My focus today is on Paul’s lament — his sorrow, grief, and anguish — that his fellow Jews and the Jewish nation as a whole are cut off from Christ. To understand more fully lament and the power of lament, I want to look at four aspects of Paul’s lament at the beginning of Romans 9: 1st) the cause of his lament; 2nd) the intensity of his lament; 3rd) the authenticity of his lament; and 4th) the fruit of his lament. Ultimately, we all want to see fruit from lamenting.

Unfortunately many disciples have the vision and heart of Jesus in compassionate mission, but do not consider Jesus’ immeasurably great power in their engagement. The disciple of Jesus must learn to account for God’s creative dynamism as he or she engages in the mission and call of the kingdom.

What does radical Christian love look like? It is love that springs forth from our foundational love in Christ. It is not a love that complains about harassment or the short comings of others. No. It is a compelling love that says, “I may not be at my best; I may not feel everything is going right in my life; I may not like you very much today; but in spite of all that, I am going to love you sacrificially as Jesus has loved me.” If God so loved us on the cross, we can love each other because we have the power of Christ dwelling within us through his Spirit.

Expressing honestly our feelings to God is a way to move through our grief together with our Father who never stops loving us. God is groaning in us all. Find a way to join him. Allow your losses to lead you to a deeper intimacy with the God who suffers with you. Cry out to him in your anger, distress, desperation, frustration, or whatever it is you are feeling. Find a groaner to help you.