Waiting for Life: God's Timing in Lazarus

The congregation moves from spring break greetings and contemporary worship into a focused reading of John 11, where the story of Lazarus unfolds as both miracle and theological hinge. The narrative traces Mary and Martha’s plea, Jesus’ deliberate delay, the disciples’ confusion, and the public raising of Lazarus—an event staged so that many would witness God’s glory and believe. The preacher parallels this Gospel drama with Ezekiel’s Valley of Bones and a children’s moment about God breathing life, drawing a line from Old Testament prophecy to Jesus’ power over death. John’s placement of Lazarus at the book’s midpoint receives attention: chapter 11 connects the descent of the Word into the world with the upward movement toward the Passion, making death and resurrection central to faith.

A practical thread runs through the theology: God times and places events purposefully. The delay that frustrates Mary and Martha serves a larger aim—the revelation of Jesus as “the resurrection and the life.” The raising of Lazarus not only restores a friend but also creates witnesses whose subsequent actions propel the narrative toward Holy Week and the cross. Personal application appears in a family story about a college decision, showing how trust in God’s timing turns anxiety into assurance that God prepares and places people where they need to be.

The service integrates liturgy, confession of faith, intercessory prayer for local and global needs, and the open table of communion. Prayers name grief, global conflicts, and specific community members, lifting them to God’s redeeming power. The Eucharist language emphasizes remembrance and the covenant in Jesus’ blood, inviting all to the banquet. The benediction encapsulates the sermon’s thrust: no placement arises by accident; each life bears purpose and gifts for God’s work. Worship closes with an exhortation to go where God sends, trusting that God’s timing and glory undergird both personal struggles and the church’s witness.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. God times events for purpose God’s delays and decisions seldom waste pain; they stage moments that disclose divine glory and reshape belief. When outcomes look inexplicable, the faithful can consider whether a larger narrative prepares witnesses, converts hearts, or reveals deeper identity in Christ. Patience becomes a spiritual discipline that trusts God’s larger story over immediate comfort. [36:09]
• 2. Jesus embodies resurrection now Jesus presents resurrection not merely as future hope but as present identity: those who trust in him participate in abundant life even amid death. This claim reframes mourning and longing, inviting a posture that expects God’s life-giving action in relationships and loss. Such trust demands courage to witness where death seems final. [35:34]
• 3. Witness reshapes community belief Public acts of God create ripple effects; many who saw Lazarus rise believed, and that communal belief redirected history toward Holy Week. Individual restoration matters, but its public dimension often catalyzes wider faith and accountability. Christians should consider how private grace might become public testimony for others. [20:58]
• 4. God breathes life into the lifeless The image from Ezekiel and the children’s teaching insists that divine breath can animate what appears irreparably broken. Spiritual renewal often arrives through unexpected, even unsettling, means and calls the community to respond in faith and action. Hope roots itself in God’s power to remake bodies, systems, and stories. [23:20]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [09:14] - Contemporary Worship & Announcements
• [15:30] - Opening Prayer
• [19:08] - Gospel Reading: John 11 Begins
• [20:30] - The Raising of Lazarus
• [21:22] - Children’s Moment: Pinocchio & Life
• [23:20] - Ezekiel’s Valley of Bones Explained
• [31:44] - Lazarus as John’s Midpoint
• [36:09] - God’s Timing and Personal Story
• [42:27] - Trust, Witness, and Community Response
• [60:12] - Communion Invitation
• [74:27] - Benediction and Sending

Based on the provided sermon summary and transcript, here is a Bible study discussion guide.

Bible Reading
John 11:1-44 (ESV)
Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent to him, saying, “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” But when Jesus heard it he said, “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.”
Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was. Then after this he said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.” The disciples said to him, “Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone you, and are you going there again?” Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.” After saying these things, he said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.” The disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover.” Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he meant taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus has died, and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” So Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”
Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother. So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus said to her, “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. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.”
When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying in private, “The Teacher is here and is calling for you.” And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met him. When the Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary rise quickly and go out, they followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there. Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, “Lord, come and see.” Jesus wept. So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?”
Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.” Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me.” When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

Ezekiel 37:1-6 (ESV)
The hand of the Lord was upon me, and he brought me out in the Spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones. And he led me around among them, and behold, there were very many on the surface of the valley, and behold, they were very dry. And he said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” And I answered, “O Lord God, you know.” Then he said to me, “Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. And I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live, and you shall know that I am the Lord.”

Observation questions

1. What was the initial reaction of both Mary and Martha when they saw Jesus, and what does this reveal about their expectations? [28:47]
2. What reason did Jesus give for Lazarus's illness and his own delayed response when talking to his disciples?
3. What specific, physical details are given about Lazarus's condition when Jesus arrives at the tomb? [29:09]
4. What was the stated purpose for Jesus praying out loud before calling Lazarus out of the tomb? [20:30]

Interpretation questions

1. Jesus states that he is glad he wasn't there so that the disciples "may believe." What kind of belief do you think he was aiming for, beyond just believing he could perform miracles?
2. How does the story of Ezekiel in the valley of dry bones help interpret what Jesus was demonstrating by raising Lazarus? [23:20]
3. The raising of Lazarus is described as a "hinge" in the Gospel of John, connecting the first half of the book to the second. [35:02] How does this miracle uniquely point both backward to Jesus' earlier signs and forward to his own death and resurrection?
4. Jesus wept even though he knew he was about to raise Lazarus. What does this moment of profound emotion suggest about God's relationship with human suffering and grief?

Application questions

1. God's timing is perfect, even when it involves a delay that causes frustration or pain. [36:09] What is a situation in your life right now where you are struggling to trust God's timing? What would it look like to actively choose patience and trust that God is staging a moment for his glory?
2. Jesus presents himself not just as a future hope but as the source of resurrection life right now. [35:34] In what area of your life—a relationship, a dream, a personal struggle—does it feel like something has died? How can you invite Jesus to breathe his life into that situation today?
3. The raising of Lazarus was a public event meant to create witnesses. [20:58] How can a private act of grace or answered prayer in your life become a public testimony that encourages others' faith? Who in your community needs to hear that story?
4. The story from the sermon about the college decision shows how anxiety can turn into assurance. [40:29] When facing a big decision or change, what practical steps can you take to shift from worrying about the outcome to relying on the truth that God is in charge and has a purpose for your placement?
5. We are called to "unbind" others and "let them go," just as the crowd did for Lazarus. [20:58] Is there someone in your circle who God has freed from something but who still needs practical help and community support to walk in that new freedom? How can you help "unbind" them?