A God who can empathize

Ross King is coming out with a new album, We Know How This Thing Ends. His first single from the album came out this week, called Good Company.



The song is about how if you are sad, broken hearted, upset, that you are not alone but in good company with Jesus who also was sad (when Lazarus died), broken hearted (when in the garden he knew his death was imminent), and upset (when he throw out the money changes from the temple). 

No doubt Ross was thinking of Hebrews 4:14-16 when he was writing the song.

Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 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. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

In the passage about Lazarus, Jesus is a close friend of Lazarus and his two sisters Mary and Martha. Now people had been telling Jesus that Lazarus was sick and dying, but he said that Lazarus wouldn't die. Then Lazarus did die. Jesus and his disciples went to Bethany. When they arrive, 4 days after Lazarus was buried, Martha greets them, sad but slightly hopeful. Jesus asks her if she believes that Lazarus will rise again. She says yes, in the resurrection of the dead. Jesus says that he is the Resurrection and the Life. They then go see Mary. Mary runs out saying that if only Jesus had been here, Lazarus wouldn't have died. Jesus sees her crying and those who came to console them. The scripture then says "Jesus wept." Jesus then orders the stone moved and calls Lazarus out of the grave.

The Jesus wept line has been of interest, either because there is a lot packed in those two words, or because it is only 2 words and is easy to memorize as your favorite verse. 

Googling what that verse might mean comes back with a lot of possibilities. Most focus on Jesus being sad at the cost of sin, or maybe he just cried because everyone else was crying, or he was thinking about his own impending death. I remember learning in a Bible study that Jesus wept because of the unbelief of those around him. But I think Ross has a great point in this song. Jesus wept because he was sad. 

Jesus knew how this thing was going to end. He had been hinting at it to the disciples. They didn't understand at all, but Jesus did. He knew he would raise Lazarus from the dead. He knew that Lazarus would be with Him throughout all eternity. But yet when Jesus came to where the body of Lazarus laid, he wept. He wept like one would expect when he comes to where his good friend has died.

May Jesus wept because he was sad. Maybe the easy answer is the correct answer. Jesus was fully human, why would we not expect him to be said when his good friend dies?

Johnny Cash performed a song called Man Who Couldn't Cry. It talks about a man who no matter what happened, he showed no emotion. My wife calls me this. I don't think I have ever cried in my adult life. I don't know the reason. But maybe seeing that Jesus cried is saying that it is OK to cry. If an infinite God cried when a good friend died, maybe even a man should cry. 

Jesus can empathize with those who do, even if I can't.