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Jesus Wept 3 weeks ago we talked about God’s Idea of a Christian, and main point of that lesson was that being a Christian means striving to be more and more like Jesus every day. Therefore, the things that touch our hearts and cause us to cry ought to the same kinds of things that would also touch the heart of Jesus and make Him cry (what made Him weep; broke heart). And so this morning I want for us to look at 3 different occasions recorded in Scripture wherein Jesus wept… 1. John 11:1-36 Over the Death of Lazarus (begin in v3) Why did Jesus weep? I don’t think it was over Lazarus' death itself; He knew He would raise him from the dead. Jesus saw all the many friends who had come to share in the grief over the death of Lazarus and to be of comfort to Mary and Martha. And He wept because of their pain Jesus cared so much for people who were hurting so deeply. He hurt because they hurt; He was grieved because they were grieved. He wept because they wept. And in this simple story is a powerful lesson for us today! We too ought to care that much for one another. We ought be moved just as deeply with compassion for our brothers and sisters who experience grief. The hurt and pain that others feel ought to be felt by us. Romans 12:15 “Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those…” If we are going to cry to over the same things that made Jesus cry, then we will be people who care just as much for our Christian brothers and sisters as Jesus cared for the family and friends of Lazarus. 2. Luke 19:36-44 As He Approached the City of Jerusalem It was a great day of rejoicing and celebration and yet in the midst of all the festivities, Jesus wept! People casting clothes/palm branches before the Lord and calling out, "Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord," but in the midst of the rejoicing, Jesus wept! Why? Because He knew that, for the most part, all their great, religious demonstrations were in vain He knew of some terrible things yet to come; knew that the very same people who were right then calling out "Praise Him! Praise Him!" would later that week be calling out "Crucify Him! Crucify Him!" He knew of the wonderful opportunity that was before all these people, but they would overlook that opportunity He knew that these people would reject Him just as they had rejected so many of God's prophets throughout history The Lord Jesus Christ, the King of Glory, was riding into the city, but these people were really not ready to receive Him. He was not what they really wanted. They wanted a high and mighty king to establish an earthly kingdom. Jesus did not fit what they had in mind. He came into the city riding on a donkey; that's not something a king would do Julius Caesar came riding into Rome in an ornate carriage pulled by 40 elephants Mark Antony, not to be outdone, had his carriage pulled by magnificent, stately lions Jesus entered Jerusalem riding on a borrowed donkey, the lowliest form of transportation But still they should have known who He was! Jesus said, "If only you had known..." but they didn't. And so He wept! He wept also as He thought about the doom that was ahead of them: Those people there didn't realize it, but in just a few short years the city of Jerusalem and so many people therein would be destroyed Jesus knew that in A.D. 70 (in about 40 years), a general by the name of Titus would come into that city with an army and leave it in ruins According to history, the siege upon the city lasted for 134 days As the people of the city saw the Romans approaching, a third city wall was hastily built On the 15th day of the siege, the Romans broke through outer wall On the 24th day, they took the next wall, and several days after that, they overtook the inner city On the 105th day, the temple and the lower city were burnt And the last day of siege found the whole city in flames Many calamities had befallen the city of Jerusalem before this time, but none to be compared with this one! Not only was the destruction of the city itself so severe, but the loss of human life was enormous The horrible siege took place at the time of the Passover, so there were obviously many extra people in the city Furthermore, numerous people had fled to the city to escape the advancing Roman army (maybe not realizing that’s where headed) History says that literally hundreds of thousands of people were killed, in fact, one estimate is as high as 1.5 million Jews that were killed in that siege One historian wrote that so many Jews were crucified by the Romans that there were not enough trees in Jerusalem upon which to hang them all. It was said that the blood ran through the streets like water runs through the gutters after a heavy rain. Truly it was a horrible thing that happened Jesus, as He rode into the city, knew all this would happen in just a short time. But these people were oblivious to all of this. If they had only listened to the prophets, perhaps it would never come about. If only they would accept Jesus, perhaps they could escape and be spared. But Jesus knew their hearts. He knew they were not ready for the judgment that was before them, and so He wept! Hebrews 9:27, “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.” The final day of judgment is coming upon all of us, and we know that there are many in this world who are not ready! Do we truly care? Are we really concerned about the souls of those who are lost? If we're going to cry over the same things over which Jesus cried, then we need to be shedding some tears on behalf of those people who are without Christ! We need to care enough about their souls to do something about it! The more our hearts are touched over those who are lost, the more we'll find the determination to tell them about Jesus and His way of salvation. I pray that God will help us in that. 3. Matthew 26:36-39 In the Garden of Gethsemane Hebrews 5:7a “In the days of His flesh, He offered up both prayers and supplications with loud crying and tears to the One able to save Him from death.” Jesus wept in agony at the thought of all that lay ahead. In this moment showed His humanity perhaps more than at any other time He begged with tears that there might be a way of escape He cried as He pleaded, "Let this cup pass from Me!" Hebrews 5:7b-8 “He was heard because of His agony, although He was a Son, He learned obedience from the things which He suffered.” That's the lesson we need to learn! Need to learn the importance and necessity of obedience Jesus didn’t want to suffer on that cross, but He did it anyway because He was an obedient Son. So often our humanness urges us to forsake the way of God and follow after the easier way of the world We consider the way of the cross and its demands and we weigh that against the fun-loving way of the world Jesus, through His tears, still chose the way of obedience Somehow today we need to find the strength to do the same Yes, as we talked about 3 weeks ago, we may find it quite challenging to do what God wants us to do. We may shed some tears over the difficulties of living the Christian life, but if we’re going to be like Jesus, we’re going to obey no matter how hard it may be to do so. Jesus said, “If you love me, you’ll keep my commandments.” That's what our Lord wants more than anything else: our obedience! Jesus wept. Are you like Jesus? 1. He cried tears of compassion out of love for others; do you have the same compassion for others today? 2. He cried as He saw so many rejecting their opportunity for salvation; do you care enough for the lost to shed tears for them and to do something about it? 3. He cried over the cross He would have to bear, but He was obedient to the will of His Father; are you determined to be obedient, to take up your cross and follow after Him?