“Come and See”

When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. “Where have you laid him?” he asked. “Come and see, Lord,” they replied. Jesus wept. John 11:33-35, NIV

                        

I am blessed to attend a small church whose pastor has a humble heart. He is in the process of teaching these passages from John where Lazarus was resurrected, and I saw Christ’s humanity far more clearly than I had ever seen it before.

Something in those passages jumped out at me; the image captured my imagination for over 24 hours and is likely to never to fade from view. It is a major question that we each must face time and time again when life does not live up to our dreams. You see, life sometimes gets in the way of what we want, what we hope for, and what we desire with all of our heart. And in those moments, we are crushed. That is exactly what happened to Mary when Lazarus died.

What caught my attention was when Jesus asked those who were grieving where they had laid Lazarus. And now, I would like to ask you the same question. Where have you buried your dreams? Where are the markers for your heartbreak? Where are your dreams and loved ones laid to rest?

When Jesus asked Mary and those who were with her where they had laid him, their response was “Come and see.” Mary wanted to show Jesus the spot that they had chosen for Lazarus to rest. She might've wanted to show Jesus the beautiful landscape that surrounded the tomb. She might've wanted to kneel down next to the tomb and show him the quiet and peaceful spot where she grieved. Maybe hope was bubbling up in her heart. For whatever reasons, she was quick to lead Jesus to the spot as she whispered, “Come and see.”   

And Jesus came. Jesus wept openly without shame even though He knew what He was about to do. That's how closely Jesus identifies with your pain and mine. Jesus wept even though He knew the ending from the foundation of the earth itself.

I ask you to take a moment and walk with me to the tomb of your greatest heartache, failure, pain, or regret. I ask you to honor the pain that you feel and the loss that is still so raw and overwhelming by simply inviting Jesus to “come and see.”  As you do so, I will do the same for just as you hurt, so do I. And as you take Him to the tomb, so will I.

There is no miracle without the need for one. There is no healing without disease, there is no recovery without illness, and there is no victory without attack. And so, we bring Jesus to our greatest source of need. He is our Savior and He knows our pain with great familiarity yet He will come again if we ask.   

“Come and see, Lord.” See our tears and show us the joy of Your victory. Change our perspective. Show us what You will do with the seed of faith that You have placed in our hearts. Bring miracles to those who need Your miraculous power. Bring joy once again to our broken hearts.  Restore the future to those whose future has been ripped away.

Lord, we don't know what You're going to do. We cannot know! But give us the ears to hear the angels praise You as You change our poverty into joyous celebration of victory over brokenness and earthly pain.