March 29, 2026 - The good news of learning the hard way 2 Corinthians 1:8-11

Devotional

Day 1: God’s glory is revealed through death and resurrection.

The pattern of death and resurrection is central to God's work in the world. It is through this process that His glory—His weightiness and substantial reality—is made most manifest. This is not a light or abstract concept, but a profound truth demonstrated in the life of Lazarus and, ultimately, in Jesus Himself. When life emerges from death, God’s power and presence become undeniably clear. [33:23]

Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days, and then he said to his disciples, “Let us go back to Judea.”... On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. ... Jesus said, “Take away the stone.”... When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.”
John 11:5-6, 17, 39, 43-44 (NIV)

Reflection: As you consider the story of Lazarus, what is one area of your life that feels like it is in a season of death or has come to an end? How might God be inviting you to trust Him for resurrection and new life in that specific area?

Day 2: God allows death to orchestrate a greater resurrection.

There are times when God, in His sovereign wisdom, allows circumstances of death to unfold. This is not a sign of His absence or neglect, but rather a part of His purposeful plan. He allows these moments so that a greater resurrection can occur, one that will bring profound glory to His name and deep growth to our faith. This pattern points to His ultimate ability to bring life from any situation. [43:24]

We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead.
2 Corinthians 1:8-9 (NIV)

Reflection: Where in your current circumstances are you feeling a pressure that is beyond your ability to endure? How can this feeling of helplessness become an opportunity to shift your reliance from yourself to God, who raises the dead?

Day 3: Our past resurrections testify to God’s present power.

The times God has brought resurrection in our past are not just fond memories; they are living testimonies to His character and power. Recalling what He has done before builds our hope and confidence for what He can do now. These stories become anchors for our souls, reminding us that the God who delivered us then is fully able to deliver us again. [48:26]

He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again. On him we have set our hope that he will continue to deliver us, as you help us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.
2 Corinthians 1:10-11 (NIV)

Reflection: What is one specific instance from your past where you clearly experienced God’s delivering or resurrecting power? How can remembering that story provide you with hope and strength for a challenge you are facing today?

Day 4: We participate through hopeful waiting and expectant prayer.

In the midst of a death-like season, our role is not passive despair but active, hopeful waiting. We wait with the expectation that God will speak and move in His perfect timing, just as Lazarus waited in the tomb. This hopeful stance is coupled with persistent prayer, which invites God’s power into our situation and aligns our hearts with His will. [55:57]

I wait for the LORD, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope. I wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning.
Psalm 130:5-6 (NIV)

Reflection: Is there a situation in your life where you are being called to wait on the Lord rather than trying to force a solution? What would it look like to couple that waiting with persistent, expectant prayer this week?

Day 5: Testifying to God’s work multiplies His glory.

When we share the story of what God has done, we participate in multiplying His glory. Our testimony is not for our own praise, but to point others to the power and goodness of God. It allows others to give thanks with us and strengthens the faith of those who hear, showing them what God is capable of doing in their own lives. [58:40]

Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gracious favor granted us in answer to the prayers of many.
2 Corinthians 1:11 (NIV)

Reflection: Who in your circle of relationships needs to hear a story of how God has brought resurrection in your life? What is one step you can take this week to humbly and gratefully share that testimony for God’s glory?

Sermon Summary

The passage moves through John 11–13 and 2 Corinthians to press one clear theological pattern: God reveals his glory when death meets resurrection. The narrative links Lazarus’s resurrection, Jesus’ troubled prayer on the eve of his crucifixion, and the Father’s declaration that he has glorified and will glorify his name. The text frames glory (doxa/kabod) as weighty presence—an unmistakable, substantive demonstration of God’s reality that comes most vividly when life emerges from apparent finality. Personal stories—coma recovery, addiction restored, marriages mended, former lifestyles transformed—illustrate how resurrection brings a visible, tangible weight to faith and points observers back to God.

