When outsiders begin to seek out Jesus, he knows that the time has come for him to give his life. The world is ready and Jesus is ready. But the path forward is not one we might expect. Like a seed, Jesus must be buried in order to give new life. The path to a full life is the same for us. We must lay down our lives for Jesus in the service of others. That death is the only way to life!

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https://www.highrock.org/daily-devotionals/

For Reflection:

Instead of being the conqueror that the crowds wanted, Jesus announces that he must die in order to bring life to many (v24).

- A new believer asks you about Jesus' promise of a "life to the full" when we follow Jesus by serving others. Specifically, this person wants to know how you have experienced this fuller life. What might you share?

- How might God be inviting you today to lay down your life for others in perhaps new ways? What might you need (support, courage, training?) in order to say "yes" to God?

As Jesus enters into the city, the crowds rush out with palm branches, singing songs of victory and welcoming Jesus as a king. But Jesus is not the kind of king they are expecting, and more than that, he knows that these same crowds will turn on him in just a few days when he fails to meet their misguided expectations.

Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend? Start here:

https://www.highrock.org/daily-devotionals/

For Reflection:

God is faithful even when we are fickle.

- God is faithful to keep promises, even when we don't recognize it at the time (e.g. v16). Have you ever experienced God's faithfulness only in hindsight? What happened? How has that experience changed you?

- The people are fickle rather than faithful. Jesus doesn't trust the crowds and neither should we. What helps you to seek Jesus' approval rather than the crowd's? Is there some way in which God might be inviting you to change your focus today?

Martha, Mary, and Lazarus host a dinner to honor Jesus and to express their love and gratitude. Mary's gratitude is almost embarrassing -- she pours a fortune in perfume over Jesus' feet and mops it up with her hair! Judas questions her extravagance but his practicality is actually a cover for his own selfishness. How do we show our gratitude to God? How much is enough? How much is too much?

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https://www.highrock.org/daily-devotionals/

For Reflection:

Judas and Mary are presented as two very different ways to respond to the invitation to love God.

- Mary expressed her love for Jesus with incredible extravagance! Judas questioned the practicality but Jesus told him to "Leave her alone!" (v7). Had Judas not been a thief, would his question have been fair? Are there practical limits to expressing gratitude to God?

- Judas tried to appear generous while hiding his own selfishness. Perhaps we don't steal like Judas, but how are we tempted to appear more generous than we truly are?

Hearing about the raising of Lazarus, the high council of Pharisees and priests fears that they must act soon or risk Jesus soaring to heights of dangerous popularity. Caiaphas, the high priest, chooses this moment to reveal a word from God -- that Jesus must die for the nation, and for the world. Better that one man should die to save many from perishing. Caiaphas was unaware both of how right and how wrong he was.

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https://www.highrock.org/daily-devotionals/

For Reflection:

"Fear not!" is the most frequent command in the Bible. Even a direct word from God can lead us in the wrong direction when we act out of fear, as it does for the high priest Caiaphas.

- Have you ever been misled by fear in your decisions or relationships? Perhaps, like Caiaphas, your fear led you to misapply God's truth? What happened? What might have been different had you been more honest about your fear?

- What helps you to "fear not" in anxious times? How might you be able to help others with their fears?

When Jesus calls for the stone to be rolled away, Martha protests, "The smell will be terrible!" She had earlier confessed that Jesus could do even the "impossible" yet in the moment of truth, that confidence quickly fades. Like Martha, our faith so often fades in the moment of truth, but that is precisely the point. What Jesus does for Lazarus is really for all of us, that we might trust Jesus with our very lives!

Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend? Start here:

https://www.highrock.org/daily-devotionals/

For Reflection:

Jesus' power over death is meant to strengthen our faith and give us the courage to truly live. Martha's and the other disciples' faith would be strengthened for the moment to come.

- How might you live differently, what decisions might you make differently, if you no longer feared death?

