Jesus wept. John 11:35
But why did Jesus weep?
He stood there as the LORD of all creation,
Both the visible and the invisible, the present and the ever-after,
He knew that life on earth is just a small part of eternity.
So why did Jesus weep?
Death and Life are in His hands.
He who had breathed life into Lazarus would cause him to live again.
He declared to Martha that He is the resurrection and the life.
So why did Jesus weep?
He told His disciples that Lazarus lay asleep,
And that He would awaken him.
This fatal sickness was not to end in death,
He set up this scenario by delaying for two more days.
So why did Jesus weep?
He hurt with the sorrow of the sisters and friends,
As they mourned the loss of the one they loved.
"See how He loved him", they observed in wonder, as
In grief, Jesus wept.
He could see that Lazarus had suffered while dying,
The shadow in the valley, the dark night before the dawn,
The Creator suffered together with His creation,
The Suffering Servant felt the pain of His servant, as
In empathy, Jesus wept.
He wept with the knowledge of how things might have been,
If humans, created in His image, had made the right choice.
His original purposes, the glorious plan,
Shalom. Wholeness. Life in abundance,
In sorrow, Jesus wept.
He wept at our miserable, pitiful existence,
The ravages of sin, corruption and despair,
The effects of the Fall seen in all of creation,
Humans at war with God, and each other,
In anger, Jesus wept.
He wept at the price of the promised redemption,
He would take on Himself the wrath and the curse,
Walk to death on the cross,
Separation from His Father,
In anguish, Jesus wept.
He wept with the assurance of the glorious renewal,
The grave swallowed in victory, death without sting,
The imminent unveiling of His new creation,
His disciples who would follow Him through life, even unto death,
His Kingdom come, both 'already' and 'not-yet',
Shalom made possible, both in the now, and forever.
In hope, Jesus wept.
We do not grieve in the same way as those who have no hope: 1 Thes 4: 13
We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with us. Heb 4: 15
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