In The House Of Misery God HelpsSample

Jesus Is Moved In Our Afflictions 

In John 11:35, we read the shortest verse with the most profound truth. Jesus wept.

So what does this mean to us today? What lessons can we learn from this portion of the passage?  Two important truths.

1.  It is OK to be real with God. Both Martha and Mary told Jesus how they felt and what was bothering them and Jesus heard them and had compassion on them.  

2.  Our God is compassionate and cares about us:  Jesus cried like we cry. He shed tears like we shed tears. He was moved like we are moved. We serve a God that came down and lived like we live so that He could meet us where we are.  

"Jesus was deeply moved in spirit and troubled." If you look at the Greek, there is a deeper description of what was going on with Jesus. 

There is an interesting Greek word where Jesus said in verse 33 that He was deeply moved. The word for moved is not that He was moved by heartache or feeling the loss of Lazarus’ life. The word for moved is one of the strongest Greek words “embrimaomai”, which is from the Greek root word “brimaomai”, and it literally means “to snort with anger.”  

Why was he snorting with anger? Perhaps it was due to their disbelief in His ability to raise the dead. Maybe it was from the fact that they didn’t realize that he was in a much better place. In this same sentence, there is also an interesting Greek use of the word for “greatly troubled”, which is “tarasso” and means “agitated” or “troubled.” There is mystery as to why Jesus was both agitated and angry. It may be that He knew what the Jews were thinking or saying by their callous remark “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?” It might have even be anger directed toward death itself and the enemy who brought death to humanity in the Garden by his deceiving of Eve and Adam’s disobedience.

Tim Keller says the Greek word means "to bellow with anger." The New Living Translation says, "a deep anger welled up within him." Have you ever been so angry at something that it made you cry? Jesus has this internal anger, so much that it brings him to tears. 

Why this anger? He is mad at sin, which results in evil and death. This is not God's design. Remember, he is fully God. He did not create a world with sin, suffering and death. 

The one other thing that is causing so much deep emotion is that Jesus knows he is going to have to die. His anger is not a begrudging anger as in "I can't believe I have to do this." He knows He is going to have to be fully human and experience death. A line is being drawn in the sand with the opponent death, which has never been defeated. Here is what this means. Bringing Lazarus out of the grave would put Jesus in a grave. It would cost Him his life to save ours. 

But Jesus was willing to go to the cross, because He is our hope in the house of misery.

Quote: Jesus always moves into places moved with grief - Ann Voskamp.

Application question: What are some of the areas in which you have to get real with God? Share with Him. He understands. He knows your pain.

Prayer: Lord, at times when I feel that You don’t care, help me to remember this shortest verse that You wept. You understand. You feel with me. Thank You Lord. Amen