27 A large number of people followed him, including women who mourned and wailed for him.
Following after Jesus, lamenting, wailing and grieving these women showed forth serious devotion towards our Savior. Indeed, the word translated “mourn” used in our verse for today is from the Greek word “Kopto” meaning to beat one’s breast mourning and crying aloud; it is the strongest form used to describe the outward expression of inner grief (Hebrew Greek Key Word Study Bible New Testament Lexical Aids).
God calls us repeatedly throughout Scripture to purity in our worship of Him. He seeks whole hearted devotion from a willing mind. This is not simply a recommendation or a suggestion rather it is a command and one, I might add, that He is intensely passionate about. God makes this abundantly clear in the following verses found in 2 Kings:
35 When the LORD made a covenant with the Israelites, he commanded them: "Do not worship any other gods or bow down to them, serve them or sacrifice to them. 36 But the LORD, who brought you up out of Egypt with mighty power and outstretched arm, is the one you must worship. To him you shall bow down and to him offer sacrifices. 37 You must always be careful to keep the decrees and ordinances, the laws and commands he wrote for you. Do not worship other gods. 38 Do not forget the covenant I have made with you, and do not worship other gods. 39 Rather, worship the LORD your God; it is he who will deliver you from the hand of all your enemies." 2 Kings 17:35-39 (NIV)
“We should dedicate ourselves to becoming in this life the most perfect worshipers of God we can possibly be.” Brother Lawrence
“No one has ever lost out by excessive devotion to Christ.” H. A. Ironside
11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless. Psalms 84:11 (NIV)
"Do you seek any further reward beyond that of having pleased God? In truth, you know not how great a good it is to please Him." John Chrysostom
God knows our tendency – He knows that many of us are perhaps fickle in our following. Easily distracted by the “fires” of the urgent, the fine things of this world, friends, family or finances, we may find ourselves faintly fervent in the purity of our worship.
“We easily fall into idolatry, for we are inclined to it by nature; and coming to us by inheritance, it seems pleasant.” Martin Luther
God has given us the divine assistance through the powerful Holy Spirit to enable us to keep our path straight- ever pointing us back to a holy preoccupation with the Father. This is for our good and His glory.
“The Holy Spirit gives the soul a natural relish for the sweetness of what is holy and for everything that is holy as it comes into view. He also intensifies a dislike and disgust of everything that is unholy.” Jonathan Edwards, Religious Affections
When our focus becomes fixed upon anything but Jesus, we set ourselves up for a fall. It is when our eyes are off Him and on to our circumstances or our abilities or our “Delilah’s” that we become ensnared. He is the One who leads us victoriously. He is the One who equips us and causes us to stand. He is the One worthy of worship. The writer of Hebrews tells us:
2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Heb 12:2 (NIV)
“For every one look within, take ten looks at Christ.” Robert Murray M’Cheyne
“We are saved to worship God. All that Christ has done for us in the past and all that He is doing now leads to this one end.” A.W. Tozer