Jesus Wept - Part Three (Covid) Series

Jesus Wept (3)

Scott Bayles, pastor

Blooming Grove Christian Church: 9/27/2020

I vividly remember the 1991 NBA finals. After four hard fought years of disappointment, Michael Jordan and Scottie Pipen had just led the Chicago Bulls to their first ever NBA Championship over Magic Johnson and the Lakers. Spectators, TV crews and journalists rushed the floor. Everyone was celebrating and excited, but all eyes were on Michael Jordan, sitting against the wall in the locker room clutching that Championship trophy with tears streaming down his face. That image is burned into the memory of countless basketball enthusiasts. There was just something compelling about the tear on his face. That outpouring of emotion just added to his legacy and legendary status in the game of basketball.

Although it was never captured on video nor broadcast in High Definition, there has always been something equally compelling, even captivating, about the shortest verse in the Bible: "Jesus wept" (John 11:35).

The Bible actually records three different times when Jesus cried, each time in a different place and for a different reason. Every single tear that Jesus wiped from his cheek is meaningful and significant. Like Michael Jordan, the tears of Jesus add to his remarkableness and relatability. Jesus wrestled with much of the same tension and turmoil that we experience in life. He experienced deep, gut-wrenching sorrow.

Two weeks ago, we examined the first time Jesus wept. He wept with Mary and Martha in the wake of their brother's death. Through Mary and Martha's experience, we learned that Jesus is coming, Jesus is caring, and Jesus is capable.

Last week, we saw Jesus weep again as he gazed upon the city of Jerusalem. He wept because of the Jews disbelief and the Jerusalem's impending destruction. But Jesus's determination moved him to dry his eyes and continue his mission.

Fast-forward just four days—following the last supper, Jesus leads his followers across the Kidron Valley to a secluded olive Garden, known as Gethsemane. Hidden in the shadows of the knotted and knobby olive trees, this Garden provides Jesus with a quiet place to spend his final hours. It's now midnight. The night sky sparkles with a thousand stars. Insects sing in the background as a cool breeze whispers through the trees. This serene setting would become the stage upon which Jesus's would shed his final tears.

The Bible says, "Jesus prayed to God, who could save him from death. He prayed and pleaded with loud crying and tears, and he was heard because of his devotion to God" (Hebrews 5:7 GWT). Here in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus' humanity becomes clearer than ever. Jesus didn't enter into the Garden to escape death or to hide from it; he went there to prepare for it. That preparation meant wrestling through his own soul-crushing grief and sorrow. As he grappled with his feelings and his fate, he broke down in loud crying and tears.

All three of the synoptic Gospels—Matthew, Mark, and Luke—record the events of that emotional evening. We'll look at excerpts from each, but for now, here's how Matthew remembers it:

Then Jesus went with them to the olive grove called Gethsemane, and he said, "Sit here while I go over there to pray." He took Peter and Zebedee's two sons, James and John, and he became anguished and distressed. He told them, "My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me." He went on a little farther and bowed with his face to the ground, praying, "My Father! If it is possible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine." (Matthew 26:36-39 NLT)

I think Christ's experience and example in the Garden of Gethsemane demonstrate how to deal with hardship and heartache. There are certain things Jesus did that night that we can all do whenever we're wrestling with overwhelming distress or despair. First, Jesus sought solitude.

• SOLITUDE

Following the last supper, Luke's Gospel says, "Then, accompanied by the disciples, Jesus left the upstairs room and went as usual to the Mount of Olives" (Luke 22:39 NLT). The Mount of Olives was an olive grove just outside the city, across the Kidron valley. This secluded olive Garden offered Jesus a quiet, peaceful place to work through his emotions. As he prepared to meet his faith-shaking fate, Jesus sought out a place of solitude, where he could deal with his dilemma uninterrupted. Jesus was always in the public eye. Crowds followed him everywhere he went. He spent his days teaching in the public square and healing throngs of sick and injured villagers. Jesus always took time to help the helpless, to heal the unhealthy, to love the unloved. But tonight, as he prepared to climb the hill of Calvary, he made no time for the sick or the sinners. The "Great Physician" would be taking no appointments.