Several weeks ago, my husband, his sister, her husband, and I made a short trip to a lovely site to purchase cemetery lots. It is not the kind of trip one looks forward to, but one that is necessary.

This cemetery is located directly behind a beautiful little church building, with wooded areas on two sides of the cemetery lots. It is peaceful and quiet and is very well maintained.

We naturally think of the sadness of losing a relative or friend when we visit a cemetery, and it is not the kind of place one just visits. There is usually some particular reason for going there.

Such was the case with Jesus when He visited the tomb of His friend, Lazarus. John 11 relates the story of Jesus being called to Bethany because Lazarus was sick. Jesus delayed going, and Lazarus died. This delay was so “the Son of God might be glorified.” In other words, there was a reason Jesus allowed Lazarus to die–so that He might show His authority and the power of God.

When Jesus stood before the tomb of Lazarus, verse 35 says, “Jesus wept.” Why did He weep? The logical answer would seem to be His love for His friend. Some might say it was because of the sadness of Mary and Martha. We know that Scripture speaks often about the compassion of Jesus, so both of these would make a lot of sense.

Jesus knew He was going to raise Lazarus from the dead. The purpose of the miracle was to glorify God. Jesus knew He was going to bring Lazarus back to a sinful world from a place of comfort. Could that be a reason for His tears?

Soon after the raising of Lazarus, the rulers determined that they not only wanted to kill Jesus, they wanted to kill Lazarus as well. So, no matter where Lazarus went following his return from the grave, his life was in danger. He was a living testimony to being brought back to life by the Lord Himself.

This story teaches us many things.. It teaches us that Jesus showed compassion to His friends, sympathy for their grief, and the use of this opportunity to glorify God. Lazarus was His friend. It shows us what true friendship really is. It shows Jesus’ power over death. It also poses a question. If Jesus was on earth today, and you or I died, would Jesus weep at our grave? Would He call us friend? Would Jesus bring us back to life for the glory of God?

Lazarus’ life was obviously worth this miracle. God had plans for Lazarus. Would we be valuable to God?

Sandra Oliver