Wept

‭‭John‬ ‭11‬:‭34‬-‭35‬

“When Jesus saw her sobbing and the Jews with her sobbing, a deep anger welled up within him. He said, “Where did you put him?” “Master, come and see,” they said. Now Jesus wept.”

‭‭John‬ ‭11‬:‭34‬-‭35‬ ‭MSG‬‬

The shortest verse in the Bible, yet how significant it is that we have this picture of Jesus when He hears the news about Lazarus’ death, and He encounters Mary, who’s weeping. And Jesus knows He’s about to raise him from the dead. Lazarus is coming back, and yet He weeps with Mary. What a powerful picture.

Jesus demonstrated the love of a true friend by entering into their sorrows.  Mary and Martha would always remember the events of that day, and they would also remember the tears.  As the apostle Paul later said in Romans 12:15, “Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.” 

This is God in the flesh with one of His children, weeping alongside them, and I just want to encourage you with this short but beautifully powerful scripture. I obviously do not know all that you are walking through today. I’m guessing some of you are walking through a season of weeping, or a day where you are weeping, where there’s hurt or pain or loss or grief like we see here.

Let me encourage you to hear the good news about God, Who is still Sovereign and in control over this fallen world. He is not distant from you. The Lord is with you in your weeping. He is with you in your pain, He is with you in your sorrow. This is the beauty of Jesus’s humanity.

He is like us. He knows the emotions we know. Are you hurting? He was hurt. Are you grieving? He grieved. Are you lonely? He was lonely. You just think about all the hard things we walk through in this world that too, Jesus is familiar with, except for sin, and that’s the beauty, because He has conquered sin, the root of all suffering, the root of death and grief and loss, and He has risen from the dead so that all who trust in Him will know that their tears, just like Mary’s tears here, will not be the end of the story.

I don't know about you, but I am truly blessed by the displays of the Lord's emotions in the Gospels. To know He was tired, hungry, and thirsty is reassuring, but then those are bodily needs. To know that He grew angry, was frustrated, felt sorrow, and even was indignant gives me great comfort.

I know I don't always use those emotions righteously, but it is nice to know that He had them. In this case, I love the power of the moment where Jesus is indignant with the power of death and sorrowful at the grief involved in Lazarus' death.

Father thank You for this day and the breath we breathe. Lord let Your abundant blessings be my friend and family’s portion today. Lord , thank you for being a Savior who has been here and felt pain, suffered grief, and experienced anger. Lord thank You for the promise that lies behind a Savior who "ruined" every funeral we find in the Gospels by raising the dead person back to life. Lord we trust that in our sorrow, Your promise of resurrection will sustain us and those who have lost the one they love. Lord use my friend to be the light of Your love to all today. Be a blessing

Father, we Love You. Amen !