Lazarus: Jesus Wept... and Raged?

In the account of Lazarus, we see many different stories come together. We see the disciples both questioning and coming alongside Jesus, both on His decision to wait and His journey to see Mary and Martha. We see the plight of Lazarus' sisters as they grieve the death of their brother. We even see the watching Jews and their leaders, some who would believe, and others who would never believe no matter what (John 11:45-46).

In the midst of it all, however, we see Jesus, both wholly God and wholly man. We see His power and His wisdom on display. But we also see something else: His emotions.

For various reasons, this resonates with me personally. I find comfort in knowing that the same Jesus who wept for Lazarus has compassion on me, a lowly and frail sinner (Psalm 103:13-14). But, I also can't help but see the drastic divide between the faulty use of my emotions and the perfect emotion of Jesus.

It can be easy to go off the rails when we discuss God’s emotions. We can be like those who go so far as to say that there is a different God in the Old Testament than the New, focusing solely on the display of His wrath upon various nations, including His own people. We can be like I was (and perhaps I still struggle with it at times), viewing God more as an angry Father. Live in such a way as not to anger Him, and try to get by. We can also elevate His love and mercy so high that we "do away" with His anger, viewing Him as either a cosmic genie or a being who loves everyone equally, never judging or meting out justice.

All of these are projections of our own emotional understanding onto God. They don't take the fullness of Scripture into account. And here is a reminder, Jesus is God. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit all share in divine emotions.

Perhaps because of His humanness, we relate more with Jesus.

My emotions are so flawed it's not even funny. I'd venture a guess that yours are as well. His are perfect, however, and one place where we see this on display is in this account of Lazarus.

"When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the jews who came with her also weeping, He was deeply moved in spirit and was troubled, and said, "Where have you laid Him?" They said to Him, "Lord, come and see." Jesus wept. So the jews were saying, "See how He loved Him!"" John 11:33-37

We're all very familiar with verse 35, which mentions that Jesus wept. It is the shortest verse in the English Bible after all. Yet it packs so much into just two words. But when we look at the verses prior, we see something interesting.

The indication behind the Greek words in verse 33 is that Jesus was actually angry. I suspect a lot of ink has been spilled debating why that might be the case. I’ll share my thoughts on it, however.

Jesus had every right to be angry with the people’s unbelief. Mary and Martha had expressed their belief that Jesus could do what He wanted, but it seems they doubted that He would do anything. We can oftentimes be the same way. I don't usually struggle with thinking God CAN do something, but I question His willingness. In effect, I sometimes question His goodness. Maybe that's part of what was going on here.

I'm sure Jesus also saw the unbelief of the Jews, knowing that no matter what He did, their hearts were hardened and they would never believe.

But, I also suspect that He was angered at the presence of sin and death. This world is filled with both, and it must grieve the Creator.

And I believe that the same things that caused Christ to be angry brought tears to His eyes.

The God of the universe, holy, separate from His creation, had stepped into this sinful world, with all of its mess and death. It makes sense that it would bring Him incredible sadness.

So what we see is the perfect expression of sinless emotion amidst a grievous situation. As such, Jesus serves as our example. Should we be angry at sin and death? Yes, though we must realize our sinful tendencies with our anger. And should we grieve and mourn over the same? Absolutely, though when it comes to death, Christians do not grieve as the world does, for we know that the same power that raised Jesus from the dead will raise us all as well.

I wish I could say that I was capable of showing my emotions as Jesus did, without sin. I shake my head as I write this because I know just how far from His likeness I am in this area.

But once again, I am reminded that the same God who wept at Lazarus' tomb, whose love for His friend was so evident that the Jews exclaimed, "See how He loved Him," this God shows the same compassion towards me and comes alongside me in my failing. Not brushing over my sin, Jesus paid that price. No, God invites us to call Him Father. And as a father has compassion on His children, so does God have it upon His own.