Come and See: Presence in Grief and Hope

The Gospel of John frames an invitation to "come and see" that runs through both wonder and sorrow. The narrative places Mary, Martha, and Lazarus at its center: Lazarus has died, and the community reels with grief. The invitation here asks witnesses not only to behold miracles but to enter into the hard places—to come and see the tomb, the tears, the rawness of loss. Jesus moves into that grief, stands at the tomb, and weeps, modeling a God who enters pain rather than bypassing it.

A simple, personal image—daffodil bulbs pressed until they nearly crumble—acts as a metaphor for faith. Planting those brittle bulbs becomes an act of trust in unseen life, mirroring the gospel’s claim that God works in darkness and dust. The text refuses easy answers: grief and hope coexist. Even after a bold command to roll away the stone and a miraculous call for Lazarus to come out, restoration remains communal work. The crowd must unbind him; the community participates in resurrection by loosening the wrappings and helping life begin again.

Presence and participation anchor practical faith in this account. Showing up at gravesides, bringing meals, bearing witness to pain, and doing everyday neighborly tasks all count as rolling away stones. The congregation’s call asks for a willingness to face smells and messes, to walk toward fear, and to do hard, humble work that makes resurrection visible. The text balances “not yet” and “already”: sorrow and new life appear side by side—four funerals and six baptisms within a short season—so living fully requires inhabiting both realities.

The narrative issues an invitation to keep planting where hope feels unlikely, to trust God’s capacity to breathe life into what seems irreparably dead, and to participate actively in God’s restorative work. The moral center insists that divine action often includes human accompaniment: God comes close in sorrow, and people unbind the newly restored. The call concludes with a simple, persistent challenge—to keep planting, keep showing up, and keep trusting that God can bring life from dust.

Key Takeaways

• 1. Come and see both sorrow and hope The invitation to "come and see" asks witnesses to enter pain, not only spectacle. Observing suffering alongside hope prevents sentimental quick fixes and honors the messy reality of loss. Bearing witness becomes a spiritual discipline that recognizes God's presence in darkness while longing for renewal. [28:06]
• 2. God meets grief with honest presence Divine love shows up by weeping, not by erasing sorrow or offering facile answers. Presence validates suffering and creates a sacred space where grief can be felt and transformed. Such solidarity models a theology that values accompaniment over explanation. [29:13]
• 3. Faith acts amid apparent hopelessness Planting brittle bulbs becomes a concrete practice of trust when outcomes remain uncertain. Small, faithful acts against despair cultivate readiness for unexpected life. Hope here matures through patient risk rather than guaranteed results. [25:03]
• 4. Resurrection requires communal unbinding The miracle culminates when the community removes burial cloths, signaling that restoration needs human participation. Healing often arrives through others who help loosen bonds, offer care, and reclaim dignity. Faith calls people to both witness and work in the aftermath of divine action. [32:42]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [11:57] - "Come and See" Motif
• [14:44] - Mary, Martha, and Lazarus
• [15:23] - Invitation to Witness Pain
• [23:40] - Daffodil Bulb Anecdote
• [25:03] - Planting as Act of Faith
• [28:06] - Jesus at the Tomb
• [30:56] - Roll Away the Stone
• [32:42] - Community Unbinds Lazarus
• [34:45] - Call to Participate in Resurrection

1. In John 11, what specific actions did Jesus take when he first arrived in Bethany and saw Mary and the others weeping?
2. What was the crowd's practical concern when Jesus commanded them to roll away the stone from Lazarus's tomb?
3. After Lazarus came out of the tomb, what was the specific instruction Jesus gave to the people standing nearby, and who did he tell to carry it out? [32:42]
4. According to the sermon, what are some of the simple, everyday acts that were compared to "rolling away the stone" for someone in need? [34:21]

1. The phrase "come and see" is used differently in this story than elsewhere in John's Gospel. What does this shift in usage reveal about the nature of true companionship and the character of God?
2. Why is Jesus's act of weeping at the tomb significant, especially considering that he was about to raise Lazarus from the dead? What does this moment communicate about how God relates to human suffering?
3. The work of resurrection wasn't finished when Lazarus walked out; the community had to "unbind him." What does this detail suggest about the relationship between God's miraculous power and human responsibility in the process of healing and restoration?
4. The sermon used the metaphor of planting brittle, seemingly dead daffodil bulbs. [25:03] How does this image help interpret what it means to have faith in "hopeless" situations, both in the story of Lazarus and in our own lives?

1. "Come and see" can be an invitation into both joy and sorrow. Who in your life right now might need you to accept an invitation to "come and see" a difficult situation they are facing? What is holding you back from simply being present with them?
2. God meets grief with honest presence, not quick fixes. [29:13] When you are comforting someone who is grieving, what is your default mode: trying to explain the situation or simply weeping with them? How can you practice a ministry of presence that validates another's pain without needing to solve it?
3. Faith acts amid apparent hopelessness. [25:03] What is a "dried-up bulb" situation in your life, your community, or the world that feels beyond hope? What is one small, tangible act of "planting" you can do this week as an act of trust, even without a guarantee of the outcome?
4. Resurrection requires communal unbinding. [32:42] Think of a time someone helped "unbind" you after a period of hardship or loss. What specific, practical thing did they do that made a difference? How can you pay that forward by helping to "unbind" someone else?
5. The church has experienced both funerals and baptisms in a short season, living in the "already and not yet." [36:01] How do you personally hold the tension between very real grief and the promise of new life? In what practical ways can your small group support one another in both sorrow and celebration?