Paul’s correspondence with the Corinthians reframes suffering as a Wesleyan economy of comfort: God comforts believers in affliction so they can comfort others. Trials that feel like death teach dependence on the God who raises the dead, producing a deeper, more substantial faith. Practical response flows from this theology: set hope on God’s power, wait for his timing, persist in prayer, give thanks for past deliverances, and testify so many may give thanks. The passage also warns that God sometimes allows seasons of death—not as cruelty but to stage a resurrection that magnifies God’s glory and enlarges the faith of those who witness it. Worship and communal prayer function as means by which the church participates in resurrection work—bringing testimony, prayer, and thanksgiving together so the weight of God’s presence grows in a community. The closing invitation calls individuals into prayer, waiting, and communal support at moments when life feels like it is ending, trusting that resurrection, when it comes, will both glorify God and deepen the church’s capacity to comfort others.

Key Takeaways

1. Death plus resurrection equals glory God’s glory becomes most visible when something truly final appears to reverse. Resurrection does more than restore function; it gives weight and substance to God’s identity, forcing observers to reckon with divine power over the ultimate boundary. The pattern in John and Paul shows that glory is not an abstract attribute but a public reality revealed through reversal. [33:23]
2. God sometimes allows seasons of death Suffering and apparent loss can be permitted so that a greater work of restoration will magnify God’s name. This allowance does not indicate divine absence but divine strategy: allowing the depth of the loss to make the recovery unmistakable. Theologically, permitted death exposes human limits and creates a context where God’s raising becomes unmistakably his doing. [42:57]
3. Set hope, wait, then act Hope anchors waiting in God’s past demonstrations of power, not in quick fixes. Waiting does not mean passive fatalism; it means readiness to move when God’s voice comes, mirroring Lazarus’s posture before the command. Combining hopeful patience with prompt obedience at God’s signal trains a resilient, expectant faith. [54:48]
4. Comfort becomes shared strength Divine comfort transforms private rescue into communal ministry: those comforted become conduits of comfort for others. The cycle of receiving and giving comfort converts trials into pastoral resources—people who have known death-to-life can uniquely encourage and instruct others. Paul’s logic makes suffering vocational: personal deliverance equips the church for wider compassion and witness. [44:51]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[23:48] - Passover Seder invitation
[24:25] - Easter logistics and response
[24:58] - One service & baptisms plan
[25:29] - Holy Week overview
[27:51] - Text focus: evening of Palm Sunday
[28:41] - Jesus’ troubled prayer and glory
[31:12] - Lazarus: death and resurrection
[33:45] - Formula: death + resurrection = glory
[35:16] - Meaning of doxa / kabod
[44:00] - Paul’s comfort-to-others theology
[54:48] - Practical steps: hope, pray, testify
[62:47] - Invitation to prayer and ministry support

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading: John 12:27-28 (NIV)
“Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.”

Observation questions

In John 12:27, Jesus describes his soul as "troubled" when considering the "hour" ahead of him. What specific event was this "hour" referring to? [29:11]
What was the specific request Jesus made in his prayer in verse 28, and how did the Father respond from heaven?
The Father’s response includes both a past and a future action. According to the sermon, what was the primary past event, found in John 11, that the Father was referring to when He said, “I have glorified it”? [33:45]
The word "glory" (doxa/kabod) was described in the sermon as having a specific meaning. What does this word fundamentally mean, moving beyond a simple abstract attribute? [35:47]

Interpretation questions

The sermon presented a formula: death plus resurrection equals glory. How does the story of Lazarus in John 11 perfectly illustrate this pattern and connect to the Father's statement in John 12:28? [33:23]
Why would God sometimes allow seasons of what feels like death or profound loss in a person's life, such as a coma, addiction, or a broken marriage? What is the divine strategy behind not preventing these things? [42:57]
How does the experience of being comforted by God in a time of trouble ultimately serve a purpose that is bigger than our own personal relief? What is the intended outcome for the community of believers? [44:51]
In 2 Corinthians 1:9, Paul says their severe trouble happened so that they "might not rely on themselves but on God, who raises the dead." How does facing a "sentence of death" fundamentally change where a person places their reliance and hope?

