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b'Full Service Video (link)TEXT: John 11:1-4; Revelation 21:1-5\\n\\n\\n\\nDo you know the story of Lazarus? He was the man \\u2013 the friend \\u2013 that Jesus raised from the dead. His story has so much going on. In fact one year I preached through this story for all of Lent \\u2013 six sermons on the one story! There is grief, there is waiting on God (or Jesus), there is faith, there is risk, there is death, and there is life. But ultimately, though this might be accurately described as one of the greatest miracles of Jesus\\u2019 earthly ministry, it is about more than that. It is about the glory of God. In fact, all of Jesus\\u2019 miracles were about \\u201csomething else.\\u201d Though often motivated by compassion or faith, they were signs of power that showed (as signs do) what God was doing. They showed the power of God or the coming Kingdom or Jesus purpose. And this last and greatest miracle (before his own resurrection) was no exception. In fact, Jesus tips us off at the beginning and the end of the story as to the greater purpose. Look at what he tells his disciples in verse 4, while they are still a long way off from Bethany and Lazarus:\\n\\n\\n\\n\\u201cThis sickness is not to end in death, but for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by it.\\u201d\\n\\n\\n\\nI want to talk briefly about what that is\\u2026 the \\u201cglory of God.\\u201d Then I want to list and briefly describe six interesting places in the overall story that might be points of connection for us as we look for the glory of God in our lives and situations.\\n\\n\\n\\nThe Glory of God\\n\\n\\n\\nWhat is the glory of God?\\n\\n\\n\\nGlory is hard to wrap our minds and even our hearts around; it is not an intellectual or philosophical category. Perhaps one of the words that best gets at it is that glory is BEAUTY. The expansive view over the Blue Ridge mountains is breathtakingly beautiful; it is glorious. The thunderous power of ocean waves crashing on a pristine beach is awe-inspiring; it is glorious. God is said to be glorious because God\\u2019s goodness, love, wisdom, justice, power, and all of God\\u2019s character, being, and actions are glorious. Something is glorious if it is more radiant, more weighty, more true, more real than anything else; and God is the most glorious of all.\\n\\n\\n\\nFrom the beginning, Jesus says that this sickness is not to end in death. But the punchline isn\\u2019t \\u201cbut in life\\u201d; rather it is \\u201cfor the glory of God.\\u201d And that is so that the Son of God might also be glorified. Jesus was saying that what was about to happen was that God would show up, God\\u2019s power would be evident, God\\u2019s character and purpose would be on full display. It would be glorious! Is that something we can see in the story? Is it something we can see today? That\\u2019s the question\\u2026\\n\\n\\n\\nSo I want to list out six factors that contribute to seeing God\\u2019s glory in the resurrection of Lazarus. And just to point you to the end, I\\u2019m going to try to make some connections that these are ways we might still look for God\\u2019s glory today.\\n\\n\\n\\n#1 Timing (v.6)\\n\\n\\n\\nThe first factor that contributes to seeing God\\u2019s glory is timing. Jesus got word about Lazarus being sick while he was a distance away. He could have left immediately to go see Lazarus. (Of course, we also know from other stories that he could have healed Lazarus at a distance.) But he chooses neither.\\n\\n\\n\\nOne of the surprising twists this story takes comes in verse 6. We\\u2019ve just heard how close Jesus is to this family: \\u201cNow Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus.\\u201d And then abruptly we read verse six: \\u201cSo when He heard that [Lazarus] was sick, He then stayed two days longer in the place where He was.\\u201d What in the world?!\\n\\n\\n\\nIt reminds me of the way of often pray: \\u201cGod, here\\u2019s a problem; please fix it right away.\\u201d And this was the most urgent of things imaginable\\u2026 a close and beloved friend was very sick and might die. What could be more urgent than that. Yet Jesus delayed; and Lazarus died well before Jesus got there.\\n\\n\\n\\nAnd yet, it was that timing that made the story unfold the way it did.\\n\\n\\n\\nDid God make Lazarus sick?'