Entering and Leaving Our Gethsemane

Entering and Leaving Our Gethsemane

Perhaps as we meditate, we should spend more time with Jesus in Gethsemane. On the night of His betrayal, that garden was filled with intense emotions. Do not just read what happened there but take time to feel the emotions: the emotions of the sleeping disciples whom Jesus rebuked; the emotions of Judas as he betrayed the Lord; the emotions of the mob; the emotions of the disciples as they fled. Above all, share in the emotions of Jesus.

gethsemane garden

Try to imagine what Jesus went through.

They entered Gethsemane, and He left eight apostles and took Peter, James and John with Him to another place. These three men then saw something they had never seen. Their Lord had always seemed so strong and powerful, but now in their presence, “He began to be sorrowful and deeply distressed” (Matt. 26:37). They saw Him in a way they had never seen Him before. They heard Him say, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with Me.”

He prayed, then He came and found them asleep. He had asked them to watch with Him, but they failed. His soul was even more burdened, and the Bible described how great this burden was. “And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the earth” (Luke 22:44). He returned to the three disciples and found them asleep. This time he did not wake them to share His grief and agony with them. He simply returned for the third time and prayed, “Not My will but Your will be done.”

There are at least two ways to look at this simple prayer. One could look at it as though the burden was so great, He was just ready to quit—the fight was not worth it. He was like a frustrated wife or teen who looks at the “master” and throws up their hands and says, “Whatever, I quit. You win.”

However, this is not where Jesus was when He prayed. It is not the prayer of one who had hopelessly fought a losing fight, nor one who had no hope and was driven by circumstances into surrender. It was a prayer of perfect trust. He was talking to His Father He had known eternally. It was a prayer from the heart of One who was loved to a God who is love. He trusted in God and this changed Him.

Notice how He then changed. The mob arrived; the arrest; the mockery of several trials. He entered Gethsemane in gloom and left this garden with calm assurance. He was a victim, but He understood He was a victorious victim. What made that difference? What changed a troubled soul in great agony to one of calm assurance? It is simple. He talked to the Father. When you are in despair and you are almost ready to quit, talk to the Father, and His peace will change you and give you the victory.

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LAS EMOCIONES DE JESUS

LAS EMOCIONES DE JESUS

Muchas personas tienen una idea de un Jesús “seco”, un Cristo que no sonreía que no tenía expresiones de tipo “común y corriente, alguien que se aprecia más a un robot. Esta idea no está más alejada de la realidad porque de hecho la Biblia nos ha permitido por indicaciones observar las emociones del Maestro. El Señor Jesús además de poseer una naturaleza divina, también era de carne y hueso (Juan 1:14), un ser humano real. Así compartió con nosotros toda la gama de emociones que un individuo normal podría experimentar al ser residente del planeta tierra. Dios en la carne pudo perfectamente bien sentir  felicidad, tristeza, hambre o sueño incluso enojo e ilusión.

emociones de jesus

Jesús, como todos los hombres, experimentó muchas emociones.

¿Qué circunstancias de la vida hicieron llorar a nuestro Señor? ¿Qué lo hizo feliz? Un estudio de este tema es emocionante y gratificante para entender de una mejor forma la naturaleza de la segunda persona de la Deidad; Jesucristo.

Es muy difícil para un ser humano esconder sus emociones mas intensas. En la última década  la red social “Facebook” ha sido tan popular, al punto que han incorporado iconos para expresar las emociones. Con solo colocar una “carita”se puede expresar al público cuál es mi estado de ánimo en el momento. El libro de Isaías habla proféticamente del Señor Jesús como “un varón triste y experimentado en dolor” (53: 3). Tres veces en el Nuevo Testamento hay un registro de Jesús llorando, lo cual es muy significativo. Pero básicamente sus emociones más intensas tomaron lugar al rededor de sus amigos pero también sus enemigos.

Jesús lloró por sus amigos.

El recuento de Juan 11:35 afirma conmovedoramente: “Jesús lloró“. El término griego para “lloró” es “dakruo” en griego, usado solo en este pasaje del Nuevo Testamento lo que realmente capta nuestra atención. Literalmente significa “derramar lágrimas”. Sugiere un llanto silencioso y tierno. La ocasión de esta conmovedora escena está relacionada con la muerte de Lázaro quién era su amigo. La Biblia no provee más detalles sobre las lágrimas de Jesus y más allá de eso nos impacta el hecho de que el sabía que iba a resucitar a Lazaro por las claras indicaciones del contexto. Sin lugar a dudas, en esa ocasión se pudo haber escuchado la caída de un alfiler al suelo. La pregunta completamente valida surge: ¿Qué precipitó las lágrimas del Maestro en este momento? . Seguramente no fue el dolor de la desesperanza (Puede comparar 1 Tes. 4:13) porque Lázaro estaba en un mejor estado de ser. Tampoco fue un llanto de soledad, porque el Señor sabía que su amigo volvería con su familia y sus asociados en el presente.

