“Then he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, knelt down, and prayed, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me; yet, not my will but yours be done.” Then an angel from heaven appeared to him and gave him strength. In his anguish he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down on the ground.”
Luke 22:41-44 (NRSV)
So often we think of Jesus only in light of His divinity. We live in a time not that much unlike all the centuries of Christendom when the divinity of Jesus needed to be articulated and defended. We live in a time when a book such as The Da Vinci Code can remain a New York Times best seller for over a year. But in our efforts to accentuate one extreme we neglect a reality that is equally as true. Since we handle paradoxes so poorly we often forget the humanity of Christ. A picture of Jesus that only acknowledges His divinity is just as bad as one that only acknowledges His humanity. The two must be kept in perfect balance for He is the God-man, fully divine and fully human.
What went on in the garden of Gethsemane? As I read this passage from Luke this morning I was struck by the utter humanness of Jesus. This incarnational reality was comprehensive. Jesus so entered into the human condition as to experience the full breadth of human experiences. Even more, he entered into the fallen human experience. This is not suggesting that He was sinful; He certainly was sinless. But even the sinless one did not exempt Himself from suffering and pain. He did not enter this world in any way insulated from its throes of misery. He entered fully into our experience by becoming one of us, human, yet more human than any of us will ever be, for He alone images both deity and true humanity completely.
Consider this one last thought. In the miracle of the Incarnation, Jesus became what He was not. His divine nature did not change, but in addition to it He assumed another. However, in the ascension He stayed what He had become. He ascended into Heaven as the God-man, fully human, fully divine, essentially drawing humanity with Him into the very heart and life of the Godhead. This is a picture of what salvation truly is. Salvation is not a static event or status judiciously applied. It is much more than that. Salvation is to enter into the very communion of the Holy Trinity and participate in the life of God. Jesus says in John 6:56, “Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them.” Jesus desires to mutually abide with man – He in us, and we in Him – an interpenetrating and reciprocating reality of love, holiness, and communion. This reality is only possible through Him for He alone is the God-man who became what He was not and stayed what He became.
Wow! I am always taken aback to read your thoughts.
Today, i was drawn into a study of Ephesians again. As I read, it is clear that Paul knew we needed to hear it over and over again. Jesus is what you spoke of. It is so cool to think of his anguish as He knew He was about to take on the sin of the whole world, past (good for Moses, Abraham), present and future.
In Ephesians 1:7 we are set free by the blood of His death. God’s the great planner. How rich is His grace so full and free vs. 7b. How very special we should feel to share with Christ. He has revealed our salvation which waits in His kingdom for us. Thanks my brother for your authenticity to reveal what God has laid on your heart. In 1 Thesalonians it says we should not hold back the work of the Holy Spirit. So again rock on, and glory to our king, Master, and savior, Jesus Christ – the God-man.
Love in Christ Heath