Did Jesus Have Feelings?

During the time I was not practicing my faith, whenever I would see images and statues of Jesus, I imagined Him to be a sort of distant, aloof man who had no feelings and therefore, could not relate to my struggles in life.  I mean, how could He? He always looked so peaceful, either surrounded by children, walking with little sheep while holding a staff, extending out His arms, or pointing to His Heart. How could He possibly relate to me when I felt that life had no purpose, when I felt isolated from people, or when I felt deep shame and guilt?  

Now, almost twenty years later, I see how wrong I was. Jesus felt deeply, He loved deeply, rejoiced deeply, and experienced all our human emotions because He wanted to draw close to us.  There are so many instances in the Bible where Jesus was emotionally moved, even to tears, particularly when He realized that His own people in Jerusalem were to reject Him (Luke 19:41) or angered and grieved at the Pharisees’ hardness of heart before He restored the man’s withered hand (Mark 3:5).  One of my favorite encounters was when Jesus expressed His deep longing for the Samaritan woman’s conversion, so much so that He beelined straight through Samaria in the heat of the day (Jews typically took the long route to avoid this Gentile country), so that He could find her, converse with her about her deepest longings, affirm her, and reveal His true identity as Messiah to her (John 4:4-42).  What love! 

This is the real Jesus.  A Jesus with a Heart that is pierced with love and longing for you and for me.  Until we come to this understanding of His Divine humanity, He will always remain a plaster statue with a half-smile.  No, our God became flesh. Our God has a Heart that longs for you to share everything with Him, all your hopes, joys, sorrows.  We don’t ever have to be perfect to approach Him. There is nothing you have experienced to which He cannot relate.  Talk to Jesus as you would a friend, and you will find a God who has a beating, Sacred Heart that longs to console you, rejoice with you, and to relate to you.  He cares about everything you care about, because He cares for YOU.