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Tears
9/16/2003
"Jesus
wept." John 11:35
Tears were always
present in the ministry of Jesus. There were tears of hopelessness by the
widow of Nain (Luke 7:13). There were tears of humility by the awestruck
sinful woman who washed Jesus' feet with her tears and then dried them
with her hair. (Luke 7:31) There were tears of mourning by Mary as she
wept over the death of her brother, Lazarus. (John 11:33) However, in each
of these traumatic situations, the psalmist David echoed their
experiences, "Weeping may remain for the night, but rejoicing comes
in the morning." (Psalm 30:5)
Jesus saw tears not as weakness, but as a path to strength. In Hebrews, we
are told "Jesus offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and
tears... he learned obedience from what he suffered." (Hebrews 5:7-8)
The shortest verse in the Bible, "Jesus wept," records a time
when Jesus cried empathizing with Mary and Martha over the loss of their
brother. This past Sunday, our service was filled with tears. As the
sisters Elena, Sheila and Suzanne shared about our new
"sister-to-be" Carrie Williams, each cried tears. Then, Carrie
in tears of joy shared how Jesus had released her from bitterness, pain
and heartbreak. There were even more tears after her baptism.
Then, Brian McCommish shared about his friend and co-worker, Dale, who was
to be baptized next. He began to share about their relationship during
their common sinful past, and tears flowed. Though my heart was moved as
the women cried, when Brian cried over the personal joy of God's grace and
healing, tears began to well up in my eyes. It was then that I looked
around and so many others in the congregation were likewise touched. When
Dale shared his story, his tears were tears of hope for salvation and a
new life for his family.
In Luke 19, as Jesus approached Jerusalem during his triumphal entry, he
wept. He wept for all the pain that sin brings to peoples' lives. He wept
for the emptiness of those who do not know God. Simply put, Jesus wept
over Jerusalem's lostness. Each of us should all ask ourselves when was
the last time I wept over my school, neighborhood or workplace?
I believe God wants all of us to witness tears of joy as we saw with
Carrie and Dale. But, also to share in those tears as did those who
studied and baptized them. Prayerfully, our baptistery will be filled with
the tears of our congregation. This is what it means to love God and to
love our neighbor as ourselves. This is what it means to be the church of
Jesus.
Kip McKean
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