SERMON BY BRO. SETH A ARYEE
LOCAL PREACHER, BETHANY METHODIST CHURCH, DZORWULU, ACCRAGHANA
OCTOBER 7, 2001
The Bible is one place where it is certainly not the case that big boys never cry. Wherever in the Bible we find depth of feeling, in close relationships, in intercession, in repentance and in serving God, there tears and weeping are likely to be expressed
In the Old Testament, there are many references to:
- Weeping all night [Psalm 6:6]
- The tears of the oppressed [Ecclesiastes 4:1]
- Tears of disgrace [Isaiah 25:8]
- Tears of longing in exile, by the rivers of Babylon [Psalm 137:1]
S As to individuals who wept, we find a biblical WHO’S WHO in the following:
- Esau wept in his rivalry with Jacob [Genesis 27:38]
- Jacob wept with Esau in a wary reconciliation [Genesis 33:4]
- Jacob wept at the presumed death of his son Joseph [Genesis 37:35]
- When Joseph was preparing to reveal his true identity to his brothers, he wept so loudly that it became a talking point among the Egyptians [Genesis 45:2]
- Joseph also wept with his brothers [Genesis 45:1415]
- When Jacob finally arrived in Egypt, Joseph threw his arms around his father and "wept for a long time" [Genesis 46:29]
- Joseph wept over Jacob’s corpse and wept again over his father’s last request to forgive his brothers fully [Genesis 50:1,17]
- Ruth and Naomi wept together [Ruth 1:9]
- Hannah wept as she longed for a child [1 Samuel 1:7]
- Saul, the first king of Israel, wept [1Samuel 24:16]
- David and Jonathan also wept [1 Samuel 20: 41]
- David’s army wept aloud all day long until they had no strength left within them [1 Samuel 30:4]
In the New Testament, there are also plenty of tears
- Jesus wept at Lazarus’ tomb [John 11:35]
- Jesus wept over Jerusalem [Luke 19:41]
- Jesus prayed with loud cries and tears concerning His crucifixion [Hebrews 5:7]
- A prostitute wiped Jesus’ feet with her tears [Luke 7:38]
- Peter wept bitterly after his threefold denial of Christ [Matthew 26:75]
Paul also knew the place and value of tears
- He described his ministry as serving the Lord with great humility and tears [Acts 20:19]
- He continually warned with tears against false teachers [Acts 20:31]
- He wrote a stiff letter to the Corinthian church, with great distress, anguish of heart and many tears [2 Corinthians 2:4]
- With tears, he wrote to the Philippians of those who live as enemies of the Cross [Philippians 3:18]
- The Ephesians’ elders wept as they embraced Paul before his departure from their region [Acts 20:37]
- When Paul wrote to Timothy he remembered with fondness Timothy’s tears at their last meeting [2 Timothy 1:4]
Tears are also a sign of revival of faith in Israel
- Jeremiah foretold of a time when the people would seek the Lord with tears [Jeremiah 50:4]
- Joel called the people to renew a right walk with God [Joel 2:12]
If you want to know a person’s character, find out what makes him laugh and what makes him weep. What we laugh at and what we weep over indicate our values of life, and values are a part of maturity
Little children will laugh at things that seem stupid to us, and they will cry over matters that seem trivial to us. The higher you go in life, the more vulnerable you are to sorrow. You can escape sorrow if you wish to, simply by isolating yourself from other people and from the affairs of life; but at the same time you will also be escaping joy. For the higher you go in the scale of life, the greater the opportunities for joy; and the same things that cause joy can also cause sorrow
Whenever you enter into the experience of joy, you make yourself a candidate for sorrow. A young couple that marries experiences joys; but suppose she comes down with a terminal illness, or suppose he is hopelessly crippled in an accident? A couple can bring children into the world, and children are a joy; but suppose one of them develops leukemia and dies? Just about everything in life that brings joy can also be a source of sorrow; and the only way to escape that sorrow is to run away from life
Jesus never tried to escape the sorrows of life. Nor did He deny that they existed. He transformed them. Jesus did not tell His disciples to go out and look for sorrow; but He did tell them that He was able to transform their tears and bring them comfort. Of itself, sorrow never makes a person better. I have seen it make people bitter. But sorrow plus Jesus Christ can bring a transforming experience of power into the life of the one who is mourning
S If you and I are to experience the comfort of God, we must understand the three different kinds of sorrow that can come to us in life
