If you'd like to, you can turn
back to our devotional reading this morning. This is a passage
that I'll be preaching from, John 11, verse 36. John 11, verse
36. This verse, these words, jumped out at me this week, and
I know this is a very familiar passage of scripture. It's embedded
in our minds, most of us from our youth, concerning Christ
raising Lazarus from the dead. The shortest verse in scripture
is here in our text, Jesus wept. You know, there's so much in
those two words that more than I can mine out, I'm sure. But the Lord Jesus Christ is revealed here as a man of compassion,
tenderness, sweetness, beauty, love, And I want to know all about
him. I can, don't you? I want to know how he thought,
what he thought, how he felt. I want to know all the things
he did and why he did them. I just want to know him. I want
to know all about him. He's just a very desirable person
to know. He's the only man that ever lived
that had no sin. And in Him is a beauty that we
find in none other. He's just so gracious and so
kind and so gentle. Oh, I want to see Him and I want
you to see Him. I want to know Him. I want to
tell you everything I know about Him. Everything that God in His
grace will show me in the Scriptures concerning the Lord Jesus Christ.
I want us just to gather around Him and look at Him and study
Him. And you know, He's revealed to
His people. What a gracious condescension that He'd reveal Himself to such
a worthless lot as us and permit us to think on Him right now. He's an amazing man, an amazing
man, a very real man. This shows so much of his humanity,
his perfect humanity, his love for his people as a
man. I know he's God. I'm not taking
away from his Godhead, but this wonderful person, was made flesh. He was a living, breathing, passionate
human being. He manifested all that we should
be and all that perfect humanity would be. Oh, I want to know what this
is saying. The Jews even recognized there's
something different about him. Did you notice that? And what
was the one thing that really got their attention? That's what
I saw here. I've never seen exactly like
this before. The Jews said, behold. Behold
how He loved him. Behold how He loved him. They saw the Lord Jesus Christ
weeping. And they said, behold how he
loved him. The passion of Christ astounded
the Jews. Me too. Me too. I want to know the mind of Christ.
and how that love operates and how it affects what he does,
what he did and what he does. Why did he do what he did? Why
did he go to the tomb of Lazarus? Why did he weep? What these Jews saw was on the surface. They just saw him weeping and
they said, behold how he loved them. I want to know why he wept. Really, why he wept. He wept
because of love. You don't have to turn there,
but I want to read one passage to you, one verse. that is most
amazing and I think is pertinent to this subject and this passage. When our Lord prayed in John
chapter 17, He said in verse 23, I in them, and thou in me,
that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may
know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou
hast loved me." Terry, I still don't understand
that. Not completely. Not completely. I've read that. I've read everything
that I can get my hands on concerning that verse that other men have
seen and wrote concerning. I've listened to messages, preaching
that very particular verse. And still, I stand in wonder. I believe it, and I drink it in like a thirsty
man drinks water. But I still stand in amazement
at the words of the Lord Jesus Christ, as the Jews did when
they saw the Lord Jesus weep, and they said, Behold, how He
loved them. If you're one of His this morning, if I am, I
want to tell you this from the outset. He loves you. He really loves you. And He loves
me. The first thing I see here concerning
this This verse, this story, what
brought the Jews to say what they did when they saw him weep,
is the humanity of Christ. Jesus wept. God don't weep. But boy, we do, don't we? You say, well, I thought he was
God. He is God. He was God, but he's also man. God can't die, but Christ did.
God doesn't weep, but the Lord Jesus Christ wept. He loved us
so much that he became what we are. He became flesh with passions. He had a heart, a heart that
hurt. The Scripture said that his spirit was troubled in him. And he looked at those whom he
loved. He looked at Martha and Mary
and Lazarus. And he saw their sorrow. And
he shared it with them. He became, as it were, one with
them. And as they wept, tears fell
from his heart. Because of His love. Because
of His love for them. We see here His humanity. Jesus wept. Behold, why does
He weep? Because He loves. That is the
only reason the Lord Jesus Christ wept. You read this, study it, run
references on it, read all you can. The only reason the Lord
Jesus Christ wept is because he loved. Because he loved. In 1 John 4-2, Hereby know ye
the Spirit of God. Every spirit that confesses that
Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God. This was a man,
a real man, a man in the flesh, a man that loved, a man that loved and wept. In John 1.14, the Word was made
flesh. and dwelt among us. And this
is not just that he, as a man of flesh, lived and walked and
ate and things of that nature, but he dwelt among us. Do you get that? There's a difference.
