Daily devotion – Easter’s passion
Mark 14:32 Then they came to a place which was named Gethsemane; and He said to His disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” 33 And He took Peter, James, and John with Him, and He began to be troubled and deeply distressed. 34 Then He said to them, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch.”
35 He went a little farther, and fell on the ground, and prayed that if it were possible, the hour might pass from Him. 36 And He said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will.”
37 Then He came and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “Simon, are you sleeping? Could you not watch one hour? 38 Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
39 Again He went away and prayed, and spoke the same words. 40 And when He returned, He found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy; and they did not know what to answer Him.
41 Then He came the third time and said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? It is enough! The hour has come; behold, the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. 42 Rise, let us be going. See, My betrayer is at hand.”
Gethsemane – literally the “press of oils” – lay at the foot of the Mount of Olives. It was a secluded spot known also to Judas and was one of the favourite meeting places for Jesus and His disciples.
This night, Jesus asked His disciples to sit down near the entrance and wait – literally, “until I have prayed.” Then Jesus asked Peter, James and John to go with Him a little further into the Garden.
As the four walked into the garden this night, Jesus became noticeably distressed (to be alarmed) and troubled (to be in extreme anguish). Jesus told the three that His soul was overwhelmed with such sorrow that it threatened His life.
The full impact of His death and its spiritual consequences struck Jesus and He staggered under its weight….the prospect of alienation from His Father horrified Him.
For later as He was suffering on the Cross of Calvary, as He had taken yours and my sins upon Him, for the first time in history, the Trinity was cleaved for a moment and fellowship was disrupted.
It was then that Jesus would cry out, Mar 15:34 And at the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?” which is translated, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”
Easter always reminds me of the price, the pain and the passion that Christ displayed for all those who would receive His sacrifice. It is this great love that He displayed that drives my serving Him, that empowers me to continue, that I long to finally enjoy fully when I pass from this world into glory!
But only a Christian can and will understand this!
What is Easter to you this year, this time in your life?