March 24, 2019
Scripture:
Hymn 230 - I’ve found a Friend
Prayer
Psalm 56:1-8
In this chapter David is complaining about his enemies to God. Verse 3 is a special reminder for us that we can trust God. I want to focus on verse 8; specifically the phrase “put Thou my tears into Thy bottle”.
You usually cry either when you get hurt or something bad happens. Why would God want to collect David’s tears? We collect stuff that we think has value. People collect stuff like special rocks, seashells, leaves etc. Our tears are special to God because he wants to show us sympathy and that he cares about us. When we cry it shows that we especially need Him right then. Let’s look at some stories where God shows sympathy to people’s tears.
Hezekiah was one of the best kings of Judah but he got really sick. One day God sent him a messenger to tell him to get his house in order because he was going to die.
2 Kings 20:2-6
Hezekiah had sought the Lord in about every aspect of his life. When he got the message he starting crying and praying. God saw his tears and he sent the messenger back to tell him that He would give him 15 more years. God sees and understands our tears.
Luke 7: 11-14
When the Lord was here on earth he passed a funeral procession of the only son of a widow and she was in tears. Jesus saw her tears and had compassion. He raised her son up from the dead. God desires to help us and dry our tears. Everything we go through Jesus went through when he was down here. He knows what it’s like not to have someone to comfort us.
Just a little background to this next story. Jesus has died, was buried, and has raised. Mary is going to the grave to visit Jesus’ body.
John 20:11-16
These tears must’ve been precious to the Lord. Jesus showed himself to her in the garden and turned her crying to joy.
We will all go through hard times, times with tears, but God will always be there to comfort us. He wants to.
John 11:1-46
Jesus heard about Lazarus being sick although He already knew about it. It’s wonderful to know the Lord still wants to hear about the burdens of our hearts even when He already knows about them.
Jesus’ behaviour in response to the news wasn’t expected. He stayed two days in the same place. Jesus had faced animosity in Judea, so His disciples were a little surprised when He said they were gong back there. The Lord always walked in the light of His Father’s guidance and wasn’t connected to darkness. He is the Word and light a path for us to follow.
If He had acted in human love He would have gone right away. If He had acted in human wisdom He wouldn’t have gone at all. But He acted out of heavenly wisdom and love and the result glorified God. In the Lord’s eyes the death of a believer is like sleep.
In verse four, Jesus heard. In verse five, He loved. And, in verse seventeen, He came. He heard the groan and cry, His heart went out in love, and He came to the place where He was needed.
Jesus arrived to find that Lazarus had been dead for four days and many Jews had come to comfort Mary and Martha. Martha went out to meet Jesus. Her statement was probably true, but it also seems like she was saying it was too late. Jesus replied but He didn’t say “today” and she thought He meant the “last day”. Her reply to that gives insight to the Person she was speaking to
Verse twenty-five is another “I am” verse. The Lord told Moses He is “I am that I am”. It is now a well known reference that shows His presence. Jesus connected that truth to resurrection and life. This same One is the only One who can raise us. The resurrection is our future and it will exceed Lazarus’s. He didn’t have a glorified body and later died again. Jesus had a glorified body when He was raised.
Hymn 196 The Lord of life is risen
Prayer