Jesus wept. [1] Two words, one verse. To weep. To shed tears. [2]
He wept. [3] He mourned, lamented, bewailed. He wept as one who mourns for the dead. He wept as a sign of the pain and grief of things yet to come. [4]
He wept for the oppressed, the helpless, the children, the mothers and their babies. He wept for the dead. He wept anticipating the judgment that was to come. He wept because of their unbelief. He wept because he was human. He wept because he was God.
It has been said that when angels cry it rains. What happens when God cries?
What takes place in heaven as they watch the Son of God weep. What happens when the divine and human collide. When God’s tears mix with the salt of the earth. When Abba’s son shakes and wails. When his eyes redden and his brow contours. WHAT HAPPENS? WHO HEARS? When heaven cries?
The agony of death, the ravages of evil men, the darkened wombs of raped women, the silent whimpers of molested children, the groans of modern slaves, the cries of widowed mothers, the screams of tortured captives, and the wails of the unjustly bereaved. And yet:
When the innocent ones, those who knew not evil become the prey. When the blood of the unborn cries from the ground. When the blood of the Iraqi children reach the ear of heaven. When the Son of Man hears the muffled cries of the crack baby and child prostitute. When the very heart of God is moved. Then his plan of redemption is set forth. The justice of a righteous God is readied to flow like a river. All of heaven converges. AND yet God pauses… Heaven gasps. Angels murmur. They stand appalled. And why? Shockingly because:4 No one calls for justice; they conceive
trouble and give birth to evil.
5 They hatch the eggs of
vipers and spin a spider’s
web… Their deeds are evil
deeds, and acts of violence are in their
hands.
7 Their feet rush into sin;
they are swift to shed innocent blood. Their
thoughts are evil thoughts; ruin and
destruction mark their ways.
8 The way of peace they do not
know; there is no justice in their
paths… no one who walks in them will know
peace.
9 So justice is far from us,
and righteousness does not reach us. We look
for light, but all is darkness; for
brightness, but we walk in deep shadows.
10 Like the blind we grope
along the wall, feeling our way like men
without eyes. At midday we stumble as if it
were twilight; among the strong, we are like
the dead.
11 We all growl like
bears; we moan mournfully like
doves. We look for justice, but find
none; for deliverance, but it is far
away.
Our offenses are ever with
us:
13 Turning our backs on our
God, fomenting oppression and
revolt.
14 So justice is driven
back, and righteousness stands at a
distance…
15 Truth is nowhere to be
found, and whoever shuns evil becomes a
prey. [5]
There is no one to intervene… (Isa. 59:16)
Jesus, nobody cries any more. Daddy, release a great weeping in our midst. Holy Spirit, pour fire in our hearts. Burn the love of God within us. Show us what it means to cry again. Reveal your heart. Let injustice awaken us, let sin provoke us, let love compel us. Loose the captive and reveal our darkness, liberate the oppressed and show us our sin, destroy complacency and sharpen our conscience, teach us to cry like you did, Jesus.
[1] John 11:35
[2] http://www.studylight.org/lex/grk/view.cgi?number=1145
[3] Luke 19:41
[4] http://www.studylight.org/lex/grk/view.cgi?number=2799
[5] Isaiah 59:4-16
