The shortest verse in the bible is “Jesus wept.” Jesus wept over the loss of His friend Lazarus and how that loss affected Lazarus’ sisters, Martha and Mary. Jesus wept over Jerusalem because the people would not accept the love He offered them.
When Jesus weeps it is perhaps then that we are closest to His human nature. We can relate to sorrow and pain. We weep over being separated from a loved one, either because they have been taken from us or because by their actions they have abandoned us.
The Lenten season begins with Ash Wednesday. We prepare ourselves to move closer to our Lord. We do this by fasting and prayer and ridding ourselves of the distractions that separate us from God. We do not do these things for their own sake or even for our own self-improvement. We do these things out of love for the Lord. These actions we take up during Lent are all oriented toward allowing us to enter into a deeper relationship with Jesus.
Let us remember the image of Christ weeping as we enter into this time of atonement. Jesus weeps for us. He weeps because more often then not we have turned away from Him or left Him. He weeps because the great love He pours out for us is not returned. He weeps over our sins.
Let us use this time to make Jesus the center of our lives, if not for His sake, then for our own.
Pax Vobiscum
1st Sunday of Lent
“Jesus Wept” J. Tissot 1894