First, there is natural sorrow. This kind of sorrow comes to everyone saved and unsaved, rich and poor, young and old. It is natural part of life. God made us to be able to weep the Christian life is not a constant song in the sunshine: "To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die . . . a time to weep, and a time to laugh" [Ecclesiastes 3:12,4]
Natural sorrow expressed in mourning releases a healing process in a person’s life that enables him to accept the pain, work his way through it, and adjust to life again. If people who, for one reason or another, do not mourn, do not easily adjust to new circumstances; the wound never heals
Mourning is an expression of love. It is also a proof that the person has accepted the fact of death [or whatever the crisis might be] and wants to handle it in an adult way. When the pain is kept inside, it seems to poison the emotional system, the way an infection spreads through the bloodstream
Some people have the idea that weeping is a sign of weakness. Selfpity is a sign of weakness, but not weeping. Jesus was the strongest Man who ever walked on this earth, and He wept openly!
The second kind of sorrow is unnatural sorrow. It is unnatural because its effects in our lives are opposite what God wants us to experience. Godly sorrow heals, but unnatural sorrow makes the wounds deeper and fills the heart with pain. Natural sorrow gradually helps us put life back together again, but unnatural sorrow tears things apart and keeps them that way
When you sorrow in a natural way, you learn to face and accept reality; but unnatural sorrow isolates you from reality and makes it difficult for you to adjust to the demands of life. True sorrow enables us to experience the comfort of God; but unnatural sorrow blinds us to God’s comfort and seems to give us, instead, the condemnation of God: there is a growing feeling of guilt instead of an experience of grace
Natural sorrow enables us to remember the lost loved one and use those memories constructively; but unnatural sorrow turns memories into punishments that destroy the peace and balance that God wants us to have
Psychologists who have studied bereavement tell us that unnatural sorrow can have many causes. One major cause is selfishness. A selfcentered person uses other people even the closest loved ones to make his own life safe and pleasant; and if he loses a love one, it upsets his lifestyle and it hurts. His tears are more for himself than for the deceased
Fear is another cause of unnatural sorrow fear of the future, fear of change, and perhaps even fear of death itself. Excessive tears and mourning then become an invisible Armour to protect the person from the hard knocks of life
But perhaps the greatest cause of unnatural grief is guilt: it is our way of atoning for past failures and sins in connection with the deceased. Some people atone for their sins by purchasing expensive, elaborate funerals. A wife took all her life’s savings all that she had and bought her dead husband the most expensive casket available. She put her financial future into the grave with him, but it was her way of saying to him: "Dear, I am sorry for the mean things I said and did while you were sick"
The third kind of sorrow is supernatural sorrow. It is about repentance to sin, and that is the result of the supernatural working of God in your life. "For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the sorrow of the world worketh death" [2 Corinthians 7:10]
When a person sees his spiritual bankruptcy, he can respond in one of four ways. He can deny that this bankruptcy exists and, like the Pharisees, put on a front. But this leads to a life of deception in which the person uses most of his strength to pretend, so that he has little energy left for living
Secondly, he can admit his spiritual bankruptcy and try to change things himself. But this is a case of the poor helping the poor! Third, he can admit his need and so despair over it that he gives up completely
Fourthly, the logical thing for a person to do when he sees his own spiritual need is to admit it and then turn to God for what he needs. We must, however, distinguish between repentance and remorse and regret. When my consciousness of sin rests only in my mind, then it is regret
When it affects my mind and my heart, it is remorse and remorse is a dangerous thing. But when my concern over my sin brings me to the place where I am willing to turn from it and obey God when my concern affects my will as well as my mind and my heart then I have experienced true repentance
