He Cried Before He Fixed It | Pastor Marcus St.Julien

Devotional

Day 1: When Delay Feels Like Divine Distance

The sisters sent word to Jesus about Lazarus’ sickness, yet he stayed two days longer. His love wasn’t measured by his immediacy. Delays aren’t proof of God’s indifference but invitations to trust his timing. What feels like abandonment is often preparation for a revelation beyond our crisis. Jesus’ pause wasn’t passive—it was purposeful. The same hands that wept at the tomb were already orchestrating resurrection. [07:26]

“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.”
(John 11:5-6, ESV)

Reflection: Where have you mistaken God’s intentional timing for apathy? How might his delay be preparing you to witness his power in a way immediacy couldn’t?

Day 2: The God Who Weeps Before He Works

Jesus knew Lazarus would rise, yet he wept at the tomb. His tears weren’t weakness but solidarity. God enters our grief before altering our circumstances. The miracle wasn’t diminished by his mourning—it was deepened by it. Resurrection requires both divine power and human partnership in pain. [22:28]

“Jesus wept.”
(John 11:35, ESV)

Reflection: What current struggle makes you question if God sees your pain? How might his quiet presence in your grief be a form of companionship, not abandonment?

Day 3: Rolling Away the Stone of Shame

Martha protested moving Lazarus’ grave stone, fearing the stench of decay. But resurrection requires exposing what’s buried. God’s glory often emerges through our willingness to confront the mess. The miracle wasn’t in avoiding the smell but transforming what smelled of death into a testimony of life. [23:52]

“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?’”
(John 11:39-40, ESV)

Reflection: What “stone” have you resisted moving because you fear what others might smell? How could obedience in this uncomfortable step prepare you for healing?

Day 4: Called Out but Still Bound

Lazarus emerged alive yet wrapped in grave clothes. Freedom often comes in stages—resurrection first, then liberation from what entangles. God’s power raises us from death, but community helps unwrap the remnants of our tombs. Your current binds don’t negate your miracle—they invite others into your deliverance. [29:15]

“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.’”
(John 11:44, ESV)

Reflection: What areas of your life feel resurrected yet still restricted? Who has God placed nearby to help unwrap what’s kept you from full freedom?

Day 5: Four Days Dead and Fully Known

Lazarus’ four-day decay made his resurrection undeniable. What seems irredeemable in your life is God’s setup for an undisputable testimony. The deeper the pit, the brighter the proof of his power. Delay becomes divine amplification when we understand nothing is too dead for the One who is Resurrection itself. [31:40]

“Jesus said to her, ‘Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?’”
(John 11:40, ESV)

Reflection: What situation feels “four days dead” in your life? How might this season be positioning you to witness a glory that quick fixes could never reveal?

Sermon Summary

John 11 names the ache and answers the question that hangs in the gut: if God can fix it, why let it get this bad first. The text starts by calling Lazarus Jesus’ dear friend, then says the unthinkable. Jesus loved them, and he stayed. The delay is not absence. The delay is a decision aimed at glory bigger than the immediate crisis. The pain many feel is not only from the sickness. It is from the sting of feeling unseen, the silence of God’s timing that feels like distance. Yet the text insists love can leave a person where they are and still be love.

Martha meets Jesus with honest grief. Lord, if only you had been here. Jesus does not rebuke grief, does not defend his timing, does not rush to fix. He meets her right there. Then he moves the conversation from later to now. I am the resurrection and the life. Hope is not a calendar date. Hope is a Person standing in front of her. Belief is not dissecting the miracle. Belief is trusting the Man who is the miracle.

Mary arrives with the same words and tears, and Jesus does something that reveals God’s heart in human skin. Jesus wept. He cried before he fixed it. He entered the ache before he displayed the answer. He did not bypass the human moment to sprint to the divine one. He felt what they felt, then he worked what they could not.

At the tomb, the command is simple and offensive. Roll the stone aside. Fear of the stench argues back, but faith moves rocks, not spreadsheets. Jesus thanks the Father out loud so the crowd can believe, then calls specifically. Lazarus, come out. The dead man comes out, still wrapped. Calling is certain even when limbs are tied. Anointed people can still be bound. Jesus then involves the community. Unwrap him and let him go. Stick around long enough for the instructions, and bright new light will sting eyes that learned to see in the dark.

The four days were not a problem. They were a setup. A one day comeback can be argued. A four day resurrection is undeniable. He wept, then he worked. He entered grief, then he revealed glory. And he went before all of this, entering a tomb of his own and walking out, so that every daily death can end in a summoned life. Suffering comes with salvation, but so does the voice that calls a name and makes dead things move.

