“Then Jesus wept. The people who were standing nearby said, ‘See how much he loved him!’” (John 11:35-36 NLT)
My dog is fascinated by paper towels. If he finds one, he swallows it before we can grab it out of his mouth. This is a harmful habit that could lead to intestinal blockage. We try to keep paper towels out of his reach, because we want to protect our dog from injury. When he is in pain, we suffer along with him.
Love involves co-suffering. When those we love suffer--whether it is from the consequences of their own choices or through no fault of their own--we suffer alongside them. When we love, we accept suffering as part of the package.
God loves us. He suffers alongside us when we are in pain. It doesn’t matter if the pain is self-induced or caused by external circumstances. When we weep, Jesus weeps with us. We have a co-suffering, compassionate God.
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