κήρυξον τὸν λόγον

[Introduction] Weeping. This is one of those sounds we never want to hear. When you hear the sound of weeping, you want it to stop. Though sometimes we weep tears of joy, mostly we weep because something’s wrong. Maybe we are confronted with death or the loss of a career. Maybe the loss of a relationship brings us to tears. But sooner or later, we all weep. Jesus wept (v 35). This two-word verse in the Bible eloquently and powerfully proclaims that we actually have a high priest who is able to sympathize with our weaknesses (Hb 4:15). Jesus is the Lord who rejoices with those who rejoice and he mourns with those who mourn (Rm 12:15).  He weeps because he is True Man. He weeps because he is True God. Our Lord saw the pain that sin and death causes ... and he wept. And like Joseph, our Lord weeps over those who reject his peace (Gen 50:17; Lk 19:41).  Can you hear how he loves you? 3. The first time we encounter Jesus weeping is at the death of Lazarus.  Lazarus was a cl...

[Introduction] During this Lenten season, we’ve been walking through the wilderness with our Lord. Last week, we heard how he walked out of the waters of his baptism that fulfilled all righteousness and was immediately led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After resisting Satan’s accusations, he went to Galilee to begin his ministry ... preaching, teaching, cleansing, healing, forgiving, saving the lost sheep of Israel. Today, that journey has once again taken our Lord somewhere you never thought he’d go ... to the cursed land of Canaan, the land of Jezebel and the worship of Baal and Asherah, the land of child sacrifice and sexual immorality, the land of voodoo dolls and horoscopes ... the land of Tyre and Sidon ... a pagan wilderness.  4. Behold, when a Canaanite woman from that region came out, she began to cry, saying, Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David: My daughter is badly demonized (v 22). This is remarkable.  For more than two millenn...