“Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!”
How many people would willingly go to their death in order that others might live? There are a few brave and selfless souls in the world who have given their lives to save others.
More often than not, people who give their lives were hoping it wouldn’t be necessary. The fireman or policeman who loses their life in the line of duty was doing something incredibly brave. In most cases, they were not planning on dying. The person who jumps in to try and save a drowning person and dies in the process didn’t mean to die, they just wanted to help someone else.
Jesus knew he would have to die. He also knew why, and he knew who would get the glory.
This is not the kind of death where someone jumps in front of a moving train or leaps off of a tall building. This is the kind of death that happens when good meets evil. This was a collision between two unyielding forces.
On the one side, Jesus. Absolutely and completely devoted to His Father’s will. His Father, absolutely devoted to His Son, and also to His Creation. To save the Creation, the Son has to die.
On the other side, Evil. The forces of Evil are very active in Jesus’ day. Demons inhabit people’s minds and take over control. The Evil One has infiltrated and overcome the thinking of God’s own temple priests.
Something had to give. Satan was determined to corrupt all God’s creation. Jesus was determined to save it.
Jesus, knowing the stakes, obeys His Father. But that doesn’t mean he liked it. Obedience is sometimes like that.
Let’s Discuss: Being in crisis has a wonderful way of focussing the mind. I remember one time looking up from fiddling with the radio while I was driving only to discover that the traffic ahead of me had stopped. The actual time lapse between seeing the stopped car and maneuvering around it was about two seconds. In my mind, it felt like twenty or thirty seconds passed as everything seemed to slow down and come into focus. How do you think the arrival of “this hour” affected our Lord’s mind?
I think he felt incredible stress, the stress of facing something extremely difficult and knowing you still have to go through it.
I think He was well prepared because He took the time to pray and seek His Father in the garden of Gethsemane. He was strengthened there by an angel. He was strengthened due to His prayer and focused submission as His will was in harmony with the Father’s will. If He needed to do this, then so do I.
He was about to endure torture and pain. Hard for me to relate since I hate going to the doctor’s to get a shot.
LOL!
Robster, you crack me up! So true!! I can relate as well. 🙂