The prodigal son in Luke 15 illustrates the truth perfectly; his mind, heart, and will were all involved in his repentance. His mind told him that his father’s servants were better off than he was; his heart made him sick of his situation "I perish with hunger!" and his will motivated him to arise and go to his father
Had he sat there in the pigpen thinking how foolish he had been, it would have been regret. Had he thought about his sins and hated himself for committing them, it would have been remorse. When he said: "I will arise and go!" and he arose and went that was repentance. His sorrow was a godly sorrow that motivated him to return home and experience forgiveness
Christ promises comfort to those who mourn, but what kind of comfort is it? You can be sure it is far deeper than sympathy, the drying of the tears and the enfolding of the child in the arms of love. Our God is the "God of all comfort" [2 Corinthians 1:3]. He is not against us; He is for us. No wonder Paul cries: "If God be for us, who can be against us" [Romans 8:32]. Our comfort and encouragement is God Himself
The tears of the believer work for him and are an investment in future joys. Not all our comforts will be given today. "Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning" [Psalm 30:5]. "They that sow in tears shall reap in joy" [Psalm 126:5]. Psalm 56:8 teaches us that none of our tears will go unnoticed by God: "Put thou my tears into thy bottle: are they not in thy book?"
If God sees the sparrow fall, will He not also see our tears fall? Heaven will be a place of no tears, but hell will be a place of nothing but tears
James wrote these words: "My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing" [James 1:24]. His point is simple everything happens in our lives for a reason, and a great part of that reason is to help us grow in our faith
Such was the experience in the encounter of Elisha and the Shunammite woman. Shunem lay in the road between Samaria and Carmel, a road that Elisha often traveled. This great woman was very hospitable. So famous was Elisha that he could not pass and repass unobserved. She might have established an acquaintance with him so that Elisha always stopped at her abode. She, therefore, suggested to her husband to build a little chamber, furnished with a bed, and a table’ a stool, and a candlestick, all that was needful for his convenience
For this kindness, Elisha decided to use his interest for her in the king’s court or the captain of the host, for an office for her husband, civil or military. But this woman declined the offer for "godliness with contentment is great gain".
So Elisha decided to use his interest for her in the court of heaven. He consulted his servant, Gehazi what kindness he might offer in exchange for the great hospitality. Gehazi reminded him that she was childless, had a great estate, but no son to leave it to, and was past hopes of having any, her husband being old. We can take a parallel from Abraham and his wife, Sarah Genesis 18 and 21. Isaac was born in fulfillment of a promise by the visiting angels to Abraham; he was born at the set time of which God has spoken. The Shunammite woman also bore a son at the season that Elisha spoke of [v.17]
But when the child was grown up, suddenly he died. A child of promise, a child of prayer, and given in love, yet taken away. Your marriage has become the envy of several couples and everyone would like to have such a relationship. Then suddenly, something disastrous happened to your partner. Your business has all the promises of success and suddenly disaster strikes everything tumbles and shatters. You have been in good health, hale and hearty and suddenly a terminal disease attacks you. In fact, your whole life is promising and fruitful never expecting any disaster to befall you; yet life provides a rather different and opposite situation
But when the child died, the Shunammite woman guarded her lips under the surprising affliction! She had heard of the raising of the widow’s son of Sarepta, and that the spirit of Elijah rested on Elisha; and such confidence had she of God’s goodness that she was very ready to believe that He who so soon took away what He had given would restore what He had now taken away
In this faith she did not make any preparation for the burial of her dead child, but for its resurrection because she laid him on the prophet’s bed. What a great faith! How do you react to calamities that may befall you? Are you so faithless that you do not trust that God can reverse the situation for you? Remember that "all things work together for good to them that love God and who are the called according to his purpose . . . if God be for us, who can be against us?" [Romans 8:28,31]
