Jesus Wept

“Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. And I know that You always hear Me, but because of the people who are standing by I said this, that they may believe that You sent Me.” John 11: 41-42

It is said to be the shortest verse in the Bible; John 11:35. In this verse, it simply says, "Jesus wept." The accepted explanation for Jesus weeping is that He was mourning the death of His friend, Lazarus. This is true. However, could the tears He shed been for more than just the emotion of losing a beloved friend? We have all experienced a time when we were late getting to an appointment, we failed a test, or our flight gets delayed or canceled. How about those times when something is not being done the way we want it done, or someone is not doing what we want them to do? You have probably experienced a moment when you anxiously awaited an important phone call, all the while saying to yourself, “Why haven’t they called yet? What is taking so long? When are they going to call?” All of this leads to you being frustrated. You may even get frustrated to the point of shedding tears if the frustration gets overwhelming. Besides the death of His friend, I believe that Jesus weeping had something to do with His frustration over people not believing in Him. In John 11:7-8, we read, "Then after this He said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.” The disciples said to Him, “Rabbi, lately the Jews sought to stone You, and are You going there again?”" When Jesus suggests going to Judea, His disciples reply by showing their fear of going to Judea because the life of Jesus, and, perhaps, their lives too, would be in danger. Continuing on we read, "Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up.” Then His disciples said, “Lord, if he sleeps he will get well.  However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep (John 11:11-13).” The disciples didn't understand that Jesus was telling them that Lazarus was dead when He told them he sleeps. Next, we read, "Now Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give You.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to Him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day (John 11: 21-24).” This is interesting because after Jesus told His disciples that Lazarus was dead, He followed up by saying, "And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, that you may believe. Nevertheless let us go to him (John 11:15).” It is as if Jesus knew what Martha was going to say to Him about His not being present when Lazarus died. Martha also showed her lack of complete understanding by thinking Jesus was talking about Lazarus being raised on the last day, instead of at that moment in time. Even Mary displayed the same lack of understanding when she said, "Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died (John 11:32)."

Up to this point in His ministry, Jesus had performed many miraculous signs and wonders. He turned water into wine (John 2:9:10). He revealed Himself as the Messiah to the woman at the well (John 4:1-26). He healed a man at the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:1-15). He fed five thousand people with only five loaves of bread and two fish (John 6:1-14). He walked on water (John 6:15-21). He outsmarted the scribes and Pharisees when they bought the woman caught in adultery to Him (John 8:1-12). He healed the man born blind (John 9:1-12). Yet, despite all of this evidence that He was the promised Messiah, the Savior of the Jews, many people, including His own followers, did not completely believe in Him. Therefore, it would seem safe to say that when you combine the death of His friend Lazarus with all the frustration of the unbelief of those He was trying to reach, it would make sense that Jesus wept. So just before Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, He thanked God the Father for the opportunity to do so because it was another chance for people to believe that He was the Messiah. Thankfully, there is evidence that the efforts of Jesus had a positive outcome; at least on those closest to Him. "Then many of the Jews who had come to Mary, and had seen the things Jesus did, believed in Him (John 11:45)." Stop for a moment and imagine that you are Jesus. You perform all these miraculous signs, including raising Lazarus from the dead, all so people will believe that you are who you say you are; God in the flesh. So many miracles that John would go on to write that, "there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. Amen (John 21:25)." As if what was recorded about Jesus' exploits isn't enough, He did so much more that the conclusion was made that all the books of the world could not contain His works! Thus, can we see how Jesus would weep over people who would not believe even after all of that? Think about it; God cried! It gives even greater meaning to John 3:16. Imagine if John 3:16 was written directly to you. How would it make you feel now knowing how God feels about you? "For God so loved [you] that He gave His only begotten Son, that [if you believe] in Him [you] should not perish but have everlasting life." It is enough to make you weep when you think about it.