- Rather than faith, some reacted in fear and informed the Pharisees. Faith is not automatic, even in the face of miracles. What part can you play in the growth of your faith? What helps to grow your faith and diminish your fear?

What if the very things we believe to be true are actually blinding us to deeper realities? Chances are, we all have moments of certainty that may turn out to be false. Are we willing to challenge our assumptions and embrace the transformative power of humility and curiosity? Tune in to this compelling story of Jesus healing a man born blind and discover how opening our eyes to the truth can lead to profound change in ourselves and our world.

· · ·

👉🏻 Sermons in the "Witness" series: https://tinyurl.com/3c8564ku

👉🏻 Dive deeper into John: https://tinyurl.com/4vcwrfv8

Perhaps the shortest verse in the entire Bible, John 11:35 records that Jesus wept. Many in the crowd imagined that he loved Lazarus deeply but if that's the case, then why did he not save Lazarus in the first place? The gospel leaves us to wrestle with these questions even as we wonder how to grieve in the light of our hope in Jesus.

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For Reflection:

Jesus weeps. Jesus is angered. Like the crowd, we are left to wonder why.

- Why do you think that Jesus was angered (v33)?

- Why do you imagine that Jesus wept (v35)?

- How was grieving and loss addressed by adults around you while growing up?

- How do you handle grief and loss today? What influence has the Bible and Christian community had on your experience and expression of grief?

After receiving news of Lazarus' illness, Jesus delayed two days before leaving. By the time arrives, Lazarus had been in the grave for four days. Martha is the first of Lazarus' sisters to greet Jesus. Her greeting seems like an expression of grief but it contains both an impossible request and an incredible faith in Jesus.

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For Reflection:

Like all prayer, Martha asks for something that will be true in the blessed future to be present today.

- If God's full and future blessing can invade our present, what is it that you long to experience right now? Peace? Healing in a relationship? Security of some kind? How might your prayers be expressed as a desire for a taste of God's ultimate promise today?

- Martha was ready to believe in and ask for, but not demand, the "impossible". How might your prayers display more of that kind of hope?

When Jesus hears that Lazarus is desperately ill, Jesus chooses to wait two days before responding. Normally, a delayed response indicates a lack of love but in this case, Jesus waits because he loves them. Jesus' delay is motivated by love for Lazarus, his sisters Mary and Martha, Jesus' disciples, and us! Sometimes God allows matters to go from bad to worse in order to show up in powerful ways.

Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend? Start here:

https://www.highrock.org/daily-devotionals/

For Reflection:

Jesus delays not out of indifference but out of love. His desire is for them and us to see God glorified.

- Have you ever felt that God was indifferent to your struggles? Have you experienced an answer to prayer that came only after a long delay? What happened to your faith in God, your hope in the future, and your love for others during that time?

- As you prayerfully consider your current trials and blessings, is there some way that God might be inviting you to use them to help and love others?

The crowds are ready to stone Jesus for claiming to be divine. In a surprising response, Jesus points out that God refers to people as "gods" in Psalm 82. Whatever reason we might have for such elevated status, Jesus has more. If nothing else, the power of God was on display in him in clear ways, both through his miracles and through his courage in continuing to love even a crowd ready to stone him to death.

A short list of prophecies fulfilled in Jesus:

https://biblehub.com/top10/prophecies_fulfilled_by_jesus_christ.htm

Looking for a previous devo? Want to share one with a friend? Start here:

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For Reflection:

This closing of the first half of John's gospel gives us two reasons for believing in Jesus: the power of God displayed in him and the fulfillment of the words of the prophets.

- The power of God was seen in Jesus through these 7 signs and also in his love even for enemies. How has the power of God displayed in Jesus informed and strengthened your faith? How is God's power displayed in your life?

- The words of John the Baptist (and many other prophets) were fulfilled in Jesus. How do these fulfillments form and inform your faith in Jesus?