Application questions

The idea of "setting hope" on God means anchoring our confidence in His past demonstrations of power, not in a quick fix. What is one situation in your life right now that feels "dead" or final where you need to actively set your hope on the God who raises the dead? [54:48]
The sermon described a pattern of waiting with hopeful patience, like Lazarus in the tomb, and then acting in prompt obedience when God gives a signal. What does hopeful, active waiting look like practically in your current circumstance, as opposed to passive resignation or frantic striving? [55:20]
God's comfort is meant to be shared. Who in your life is currently walking through a "death" that you have personally experienced and been comforted through? How can you intentionally reach out to them this week to offer the comfort you received from God? [45:31]
Giving thanks for past deliverances builds hope for present struggles. What is one specific story of God’s resurrection power in your own life or the life of someone close to you that you can reflect on and thank God for this week? [57:27]
Testifying about what God has done brings Him glory and encourages others. What is one step you can take to share your story of God’s faithfulness with someone, whether in your small group, with a friend, or even in a larger setting? [58:40]
Are you persistently praying about the "dead" areas in your life or the lives of those you love? If not, what is holding you back from bringing these things consistently before the God who raises the dead? [56:36]
Sometimes the most powerful testimonies are about current struggles where we are still waiting for resurrection. How can being vulnerable about a present "death" you are experiencing, while still expressing hope in God, be a form of worship and an encouragement to others? [01:01:22]

Sermon Clips

God was showing me, Blake, if I could resurrect your mental health thirty years ago, is there anything I can't do for you? Is there anything that that you're going to face? Anything you're facing right now that that I can't do for you? You see, not only did God bring healing and bring hope and bring comfort that I can share from my past experience, but he also taught me a lesson. And the lesson is God is able. God is able to raise the dead. God is able to heal the broken. God is able. [00:47:47] (42 seconds) #GodIsAble

Now here's the problem with this, the death part. Right? We all like the resurrection part. We all like that. It was like, yeah, let's have some more of that. We want God to get glory. But god's greatest glory is revealed in our moments of death. And so and I have to say this carefully because I know some of you are are in the midst of a death of sorts, and I don't wanna be callous about it. But but there are times that god allows death. And he allows it, but in part, what he is doing is he is orchestrating a great resurrection for him and others to receive the greatest glory. Him meaning Jesus and the father, but also you as you're involved in this to receive the greatest glory. [00:42:54] (60 seconds) #GloryThroughDeath

He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again. Here's the glory. The glory for them is they're growing. There's a weightiness. Remember, that's what glory implies. There's now a weightiness. It's not kind of some fluffy light Christianity that is, yeah, believe in Jesus as long as things are going well. They push through this, and they've learned that God was able to deliver us, and now there is a weightiness to our faith. He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again. We have learned a lesson that if God could do that, he can do this. [00:50:02] (34 seconds) #WeightyFaith

So here's the big idea. God raises the dead. Use that as an adjective and put something after it. It might be your body that has been given a sentence of death. Maybe your marriage that has been given a sentence of death. Maybe your spiritual life and your, like, this thing, you know, I'm I'm I'm just spiritually dying. Some other relationship finances that seem to be dead. You just you can fill in the blank. God raises the dead. And at times, he allows death. [00:51:44] (47 seconds) #GodRaisesTheDead

God can raise the dead, whatever your dead is, and at times, God allows death and then resurrects resulting in the greatest glory. Think about that. Think about the the stories I shared today kind of death stories, death of incur incarceration, death of of addiction, death of of of of a sexual addiction, death of a marriage, death of a body. All of those are just so obvious bringing glory to God because of what he's done. So if this is true, this formula, how should we live? [00:53:24] (42 seconds) #ResurrectionBringsGlory

So you think about your death, whatever God has kinda brought to your attention. Maybe maybe there's a whole lot of life in your life, but maybe there's a few places where where death appears. Or or at least you feel like Paul did. You feel like the sins of death. You feel like if this keeps up, something's gonna die. And with that in mind, can I just ask you to say, which part of these do you need to put into practice? Do you need to just be reminded what God has done in the past for others, for Lazarus, what he's done in the past for you, and set your hope. Don't give up hope. [00:59:03] (34 seconds) #HoldOnToHope