He dwelt among us. When he stood at the tomb of
Lazarus, And Mary and Martha was by his side. He dwelt among
them. He was not just there as an observer
or as a man there to perform a miracle, but he dwelt among
them, among his people. He dwells among us, his people,
in every sorrow, every trial, every affliction. He dwells among
us. He is there. He's our pillar. He's our covering. He's the one that lays down by our side and embraces
us in His arms like we do our little children. and comforts
us. He is among us. If you are His, He is among you. He's with you. Doesn't that make that verse
of Scripture that says, He said, I'll never leave you, I'll never
forsake you, lo, I'm with you always. Even to the end of the world,
He's among us. in that darkest hour. Even in death, He's among us. He makes that crossing of Jordan,
that chilly hand of death, a place of peace, tranquility, and of
comfort, because He is among us. He dwelt among us, and we beheld
His glory. What is His chief glory? Of course, it is His holiness,
isn't it? The Lord Jesus Christ is holy. He's that holy thing. In Luke 1.35, the angel answered
and said to her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the
power of the high shall overshadow thee, therefore also that holy
thing. which shall be born of thee shall
be called the Son of God." He's holy. Hebrews 7.26, For such a high
priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate
from sinners, made higher than the heavens. He's holy. But you know what? Now hang on
to your seats. His love His love most perfectly manifests
the heart, the soul, the person, the being of the Lord Jesus Christ
to His people than any other attribute. His love. His love is adorned with His
holiness. His love is holy. That's true. We speak of the grace of God.
If it weren't for the love of God, there would be no grace,
Sean. We speak of the mercy of God. He delighteth in mercy. His mercy
endeareth forever. He said, I will be merciful,
but no, not without His love. His love moves him to be gracious. His love moves him to be merciful. His love is so strong and so
great, it moved him to stand among earthlings. And tears fall from his heart. Never doubt. If you're his child,
never doubt. His love for you. You say, well,
look at the things I do, the things I think. It does not change
His love. Oh! This is too high for me. Too
deep or something, I get lost in it. the love of Christ. Here is the
God-man, the Holy One of Israel, the Ancient of Days, standing in a graveyard amongst a sinful race. And his heart was moved with
compassion and love. And he wept. Behold. Behold how he loved Him. And that's what I'm trying to
behold by His grace this morning. Behold how He loves you and me. His chief manifestive glory, definitely, beyond any argument,
debate, His chief manifestive glory, virtue, attribute, characteristic,
is His love. It is. in 1 John 4, 16, and we have
known and believed. Now listen, we've known and believed
the love that God has to us. And it's the wording of this.
