One of the shortest sentences in the Bible has had a great impact on me and shows us that, despite all that he knew, Jesus didn’t gloss over the harsh reality of grief:

‘Jesus wept.’ (John 11:35)

Jesus wept at the death of Lazarus, as He had arrived too late to save him, before He then resurrected him. He shared in the unquestionable sorrow and pain that Lazarus’s death brought to those closest to him. He understood that death is a sad thing, but, most importantly, he made it okay to grieve. He mourned with the mourners. Belief in eternal life isn’t all glorious, Jesus knew we had to die in order to be with the Father and he felt the sorrow of parting just as we do.