He [God] chose David his servant and took him from the sheep pens; from tending the sheep he brought him to be the shepherd of his people Jacob, of Israel his inheritance. And David shepherded them with integrity of heart; with skillful hands he led them. Psalm 78:70-72

Years ago I worked with a friend who managed two people: an administrative assistant and an intern. But he didn’t just manage them to do their job well—he led them to reach their personal and professional potential. Like a patient professor—my peer became a student of leadership,  leading his team and influencing his co-workers to do the same. As the years passed my friend was respected and looked to for leadership. Though not the formal leader with the CEO title, his passion was infectious and his clarity of vision compelling. He led like he was at the next level.

Because David was faithful to lovingly and skillfully shepherd animals prone to stubbornness—God could trust him to shepherd His people with the same patient care. This sensitive shepherd protected his herd from the hungry lion and the pesky bear—while leading the small and trusting beasts to be refreshed by still waters and feast on green pastures. David led as a courageous shepherd, like he would one day lead as a brave warrior. A leader who loved God, he leveraged his experience of fighting ferocious animals—by serving on the front lines and slaying the giant.

“David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head” (1 Samuel 17:45-46).

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As he approached the gate of the town, a man who had died was being carried out. He was his mother’s only son, and she was a widow; and with her was a large crowd from the town. When the Lord saw her, he had compassion for her and said to her, “Do not weep.” Luke 7:12-13

Can you feel the heartbreak in this story? Can you for a moment imagine the overwhelming, debilitating grief that must have seized this poor woman? As a widow, she was already living with the painful loss of her husband, the one with whom she had shared her dreams, hopes, and future. When all of that was lost, surely she clung to her only son, the living connection with her spouse and the joy of her life. Yet the pain she lived with was soon to be deepened and new wounds opened in a heartbreaking way.

Jesus arrived in town on the darkest day in this woman’s life. As he approached the city gate, this scene of anguish unfolded before him. This widow who has suffered so much was grieving yet again. As the young man who died was carried out, Jesus saw the source of their grief, and joined in their sorrow. Yet in the midst of his deep compassion and love for this widow, he said something unexpected: “Do not weep.”

How can Jesus possibly expect this woman to not weep in a moment like this? Wouldn’t you expect him to say anything but this? “I’m so terribly sorry,” perhaps. “It gets easier with time,” also more likely. But “do not weep,” really?

The only way Jesus could tell the woman to not weep and still have genuine compassion for her, was if he also planned on healing her pain and restoring that which was broken. The beauty and power of the gospel is that is exactly what Jesus did and what he continues to do today.

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