Weeping or crying as we would refer to it, comes when something touches the heart, or we want attention. Children often fall and look afterward to see if Mom is looking. Depending on her response they will either get up or start crying. Most of the time they are not hurt, but they have been unintentionally trained to cry when anything doesn’t go their way. They are upset over something that is not important in the big picture of life. We tend to carry those priorities into our adult life. We need to train ourselves to weep over what matters in the big picture of life.
As we look to God’s word, it is clear what our priorities should be. It is proper to weep over someone dying and leaving us behind. When Lazarus died his sisters were sorrowful. They would miss their loved one. Jesus wept at the scene before He raised Lazarus from the dead. He was moved with compassion for Mary and Martha because they were hurting. When those we love are hurting, we hurt. This is proper and good, but we need to understand there is a time for weeping and a time to rejoice. We are not to be more upset about our loved ones going to Heaven than we are people going to Hell.
John 11:33-35 “When Jesus, therefore, saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping which came with her, he groaned in the spirit, and was troubled, And said, Where have ye laid him? They said unto him, Lord, come and see. Jesus wept.”
Ecclesiastes 3:4 “a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;”
What should upset us to the point of weeping? Jeremiah was known as the weeping prophet. He was weeping because God had told him what the future for Israel would be if they did not repent.
Jeremiah 3:21 “A voice on the bare heights is heard, the weeping and pleading of Israel’s sons because they have perverted their way; they have forgotten the LORD their God.”
Jeremiah 13:17 “But if you will not listen, my soul will weep in secret for your pride; my eyes will weep bitterly and run down with tears, because the LORD’s flock has been taken captive.”
In Luke 19:11, Jesus is approaching the city of Jerusalem, as he looks out over the city he begins to weep. He is weeping because the chosen people of God were so steeped in religion, that they missed God the Son in their presence. They were about to put their long-expected Messiah to death. Their sinful pride had caused them to miss the truth of who Jesus is. Jesus weeps not because Jerusalem will be destroyed as a city, but because of the blindness of their hearts, the people will be destroyed. Because of their unbelief, they will perish for all eternity. This King of King, Lord of Lords, Messiah, Redeemer, and Savior of the world, wept for their souls.
Luke 19:41-44 “And when he drew near and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.”
The Son of God wants no one to perish. God’s desire is that no one should go to Hell. That was the design of sending His Son to die on a cross for our sins. If we would repent, we could be forgiven, and Jesus’ righteousness would be applied to our account.
II Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance”
The most important thing in the world is where we will spend eternity. If that is the most important thing to you, as it is to God, what are you doing about it? First, what about your own soul? Have you repented of your sins, ask for forgiveness, and are you seeking to be obedient to God’s commands? Second, what about the souls of those you know, family members, friends, and those in public you see? Are you concerned about where they will spend eternity? When was the last time you truly wept over the thought of someone going to Hell? As a Christian, my mission should be to see as many people saved as possible. I should be searching out those who are lost and bringing their name before the Father. Seeking the Holy Spirit to convict their soul. I also need to make myself available to be an influence on those who are lost. The mere thought of knowing that those around me will spend eternity in Hell ought to cause me to weep. In our culture, we seem to have things backward. We weep more over those who are sick and about to enter Heaven, over the loss of a pet, or the struggle for financial gain, than we do over the eternity of a soul.
In the end, all that will truly matter is where we spend eternity. We may live to be 100 years old here, and that is a long life, but when we die our destiny will be sealed forever. Heaven or Hell forever! Are you weeping over what matters for all eternity?
