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Humble Hero
the sorrowing sisters. In view of this human distress and of the fact
that the grieving friends could mourn while the Savior of the world
stood by, “Jesus wept.” The Son of God had taken human nature
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on Himself and was moved by human sorrow. Suffering always
awakens sympathy in His tender, pitying heart.
But Jesus wept not only out of sympathy with Mary and Martha.
Christ wept because the weight of the grief of ages was on Him.
He saw the terrible results of breaking God’s law. He saw that
the conflict between good and evil had been constant. He saw the
suffering and sorrow, tears, and death that were to afflict the human
family through all the ages in all lands. The troubles of the sinful
race were heavy on His heart, and His tears flowed freely as He
longed to relieve all their distress.
Lazarus had been placed in a cave, and a massive stone had
been rolled in front of the entrance. “Take away the stone,” Christ
said. Thinking that He only wanted to look upon the dead, Martha
objected, saying that the body had been buried four days, and cor-
ruption had already begun its work. This statement, made before
Jesus raised Lazarus, left no room for Christ’s enemies to say that
He had carried out a deception. When Christ raised the daughter
of Jairus, He had said, “The child is not dead, but sleeping.”
Mark
5:39
. Because she had been raised immediately after her death,
the Pharisees declared that the child had not been dead, that Christ
Himself said she was only asleep. They had tried to make it appear
that His miracles were not genuine. But in this case, no one could
deny that Lazarus was dead.
When the Lord is about to do a work, Satan prompts someone to
object. Martha was unwilling for the decomposing body to be seen.
Her faith had not grasped the true meaning of Jesus’ promise. Christ
reproved Martha in the gentlest way: “Did I not say to you that if
you would believe you would see the glory of God?” “You have
My word. Natural impossibilities cannot prevent the work of the
Omnipotent One.” Unbelief is not humility. Unquestioning belief in
Christ’s word is true humility, true self-surrender.
“Take away the stone,” Christ could have commanded the angels
close by His side to remove the stone. But He wanted to show that
humanity is to cooperate with divinity. What human power can do,
divine power is not summoned to do.