John 11:35

Several times over the last two weeks I have come across this scripture, so I decided to share with you my thoughts. First, here is the verse in context:

“Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead...Then when Jesus came, he found that he had lain in the grave four days already...Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died. But I know, that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee.  Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise again.  Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day.  Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die…And said, Where have ye laid him?  They said unto him, Lord, come and see.  Jesus wept.  Then said the Jews, Behold how he loved him!  … he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth.  And he that was dead came forth…” John 11:14, 17, 21-26, 34-36, 43-44. (KJV)

What I found most interesting is the fact that Jesus knew what was coming, yet he was still grief-stricken.  Consider this:

1.       It appears from previous verses that Jesus knew why He had tarried several days--so that Lazarus would die and Jesus would raise him up. 

2.      Jesus testified to Martha of His own role as Redeemer and Resurrector.  He knew very well His own power, and what God wanted Him to do.

Despite this, and knowing that he would within minutes raise Lazarus from the grave, Jesus wept.  Why is this?  There could be a number of reasons: perhaps He wept because He saw the people around him weeping, or because Lazarus was a dear friend.  In any case, I think we see that the Lord has such empathy with us that he will weep alongside us.  He sees far more than we do, but He will never dismiss our feelings as we sometimes dismiss the feelings of others. 

Isaiah wrote that the Messiah is: “…despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief…” (Isaiah 53:3 KJV)  Despite His divinity, despite His Sonship, despite the fact that He is so much greater than a man, we must remember that He lived as a man, THE Man.  He willingly hurts when we hurt, suffers when we suffer, not because He must (I suppose He could lounge around in heaven all day if He wanted to) but because He wishes to do the will of His Father. 

May we take solace in His capacity to feel our pain, and may we try to better understand the grief and pain of others.