Weeping

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF JOHN

WEEPING

John 11:33-37

33 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. 34 "Where have you laid him?" he asked. "Come and see, Lord," they replied. 35 Jesus wept. 36 Then the Jews said, "See how he loved him!" 37 But some of them said, "Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?"

NIV

There seems to be a whole lot of weeping going on here. Mary was weeping, all the Jews that came with her were weeping and even Jesus wept. The loss of a loved one can cause us to weep, that is simply a fact of life. But who are we weeping for? Mary was weeping because she lost her brother, but was she weeping because Lazarus would no longer enjoy being alive, or that she would miss having her brother with her? Why were all the Jews weeping? Were they weeping because they were sad for Lazarus or sad for Mary, or did they think that was just the thing to do, after all their lives would be no different? Sure it is a good thing to comfort those in times of losing a loved one. Yes we should be of comfort to our dear friends, but is weeping being comforting? Did the Jews, who knew God, believe in life after death? Certainly they believed in some sort of afterlife, as in several cases such as when Abraham died, it was said that he was gathered onto his people, which is he went to be with others who had died before him, but that in and of itself is not clear about eternal life. The Jews had the Torah, and it clearly was focused more on rewards and punishment in this life, then on a resurrection to everlasting life. This would lead us to believe none of them understand the everlasting life Jesus was talking about. So a whole lot of weeping was going on, and it simply may be the human response to death, a death we all must face. But why was Jesus weeping? He knew Lazarus would not be dead for long, but that he would be alive and well. All this is not inconsistent with our faith. We are told by God through the Apostle Paul in his letter to those in Rome, that we should rejoice when others rejoice and we should mourn or weep when others mourn or weep. Jesus, as well as the Jews, was consistent with Gods design of man. Weeping with a friend, showing sympathy and compassion for others is a right and loving act. This was not about Lazarus but about being a friend of Mary and Martha and surely Jesus was their best friend. But even in this binding of spirits, the Jews still were conflicted about Jesus. Some thought highly of him because he weeps alone with Mary, while other could not resist being a bit critical. What lesson do we learn from all this? It is good to show compassion when others are hurting, but it is also a good thing to bring words of encouragement as well. The truth will set us free, and in the time of losing a loved one the truth is they are with Christ, and we may weep for us, but we should rejoice for them.