Is Jesus Still Weeping?

Is Jesus Still Weeping?

Jesus wept.

John 11:35

We now come to the shortest verse in all the Bible. Without question, it is the easiest to memorize. It contains only two words, three syllables. However, these two words offer incredible insight into the heart of our Lord. For those of us who attended Vacation Bible School as children, more than likely this was among the first verses we put to memory—“Jesus wept.”

There are two passages in Scripture that reveal our Lord actually weeping. Ironically, both of them take place on the Mount of Olives opposite Jerusalem. On the eastern slope of the mountain, in the small village of Bethany, we find Jesus weeping over our sorrows at the grave of Lazarus (John 11:35). On the western slope of the mountain, we find Him on Palm Sunday weeping over our sins (Luke 19:41). One can’t help but wonder when we read these words if Jesus is still weeping today. Tears have a language all their own. The tears of our Lord speak volumes to us in this dispensation of grace.

JESUS WEEPS OVER OUR SORROWS: HE IS TOUCHED BY OUR BROKEN HEARTS

The event was the funeral of His close friend Lazarus. With poignant brevity, John simply states, “Jesus wept.” He did not weep because Lazarus was dead. He knew that in a moment He could restore life to him—and those who know the Bible know this is exactly what He did! Jesus wept when He saw Lazarus’s sisters crying. Tears touch the heart of our God. Mary’s heart was broken. Her brother was dead, and it seemed Jesus had arrived too late. She held no hope. She was hurting. She was weeping with deep sobs and wails. She was pouring out her soul to the Lord. When Jesus saw her, He wept with her. This great God is touched by our own hurts and broken hearts.

Tears have a language all their own. They speak much louder than words. They need no interpreter. The psalmist says that God keeps our tears in a bottle (Psalm 56:8). If you need God’s attention, try tears. It is okay to cry. We serve a Lord who weeps with us over our sorrows and who is touched by our broken hearts.

JESUS WEEPS OVER OUR SINS:
HE IS TROUBLED BY OUR BLINDED EYES

Most messages related to the Palm Sunday event have to do with the crowds, the shouts of the hosannas, the parade, the pep rally. But all that was a sham. And our Lord knew it. Within a few short days, those same crowds would disappear, and their cheers would be turned to jeers. Can you picture Him that day, on the back of a donkey, riding over palm branches to the praise of the people? He was the center of attention. He must have been smiling from ear to ear and waving at the adoring crowds like He was sitting in a convertible on a parade route. But look closer: “Now as He drew near, He saw the city and wept over it” (Luke 19:41). Hear Him through His tears as He says, “If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes” (v. 42).

Those Jerusalem crowds wanted a military general who would ride into town and put down the Roman oppressors. Thus, less than a week after the grand parade, when they realized they were not getting what they wanted, they crowned Him King all right, but with a crown of thorns. They stripped Him naked, beat Him, and asked, “Are you the King of the Jews?” What a joke, they thought. And they laughed. He was, in fact, a King, but His kingdom was not of this world. His is the kingdom of our hearts. And so our Lord Jesus sat on the Mount of Olives and wept. Interestingly, a different Greek word is used to describe His weeping on the Palm Sunday road than His weeping at Bethany. The word here entails a loud sobbing, groaning, and cries that could be heard a block away. Jesus poured out His heart over our spiritual neglect and sin.

Sadly, those of us in the Western church today do not seem to be weeping over the sins of those around us or even our own sins. We are hardly troubled by blinded eyes. We are watching the decay of a civilization before us. This is America in the twenty-first century, and Jesus is still weeping . . . but many of us are not. Many of us have lost our tears, but tears speak so much louder than words.

The Lord Jesus is still touched by our broken hearts and troubled by our blinded eyes. Is our Lord weeping with you or over you today? There is, after all, a huge difference between the two.

The last time tears are mentioned in the Bible is in Revelation 21:4. It reveals a beautiful scene in heaven: “God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.” This is our hope. He is preserving all our tears in a bottle, and one day He will wipe them all away. King David said it best: “For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning” (Psalm 30:5).

As you memorize this verse this week, meditate on the fact that we have a Lord who is not far off and removed. He is very near. He is the One who is touched by our broken hearts and weeps with us. And He is the One who is troubled by our blinded eyes and weeps over us. These two little words speak volumes: “Jesus wept.” It is okay to cry.