3-11-14 Jesus Wept

28After she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary aside. “The Teacher is here,” she said, “and is asking for you.” 29When Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him. 30Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. 31When the Jews who had been with Mary in the house, comforting her, noticed how quickly she got up and went out, they followed her, supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn there.

32When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

33When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. 34“Where have you laid him?” he asked.

“Come and see, Lord,” they replied.

35Jesus wept.

36Then the Jews said, “See how he loved him!”

37But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?” (John 11:28-37)

Thoughts: Mary loved Jesus and Jesus loved her.  But there is also no doubt that Jesus delayed so that her brother died.  Just because bad things happen to us does not mean we should question Jesus' love for us.  Jesus was, in fact, deeply troubled when he saw her weeping.  He wept.  The shortest verse, yet one of the most memorable is that Jesus wept.  It was not that He didn't know that there would be a happy ending.  He wept because of the sadness of death and the hurt of people. Mary and the people blamed Jesus for not doing more and not healing His good friend.  Jesus has good friends who do not make it.  Yet in the face of eternity they do.  The good news is that Jesus cares about and even sympathizes with us- but He also raises us.  Our hope never ends on the tomb. Jesus weeps for our suffering- and the worst of our suffering- death.  Yet, as he shows in raising Lazarus- He is not a helpless bystander, or a mourner on the sidelines.  Though He wept for Lazarus, He also raised Lazarus.  He weeps for us- but He also raises us.  

Prayer: Help me, Lord to weep with those who weep but also to mourn with hope in you.

1/25/14- Jesus Wept John 11:35

Jesus said, "I am the resurrection and the life.  Anyone who believes in me will live even though they die."...Jesus wept.
(John 11:25, 35)

Thoughts: Jesus was a friend to Lazarus.  Lazarus got sick, and they sent for Jesus to heal him, but Jesus was delayed and did not make it before Lazarus died.  Everyone was weeping around the tomb.  It looked like it was just too late- the tomb was sealed, and it appeared that death had won.  Everyone was crying because Lazarus was a good man and they would miss him.  Jesus himself wept.  In fact, the shortest and one of the most important verses of the Bible is "Jesus wept."  It shows that God has compassion on our hurts and grief even if He knows the person will be raised and better off.  God is able to understand the hurt of grief and put Himself in our moment of pain.  When our heartaches come, and griefs threaten to overwhelm us, we need to remember that Jesus wept.  But the end is that for those who believe, Jesus also is their resurrection.  He raised Lazarus from the dead- to show us that He is in control of life and death cannot thwart His purpose.
    Today we will have a funeral for a young 23 year old man who was a kind and humorous fellow.  Jesus weeps at the heartache of death again.  But Jesus is also our hope.

Prayer: Help me to remember your tears when I am in the midst of mine, Lord.  Help me also to remember the joy at the end- that you are the resurrection and the life.

(the author in Lazarus' tomb- 6/2010)