I know another person, and some of you know this person, who whose life was ravaged by chemical addiction. It was really hopeless. Hopeless in terms of any relationships, hopeless in terms of their health, hopeless in terms of of their job. It was hopeless. It seemed like, their future was dead. God got hold of them, and god brought new life to them. And now they are active in our church family. They're married. They have kids. They're have a good job. They're honoring god. [00:38:35] (42 seconds) #PrayGiveThanksTestify

Number two, are you are you praying about it? Are you inviting others in to pray about it? Number three, are you are you giving thanks for what God has done in other circumstances and even parts of of the healing process you're experiencing or the freeing process? Are you giving thanks? And finally, are you testifying? Death plus resurrection is the way that God brings himself the greatest glory. [00:59:38] (34 seconds) #TangibleGlory

Do you need to just be reminded what God has done in the past for others, for Lazarus, what he's done in the past for you, and set your hope. Don't give up hope. Number two, are you are you praying about it? Are you inviting others in to pray about it? Number three, are you are you giving thanks for what God has done in other circumstances and even parts of of the healing process you're experiencing or the freeing process? Are you giving thanks? And finally, are you testifying? Death plus resurrection is the way that God brings himself the greatest glory. [00:59:27] (45 seconds) #SacredSeasonsOfLoss

He didn't have any choice in it, but he just waited. He waited for God's timing. Right? It wasn't God's timing yet. And so just wait realizing that that I may be in the middle of this, and there may be nothing I can do about it. You know what? If you're in a jail cell, you know what? There may be there's nothing you can do about it. If you feel like there needs to be something done in a relationship, it's possible that you've done everything you can. There's nothing you can do about it right You just need to wait. But when God speaks, when Jesus spoke, Lazarus come forth, you respond. So you wait, and you have hope. [00:55:22] (37 seconds) #GraceAndTruthJourney

You don't know this person, but I know this person. I was their pastor who confided in me that that they were practicing explicitly the homosexual lifestyle, and they even described it as their addiction. That they were not like in some monogamous married relationship. They were just full blown at it in this this lifestyle that was just consuming them with lust. And they felt like they had heard from me both grace and truth, that I wasn't going to kind of sugarcoat this, but I also wasn't going to condemn them. And they opened up, and they opened up their lives to Jesus. [00:40:24] (57 seconds) #GrowthThroughLoss

Circumstances, the evil one, all of that is is all about death. And there's times that God doesn't prevent it, just as he didn't prevent the death of Lazarus. He didn't didn't cause it, but he didn't prevent it. He allowed it so that he could bring himself great glory, that he could point people to him, but he could also build the the strength of the disciples in what they saw. Mary and Martha were never the same. They had been weeping over their dead brother, and then a few days later, they're hugging him. Their their faith, their lives grew in a way that could have never grown like that if they hadn't gone through the pain they went through. [00:52:34] (50 seconds) #GodCanDoTheImpossible

But as I was doing that this week more than once, something else was happening. God was showing me, Blake, if I could resurrect your mental health thirty years ago, is there anything I can't do for you? Is there anything that that you're going to face? Anything you're facing right now that that I can't do for you? You see, not only did God bring healing and bring hope and bring comfort that I can share from my past experience, but he also taught me a lesson. And the lesson is God is able. [00:47:39] (41 seconds) #DeathToLifeStories

So in John 11 is the story of Lazarus. You, I assume, will recall some of the details of that story. Lazarus is sick. The sisters send news to Jesus. Jesus waits. He tells his disciples, hey. It's okay. This is not gonna end in death. They're like, well then, that's great. We don't need to go. And he's like, well, it is going to appear to be death. He is going to die, but it's not going to end there. He's going to live again. [00:31:08] (31 seconds) #GloryRevealedInMiracle

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March 29, 2026 - The good news of learning the hard way 2 Corinthians 1:8-11

Devotional

Day 1: God’s glory is revealed through death and resurrection.

Day 2: God allows death to orchestrate a greater resurrection.

Day 3: Our past resurrections testify to God’s present power.

Day 4: We participate through hopeful waiting and expectant prayer.

Day 5: Testifying to God’s work multiplies His glory.

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

Chatbot

March 29, 2026 - The good news of learning the hard way 2 Corinthians 1:8-11

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