Matthew 26:42
He went away a second time and prayed, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.”
How many times have you read or listened to this passage? I would dare say that you are not considered to be a preacher if you have not preached at least one sermon on this passage. This is such an intimate time between God and his son Jesus Christ and we are so blessed to be able to read and listen to these words. Have you ever really thought about what was being said between Jesus and his Father? Have you ever considered what was going on in the mid of Christ as he asked his Father to take the cup away from him? I’ve thought about these things and from where I stand it boils down to Jesus doing whatever needs to be done even though it was going to be difficult for him.
It was about 2:00AM this morning and Emma began crying. I’m not sure what was bothering her. Maybe she had a bad dream, maybe she didn’t eat enough of her snack at bedtime or maybe she just wanted to be held. This was the second night that Emma decided she needed to be up at 2:00AM so April asked me to see if I get her calmed down and back to sleep. I got up and went into Emma’s room and picked her up and began to rock her in the rocking chair. Before I knew it 45 minutes had passed and were both asleep there in the rocking chair, I had WON, or so I thought. I laid Emma back down and almost immediately she started to cry. I went back into our bedroom and I told April to turn down the monitor and just let her cry because if we keep giving into these late nights they will become a habit. It took her a few minutes but Emma finally cried herself out and slept until nearly 7:00AM this morning.
I tell you that story to share with you that my understanding of the garden is very different today than it was yesterday. I understood that Jesus was crying out to his Father for help and that Jesus was being mature enough to do what needed to be done regardless of the suffering he would suffer. I understood academically that Jesus, the son, made a request of God, the Father, said the Father said no. I now understand academically and I am beginning to understand emotionally what happened in the garden.
My little girl was crying out to me that she didn’t want to be in her bed, she wanted to be in her Daddy’s arms. My little girl was saying she wanted the comfort of her parents and I had to tell her no because it was the right thing to do. Even though it hurt me more than I can express I knew I had to allow her to go through something so she can grow up and mature into a young lady. God’s love for us and for Jesus is shown through God allowing his son go through something painful because it’s what had to be done.
Is there something in your life that you are putting off because dealing with it is painful? Are you refusing to mature because it might be difficult? Today you can be reassured that God understands what you are going through. God’s only son cried out in the garden begging him to take the cup from him and God still did what needed to be done which was saying no to his only son. I love you all and I hope you are all blessed this morning.
Be Strong and Courageous,
Paul
