Real Men Cry

The prophet Zechariah prophecies about the day we are currently celebrating, Palm Sunday, the day Jesus came triumphal into Jerusalem before He was betrayed and killed.

Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem!

See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. Zechariah 9:9 NIV

He goes on to say, He will proclaim peace to the nations.

His rule will extend from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth. Zechariah 9:10 NIV

Jesus Christ fulfilled this prophecy when He rode in to Jerusalem on a certain Sunday almost 2000 years ago.

It was an exciting day when Jesus came into Jerusalem that final time! As a matter fact the weeks leading up to this day was pretty exciting as well.

The last The last few months of Jesus’ life on earth was filled with all sorts of excitement and drama that stretched the emotions of God.

PRAY

Lord God and Father,

open our eyes so we can see Your truth.

Open our ears so w can hear Your voice.

Open our mind so we can understand Your Word.

And open our heart so we may receive all that You want me to receive. AMEN

I am an emotional person. I cry easily.

I cried when my nephew died.

I cried when my grandparents died and when my dad died.

Those are normal times to cry.

I also cried when Ole Yeller was shot. Who didn’t?

I cry every time, when Ray and his father reconcile in the movie Field of Dreams, I also cried when Ray’s daughter fell off the bleachers and choked on the hotdog, you know the scene, when the doctor had to decide if he was going to play ball or be a doctor and save a life.

I cry every time at the end of Saving Private Ryan, when an old Private Ryan stands at the grave of the captain who gave his life and saved him and asks his own wife, “Am I a good man? Tell me that I have been a good man.”

Or in the movie Armageddon when Harry says goodbye to his daughter Gracie.

I even cried during Braveheart, when William Wallace said, (VIDEO) “Aye, you may die, run, and you’ll live…at least a while. And dying in your beds, many years from now, would you be willing to trade all the days, from this day to that, for one chance, just one chance, to come back here and tell our enemies that they may take our lives, but they’ll never take…our freedom.”

And then remembering at the end of the movie, right before his head comes off, with his last breath, William Wallace screams out “FREEDOM!”

I am not afraid to admit that I cry during bad times and during good times. I cry when helping people deal with tragedy, I cry at some weddings, I cried at the birth of my children, I cry during times of personal pain, and I cry when God moves in the lives of the people who I have the privilege to shepherd.

Real men cry.

Has God ever cried? Yes. Have you ever wondered what would ever bring tears to the eyes of God? Jesus, being fully God, cried.

We think of Jesus as the Lord and the King and the man who endured the beatings and the cross. But sometimes we miss the three times in Scripture that a real man cried.

Let’s set this up so we can understand what the Lord wants to say to us today.

Jesus was in Jerusalem about two months before the Passover for the Festival of Dedication which is now called Hanukkah, at that time He taught in the temple. From there He would travel to Perea which was a about 2 days away from Bethany.

While in Perea Jesus ministered to the people, healing their sick and teaching them about the Kingdom of God.

While there, Jesus received word that His dear friend Lazarus was ill. Jesus knew all that awaited Him during the next few weeks, He knew what He was going to have to endure to fulfill God’s plan and in the middle of all this Lazarus is sick and Jesus knows that it is going to end up with Lazarus dying.

By the time Jesus arrives in Bethany, Lazarus had been dead for 4 days.

The Gospels record three different times and three different places and three different reasons that Jesus wept. Today as we remember Jesus’ triumphal entry, I want to look at what moved the Son of God to tears and see what God is speaking to us.

1. Tears of Compassion

A day or two before Jesus comes into Jerusalem for the final time, Lazarus dies.