It was a sad day.  Jesus’ friend, Lazarus, had died and his grieving sisters, Mary and Martha, had been perplexed that Jesus had not immediately responded to their call for help.  When Jesus arrived, Lazarus had been in his grave for four days (John 11:17).  First Martha (John 11:21), and then Mary, poured out their confused grief to Jesus – “Lord if you had been here, my brother would not have died”.  No doubt, a thought they had often shared together over the previous four days.

Each sister made their plaintive cry in pain, almost blaming the Lord’s late arrival for their suffering.  His response to each was different, reflecting their personalities and how they would best receive the truth.  Martha was ready for a discussion on the resurrection (John 11:23-27); Mary was not.  So, His only request to her was to see where Lazarus had been laid.
 
Mary’s initial reluctance to meet Jesus (John 11:20) had been dispelled by His personal invitation (John 11:28-29).  Now she invited Him into the middle of her personal crisis.  As Jesus joined the group of wailing mourners, He was genuinely emotionally involved, and everybody could see that He was intensely moved.  His loving compassion overflowed from His heart into His face, and tears flowed down His face.  His heartfelt participation in their grief was unlike the Rabbis who wailed on the outside without weeping from within.  Jesus' compassion became the focus of the crowd's attention.  Genuine love was so different from ceremonial grief, and profoundly attractive.
 
The Lord always meets us where we are.  He will invite us to come to Him and when He does, the right response is to come (Matthew 11:28).  To invite Him to come right into the middle of all that concerns us.  He is truly caring: He does not 'have to' care but He ‘wants to’ care, and that is the essence of love.  In the same way, those who follow Jesus will find their hearts are changed so that they want to 'rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn' (Romans 12:15). That sort of heartfelt compassion is a sign that Jesus is changing our hearts.  Authentic love is a sign of God's heart, and the tears of a friend are a wonderful gift to those who are suffering ... it relieves the loneliness of their grief.  Sorrow will only find its rest in God’s grace, but along the way needs love which comes from the heart (1 Peter 1:22).