John 11:35-36

"Jesus wept. Then the Jews said, 'See how He loved him?'"

So right on the heels of declaring that the glory of God would be revealed through Lazarus' sickness and imminent death, Jesus, upon His arrival to the tomb where Lazarus lay, wept. Why would He weep if He knew He was going to raise Him again? I'm not certain Jesus shed tears over Lazarus, even though that's what the people thought, but rather over something else. What was that something else?

While I cannot know for certain, it could have been (as some commentators believe) over the ravages of sin and their consequences upon mankind. Perhaps He cried over the waywardness of Israel and their rejection of Him as the Christ. But I believe (based upon nothing but intuition and speculation) that Jesus was sorrowful because of the sorrow expressed by those who loved Lazarus. I believe He was moved with compassion, as He was so many times before, over the people and their broken hearts at the death of someone He also loved very dearly. This would not be uncharacteristic of Jesus, but rather quite aligned and attuned with who He was, and actually still is. Jesus, the suffering servant, a man acquainted with grief (cf. Isaiah 53:3) identifies. And He not only identifies, He empathizes, He feels what others feel. Where we are, there He is, and not only in presence, but in body, soul and spirit. He's a part of us to the point that in our joy He's joyful and in our sorrow He's sorrowful.

There are times in life when I just want to cry. Cry over the heartache, the anguish and the inequity of life. Unmanly? No. Christlike? Yes. Creation is corrupt, and it's just plain sad. There are times when I just need to step back, survey my surrounds, and cogitate on this world's despairing state. It's O. K. to ruminate there for awhile. Some might say, "You're taking this all too seriously, Thom; lighten up!" I will not. Let me stay here for awhile, and then I shall look up, pray and see God do His miraculous work in spite of it all.