The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1913-05-16
TENDERNESS OF
JESUS.
-
(lnOiher Sermon By a Laymanl
JESUS HEPT."- JOHN X, s..

ing, were never more iorcib1y exhib-
tied than on the occasion in which The
words of this brief Textile shortest
verse in the Holy Scriptures-wert
spoken as they are recorded by the
inspired Apostle. Jesus wept." h
was "a man of gorrow9 and acquaInt.
ed with grief" but He never wept or
account OF his own sorrows, infinitely
greater as they we're than those eVei
borne by any other human being
Why did He weep as He was about &c
perform the greatest Of all his mir.
acles? Did He weep because bis
friend Lazarus was dead? That wa
the opinion of the Jews who witness
ed His emotion,-saw the tears cours-
Ing down His cheeks and probably
heard His voice in its plainlive sor-
row as, like Joseph as he was about
to make himself known to his breIh-
rem Who had sold him Into Egypt. He
wept aloud. The Jews who witness.
ed His sorrow said: Behold how He
loved him. They were sure that His
grief was caused by the death oil
Lazarus. They did not know that He
had delayed His journey TO Bethany
purnosely delayed it-that He might
by the exercise of His divine power
in raising Lazarus from the coTrup-
ton of the grave. demonstrate 10 the
whole race of man that He Is as He
proclaimed to Martha, The Resurrec-
ton and the Life" That he who
belieYeth in Him though he we're
dead. yet shall he live"
No. II was not His love for Lazarus
that moved Him 10 tears. II was His
intense sympathy for the Borrowing
sisters of Ills dead friend. They did
not dream of the pending resurrection
OF their dead brother. who had al
ready been in the grave four days and
whose body theY knew, was already
undergoing decomposition. With all
their faith in the miraculous power OF
Jesus they had no conception of Its
infinite extent They believed lie
could have healed the mortal sickness
OF Lazarus and both Martha and Mary
said TO Him: Lord, If thou hadst been
here my brother had not died"
Jesus knew the state of their minds
they fully believed they would never
again see their beloved brother until
the final resurrection Of the Just He
knew that He was about to dispel the
gloom in which they we're enshroud-
ed; that in brief hour they would
again clasp their brother IN their
loving arms and their bitter SORROW
be turned into eestatie Joy. But Ills
heart bled for their present distress.
They were grieped beyond measure by
the ineursion of death into their IMP.
py home At Bethany and all their ~
ture seemed dafkened by this dire
loss of their brother and protector.
Only those whose homes death has
invaded and taken away the dearest
and most cherished Of the household
can realize the distress and anguish
OF the sisters of Lazarus In their
great and apparently Irrepafable be-
reaYemenI But Jesus knew. and II
was this distress temporary though II
was az lie knew IL. that moved lis
great heart TO compassionate sympathy
for The bereaYed sisters and caused
Him TO weep bitter tears. Il was tho
tenderness of that heart toward aor-
rowing human beings which caused
tears to flow Ike rivers rom Ills
eyes. And thus IL vas that Jesus
wept as He was about 10 raise
Lazarus from the dead and illuminate
His own name With imperlshable glory
as the Goodman. 1t vas the Infinite
tenderness Of Ills heart In sympathy
with every form and nature Of human
suffering.
Only on one other occasion did
Jesus weep. That was rs lie looked
upon the Holy City. Jerusalem, and
saw with more than prophetic vision
the awful fate awaiting her. Behold.
Ing the city" al Luke records 1t, He
wept over II" giving utteranee 10
words OF deepest sympathy for the
people upon whom almost ineoneeIya.
BILE Ills were denounced. While
Matthew, IN his account of Ihia scene
says nothing about lis tears he doef
give us the cry of anguish which fell
from the Saviour's lips NJ He real.
lied the direful fate of the doomed
city. doomed because It had rejected
Him: % Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou
that hlleat the prophets and stonest
them which are sent unto thee, how
often would l have gathered thy
children together, even a. a her
gathereth her chickens under heI
wings, and ye would not Behold YouI
house Is left unto yon desolate."
Here was the cry of a heart In
more than human sympathy for III,
people who at that very moment yer,
plotting His destruction and who. IN
a short time thereafter. comnassed Hi
crueifixion. He foreaaY this, yet He
weDt for the woes that were COMING
upon His bitter enemies We may
have. from this. some conception Of
the tenderness Of Jesus, but we mus
wonder at this exhibition of Il TOWARD
those who were clamorlng for Hil
death. It was the cry of Ills tender
human heart as He saw, With dIyln,
prescience, the untold miserles ant
the dreadful fate which was to fall
upon the doomed city and its people.
%, matehless kindness. and II,
shows
That matchleas kindness to HI.
foes
But 1t was not only when He Yep
that Jesus manifested His sympathy
for suffering humanity. No limit car
be placed upon His tenderness. Il
was unlimited. He never failed Il
give relief to the unfortunate suffer
ers who fell under His observation
/ feel confident that He often ven
out of His way and planned to carr,
comfort and healing to persons who
did not think Of appealing to Him fol
relief and who probably had nj
knowledge OF His divine power to ex
tend them such help This wal
doubtless true of the restoration u
life of the dead son Of the widow o.
Main. The brief story of this won.
derful miracle. as told by Luke, gives
no intimation that He had ever beer
In that city before He called that
young man back from the dead. He
w.Fa \. = -
reaYed mother and TO the many people
whO accommodated her nc The haaxY al