The Shunammite woman begged leave of her husband to go to the prophet, yet not acquainting him with the purpose of her errand lest he would not have faith enough to allow her go. She made all the haste to the prophet. But when she was approaching Mount Carmel, the prophet saw her from a distance. God sees your afflictions, hears your cries and knows your sorrows [Exodus 3:7] and has come down to deliver you out of the hand of your enemies poverty, diseases, sorrows and cares
Elisha sent Gehazi to meet her "Is it well with you . . . your husband . . . your child?” She answered with faith: IT IS WELL. The hymn writer articulates this situation: WHEN PEACE LIKE A RIVER ATTENDETH MY WAY; WHEN SORROWS LIKE SEA BILLOWS ROW WHATEVER MY LOT THOU HAST TAUGHT ME TO SAY: IT IS WELL WITH MY SOUL
When God calls away our dearest relations by death it becomes us quietly to say: "It is well both with us and them". All is well with what God does in our lives; all is well with those that are gone if they have gone to heaven, and all is well with us that stay behind if by the affliction we are furthered in our way
When she came to Elisha, she caught him by the feet; but Gehazi came near to thrust her away but Elisha knew how her soul was vexed within her and prevented Gehazi. Hannah, the mother of Samuel was presented with a similar situation: Eli, the High Priest did not understand her for "she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed to the Lord, and wept sore" [1 Samuel 1:10]
Your business partner may not see the bitterness in you for cheating you. Your husband who has deserted you and the children may not hear the groaning in your heart. Your relatives may not know the protestations in your mind over their rejection of you. But God sees all! And that is enough for you to cheer up for "there is hope for the future"
She reasoned with the prophet: "Did I desire a son of my lord? No! It was your proposal, not mine. I did not fret for the want of a son as Hannah nor beg as Rachel give me children or I die". This event happened so that "the works of God should be made manifest and for the glory of God"
Gehazi was sent with a rod to be placed on the face of the dead child but nothing happened life was still. Bishop Hall suggests that it was done out of human conceit, and not by divine instinct, and therefore it failed of the effect; God will not have such great favours made too cheap, nor shall they be too easily come by lest they be undervalued
The woman resolved that she would not go back without the prophet himself: "I will not leave thee". When Jacob wrestled with the angel all night at Peniel, he also declared: "I will not let thee go except thou bless me" [Genesis 32:26]. Make it your avowed aim never to leave the Lord in all your ways and He will also be with you
Elisha had no alternative than to go with her. He found the dead child lying on his own bed and shut the door and prayed. He prayed to the Lord probably as Elijah had done: "Let this child’s soul come into him again" [1 King 17:21]
Christ raised the dead to life as one having authority: "Damsel, arise Young man, I say unto thee, Arise Lazarus, come forth", but Elijah and Elisha did it by petition, as servants
Elisha laid on the child: first putting his mouth to the child’s mouth, as if, in God’s name, he would breath into him the breath of life; then his eyes to the child’s eyes, to open them again to the light of life; then his hands to the child’s hands, to put strength into them. He then returned, and walked in the house, as one full of care and concern, and wholly intent upon what he was about. Elisha went upstairs again, and, the second time, stretched himself upon the child
Sometimes, you may need a second touch because after the first touch you might be "seeing men walking like trees". Your problems have not been solved because there is need to give you a second touch so "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness" [Isaiah 41:10]
At the first application, the flesh of the child waxed warm and this gave the prophet encouragement to continue instant in prayer. After a while, the child sneezed seven times, which was an indication, not only of life, but liveliness
As you face the pains and heartaches and mistreatments of life, it is only by complete confidence in the goodness and plan of God that you can overcome. The things that could destroy you can become building blocks on the journey of faith as you look for the hand of God in all circumstances of life. "This is the victory that has overcome the world our faith" [1 John 5:4]
Christ came into the world because of His love for you, and that love can bring an end to the emptiness or bitterness or sinfulness that wracks your life
