Since March 2020, Cheryl and I have lost 28 dear friends; some from Cornerstone, a couple of neighbors but most have been friends from almost every season of our lives.
I am thankful that most of those we have lost have been followers of Jesus. The Psalmist said the following as it is recorded Psalm 56:8. I love how the “New Living Translation” translates the verse;
“You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle, You have recorded each one in your book.”
I feel like I have cried an ocean full of tears in the last 17 months. In fact, I was in hospital battling “Covid-19” when I got the news that one of my spiritual mentors had passed away. He passed away in his 90’s, a few days after his wife has passed away. The family had a double funeral. Although both had lived a full life, I still cried like a baby when I received the news. Our lives change so drastically when we lose a loved one. For a spouse, there is not an experience this side of heaven that is as painful as losing a faithful husband or wife. I’ve also discovered that it doesn’t matter how old you when you lose a parent, it is devastating and life-altering. My heart breaks for those family members whose lives have been so affected and changed by the loss of a loved one.
One of my favorite chapters in the Bible is the raising of Lazarus by Jesus in John 11:1-44. Take some time and read it this week. It is awesome!! There are a couple of things about this event that strike me. Jesus never operates according to our expectations but only does so according to the will and plan of the Father. He purposely stayed where He was for a few extra days to make sure Lazarus was good and dead. Not only was Lazarus dead; he was also buried and in the tomb. I can’t imagine the amount of grief Mary and Martha were feeling and the frustration and disappointment they must’ve felt toward Jesus. He never showed up! Not even a note or a forerunning disciple explaining His tardiness. Even after all we have done for Him. I thought our relationship meant more than that. The following verse is evidence that these thoughts were present; John 11:36 (ESV)
“Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?”
If we’re honest, we will recognize that we have these same thoughts when we lose a loved one, especially when it’s suddenly. God, where are you?
However, as the story develops, we find that Jesus is NEVER late, He is always on time. In fact, every situation presents itself to glorify God. Nothing takes the Lord by surprise. He is sovereign over even the smallest detail. He not only knows every tear we weep, Jesus has also planned all of our days even before we were born according to Psalm 139:16 (ESV).
“Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.”
The situation in John 11 brings us now to the shortest verse in the Bible; John 11:35 (ESVS)
“Jesus wept”
I’ve often wondered, why did He weep? He knew he was going to raise Lazarus from the dead. He knew all this was going to work out. Why would He weep? You think He would’ve given Mary and Martha an encouraging word. He actually did but like us, they didn’t have the ability to hear God’s purposes when they were overwhelmed by such grief. After thinking about this for some time, perhaps the following thoughts could provide some reasons for Jesus’ tears.I Perhaps it was because there was still “unbelief” present in even His closest disciples. Jesus had spent a lot of time with these two sisters and their brother. They should’ve been acutely aware of what Jesus was capable of. Yet in their moment of crisis, they lost faith. Secondly, perhaps He wept because of His empathy to the human sinful condition and separation from God. The prophet “Isaiah” prophesied this about the Messiah almost 700 years earlier. Isaiah 53:4 (ESV)
“Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows.”
The writer of Hebrews emphasizes this in Hebrews 4:15 (ESV)
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.
This event happened close to the end of Jesus’ ministry. As He was getting closer to His sacrificial death, perhaps He was demonstrating the role of a priest. In the Old Testament, the priest had to carry the “sins of the people” into the Holy of Holies, pour the blood and the altar to cover the national sin. To not empathize might lead him to being judgmental which would invalidate the sacrifice. Jesus was demonstrating that He was ready to take on the sin of the whole world yet without walking in judgement. In fact, Jesus became the sacrifice of all sacrifices to satisfy the righteousness of His Holy Father. His death satisfied His anger and removed all judgement towards us. That’s the definition of propitiation.
Perhaps Jesus also realized that it would be this event that would cause the hatred of the religious rulers to intensify and bring them to unify, put aside their religious differences aside and crucify the “Son of Man”.
Nevertheless, Jesus put His father’s purposes first and resurrected Lazarus. By this He showed that there was nothing that could defeat Him, not even death. In our weakest moment, He demonstrated that He is indeed God and that we can trust Him in every situation. Jesus is never early or late. He is always exactly on time with everything. We can trust Him in every situation, especially in death. It’s what brought the Apostle Paul to pen these words in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 (ESV)
‘13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. 15 For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.’
I am sure that all of the friends and family I’ve lost I will see again. That is my blessed hope given to me by Jesus. As Christians, we have such hope because death has lost it sting and the grave its victory. Knowing that I will see my loved ones again gives me great strength and hope. At the same time, Jesus understands the loss and does not make light of it. Here are a couple verses that support that truth; Psalm 68:5 (ESV)
“Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation.”
and Psalm 116:15 (ESV)
“Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints”
Jesus knows our grief and will help us and be close to us when we feel overwhelmed by the waves of grief. He will never leave us alone but will actually carry us in the darkest of days and the loneliness of nights. I pray for each of you that have lost love ones recently that God will indeed comfort you and that you will know that His timing is always perfect, always!! You can trust Him. If our loved ones died in Jesus, We will see them again. What a day of rejoicing that will be!