I have recently been walking around in the valley of the shadow of death. After death hits you in the face, it brings with it a deep pain that grief ushers unexpectedly into your life. It is something I want to get rid of quickly. I am tired of crying. It is not a place that anyone would chose to walk, yet there was One who did. And when this One was confronted with the death of His friend and the surrounding peoples sorrow; He wept.
Jesus wept.
The Creator. The King of the Universe. The Savior of the world; wept.
There are not many recorded scenes of His tears in the cannon of Scripture and If the Savior of the world weeps, I want to know more.
In this culture, the ones who weep are looked at as weak. Yet this One is the Savior. He wept. He is not weak. He could demolish the entire world with just one word. He is all consuming power. He wept. Was death too much for him? Why did He weep?
When you look at the entire context of the surrounding text you learn that Jesus already planned to resurrect Lazarus from the dead. He knew the outcome would be life, yet He still wept. He took in the sorrow of the people mourning because of death, death entered in because of the sin of Adam and Eve. He came to make all things right again. He came to defeat death on the last day. He knew the grand plan of the eternal calendar, yet, He wept. He had compassion for the people He loved and He walked with them in their sorrows as He still does with us.
As you think of the resurrection of Christ, remember His great love for His friend Lazarus who also experienced the resurrection from the dead. It wasn't the final resurrection like Jesus would soon experience because Lazarus would die again but that moment gave them and us hope. It was a foreshadowing of what was to come. It was a visual reminder to look to Jesus. He has promised a final resurrection and restoration for us all who find ourselves rested in Him.
When you look at the entire context of the surrounding text you learn that Jesus already planned to resurrect Lazarus from the dead. He knew the outcome would be life, yet He still wept. He took in the sorrow of the people mourning because of death, death entered in because of the sin of Adam and Eve. He came to make all things right again. He came to defeat death on the last day. He knew the grand plan of the eternal calendar, yet, He wept. He had compassion for the people He loved and He walked with them in their sorrows as He still does with us.
As you think of the resurrection of Christ, remember His great love for His friend Lazarus who also experienced the resurrection from the dead. It wasn't the final resurrection like Jesus would soon experience because Lazarus would die again but that moment gave them and us hope. It was a foreshadowing of what was to come. It was a visual reminder to look to Jesus. He has promised a final resurrection and restoration for us all who find ourselves rested in Him.
3 comments:
It is comforting to know that Jesus was sad too
Verses like this one drive home Jesus' humanity to me, and gives me comfort knowing that he really does understand what we are going through.
Jesus's humanity always impresses me. I love knowing that he also cried over friends. I like how you mentioned that those who cry are not weak; it's a message that needs to be spoken more frequently.
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