When Jesus Disappoints Us
2021년 3월 21일When Jesus Disappoints Us
< Fifth Sunday of Lent >
“Jesus wept” is the shortest sentence in the Bible. Yet these two small words contain all kinds of meaning. Jesus, the Son of God, was also totally human. As such, he felt all our emotions, including grief, especially when he arrived at the tomb of his good friend, Lazarus, and saw and heard the Jews weeping there. His sadness was compounded by his knowing his delay in coming most likely resulted in his friend’s death. He could have prevented it. Martha and Mary, Lazarus’s sisters and also Jesus’ close friends can barely contain their disappointment: “Lord, if you had been here my brother would not have died.” No doubt this also weighed on Jesus. He had let his friends down.
Now and then in our life, if we are honest, we too will express frustration when Jesus seemingly ignores our prayers and our tears and someone we love dies. Why did Jesus ignore us? What’s the use of faith and prayers if Jesus still lets our loved ones die? There is no answer. Why God let’s some people die but saves others is a mystery. But we should take comfort in Jesus’ tears. Our grief and sorrow affect him. At the same time, his raising Lazarus from the dead should give us hope, even in the midst of sorrow. We believe in the resurrection of the dead. Until that day, even as we bury our loved ones, we have to “unbind them and let them go.” In the end, God is stronger than death.