Thoughts on the Gospel of John (98) - All The Good Seed Daily Devotionals for 2025

Then, when Mary came where Jesus was, and saw him, she fell down at his feet, saying to him, Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. Therefore, when Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her weeping, he groaned in the spirit and was troubled. And he said, Where have you laid him? They said to him, Lord, come and see. Jesus wept. Then the Jews said, See, how he loved him!
John 11:32-36.

Thoughts on the Gospel of John (98)
Mary left the house, and the visitors who had come to express their condolence imagined that she intended going to the tomb. In fact she was doing something better: she went to weep at Jesus' feet. Unbelievers also weep at the grave of a loved one, but it gives them no comfort: tears cannot bring the deceased back. To weep at the Lord's feet, however, means feeling the comfort of His love.

Comparing Mary and Martha, we notice that both said the same thing: "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." But the Lord's reply was not the same. Could it be that Mary had come in a different spiritual attitude? She fell at Jesus' feet showing reverence, Martha did not. Whoever has listened to the Lord's words at the feet of Jesus and sensed His love and grace has a strong support in times of mourning.

Martha's conversation with the Lord revealed His thoughts. Mary's tears, on the other hand, caused the Lord to reveal His heart. Here the Creator mingles His tears with those of His creatures. Did He weep for Lazarus? Surely not! He was about to raise him from the dead. It was not the loss of the deceased that moved the Lord to tears, but the mourning of the living. They feel His perfect sympathy.

(to be continued next Sunday)

Today's reading: Leviticus 26:1-13 · Psalms 71:9-16