A Model in Suffering
Matthew 26:36– 46
Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, “My Father if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will. ” Matthew 26:39
In Gethsemane, we see two different responses to trouble: Jesus’ submission and the disciples’ fear. We must learn from Jesus what our attitude shows when life becomes painful–one of earnest prayer to our Father in heaven. We must not try to stand in our own strength; rather we must learn new dependence on him. The person who will depend on God in times of trial and pain is the person whom God will be able to use. Above all we must submit our will to the will of God: “Yet, not as I will but as you will. Our greatest problems come not from trouble, but from our resistance to trouble when we close our eyes to the will of God as it is revealed to us in difficulty.
Thank God for trouble! It will drive us to him!
The disciples did not follow the model of Jesus; instead, they left him in his time of greatest weakness. They looked at their circumstances instead of him. They forsook Jesus and fled. How it must have pained him! He was denied him three times. How that must have pierced his soul! We are to watch and pray lest we enter into temptation and forsake him when times are difficult. The Lord will not cast us off when we stumble and fall, and has given us a way of escape so that we need not falter (1 Cor. 10:13). It is a grace that can keep us even when the opposition is great.
Jesus is looking for men and women, young people and old people who will stand fast for him, who will put him first, and not only when it is pleasant. When life includes misunderstanding, sarcasm, scorn, and persecution, he has grace to keep us faithful. He will not forsake us. Should we forsake him?
This is an excerpt from a book This Day with the Master by Dennis F. Kinlaw. If you would like to buy this book please click here.