It is very touching to distinguish some various sources which caused such sighs (groans) of sorrow from our blessed Lord Jesus. Though we can never fully know the depths of the sorrows that He felt, I have enjoyed another’s differentiation of three sources of sorrow that the Lord Jesus felt: (1) the sorrow caused by the unbelief of man, (2) the sorrow caused by sympathy with man, burdened by sin, and (3) the sorrow caused by the anticipation of Calvary.
In Mark 8:1212And he sighed deeply in his spirit, and saith, Why doth this generation seek after a sign? verily I say unto you, There shall no sign be given unto this generation. (Mark 8:12) the Lord Jesus is faced with the unbelief of His people, and it draws forth from Him a deep sigh (“groan”). Compare this with Mark 3:55And when he had looked round about on them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts, he saith unto the man, Stretch forth thine hand. And he stretched it out: and his hand was restored whole as the other. (Mark 3:5), where He is “grieved” at the hard hearts of His beloved people, and Luke 19:4141And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, (Luke 19:41), where Jerusalem’s unbelief draws forth His tears.
This sequence has application to believers today. As a young believer, I was often moved to anger or grief when confronting open unbelief. As I have grown in my Christian life, I realize that a more appropriate response would be one of sorrow and sympathy. And if I had more of the Saviour’s heart, my response would be one of tears. The Apostle Paul spoke of “great heaviness and continual sorrow” when contemplating the continued unbelief of the people he loved. Oh! for more of this lovely attitude of heart!
In Mark 7:3434And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. (Mark 7:34) the Lord’s sympathy for the deaf man brings forth a similar sigh. It has been suggested: “It was no lighthearted remedy that the Lord applied: He perfectly felt in His spirit what He took away in His power.” The Lord Jesus truly feels the effects that sin has brought on those He loves. Compare this with John 11:33,3533When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping which came with her, he groaned in the spirit, and was troubled, (John 11:33)
35Jesus wept. (John 11:35), where the sorrow others are feeling over the death of Lazarus causes His blessed heart to groan, and then He weeps divine tears over the awful effects of sin.
“The whole creation groans together and travails” under the bondage of sin; how much do we feel it? Sometimes I sigh due to my weakness and my bondage to sin. But do I feel its effects deeply enough to draw forth my tears, longing for the day when we shall enter the fullness of the glory for which we now await and all creation with us (the glorious liberty of the sons of God)? Even further, do I sympathize with my brethren who are similarly suffering? “Weep with them that weep” (Rom. 12:1515Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep. (Romans 12:15)).
We who are believers have the wonderful privilege of sharing in fellowship with our Lord’s heart—sharing His grief caused by sin. May we know more of the spirit of “Jesus wept” (John 11:3535Jesus wept. (John 11:35)) and enjoy the admonition, “Rejoice evermore” (1 Thess. 5:1616Rejoice evermore. (1 Thessalonians 5:16)).
S. Barr