This is the reason I like the King James so much. It's so straightforward,
so honest. It's just the wording. It doesn't say that His love
for us. It does in other places. But it says here, His love He
hath to us. His love He hath to us. His love He hath to us. I never
say that to you, I love to you. I have love to you. It's always
I have love for you. I love you. He says all these
things. But here in this passage, we
have known and believed the love that God hath to us. His love
is manifested to us. To us. We would have no way of
knowing His love for us were He not love to us. It's to us. He's manifested that love to
us. His love was performed to us. It did a work to us. God is love. He is love. The Lord Jesus Christ
manifested the flesh, displayed gloriously. wonderfully the love
of God. Behold how He loved him. The Lord Jesus Christ, His love
for us, is heart love. And what I mean by that, it's
not just words. It's heart love. And I was thinking about this. I remembered Psalms 22, 14. The Lord Jesus Christ spoke in
the Old Testament scriptures and he said, I am poured out
like water. And all my bones are out of joints. My heart is
like wax. It is melted in the midst of
my bowels. Now what kind of a heart was
that? Do you know why he died? Do you know why he died? He died because he loved me. His heart melted like wax. Have you ever, and this is a
poor illustration, I don't know how to even illustrate or make
a comparison here, but this is the best I can do. Have you ever
loved someone, a child, or a father, mother, a spouse, you loved them
so much that you thought your heart was just going to burst? I mean, it got physical. Your
heart, something inside you, I don't think it's just like
a punch of blood. I don't know how to explain it. But you felt like
you just, the love and the passion you had for this person, the
heart passion, was just almost more than you could endure. We don't feel like that all the
time. That's not to say we don't love all the time, but there's
times, there's moments that this has probably happened
to you. I know it has happened to me. I know my mother, when
she was sick, I can remember this more plainly at the moment
than I can anything else right at the time,
but anyway, I knew she was dying. And I stood and looked at her. And I began to recall her love
for me. Her selflessness. And that love that I had for
her, I thought my heart was going to explode. This is the Lord Jesus Christ
loves his children so much that his heart melted like wax. As
he stood at the tomb of Lazarus and looked at Mary and Martha,
saw their sorrow, he wept. His love is heart love. He loves... Have you ever told
somebody, I love you with all my heart? We mean that. I mean,
I hope we do. I love you with all my heart. You know, you get to think, but
you can overanalyze things, I know. But we mean that we love them
greatly. But let me tell you something.
The Lord Jesus Christ loves His children, loves His people, with
all of His heart. As the father loves the son,
the son loves the father, so loves he his people. And this love, behold how he
loved him. Do you know how he loves you
and me? With an everlasting love. Everlasting
love. Never did begin, never will end. That's a long time, ain't it,
Louie? If you love somebody, you begin to love them sometimes.
I've even heard people say, I'm trying to learn to love somebody.
You don't learn to love folks. You either love them or you don't.
And sometimes folks can treat you so bad and do you so bad
that you just don't love them anymore. I know that's bad, but
it's just the truth of this fallen nature. You say, well, I don't believe
that. Well, you can be sanctimonious if you want to, but it's so. Nothing changes God's love for
His children. Nothing changes Christ's love
for His people. Jeremiah 31 and 3. I thought about reading this
whole passage in Jeremiah, but I'll not. I'll just read you
the one verse. The Lord hath appeared unto me of old, Has
He appeared to you? Oh, I wish He would appear to
us today, don't you? Do you know what I want to hear
Him say? Do you know what I wish He'd
say to you and to me? He has appeared to old and to
me saying, yeah, I have loved you with an everlasting love. I've loved you. I love you. Therefore with loving kindness
have I drawn you. I've drawn you. No man can come
unto me except the Father which sent me. Draw him. How's he draws? With love. With love. He draws us with love. He doesn't draw us to a doctrine.
He doesn't draw us to a creed. He doesn't draw us to catechisms
and confessions. He draws us to Himself. Come unto Me, He said. This is
what the Lord Jesus Christ said. He said, come unto me, all you
that labor, heavy laden, and I'll give you rest. Take my yoke
upon you. My yoke is easy, and my burden
is light, and you'll find rest to your souls. Soul rest. Why did He say that? Remember
this when you study the Scriptures. I'm learning. I'm learning all
the time. I don't know near as much as I thought I did. But
do you know why everything He's done, When he said that, come
unto me, do you know why he said that? Not just so there would
be another seat filled in heaven, or so I believe a doctrine. He
said that to me because he loved me. When he said come to me.
Because he loved me. With loving kindness have I grown
thee. Lord, please don't let me ever
use the gospel as a baseball bat or a whip. He don't drive his children to
himself. He draws them with love. Everlasting love. Thirdly, I want us to look at
the expression of this love. And all these things go together.
They overlap. They're inseparable. So don't
try to spend any time trying to get it all in its place, because
it's in place. The expression of His love. You know, we express our love
sometimes by words. Sometimes we send flowers. Sometimes
we send cards. Sometimes we pick up the phone
and call all those we love. We go visit them. We give them
gifts. But what about the expression
of the love of Christ? This supersedes and and goes
beyond our wildest, greatest imaginations. The expression
of the love of Christ for His children, I think we find in
Romans chapter 5, verses 6 through 8, as well as multitudes of other
scriptures. For when we were yet without
strength in due time, Christ died for
us. He died for the ungodly. For
scarcely for a righteous man will one die. Yet sometimes for
a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his
love. You see, it's all over the place. It's all through the Scriptures.