Es el hermano Marshall Keeble (Un predicador afroamericano del pasado) quien sugiere que Jesús lloró porque reconoció que devolvería a Lázaro a una vida difícil (véase Juan 12:10), una vida donde tendría nuevamente la posibilidad de pecar habiendo estado ya en un lugar de seguridad (hadez), sin duda alguna es una sugerencia aceptable. Sin embargo, es mas probable la opinión que sugiere que Cristo lloró por pura simpatía por aquellos cuyos corazones se estaban rompiendo en este momento. Juan  escribe: “Jesús entonces, al verla llorando, y a los judíos que la acompañaban, también llorando, se estremeció en espíritu y se conmovió, y dijo: ¿Dónde le pusisteis? Le dijeron: Señor, ven y ve”. Qué reconfortante es saber que nuestro gran Sumo Sacerdote realmente comparte nuestros sentimientos (cf. Hebreos 2:17). Si quisiéramos ser como Cristo, debemos aprender a empatizar verdaderamente con los demás (cf. Romanos 12:13). Jesús expresó sus emociones humanas y no tuvo pena en hacerlo, ¿Porqué razón nosotros en muchas ocaciones nos da pena? Dios en la carne lloró por otros y por esa razón es probable que Juan 11:35 sea uno de los versículos más potentes y conmovedores en el N.T.

Jesús Lloró por sus Enemigos.

El Señor Jesús no solo lloró por sus amigos sino por todos aquellos que buscaban su mal y ruina. Usualmente uno no llora por alguien que le ha causado mal mucho menos por alguien que le causará mal en el futuro. Conozco a un hermano en Cristo que fue maltrato en su propia oficina por alguien más y una vez expresó que él no deseaba el mal de esa persona pero que tampoco quería saber nada con respecto a este hombre que le causó mal. Bien la naturaleza de Dios en la carne es revelada en Mateo 23 cuando el llora por sus enemigos. No hay duda alguna que esto es el sello de un buen Maestro. El Señor practicaba lo que él enseñaba ya que en el sermón del monte había enseñado el amor a los enemigos. Cuando el Hijo de Dios contempló el destino inminente de su amada ciudad Jerusalén, que estaba a punto de crucificarlo, lloró audiblemente (porque así lo indica la palabra griega “klaio”) con verdadera angustia (Compare con Lucas 19:41). Sin lugar a dudas ahí en Mateo 23, el Señor aquí evidenció una gran tristeza al anticipar los horrores que descenderían sobre los judíos rebeldes que estaban a punto de asesinar a su propio Mesías. Estos horrores vendrían a ellos en la destrucción de Jerusalén en el año 70. Ezequiel escribió: “Diles: Vivo yo, dice Jehová el Señor, que no quiero la muerte del impío, sino que se vuelva el impío de su camino, y que viva. Volveos, volveos de vuestros malos caminos; ¿por qué moriréis, oh casa de Israel?” (Ez. 33:1).

En verdad, nosotros también debemos llorar por los perdidos. El Señor fue Dios en la carne pero también fue hombre. Hay muchas otras emociones que él experimentó y por esa razón puede comprender nuestras debilidades en ese aspecto. Las emociones no son malas, han sido creadas por Dios al incorporarlas dentro de la esencia del ser humano, solo hay que saber usarlas en el momento correcto y de la forma correcta, con el grupo de personas correctas.

 

 

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Do You Love Your Friends?

Do You Love Your Friends?

Do you have any denominational, generally religious, or even atheistic friends, neighbors, and/or family members? How much do you love them? No, I mean, how much do you really love them? Do you really love them – so much so that you would be willing to risk or to do almost anything in order to see them spend eternity in heaven with you? (You know, like the old love songs’ lyrics would claim about “climbing the highest mountain” and/or “swimming the deepest sea” for those you love and etc? Or better yet, as Romans 5, Philippians 2, and a plethora of other Scriptures state, just as the love of Jesus made Him more than willing to brave and to endure infinitely far more for the lost than either of even those two earthly things would entail?)

Friends and Family

Do you love them? Do you really love them?

The question is: Do we love our lost denominational and non-religious family, friends, and neighbors, enough to want to see them in heaven – despite what it might cost us personally, to help ensure that they get there? Or, are we so selfish, as to put our desire for their momentary friendship and social support during this brief and vaporous earthly life, ahead of their eternity, that we are willing to remain silent about the truth of God regarding their lost estate, because we don’t want to potentially lose their momentary earthly friendship by bringing up Biblical truth?

