by Bethany Cayton
The account of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane is a passage familiar to many. It’s
the passage that displays Jesus praying to his father for God’s will to be done, while
the disciples sleep a few stone throws away.
In this week’s study of Loving the Way Jesus Loves, the author, Phil Ryken has us look at this familiar passage and focuses the lens on Jesus and his selfless nature. I went into this chapter knowing that I would feel the heaviness of application. After all, we can all be less self-seeking and more selfless when loving those around us.
But what I didn’t expect was the radical perspective change that happened while rereading the account of Jesus in Gethsemane.
It was the night before He died. The Last Supper had just wrapped up and Jesus calls a prayer meeting with his disciples. He takes his three close friends, has them walk further into the garden, and leaves them to “keep watch and pray” while he gets alone with His father.
Matthew describes Jesus during this time as “sorrowful and troubled” (v37) and that he tells the three disciples close to him “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death; remain here watch with me.” I don’t know about you, but it’s hard for me to read Matthew 26 and reconcile Jesus being fully God and fully man.
It’s hard for me to read that Jesus was sorrowful, troubled and overwhelmed - so much so, that he was sweating drops of blood! (Luke 22.44). Jesus had the power to end it; He is sovereign and could have mastered up a plan that would have avoided such physical and emotional pain, right?
Instead, Jesus chose obedience - obedience to the father, and that makes his decision to sacrifice himself all the more a reflection of his divinity.
If you look at the life and ministry of Jesus, you see that all throughout scripture, his life is marked by obedience. As he is performing miracles, teaching and investing in his disciples, he repeatedly gives all authority to God, articulating that everything he does has been instructed by the Father.
The perfect lamb, obedient til death.
Jesus had all divine power to avoid what was awaiting him in the garden, and yet he still chose to be obedient shows me the divine nature of Christ, being both fully God and fully man.
So, what does this mean for us as sinful, inherently disobedient people? It means we should be like Christ in his life and in his death (Phil 3.10). Paul writes it this way in Philippians 2:5-11
5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;7 rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross! 9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Obedient to death, even death on the cross! May I ask, friend, are you being obedient in your own life? What about in the areas of loving selflessly? How are you doing loving your spouse intentionally? Your children? We can take hope by looking at the life and death of Christ, and follow his example of praying in the garden and following through with obedience.
I pray today, you would have encouragement from being united with Christ and comfort from his love, taking hold of the common bond in the spirit, so that your joy may be complete (Phil. 2.1-2).
--- --- ---
No comments:
Post a Comment