation” and how does it contrast with our current reality?
The sermon compared Lazarus’ healing to “resuscitation, not resurrection” ([33:36]). What key difference does this highlight about Jesus’ resurrection versus Lazarus’ return to life?
According to the sermon, how does the “already not yet” tension show up in everyday life? ([14:37])
What examples of healing in Scripture (Old Testament, Jesus’ ministry, and Acts) were mentioned, and how do they vary in method?

Interpretation Questions

Why do you think Jesus delayed going to Lazarus (John 11:6) even though He loved him, and what does this reveal about God’s purposes in suffering?
The sermon described healing as a “preview” rather than the final restoration ([35:32]). How does this shape our understanding of why some prayers for healing are answered and others are not?
Romans 8:17 says we are “co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings.” What does it mean to suffer “with Him” in a way that reflects His character rather than self-pity or stoicism?
How does the imagery of “cookie dough” ([14:20]) help explain the tension between experiencing God’s goodness now and waiting for ultimate restoration?

Application Questions

When have you experienced a “taste” of God’s restoration (e.g., healing, peace, reconciliation) that made you long for the fullness of His kingdom? How can you hold onto that hope in current struggles?
The sermon warned against treating healing as an “escape hatch” ([35:32]). In what areas of your life do you tend to seek relief more than God’s presence? How could surrender look different?
How might your response to suffering (physical, emotional, or relational) change if you saw it as an opportunity to grow in “compassion that co-suffers” or “gratitude that counts gifts”? ([43:02])
Lazarus’ ordinary days were “charged with glory” after his healing ([33:36]). What mundane parts of your life could become testimonies of God’s presence if viewed through the lens of His kingdom?
The sermon mentioned scars becoming “testimony, not shame” ([48:16]). Is there a wound or hardship in your past that God might be redeeming to point others toward His healing?
How can you intentionally “fix your eyes on the city to come” when daily frustrations or pain tempt you to lose perspective? What practices or reminders would help?
In what relationships or situations could you step into “holy groaning” — acknowledging brokenness while actively hoping for restoration?

Sermon Clips

28s

“He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. This is the part we like. Right? That first part was the part we were just enduring to get to this part. Right? He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more. Grief, crying, and pain will be no more because the previous things have passed away. There's this sense of complete wholeness, perfection. Then the one seated on the throne said, Look, I am making everything new.”

33s

“I would imagine he still faced hardships, wouldn't you? I would say eventually his body still wore out on him. I would say eventually he still got sick again. And eventually someone put him back into a tomb. We don't have any stories of Lazarus getting taken up into heaven or anything like that. And as we think about that, there's this quote from the book that I've been referencing. It says, Jesus was resurrected. Death could not hold Him. Lazarus was just resuscitated.”

28s

“Jesus in his last days is getting ready to face the cross and what does he do? He starts to lay down his life in ways where his suffering is increasing and his love is increasing. He gets quieter. He lets them take him away. He doesn't defend himself and he is showing and demonstrating his love and how he is laying down his life despite the suffering. He is demonstrating his love when he says, Father forgive them, they don't know what they're doing.”

36s

“In my suffering, have you ever heard those stories? Someone's family member is killed by a drunk driver in a car accident or some other thing, and then they have this strength through the spirit to forgive, To show love instead of hatred? To respond to evil with good instead of more evil? And we sit back and we go, I don't know if I could do that. I'm not sure they could either. That is the gift of the Spirit at work in us, helping to produce fruit in us that we don't have on our own.”

Ask a question about this sermon

Northside Christian Church This sermon · AI assistant

What does already but not yet mean

How should Christians view physical healing

What is the purpose of redemptive suffering