Jesus Wept

John 11:28-37
April 30, 2023
Abraham Hong

Sermon Script

Praise be to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Today’s scripture text is so heartwarming and encouraging for us today.

It is so heartwarming and encouraging because we see Jesus’ tears. We see the compassion and love of our Good Shepherd. We remember that we do not weep alone on this old and fading earth.

And our faith, hope, and love is strengthened as we look forward to a time and a place in which God will wipe away every tear from our eyes.

Allow me to review the story that leads up to today’s scripture text. A man named Lazarus was ill and dying. He had two sisters named Mary and Martha. And they sent messengers to Jesus and asked him to come to them and heal Lazarus.

But Jesus stayed two days longer in the place where he was. He delayed his visit to Lazarus. Jesus let Lazarus die.

Why did our Lord do this? According to God’s Word earlier in this chapter, he did this because he loved Martha and Mary and Lazarus. He loved them and he wanted them to know his glory. They were his beloved sheep and they needed to know his gospel of resurrection life. This was Jesus’ will.

And as he left, Jesus said these amazing words to the disciples, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.” Jesus goes to resurrect Lazarus from death.

When Jesus came to where Martha and Mary was, Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. Lazarus was dead. It seemed as if Jesus had come too late. Martha went to Jesus and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

One can imagine the sadness and pain and sorrow and struggle in Martha’s heart and mind. I’m sure she loved her brother so much.

But Martha still believed that Jesus could help Lazarus. This is amazing. Jesus told Martha that he is the resurrection and the life. And Martha, by the amazing grace of God, believed. What is grief, if not faith, hope, and love persevering?

Yes, Martha believed. But she had no idea what Jesus’ plan was. She thought Lazarus would be resurrected on the last day, in the far future. But no, Jesus would awaken and resurrect Lazarus on that day, right before Martha’s eyes.

She did not know what Jesus’ plan was. And she did not know how much Jesus loved her.

This brings us to today’s passage. Martha went back to Mary and told Mary that Jesus had arrived. Mary rose quickly and went to Jesus. And when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him the same words that Martha said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

What happens next, Dear Highland, is something absolutely unforgettable.

When Jesus saw Mary weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and he was greatly troubled. And he wept.

This is our God. This is our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This is who he is.

Our God is full of compassion. Our Good Shepherd loves us and understands us. Jesus wept.

And our God is full of righteousness and holiness and wrath against our two great enemies: death and the devil. Jesus was greatly troubled.

Jesus was greatly troubled. In the original Greek language, this phrase does not mean that Jesus was worried. This phrase means that Jesus, in his perfect and sinless human nature, had holy anger and righteous fury.

Because death and the devil were enemies of his beloved sheep. And he came to destroy the works of the devil and overcome death in victory.

Praise be to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This is our God. This is who he is.

And Jesus wept. He was sad and brokenhearted because his sheep were sad and brokenhearted. He saw the suffering of Mary and his heart was filled with pity and compassion. He wept with Mary. He cared for her. He understood her.

In the words of Isaiah 53, Jesus was a Shepherd of sorrows who was acquainted with grief. Jesus bore our griefs and carried our sorrows.

Praise be to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This is our God. This is who he is.

Dear Highland, may we never forget these tears of our King. His tears are his glory. His tears are our comfort.

As we wait for the return of our Lord Jesus Christ, there are many reasons for us to lament. There are many occasions for us to cry.

I think about church members who are old or young and dealing with health problems. I think about cancer and all the helplessness and hopelessness that comes with it.

I think about church members who are dealing with very difficult problems at home or at school or at work. I think about the heartache and heartbreak that comes with relationships. I think about church members who may be depressed or lonely.

I think about all the feelings that come to mind when we think about our parents getting old and our grandparents passing away. I think about the coronavirus pandemic and church members who have lost their loved ones.

This pilgrim life is full of sadness and sorrow. We face much suffering and hardship on this old and fading earth. There are tears in our eyes, there is death, there is mourning and crying and pain. And so we lament. And so we cry.

But when you suffer and when you cry, know that you are not alone in your tears. Jesus wept. Your tears are accompanied by the tears of your Good Shepherd.

And when you suffer and when you cry, know that one day, soon and very soon, Jesus will wipe away every tear from your eyes.

Listen to these words from Revelation 21:4. God will wipe away every tear from your eyes. And death shall be no more. Neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore. For the former things have passed away.

How is this possible? How can our tears be wiped away? The answer is amazing. Jesus does this through his life, his death, and his resurrection.

Adam was supposed to achieve or earn or win life. Not an earthly life. But a final, glorified life. A consummate and eschatological life.

But this life never happened. Adam sinned. And instead of earning a glorified life, Adam earned a punishment of death. Man became sinners. And all sinners must die the first death on earth and the second death in hell.

Death, therefore, had a purpose and a reason. Death was God’s justice. Lazarus deserved to die. We all deserve to die.

But God shows grace, mercy, and compassion to his chosen people. God chose some sinners who be forgiven of their sins and saved from ultimate death. And God would send us another Adam-like representative who would achieve and earn and win the final and glorified life that Adam and all of us in Adam failed to get.

Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ came to save us. He lived a perfect life for us and credits us with his perfect righteousness. He died the substitutionary death for us and paid for all of our sins. And he rose from the grave so that now we too have resurrection life.

Now, when we die, it will only be a sleep. And Jesus will awaken us when he returns. Jesus is the resurrection and the life.

And if you believe in Jesus, if you believe in who he is and what he did, if you believe his words and his truth, then you will have what Martha, Mary, and Lazarus all have.

You will have Jesus. You will have his resurrection life. You will have his kingdom. This is how Jesus will wipe away every tear from your eyes. Believe in him.

Praise be to our God. Praise be to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Dear Highland, Jesus loves you and he wants you to know his glory. You are his beloved sheep and you need to know his gospel of resurrection life. This is Jesus’ will. So be encouraged. May your faith, hope, and love be strengthened.

There may be times in your life when you might pray to God the same words that Martha and Mary said: “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” Maybe it may seem sometimes that God delays in his response to us.

There may be times in your life when you might lack love and compassion for others. Maybe it’s been a very long time since you last wept for someone else.

There may be times in your life when you might fall into great despair at a funeral. Maybe you are terrified by death.

If those days come, remember Lazarus’ story. See how Jesus wept. And believe in Jesus. Our final life of glory is coming soon.

Whoever believes in Jesus, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in Jesus shall never die. Do you believe this?

Soli Deo Gloria