The Lord Jesus is always direct and honest. This was demonstrated during the most stressful time of his earthly life, in the garden of Gethsemane. He desired three of his disciples to be with him in this crucial hour, but they fell asleep. Besides being stressed to the point of shedding drops of blood, (Luke 22:44) he was also disappointed by the lack of faithfulness and fortitude of men he had trained for over three years. They fell asleep when Jesus needed them most.
Jesus was experiencing intense grief, stress, sorrow and extreme sadness. He knew what was contained in the “cup” he was about to drink: great torture, suffering and separation. He asked his Father to let the cup pass from him, but resolved not once or twice, but three times, “Nevertheless, let Your will be done instead of mine.” This was the real battle; the enemy would have loved to stop Jesus from going to the cross for our sins. But Jesus was resolute in his mission. He would endure the torture and suffering on our behalf, and he was honest about his feelings in this battle.
Unlike Jesus, who is the last Adam, the first Adam in the Garden of Eden was not honest. Having disobeyed the command not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, Adam, rather than telling the truth and taking the blame, pointed a finger at God, and another at Eve (Genesis 3:12) “The woman You gave me, she gave me the fruit from the tree and I ate it.”
Jesus, though tempted beyond anything we could imagine, tells the truth, “I am sorrowful and stressed to the point of death.” He bravely faced his torture and death and did it all for us. He was honest to God. We can be honest as well. Jesus shows the way.
How honest do you feel you can be with God about anything you have done, or thought currently or in your past? The Lord knows it all, anyway. You can afford to be totally honest with Him at all times.
By Chip Whitman
Pastor of Care & Counseling
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