Weeping

This season of the year, more than any other, we tend to focus on personal happiness. We wish people a “Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.” Others simply say, “Happy Holidays.” Being in a good mood is great, and there are many reasons to be happy, cheerful, merry, and bright. 

But what do we do when we’re grieving the loss of a loved one, when our health is in decline, when life is difficult, when relationships are a struggle, or when finances are not just tight, but scary? Human history records that life isn’t always happy, in fact, it’s hard. 

Like our lives, the Christmas story records that the circumstances surrounding Jesus’ birth resulted in weeping and great mourning. Yes, Mary, the mother of Jesus, was filled with wonder. The shepherds and wise men worshipped. However, there was also weeping [Matthew 2:1-18].

The Gospel of Matthew explains that Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea during the days of King Herod. Wise men from the east arrived in Jerusalem. They asked, “Where is He who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw His star at its rising and have come to worship Him.” When King Herod heard this, he was deeply disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. He called together all the chief priests. He also gathered the scribes of the people. He asked them where the Messiah would be born. “In Bethlehem of Judea,” they told him,“because this is what was written by the prophet” [Micah 5:2]. 

King Herod sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the Child. When you find Him, report back to me so that I too can go and worship Him” [Matthew 2:8]. Following the star, they were led to the place where Jesus was. Entering the house, they saw Him with Mary his mother, and falling to their knees, they worshiped Him. Then they opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh [vv. 10-12]. They received a warning in a dream. It instructed them not to go back to Herod. So, they returned to their own country by another route.

This news of “a Child who has been born King of the Jews” troubled Herod. He was keenly aware of the Jews’ desire to throw off the Roman oppression. This included his own rule. Herod was an Edomite and a descendant of Esau so the promise of a Jewish Messiah’s appearance was one that he could not ignore. The rest of Jerusalem’s citizens also became disturbed. They realized that this news from the wise men might lead Herod to take further cruel action against the Jews. And this is exactly what He did.

Herod, when he realized that he had been outwitted by the wise men, flew into a rage. He ordered the massacre of all boys in and around Bethlehem who were two years old and under. This decision was based on the time he had learned from the wise men. 

Then what was spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled:

“A voice was heard in Ramah, weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children; and she refused to be consoled, because they are no more.” [Jeremiah 31:15; Matthew 2:17-18]

We have a place for weeping and mourning at Christmas because of the reality at the time of Jesus’ birth. People experienced death, violence, injustice, abuse of power, and homelessness. Refugees fled oppression (including Jesus’ family), families were ripped apart, and there was bottomless grief. 

Life, including the Christmas season, is marked by birth & celebration as well as death & loss. This is where the Bible, God’s inspired Word, offers a unique perspective: hope. 

Matthew used the Jeremiah prophecy to give his readers hope. Despite the weeping and mourning of the Bethlehem mothers, the promised Messiah had escaped from Herod and He would return to accomplish all that God had planned [Galatians 4:4].

During the season of Christmas, Jesus is present during our weeping.

During the season of Christmas, Jesus knows our pain and sorrow.

Because of Christmas, we can trust God’s promises. 

Instead of avoiding sadness or faking happiness this holiday season, we lament. We face the reality our feelings AND trust God that He is good and is sovereignly in control of our circumstances.

We rejoice that Jesus Himself “bore our sicknesses, and He carried our pains. He was pierced because of our rebellion, crushed because of our iniquities, punishment for our peace was on Him, and we are healed by His wounds” [Isaiah 53:4-5].

Because of Jesus’ birth, His life, His death, and His resurrection, we know that one day He will return. One day our sorrow will be restored. One day our mourning will be redeemed. One day our weeping will be no more.

Then I heard a loud voice from the throne: Look, God’s dwelling is with humanity, and he will live with them. They will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them and will be their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; grief, crying, and pain will be no more, because the previous things have passed away. [Revelation 21:3-4].

Follow me… as I follow Jesus Christ.