Key Takeaways

1. Delay is love, not neglect. [07:46] The text ties love to waiting, not to rushing. Jesus loved them, and he stayed, which means timing can be surgical, not sentimental. The real wound often is not the crisis but the story told about God inside the delay. Let love’s timing redefine what care looks like. [07:46]
2. Jesus meets grief before fixing. [21:59] He does not correct lament or argue with tears. He steps into the ache, shares it, and only then moves the stone. The God of power is the God who feels, and his presence in pain is not a consolation prize. It is part of the miracle. [21:59]
3. Resurrection is a Person, not timing. [19:03] I am the resurrection and the life relocates hope from someday to Someone. Faith stops waiting for circumstances to turn and starts trusting the One who already stands in the middle of them. When the center is Christ, future change stops being a prerequisite for present peace. [19:03]
4. Obedience rolls stones, not analysis. [25:39] Faith acts on a command instead of needing a manual. The worry over smell, process, and optics only delays sight of glory. Belief moves what blocks the way, then watches God call life out of what looked sealed. [25:39]
5. Called people can still be bound. [29:15] The dead man walked out tied up, proving deliverance is often staged. God calls first, then community unwraps. Do not despise slow freedom. Answer the call, step out how you can, and let trusted hands remove what resurrection already made obsolete. [29:15]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:20] - The question of delay
[01:23] - The suffering of silence
[03:57] - Suffering comes with salvation
[04:35] - He cried before he fixed it
[05:52] - Meet Lazarus, Mary, Martha
[07:26] - He loved them and stayed
[10:26] - Hurt by delay more than pain
[11:49] - Four days in the grave
[13:55] - I am the resurrection
[16:55] - Jesus meets grief where it is
[21:59] - Jesus wept
[23:34] - Roll the stone aside
[26:40] - Lazarus, come out
[29:15] - Called yet still bound

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading
John 11:1-44 (ESV)
(The full story of Lazarus’ death and resurrection, including Jesus’ interactions with Martha, Mary, and the crowd.)

Observation Questions

In John 11:4, Jesus says Lazarus’ sickness “is for the glory of God.” What does this reveal about God’s perspective on suffering compared to human expectations? ([07:06])
Both Martha and Mary say, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died” (John 11:21, 32). How does Jesus respond differently to their identical statements? ([16:55])
When Jesus weeps in verse 35, the crowd interprets it as love for Lazarus. How does the sermon connect this moment to God’s character? ([22:28])
What practical objection does Martha raise when Jesus commands the stone to be rolled away, and how does Jesus redirect her focus? ([23:52])

Interpretation Questions

The sermon argues that Jesus’ delay was “a decision aimed at glory bigger than the immediate crisis.” How does this reframe the pain of waiting for God’s intervention? ([09:08])
Jesus says, “I am the resurrection and the life” (John 11:25) instead of promising future resurrection. How does this shift Martha’s (and our) understanding of hope? ([19:03])
Lazarus walks out of the tomb still bound in grave clothes. What does this imply about the relationship between God’s power and human responsibility in healing or deliverance? ([29:15])
The sermon states, “Faith moves rocks, not spreadsheets.” How does obedience in uncertainty contrast with analyzing outcomes? ([25:39])

Application Questions

When have you felt God’s delay in your life as neglect rather than love? What practical step could help you reframe waiting as part of His intentional care? ([07:46])
Jesus met Martha and Mary in their grief before acting. How can you create space to lament with others instead of rushing to “fix” their pain? ([21:59])
The sermon says, “Anointed people can still be bound.” What “grave clothes” (old habits, mindsets, or wounds) are you still wrestling with even after experiencing God’s calling? How might community help “unwrap” them? ([29:15])
Martha protested rolling the stone away because of the stench. What “stone” is God asking you to move right now that feels messy or risky? What fear is holding you back? ([23:34])
The sermon emphasizes, “Resurrection is a Person, not timing.” How would focusing on Jesus’ presence in your current crisis change your daily choices or prayers? ([19:03])
Lazarus’ resurrection required others to unwrap him. Who in your life needs practical support to step into newfound freedom? How can you help without judgment? ([29:57])

Sermon Clips

31s

#GriefThenGlory

“Notice the sequence. He wept, then he worked. He entered the grief, then he demonstrated the glory. He didn't skip the human moment to get to the divine moment. Both were necessary and both were intentional. Notice how verse 40 says, you will see God's glory if you believe. Why do I say the delay wasn't a mistake? The four days weren't a problem. They were a setup.”

34s

#StayedInLove

“Most people read the delay of what Jesus did, and we we believe that to be distance. Jesus not showing up fast enough means Jesus doesn't care enough. Most of us hear that. He stayed where he was for the next two days, but the text says the exact opposite. He loved them, and he stayed. Many of us take Jesus's position to be his heart. If you're not in my room, that means you don't love.”

29s

#PresenceBeforeMiracle

“He didn't bypass the grief to get to the miracle. He entered the grief first. He felt what they felt before he fixed what they couldn't. Yes. What does that mean? Could it be that Jesus is sitting next to you to hold you rather than it is for you waiting for him to help you? Yeah. My god. Have you praised him as hard as you would for the miracle, for him embracing you, for being closer than a brother?”

32s

#JustBelieve

“And the problem is many of us are still trying to deconstruct resurrection when all we have to do is believe. Stop trying to learn about the stone and stop trying to learn about grave closing and stop trying to learn about the scent and stop trying to learn about burial production. Stop. All he said was believe. Here you are trying to learn how the job will give you the promotion rather than practicing how you're gonna praise when it come through. Yeah. Yeah. Why? Because I believe.”

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He Cried Before He Fixed It | Pastor Marcus St.Julien | MOTIV8 Church