We're understood
| Jesus wept. (John11:35) |
So let me set the scene. Jesus is good friends with Lazarus and his sisters Mary and Martha. While He is out of Judea, teaching and ministering, He gets the news that Lazarus is sick. Unexpectedly He does not rush to heal, but delays, explaining to the disciples that Lazarus is going to die and that he will be raised from the dead.
Four days later Jesus arrives in Bethany where He takes time to let each sister vent and release their pain. It's beautiful to watch how He allows them to grieve in their own unique way.
Then they go to the graveside along with all the mourners and then this verse occurs. Jesus weeps.
And the burning question is "WHY??"
Why does He weep? He's about to raise Lazarus from the dead!!
He's promised this all along!!
He should be as smug as a magician about to pull a rabbit from the hat!
Weeping just doesn't make sense!
The only conclusions we can draw is that
- He is weeping with Mary and Martha
- He is weeping in angry frustration at the grip that death has over us.
What an incredible thought: that the Son of God feels our sadness and pain and that, even when He's about to fix it all, He still cares about what we are going through.
When it rumbles and shakes, when the world is filled with heartache and pain, when our hearts are breaking. God weeps too.