It's everywhere. This is God's love letter to
us. God commended His love toward
us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Christ died. Somebody said, well, I believe
that. I believe Christ lived and died and rose again to send
back the Father. Almost everyone believes that.
That's truth. They believe it theoretically,
doctrinally, but oh, how many, how many really enter into that and see the love
of God, heart love, His passion for us. While we were yet sinners, Christ
died for us. 1 John 3.16, Hereby perceive
we the love of God. How do we perceive it? What is
the expression of His love? Because He laid down His life
for us. He said, I lay down my life for the sheep. I lay it
down. I give it. 1 John 4, 9 and 10, and this was
manifested in the love of God toward us. To us. Toward us. Because that
God sent His only begotten Son into the world. that we might
live through Him. Herein is love. You're not going to heaven because
you love God. Let's get this straight. You're not going to
heaven because you love God. He don't bless you because you
love Him. You're going to be in eternal
glory and you're blessed. Because God loves you, if He
does. That's just so. Hereby we perceive the love of
God. The love of God was manifested. Herein is love, not that we love
God, but that God loved us and sent His Son to be the perpetuation,
the substitute for our sin, the payment for our sin, the satisfaction
for our sin. All studied the scriptures, see
if this is not so, the only motive that there could be, that's given
in the scriptures, that there could be for the Lord Jesus Christ
doing what he did, the only reason was his love. I know our justice
must be satisfied. He must be glorified. He must
remain holy. All of these things are so. And
they need to be preached, need to be declared. But His love,
His love, we would never be justified did He not love us. We'd never
be glorified did He not love us. In this was manifested the
love of God toward us. in the death of the Lord Jesus
Christ. He died for us. In John 10, 11, I am the good
shepherd. The good shepherd gives his life
for the sheep. As the Father knoweth me, even
so I know the Father. That means they are in agreement. That's what that's saying. They
are in agreement about this thing. God doesn't love someone that
the Lord Jesus Christ doesn't love. And they were in agreement,
covenant agreement. And this covenant was an everlasting
covenant, but more than that, it was a covenant of love. It was a covenant of love. Even
as the Father knoweth me, even so I know the Father, and I lay
down my life for the sheep. In other words, to ad-lib, the
Father said, I love them. The Son said, I love them too.
They're sinners. But we love them. The Lord Jesus Christ said, I'll
go. I'll lay down my life for them.
I'll pay the ransom. I'll redeem them. I'll justify
them. I'll worship them. I'll make
them white. I'll draw them. I'll call him,
I'll bear that responsibility because I love him. You're justified
because God loves you, if you're justified. In John 15, 12, 13, listen to
this, this is what I'm saying. This is my commandment, that
you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love hath no man than
this. that a man laid down his life
for his friends, and he said, ìYouíre my friends. Youíre my
friends.î And lastly, quickly, in this, ìBehold how he loved
him.î I want us to see the effect of his love, the effect. Always has an effect. Always
does. Always has an effect. In Mark chapter 6, verse 34,
Jesus said when he came out, he saw much people. And Jesus,
when he came out, saw much people and moved with compassion toward
them. Because they were a sheep, not
having a shepherd. You see, the effect of God's
love moved the Lord Jesus Christ in compassion toward those. The effect of Christ's love moves
Him to us. We are objects, His people are
objects of His love, of His affection, of His compassion. He's moved in love toward us. When God sent the Gospel to you
and to me, when He sent the truth, when He sent His Spirit, when
He awakened us out of our death, spiritual death, and He gave
us light, revealed Himself to us, He was moved by His love. His love sought us. His love bought us. His love
sought us. His love found us. And His love
secures us. The effect of Christ's love.
