Jaw-dropping Jewels about Jesus
Rarely does Jesus, God the Son, do exactly what we expect of Him. It seems odd that He so frequently surprises us, given that He never changes. Hebrews 13:8 makes this absolute statement: “Jesus the same yesterday, and today, and forever.” Still, though He is blessedly consistent in His goodness, Jesus does unforeseen things. Even when He does what is expected, He does not always do it in the way that we anticipate. Let us join with Jesus on a jaw-dropping journey. (I will be using this opening paragraph for each of the brief messages in this series. The following material will change daily.)
It is easy to feel helpless in a hostile, inhumane world. Our legitimate concerns can quickly become debilitating dread. Jesus always met fears directly and effectively. John 11 records the death and the raising from the dead of Lazarus, a close friend of Jesus. Verse 35 records the reaction of our Lord before the tomb of Lazarus: “Jesus wept.” Clearly, Jesus is teaching us about both death and its accompanying tears. He knew that He would immediately raise His friend from the grave, yet He still openly lamented. There are numerous lessons to be learned from this passage, but let us focus on just one. An important principle is at work here: shared sorrows can bring people closer together, increasing sensitivity and sympathy. I remember reading of a well-known preacher who wrote his sermons as poetry, often using blank verse. What a gift! People flocked to listen to his Biblical messages delivered in this unique style. However, after he experienced loss and sorrow, he realized that his well-crafted homilies were lacking the key component of compassion. Later in life, he said, “God knocked the blank verse out of me long ago.” There is nothing wrong with poetry (I enjoy it), but fine words need honesty and humanity to be effective. The hard and harsh realities of life, including death, cannot be casually spoken away. “Jesus wept” in part because He understood the sorrows of death – and because He wants us to know that He understands. His own death on the Cross is the most eloquent statement of how absolutely He cares about our crushing concerns, especially death itself.