I am reminded of the parable of the talents which Jesus told in Matthew 25; and how that the servant of His who hid what he had been given instead of investing it for a return, was cast out, right alongside, into, and amongst those who were lost. In other words – and to the point of this article – he joined those very people whom he had refused to invest God’s truth in, in their misery, having become one of them through (in this case) his own disobedience and unwillingness to share with them, what God had given to him.

We, as New Testament Christians, have been given – and have taken full advantage of – the life-giving gospel truth in all of its glory, splendor, and soul-saving simplicity by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ Himself, to share with our lost family, friends, and neighbors:

“For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required.” “But as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, even so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who tests our hearts.” (Luke 12:48; 1 Thessalonians 2:4)

And so, I am begging each and every member of the Lord’s church who has never or not even recently shared the gospel truth with lost loved ones, to please stop and reconsider why. Is their momentary earthly friendship so important that we are willing to watch them be sentenced to eternal hell on Judgment Day, simply because we chose to keep silent and not share the soul-saving, life-giving, gospel truth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ with them today?

Brethren, we can continue to pray with every breath we take, that God will help our congregations to grow… but it will only and ultimately be an effort in futility, until and unless we prove that we have the faith to move forward, get going, get our hands dirty each and every one (Eph. 4:14-16), continually seeking to invest and plant the soul-saving gospel truth of God’s holy word into the hearts and souls of our lost loved ones. God is more than ready (Exod. 14:15; 2 Ptr. 3:9). Are we?

(P.S.: If you need help in learning how to better and more effectively reach out to everyday folks with the gospel, check out “Effective Everyday Evangelism” at: www.amazon.com/author/douglasdingley.)

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Resolving to Change Old Habits

Resolving to Change Old Habits

We are well into the New Year now, and how are things going for you? Perhaps you have made some New Year’s resolutions. That is something that many do, and then set out to follow through. The going is well for the first month or so, and then as old habits and routines start to push on our thoughts we fall back into old patterns of behavior. What happened? Why couldn’t we keep up the good work? We recognize the importance of making changes in our life, but then we don’t necessarily always follow through on those changes. Why is that?

Old Habits

Are you sticking to your resolve? Are you a changed person?

Sometimes we tell ourselves that we just can’t change no matter how hard we try. This is not true. God’s word says that we can change our lives for the better. In the Bible, this is known as repentance: a change of mind that results in a reformation of life. To change, though, we’ve got to be committed to God and His will for our life. Without that foundation, our efforts of change will not last. Paul wrote to the church at Corinth, “Now I rejoice, not that you were made sorry, but that your sorrow led to repentance. For you were made sorry in a godly manner, that you might suffer loss from us in nothing. For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death” (2 Corinthians 7:9-10). To change, we must recognize our past problems and sorrow for them. This sorrow must be of a godly type, having the proper foundation for lasting change. Many simply do not see their past indulgences as being a problem. Hence, when they seek to change, it doesn’t last, but with God, we can change.

Why is it that we cannot hold onto lasting change in our life when we know it is needed? In last week’s article, we noted that change is possible according to God’s word – we can change for the better! This change requires us to acknowledge the wrongs of the past, and make God the foundation of our change. Even under these conditions, change can be daunting. There are other obstacles. Many of these we place in the way of our changing so that we don’t have to do the hard work. If we understand that we can change, then why is it still so hard to change?

Perhaps the biggest detriment to changing is our own desire; we don’t want to change. We may say, “Yes, I do!”, but deep down, we like the way things are because it validates us. Take dieting as an example. Why is it that we can’t lose weight? We like eating! Instead of eating to live, we live to eat, and it is so easy to be validated by eating. Don’t we show love for one another by giving food? If I don’t eat the food, then haven’t I rejected another’s love? Of course not, but we take it that way, and since we don’t want to be unloving, we eat. What a rationalization! We have just validated ourselves as loving people by eating. Who wants to change that? This whole process is deceitful. Jeremiah wrote, “The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give every man according to his ways, According to the fruit of his doings.” Who really validates us? God does. Get yourself out of the way and change!

When we let go of validating ourselves by everything except God, it becomes easier to change. However, knowing that we can change, and getting rid of the obstacles to change, we may still fear change. We tell ourselves: “How I am going to adjust? Maybe the changes will be horrible instead of good. Maybe life isn’t too bad right now as it is.” Fearing the unknown is a challenge when we need to make changes because fear pushes us to accept the status quo and stagnate. How can I confront fear and overcome it, so I can change and thrive?