In Ephesians 2, verses 4 through 7. But God who is rich in mercy. Rich in mercy. For His great
love wherewith He loved us. Remember I said were it not for
God's love there would be no mercy. He said, He's rich in
mercy for His great love wherewith He loved us, even though we were
dead in sins, has quickened us together with Christ. We're regenerated,
given life because of His love. And His love is shown in the
act of His mercy and the accomplishment of our regeneration. And has
raised us up together, quickened us together. and raised us up
together and made us set together in heavenly places in Christ, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding rich
of His grace in His kindness, and that's the same thing, God's
kindness is the same thing as His love, in His kindness toward
us through Jesus Christ. In Romans 8, verses 31 through
39, the effect of his love. Behold how he loved them. What
shall we say to these things? If God be for us, who can be
against us? He's for us in love. His love
is for us. You know, if you love someone,
you'll do just about anything for them, won't you? The Lord Jesus Christ didn't
do just about anything for us. He did everything for us. He
that spared not his own son, but delivered him up for us all,
how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who
shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that
justifieth Who is he that condemneth? It
is Christ that died, yea, rather that is risen again. Who is even
at the right hand of God? Who also maketh intercession
for us? And then the next question, and what a place to put the next
question. We talk about justification,
not being under any condemnation. Who shall lay anything to our
charge? Listen to this next question. Who shall separate us from the
love of Christ? There it is again. All of these
things are because of His love. Shall tribulation? No. Or distress,
persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? No. As it is written, For thy sake
are we killed all the day long, we are candid sheep for the slaughter.
It doesn't stop there. Nay, in all these things, We
are more than conquerors through Him that loved us. That distress,
that persecution, that sickness, that peril, that sword that you're
going through, if you're His, you're going to conquer it. We are more than conquerors through
Him that loves us. It's not going to get the best
of you. Sometimes you feel like it is, but it ain't. I sometimes
feel like sin has just got me and gone with me. Unbelief and
doubt and self. You know what I'm talking about? That don't stand a chance against
Him that loved me and gave Himself for me. We're more than conquerors
through Him that love us. And I'm persuaded. Oh, I wish I could be persuaded
all the time in my mind, don't you? But I'm persuaded. And that's the very reason for
a message like this this morning. It's for our persuasion. It's
for our assurance. Those that know Christ. I'm persuaded. Now this is the Word of God. That neither death... That's a pretty strong thing,
death isn't it? Nor life, that's another strong
thing, is life in this world, strong. It's influences, it's
affections, it's natural life. I persuade that neither death,
nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present,
nor things to come. How much of our time do we worry
about what's going to happen tomorrow? Oh my soul, why art thou disquieted
in me? Hope thou in God. Don't let your
heart be troubled. Come bow to the throne of grace.
Cast all your care upon me. We're just covered up with all
kinds of assurances and hope and it's all the love of God
for us. We're just sinners and He gives
us all of these things. Principality or power, things
to come, or height or depth. Or any other creature. What other
creature is there? I don't know. But wherever he's
at, shall be able, rendered parous,
to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus my Lord.
I believe I can lay down and go to sleep tonight by the Lord. As far as anxious and worried,
I needed this. I believe I can lay down and
go to sleep. If I don't wake up, that's all right. If I do,
that's all right. And I've got one more verse,
and I've already quoted this half a dozen times, but I'll
quote it again. I'll read it to you, and I'm going to say
this to you as your pastor, as your friend, This is what the Lord said to
me and to you. I'm going to say this, then we're
going to go home. Don't let your heart be troubled. You believe in God, don't you?
Sure you do. The Lord said, believe also in
me, that man Christ Jesus, he who loved us. He said, in my
Father's house are many mansions. I wouldn't lie to you. He said,
I'll go and prepare a place for you. No, he did, didn't he? Went
to Calvary. Went to the cross. And he said, if I go and prepare
a place for you, I'll come again. Oh, he's coming again. But he's
already come to some of us in regeneration. And receive you
unto myself. that where I am, there you may
be also. The Lord Jesus stood for the tomb of Lazarus, for
Mary and Martha, he stood among them. And he wept. He's touched with
the feelings of our infirmities. Behold how he loves us.