Weeping for the Lost 

Rose, a subscriber to our newsletter, wrote the following question and gave me permission to post it along with my response, see below. And if you're not receiving our newsletter, sign up today!

QUESTION

Is it normal to feel anguish in your heart and cry many tears for the lost. As I was getting ready for bed last night, the thought of someone I know who is lost came to my mind. Then others I knew. Then it turned into weeping for the lost of the whole world . . . I thought of Jesus dying on the cross for sins! What a thing to die for! Sins! I hate sins! I hate mine and I hate the worlds! And I wondered why don’t many people think about death or think about Jesus on the cross? I think it could be anyone’s last day on Earth! Including mine. We only have so long to tell people the gospel of Christ!

I believe my heart is in anguish because I want people to come to see their need for Christ! If you have any words on this topic, I would be grateful!

Sincerely in Christ,
Rose

ANSWER

Oh dear Rose,

Would that more Christians have your compassion and speak out to the lost who are perishing! 

In John 11, we learn that Jesus wept when his good friend Lazarus died. Yet, Jesus knew that he would raise Lazarus from the dead in just moments; so why would he cry? Because Jesus understood that sin separates us from God, the consequences of sin is death, and separation from each other. This caused Jesus to feel deep anguish, the word in Greek actually means anger and indignation. This troubled him and then stirred him to act, to raise Lazarus from the dead. This miracle would bring glory to God. 

The Bible says, Blessed (favored by God) are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. The Bible tells us that all creation groans as a result of this sin-stained world. We groan until the coming of our Savior who will make all things right. But do you know who else groans? The Holy Spirit groans and intercedes for us with prayers that cannot be understood by us! (Romans 8:18-27)

We can come boldly to God's throne to make our requests known to him (Hebrews 4:16). We can pray continually throughout our day for those we love, and for the lost we don't even know. We can tell others of the hope that is in us. (Watch some of the Living Waters evangelism videos by Ray Comfort. He is a great example of going and telling and having a burden for the lost. Ray often says to those who are flippant about hell that it horrifies him to think of them going there, and encourages them to think seriously about their discussion. He also distributes gospel tracts and suggests they download a Bible from the internet. I use the Biblehub app and love it. You can look up the original Hebrew and Greek meaning of words in Scripture, there's a daily devotional, as well as many other helpful resources for Bible study.)

We must lay our burdens at the feet of Jesus. In Luke 15 it is the Shepherd who does the searching for the lost, and Psalm 23 says, "surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life..." The term for "follow" means pursue, hunt down. I regularly ask God to hunt down and find those people for whom I've witnessed to and praying salvation over their lives! And then I try to rest and trust that he loves them more than I do. Read about Jesus who takes our burdens.

The Bible tells us that the fields are ripe for harvest (John 4:35-38). There are many people who are ready to be "plucked," that is saved for the kingdom. We are to go into all the world, teaching and preaching the good news. It is the Holy Spirit who brings people to God. We can rest in that.

May God stir us to tell others about our hope in Christ so they too will be raised from the dead!
Your webservant,
Sarah Keith <><

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