Jesus Wept | The Real Reason Jesus Wept
Jesus wept. That is one of the most famous scriptures in the Bible, but the opinions on what he wept about varies greatly. What do you think he wept about? More to the story with Nancy Jackson, episode 3. What made Jesus weep, and does he still weep? I believe the humanity that Jesus bore made him weep, and I believe he still weeps over us.
Let's explore John 11. This is the famous scripture where it's the short scripture that says Jesus wept, but let's explore it a little and see what really propelled him to weep, and weep openly as well. So on John 11 verse 4 it says, when Jesus received the message, now this is regarding Lazarus, who was his friend and Martha and Mary's brother, he said, this sickness is not to end in death, but on the contrary, it is to honor God and to promote his glory, that the Son of God may be glorified by it.
Let's skip to 6. Therefore, even when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he still lingered two days longer in the same place where he was. He wanted to make sure that Lazarus had been dead long enough that there would be no dispute at the miracle he was about to perform. Verse 11, he said these things and then added, our friend Lazarus is at rest and sleeping, but I am going there that I may awaken him out of his sleep.
The disciples, and this is verse 12, the disciples answered, Lord, if he is sleeping, he will recover. However, Jesus had spoke of his death, but they thought he was referring to falling into a refreshing sleep. Verse 14, so then Jesus told them plainly, Lazarus is dead.
This is funny, sometimes we just have to be blunt, don't we? Verse 15, and for your sake, I am glad I was not there. It will help you to believe, to trust and rely on me. However, let us go to him.
Verse 17, so when Jesus arrived, he found that he, Lazarus, had already been in the tomb for four days. Bethany was near Jerusalem, only about two miles away. This made me ponder, if something's two miles away, it doesn't take you an additional two days to get there, or does it? I may be missing something here.
Put it in the comments if you have the answer to that one. Let's skip to verse 25. Jesus said to her, I am myself the resurrection and the life.
Whoever believes in, adheres to, trusts in, and relies on me, although he may die, yet he shall live. And whoever, excuse me, continues to live and believes in, has faith in, cleaves to, and relies on me, shall never actually die at all. Do you believe this? Verse 30, now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the same spot where Martha had met him.
32, when Mary came to the place where Jesus was and saw him, she dropped down at his feet, saying to him, Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. Now I am skipping through these scriptures for time's sake, but let me encourage you to read all of John 11. I'm reading out of the Amplified Bible because that's my favorite.
Verse 33, when Jesus saw her sobbing, and the Jews who came with her also sobbing, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. He chafed in spirit and sighed and was disturbed. And let me point out here, they weren't merely crying, like sometimes we cry with, you know, tears will run down our face and, and, you know, we'll weep, so to speak, but they were sobbing.
And we've all sobbed where our body is physically convulsing with sobs as we're crying. They were grieved. And this grief, this pain that Jesus saw his friends in, moved him.
Now, if he had wept over Lazarus' death back when he was notified, if that had moved him, he would have wept at that point, just like we do. When somebody gives us notice that a loved one of ours has died, we at that moment are wrenched, we are grieved, and we sob. But Jesus did not, because he knew he was going to go raise Lazarus from the dead.
And it didn't disturb him. He referred to him as sleeping, because in his mind, he was going to awake from that sleep, and Jesus was going to have him provide a miracle so that they could believe. This was to show them yet again the majesty and Godhead that Jesus was part of.
But when he saw his dear beloved friend Mary and those with her sobbing, grieving, openly, it moved him. He was deeply, deeply moved in spirit and troubled. I believe the troubled part came from the fact that they didn't believe he was going to raise him from the dead right then.
I think, you know, because Martha had said, well, yeah, on the last day you'll be risen with the rest of us. That's not what Jesus meant. Now, these are people that had lived with him for nearly three years by his side, and seen not only the miracles that we see in the Bible that are made note of in the Bible, but it also said that many, many, many other miracles that were too numerous to count were done.