Fear is an emotion that we create from our own anxieties and worry. God doesn’t want us living like that. He wants us to put our faith and trust in Him. Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” God promises a life of peace and spiritual safety through Christ Jesus, but we must act on faith to receive that life by trusting in Jesus and His word instead of our own rationalizations. When we live like Jesus, we can overcome our fear knowing that Jesus will be with us to give us peace and spiritual safety. We overcome fear through loving God and loving one another as Jesus taught us to love. First John 4:18 says, “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.” Our fear is not greater than God, and God’s love practiced in our lives overcomes it! Trusting in God, we can change!

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Man’s Choice to Be Morally Wrong Isn’t Right

Man’s Choice to Be Morally Wrong Isn’t Right

There is a certain phenomenon which can be seen in our modern political discourse, and Christians who participate in it should stop already.  The problem is thus: a politician gets caught in a morally questionable situation, such as an adulterous affair, and some among their followers defend them by saying something along the lines of, “God raised up David, and Solomon, and Nebuchadnezzar as leaders! And look at what they did!”

nathan morals

There is one standard of morality, it fits all, all have transgressed it.

Some of the reason for this, of course, has to do with the very human instinct to defend those we perceive as being on our side; but some of it is simply just bad theology and a lack of actual biblical knowledge. Defending your politician-of-choice’s bad moral judgment by saying, “David did it too,” does not necessarily make the case that many suppose it does. Neither, for that matter, does comparing politician X to Nebuchadnezzar necessarily put your chosen champion in a good light.

Firstly let’s deal with the actual biblical histories… It is true that God raised up Nebuchadnezzar as a leader and that Nebuchadnezzar was an ungodly man (cf. Daniel 2-4), but we might want to acknowledge that God did this, not to bless His people, but to punish them for 70 years (cf. 2 Kings 24-25, etc.).

Likewise, it is true that David, who God generally approved of, had an affair with Bathsheba, and that Solomon, David’s son, was a polygamist. But this is not the defense that many think it is. For one thing, David’s sin with Bathsheba, and David’s other poor familial choices, wrecked his family, literally resulting in death and misery. Time precludes a litany of the problems David’s children experienced, but it was a pretty miserable affair (cf. 2 Samuel 12-14). Beyond this though, David’s poor familial choices had severe repercussions for the nation of Israel: namely David’s son Absalom, angry at his father, plunged the country into civil war (cf. 2 Samuel 15). This hardly seems like the path rational people want to follow, politically.

So too with Solomon. We read in the Bible that his poor choices with women led him further and further away from God (cf. 2 Kings 11:3-4). Summarizing quite a bit, Solomon’s decision to turn to idols was the beginning of the end of an era and it led the nation down a path that resulted in God’s judgment and the destruction of both Israel and Judah. Politically, Solomon’s poor choices contributed to civil unrest, and following his death, the nation was divided by God as punishment, with David’s line losing 10 of the 12 tribes.

Do we really want to defend our politicians-of-the day by comparing their choices to choices which historically led to death, civil war and political upheaval? That doesn’t seem like sound reasoning.

But there is another reason we should stop using these sorts of arguments. Namely, because they miss much of the point of what God is actually trying to teach us in His word. For example, when we study the story of David and Bathsheba, we might want to make sure that we glean the actual point of the account. God is not sharing the story in order to justify powerful men having affairs. In fact, just the opposite is true. The story teaches us that God holds even kings accountable to His standards!

In the story of David and Bathsheba, there is a hero, a man of God who does the right thing, but it is not David. The hero of the story is Nathan, the prophet, who had the God-given duty to confront David concerning his sin. Nathan did this, quite boldly, and only after David repented did God, in His mercy, grant David repentance (cf. 2 Samuel 12).

There are two take-aways from the text. First, if we, like David are caught in a sin, rather than justifying it, we should repent and turn to God for mercy. But second, when we observe powerful people caught up in sin, we need to have the boldness Nathan had to confront them about their deeds. Nathan did not rationalize away David’s indiscretion, nor did he allow his admiration for David, nor his fear of David’s power, to silence him. Instead he boldly did what God required him to do and chastised David for David’s sin.

Many years later, John the Baptist did much the same with Herod (cf. Mark 6:18). One wonders if the Herodians, Jews who politically supported Herod, argued that John should have kept quite, pointing out to John, “consider David and Bathsheba.” Whether they did or not, John did not keep quite when he observed his king sinning with a woman. Instead he boldly did what God required him to do and denounced it.

We might notice that Jesus had very little respect for Herod’s morals (cf. Luke 13:31-33), but He did think John was a great man (cf. Matthew 11:11).

Christians who do decide to be politically active should keep these things in mind. We are to be faithful to God above all else, even above our loyalty to kings or other leaders. When we observe sin, even in the powerful, we should indeed remember the story of David and Bathsheba; but remembering the true hero of that story, let us choose to be a Nathan.

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