If you grew up attending church, you may have been required to come to Sunday School with a verse of Scripture memorized. It isn’t uncommon for Sunday School teachers to ask their students to memorize a verse so they can encourage children to read their Bibles.
It’s also not uncommon for kids to come to Sunday School with the shortest verse in the Bible as their memory verse. In John 11:35, we read that “Jesus wept.” That two-word verse is the shortest verse in Scripture. While it’s easy to gloss over it because of the powerful story of Lazarus’ resurrection that it took place in, the idea of Christ weeping actually provides us with a great opportunity.
As Christians, we understand that Jesus was fully God and fully human. While we often focus on the idea that He was God in the flesh, we often miss the fact that He was completely human. Jesus got frustrated. In fact, there are times in Scripture where Jesus became angry. Additionally, there are examples where Christ was so overcome by emotions that He wept.
Without diving into a full study of the original language that the Bible was written in, the times in Scripture that Jesus wept don’t imply that He simply had a tear running down His cheek. Instead, the word that was used for “weeping” paints the picture of a deep, emotional pain that resulted in a guttural cry. The times that Jesus wept in Scripture aren’t an example of Him shedding a tear. Instead, it paints a picture of Emmanuel, God with us, being so overcome by emotion that He cried with everything He had.
What do the times that Jesus wept mean for us? When we look at them in the full context of what was going on, Jesus’ weeping gives us a deeper insight into God’s character and how we can face difficult times.
When Jesus Wept for Jerusalem
Luke 19:41-44 (TPT)
When Jesus caught sight of the city, he burst into teas with uncontrollable weeping over Jerusalem, saying, “If only you could recognize that this day peace is within your reach! But you cannot see it. For the day is soon coming when your enemies will surround you, hem you in on every side, and lay siege to you. They will crush you to pieces, and your children too! And they will leave your city totally destroyed. Since you would not recognize God’s day of visitation, you will see your day of devastation!”
Since Jesus was God, He was still able to see everything that was going to happen in the future. We know that God is not bound by our concepts of time and place, so Jesus had a type of insight that other humans did not have. One of the most powerful examples of Christ weeping was based on His ability to see what was in the future of His people.
Israel was God’s chosen people in the Bible, and Jerusalem served as the capital city. Everything that was important in the Jewish life was found in Jerusalem. Even if you go back into the Old Testament, Jerusalem was the hub of Jewish life.
Christ knew that the Jewish people as a whole were not going to accept Him as the Promised Messiah. He knew the rejection that was coming, and it moved Him to tears. Jesus didn’t weep because His ego was hurt by the rejection of the people, but because He knew what they truly needed and that they weren’t going to accept it. The same refusal to obey God that led to the destruction of Jerusalem in the Old Testament was going to happen again.
In the same vein, we should be emotionally moved by the fact that lost people are facing an eternity separated from God. We know the eternal fate of those who reject God’s free offer of salvation. With that in mind, it should move us to our very core. Are you emotional about the fact that there are people living in darkness and facing eternal damnation? If not, ask the Holy Spirit to begin to do a work in your heart so you can love the lost like Jesus does.
When Jesus Wept Over Lazarus
John 11:32-35 (ESV)
Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. And he said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to him, Lord come and see.” Jesus wept. So the Jews said, “See how he loved him!” But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?”
“Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” The cry from Mary wasn’t one of praise and worship. Instead, she was hurt. She was angry that Jesus hadn’t come to His friend’s aid when He heard that Lazarus was very sick.
We probably assume that Jesus was put off by Mary’s lack of faith. However, instead of rebuking her for a moment of raw emotion, Jesus empathized with the woman. In fact, He was so moved by the grieving that took place around the tomb of Lazarus that He was “moved in His spirit and greatly troubled.” What was going on that caused Jesus to be so troubled?
It wasn’t because He didn’t know the end of the story. While family and friends were navigating the grieving process, Jesus knew how John 11 ended before it was ever written. However, He was moved because the people around Him were grieving.
This story gives us a beautiful example of what it means to mourn with people who are mourning. A good friend doesn’t only celebrate your victories with you. Instead, he or she rallies to your side. Jesus wept with those that were weeping so we could see what it means to be a friend who can mourn with those who are mourning.
When Jesus Cried While Praying
Hebrews 5:7 (TPT)
During Christ’s day on earth, he pleaded with God, praying with passion and with tearful agony that God would spare him from death. And because of his perfect devotion his prayer was answered and he was delivered.
Finally, we learn that Christ was so overcome by emotion that He prayed with “tearful agony.” You probably already know the story, but let’s visit what the author of Hebrews was referencing here. On the night of His arrest, Jesus went in the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. While He was there, He fervently asked God to come up with another plan for humanity’s salvation. The Bible teaches us that He prayed so hard that His sweat became blood! His prayer was so fervent that the capillaries in his head actually burst!
He wanted delivered from death, and His deliverance came, but not the way that He wanted it. However, He was perfectly submitted to God’s plan for the world.
While we may never pray so hard that our sweat becomes blood, but we can be so moved by what we’re praying about that we weep. When you weep in prayer, it’s because what you’re praying for means so much to you that it overcomes your emotions.
A Closing Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank You for providing a fully human example of your own heart. Help me to be so moved by the lost that I weep for them like Jesus. Help me to be so moved by the mourning of those around me that I weep with them. Most of all, help my prayer life become so deeply important to me that I am moved to tears. In Christ’s name, Amen.